Assignment 4, Lauer Chapters 5 and 6

1) Locate a quantitative study. Then provide the following:

a) Correct APA style Bibliographical reference and URL for the study.

Scruggs, T. E., Margo, M. A., Brigham, F. J, Sullivan, G. S. (1992). Effects of mnemonic reconstructions on the spatial learning of adolescents with learning disabilities. Learning Disability Quarterly, 15(3), 154-162.

http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0731-9487(199222)15%3A3%3C154%3AEOMROT%3E2.0.CO%3B2-2

b) List and Explain the research method.

The research method is a true experimental research method. There was a control group that was given a map without any of the keywords or pictures to help describe the historic events. There were pictures included, but the pictures did not depict any descriptions to help the students remember the name of the event. There was an experimental group (mnemonic group) the students' maps were label the same as the control group, except they had pictures to help them remember the name of the historic event at that particular locations. They also were given key words to associate to the events, as an aid to help remember what occurred at that locations. The students were randomly selected to participate in either the control group or the mnemonic group. All other aspects were kept constant for the most part.

c) Explain the research method, any instruments and how they ere developed or chosen. Be sure to indicate the type of instrument (survey, interview, focus group etc.)

The research method was a true experimental design that assigned the participants to either the mnemonic group or the control group. The purpose of the study was to determine whether mnemonic keywords could enhance the learning of capabilities of students with learning disabilities. The mnemonic group would use pictures and keywords that sounded similar or related to the historic events that were described on the maps. The maps represented 18th century North American battles. The study was hoping to determine whether the mnemonic group scored better on the post test of remembering various historic events compared to the control groups. The instruments used for the study included a practice map and a corresponding test map of the same size. Of course the test map did not have the events labeled already. On the test map, there was spots for the various historic events in which the students were asked to label each one, then determine whether the British won the battle or the Americans won the battle.

d) List the research questions and the answers the study arrived at for those questions.

The research question that was asked in the article is "What effects will mnemonic (memory-enhancing) strategies have on the learning of students with learning disabilities? The answer to the questions is discussed at the end of the article. Once the students' response sheets were scored, it was clear that the mnemonic group outscored the control group. The mnemonic group scored a mean of 10.05 (SD=3.22) correct out of 14 questions; the control group scored a mean of 4.55 (SD=2.61). Therefore, clearly the mnemonic groups outperformed the control group and the answer to the research question is mnemonic strategies will help students with learning disabilities score better on exams.

e) Evaluate the effectiveness of the research design, methods and instrument(s) of this study.

The research design was done very well. In a true experimental study, the sample of students were fairly equal, selected randomly, and assigned to their groups randomly. The methods of the experiments were kept controlled and data was clear and organized. The instruments of the study were controlled to focus only on the independent variables. The dependent variables were kept fairly constant for this study.


2) Locate a qualitative study. Then provide the following:

a) Correct APA style Bibliographical reference and URL for the study.

Shaw, K. M. (1997). Remedial education as ideological battleground: Emerging remedial education policies in the community college. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 19(3), 284-296.

http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0162-3737(199723)19%3A3%3C284%3AREAIBE%3E2.0.CO%3B2-F

b) List and Explain the research method.

The research method that is implemented is through observations and narrative descriptions. They were ethnographers with advanced training in education, sociology or anthropology. They performed observations and fieldwork approximating 500 hours of fieldwork per institution.

c) Explain the research method and how is was developed or chosen.

The ethnographers collected the data from many sources, which included:

1. formal and informal interviews of faculty, staff and students.
2. observations of students in formal and informal settings.
3. observations of faculty in formal and informal settings.
4. observations of staff and administrators in formal settings.
5. group settings, such as freshmen orientations cultural festivals and college events.
6. historical and archival documents.
7. accreditation reports.

d) List any research questions and the answers the study arrived at for those questions.

The research questions for this article would relate the mission of the community college as a post secondary institution and the remediation of its students. The main problem or concern is that many community colleges are changing their missions and goals from offering the first two years of transferable work to becoming an institution for remediation or basic skills.
The answer is the research examined three community colleges that have varying approaches to remedial education at their institutions. The three community college systems are Bootstrapper Community College, Nurturer Community College and Service Provider Community College. These three community colleges have different approaches towards their view of remedial education and they still serve as the highest success rates of transferability to 4 year institutions from their community colleges.

e) Evaluate the effectiveness of the research design, methods and instrument(s) of this study.

The effectiveness of the research design was detailed and clear. All dependent variables were kept as close to constant as would allow. The independent variables were compared through observations by a team of ethnographers who were trained in their fields. Every attempt to keep the dependent variables constant were taken into consideration. One consideration would be to perform the same study using more than just the three community colleges, but I understand that would invest more money and more time into the study, both of which I am sure is not expendable.


3) Describe a quantitative approach to answer the question: What is the effect of using only a podcast for content transmission on student learning in graduate classes?

A quantitative approach to research the effects of using only a podcast for content transmission in graduate level classes would be as follows. One would have to randomly select a sample of students from the same graduate level classes, approximately with the same level of background education and similar times for studying purposes. The treatment group would be given only podcast lectures for the content of the class information where the control group would be given a podcast, text, books and any traditional information that is usually given in a classroom environment. The research would study the effect or results on a standard final exam for example. The students in the treatment group would be compared with the students in the control group to see which group of students performed better on the final exam.


4) Describe a qualitative approach to answer the question: What are the effects of using podcasts for content transmission on student learning in graduate classes?

Observation and interviews might be a good way to study the effects of using podcasts for content transmission on student learning in graduate classes. One could always interview a student to see how they thought the learning process was increased or decreased due to the podcasts. We could examine students' dialogue with other students once they listened to the podcasts to see how much of the information was actually gained from the podcast. Observations on how well students present the material during a presentation might be another way to see how much information was gained from podcast lectures.

James