The highlight of today's session was the "excursion". We went for a library tour, followed by a chill-out session at the students' hub. It was a nice cosy place, especially when it's not crowded. I think i can just sit there to watch the rain, over a cup of hot coffee and a good book! ;p
That aside, today we got a first-hand experience of being a "proper researcher"! We were supposed to do a "mini-research" in our groups, from collecting data & analysing data to report writing.
From the WIHIC data collected yesterday, we ran the Cronbach Alpha Reliability test and the paired-sample T-test (which i've described in the previous post). This is still manageable. The difficult part, i feel, is the report writing and data interpretation part. Of course, the data analysis part went to the Maths and Science teachers (Andrew, Yingjie and me) while the abstract and literature review part was crafted out by Selina and Sushi.
The main difficulty we faced was in coming up with the research question and the rationale of this research. Perhaps it was due to the fact that we had a long day, and the weather was cool and relaxing, we decided to call it a day and let our brains rest.
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Group Assignment - Writing a report
Various sections required in writing a report:
Cover page - Title, group members name, abstract, 3 key words
Introduction
Body
-Literature Review
-Research questions
-Methodology
-Sample (how many, who etc.)
Instrument (Eg. WIHIC - include table 1 to describe scales and description of scales)
Procedure
Findings
Conclusion - recommendations
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Report will include 3 tables and 1 graph.
TABLE 1: Scales
TABLE 2: Report Cronbach Alpha results
TABLE 3: Scale means, Standard Deviation and Item means (*scales if P<0.05)
Note: APA format - Three horizontal lines in data table only
In plotting a line graph (using item mean):
(1) If there's no sig diff, take the average of the two means and plot as a single point.
(2) If there's a sig diff, plot the two means as separate points.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Note:
In citing references,
(1) For journal, title of article should not be be italics, but name of journal should be
(2) For book, name of book should be in italics instead
Refer to link for more examples.
Cover page - Title, group members name, abstract, 3 key words
Introduction
Body
-Literature Review
-Research questions
-Methodology
-Sample (how many, who etc.)
Instrument (Eg. WIHIC - include table 1 to describe scales and description of scales)
Procedure
Findings
Conclusion - recommendations
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Report will include 3 tables and 1 graph.
TABLE 1: Scales
TABLE 2: Report Cronbach Alpha results
TABLE 3: Scale means, Standard Deviation and Item means (*scales if P<0.05)
Note: APA format - Three horizontal lines in data table only
In plotting a line graph (using item mean):
(1) If there's no sig diff, take the average of the two means and plot as a single point.
(2) If there's a sig diff, plot the two means as separate points.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Note:
In citing references,
(1) For journal, title of article should not be be italics, but name of journal should be
(2) For book, name of book should be in italics instead
Refer to link for more examples.
More on data analysis
Cronbach Alpha Reliability
- to find out how reliable a questionnaire is
- to find out if all the items in the questionnaire are reliable ( ~0.6-0.9 would be good)
- to find out if the items can be repeatedly used
( Low reliability might be due to: context used, wordings of items, interpretation of statement by participants etc)
- Too high a cronbach alpha reliability is not desirable. It could mean that the particular item is redundant.
Paired Sample t-test
The Paired Samples T Test compares the means of two variables. It computes the difference between the two variables for each case, and tests to see if the average difference is significantly different from zero.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Preparing the data...
In this case, we will pair Pref_SC with Act_SC, Pref_IS with Act_IS etc.
In SPSS,
(1) Data input the mean values (for both pref and act)
(2) Check that all the data are of the same decimal places
(3) To analyse: Click on analyze --> compare means --> paired-sample T-test
(4) Choose the different pairs of data for comparison
(5) Under options: Set confidence interval to 95% --> 'ok'
To save the data in a different format, go to the left hand side, select the data that we want to save, right click and choose the file format as required.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Analysing the data...
As we are using 95% confidence interval, an alpha value, p <0.05 means that the difference is significant.
For eg, if p = 0.001, it means that there is a significance difference between the actual mean and preferred mean (a gap exists). So, some interventions will be needed to address these differences.
- to find out how reliable a questionnaire is
- to find out if all the items in the questionnaire are reliable ( ~0.6-0.9 would be good)
- to find out if the items can be repeatedly used
( Low reliability might be due to: context used, wordings of items, interpretation of statement by participants etc)
- Too high a cronbach alpha reliability is not desirable. It could mean that the particular item is redundant.
Paired Sample t-test
The Paired Samples T Test compares the means of two variables. It computes the difference between the two variables for each case, and tests to see if the average difference is significantly different from zero.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Preparing the data...
In this case, we will pair Pref_SC with Act_SC, Pref_IS with Act_IS etc.
In SPSS,
(1) Data input the mean values (for both pref and act)
(2) Check that all the data are of the same decimal places
(3) To analyse: Click on analyze --> compare means --> paired-sample T-test
(4) Choose the different pairs of data for comparison
(5) Under options: Set confidence interval to 95% --> 'ok'
To save the data in a different format, go to the left hand side, select the data that we want to save, right click and choose the file format as required.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Analysing the data...
As we are using 95% confidence interval, an alpha value, p <0.05 means that the difference is significant.
For eg, if p = 0.001, it means that there is a significance difference between the actual mean and preferred mean (a gap exists). So, some interventions will be needed to address these differences.
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Session 4: Reflections
Some pointers to note when constructing questionaires:
(1) Use positively worded statements
(2) Limit number of items per scale (about 4-5)
(3) To use a 4-point Likert Scale
The groupwork session (case study) provided "real" examples on the different school climate. The one that my group did on portrayed a negative school learning environment. The school physical environment was lacking, even though the "people element" appears to be positive. Even though the prinicipal was experienced and people-oriented, that apparently didnt help in terms of the school's academic achievement. From the case study, we also found out that pupils of the school did not have any disciplinary issues. However, they lack motivation and did not have a sense of pride for the school. This shows how the both physical and human aspects of a school can impact the school's learning environment. The human aspect will include the management, the teachers and the students themself.
Very often, in our neighbourhood schools, a common "problem" faced by teachers is the discipline of the students. However, a disciplined but not motivated student will also not be able to excel. Teachers need to first have the belief that every child has the potential to succeed. Only then can we inculcate the correct values to our students so that they will have the right attitude. Also, depending on the ability of the students, we have to adjust our teachings and expectations accordingly.
Today, we also had the chance to try out the WIHIC survey ourselves, and were supposed to analyse the results using SPSS. This hands-on session is useful especially for those of us who wanted to carry out a similar assessment back in our schools.
(1) Use positively worded statements
(2) Limit number of items per scale (about 4-5)
(3) To use a 4-point Likert Scale
The groupwork session (case study) provided "real" examples on the different school climate. The one that my group did on portrayed a negative school learning environment. The school physical environment was lacking, even though the "people element" appears to be positive. Even though the prinicipal was experienced and people-oriented, that apparently didnt help in terms of the school's academic achievement. From the case study, we also found out that pupils of the school did not have any disciplinary issues. However, they lack motivation and did not have a sense of pride for the school. This shows how the both physical and human aspects of a school can impact the school's learning environment. The human aspect will include the management, the teachers and the students themself.
Very often, in our neighbourhood schools, a common "problem" faced by teachers is the discipline of the students. However, a disciplined but not motivated student will also not be able to excel. Teachers need to first have the belief that every child has the potential to succeed. Only then can we inculcate the correct values to our students so that they will have the right attitude. Also, depending on the ability of the students, we have to adjust our teachings and expectations accordingly.
Today, we also had the chance to try out the WIHIC survey ourselves, and were supposed to analyse the results using SPSS. This hands-on session is useful especially for those of us who wanted to carry out a similar assessment back in our schools.
SPSS - A simple guide
(1) In the data view, copy and paste data from Excel.
Note: Only copy the data, ignore the headings.
(2) In the variable view,
- change the name (eg. Pref1_SC)
- change the number of decimal place (as required)
(3) Go to Analyze --> Scale --> Reliability Analysis
- Highlight and select the data needed for analysis (eg. Pref1_SC to Pref7_SC)
- Choose statistics (check all boxes except the last two: Tukey's test... & Intraclass...)
- Click 'continue', then 'ok'
(4) Save file
Note: Only copy the data, ignore the headings.
(2) In the variable view,
- change the name (eg. Pref1_SC)
- change the number of decimal place (as required)
(3) Go to Analyze --> Scale --> Reliability Analysis
- Highlight and select the data needed for analysis (eg. Pref1_SC to Pref7_SC)
- Choose statistics (check all boxes except the last two: Tukey's test... & Intraclass...)
- Click 'continue', then 'ok'
(4) Save file
School Learning Environment
4 Broad Categories which affects a school's LE
(A) School - school culture, physical aspect, money, school leaders' vision, discipline, leadership, support staff, security, resource adequacy
(B) Teacher - teaching methodology, shared vision among staff, professional interest, staff welfare, work pressure
(C) Student - S-T interaction, S-S interaction, learning styles of students, students' attitude, emotional well-being
(D) External - Parents' support
(A) School - school culture, physical aspect, money, school leaders' vision, discipline, leadership, support staff, security, resource adequacy
(B) Teacher - teaching methodology, shared vision among staff, professional interest, staff welfare, work pressure
(C) Student - S-T interaction, S-S interaction, learning styles of students, students' attitude, emotional well-being
(D) External - Parents' support
Monday, December 3, 2007
Session 3 - Reflections
From today's lesson, i've had a better understanding of the different tools available in assessing LE. I also understand the need to assess the learning environment, to address any gaps, so as to maximise pupils' learning. This will allow me to better understand the readings which i've previously failed to grasp. I think it'll definitely help when i go back and re-read the articles again.
Before this lesson, i didnt know who Fraser is. His name has appeared so many times in the articles that i've read. I also didn't know who Murray was. We've studied about Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, but didn't know that it was actually developed from Murray's work. So today's lesson provided had a good introduction on the different reseachers who had contributed significantly in the research of LE. (Like Lewin (1936), Murray (1938) to Walbery, Moos and Fraser and Fisher. )
We were introduced a number of quantitative tools in the assessment of LE. I'm especially interested in WIHIC. It seems to be an easy tool for "beginners" to adminster. For a start, i think i will work on the LE of a mathematics class. Since my school is on the moodle e-learning platform, i would try to work with my colleagues to come up with something online, that'll benefit the whole department. I'm definitely looking forward to the lesson on SPSS, as it'll also help in my AR project.
Before this lesson, i didnt know who Fraser is. His name has appeared so many times in the articles that i've read. I also didn't know who Murray was. We've studied about Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, but didn't know that it was actually developed from Murray's work. So today's lesson provided had a good introduction on the different reseachers who had contributed significantly in the research of LE. (Like Lewin (1936), Murray (1938) to Walbery, Moos and Fraser and Fisher. )
We were introduced a number of quantitative tools in the assessment of LE. I'm especially interested in WIHIC. It seems to be an easy tool for "beginners" to adminster. For a start, i think i will work on the LE of a mathematics class. Since my school is on the moodle e-learning platform, i would try to work with my colleagues to come up with something online, that'll benefit the whole department. I'm definitely looking forward to the lesson on SPSS, as it'll also help in my AR project.
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