Week 4 ETEC 668 Quantitative Research in Educational Technology

Dr. Seungoh Paek

February 5, 2014

Tonight’s Agenda

Research Presentations Introduction to SPSS Group Discussion

Research Presentations

Groups

1. Alicia & Rochelle

2. Chloe & Nat

3. Joe & Penn

4. Jonathan & Yasmin

Number Generator

Continuing Week 3

Let’s review…

What are the four types of measurement scales? (Clue: N.O.I.R)– Nominal– Ordinal– Interval– Ratio

When to use which …

Level of Measurement

Statistics for Measuring

Nominal Ordinal I/R

Central Tendency

Mode Median Mean

Dispersion/Variability

- Range VarianceStd Dev

1

4

2 3

5

igma Freud & Descriptive Statistics

Chapter 2 & Chapter 3

SPSS

Data for Practice

Using SPSS

Using SPSS

A TASTE of RSTudio

R

R is a free software environment for statistical computing and graphics.

RStudio

RStudio is a free and open source integrated development environment (IDE) for R, a programming language for statistical computing and graphics.

A Taste of PSPP

PSPP

Download PSPP - For Mac, click here. For Window, click here.

igma Freud & Descriptive Statistics

A Picture is Really Worth a Thousand Words

Outline

Why pictures are worth “a thousand words” How to create:• Histogram• Polygon

Using SPSS to create & modify charts Different types of charts and their uses

Why Illustrate Data?

When describing a set of scores you will want to use two things…– One score for describing the group of data

• Measure of Central Tendency

– Measure of how diverse or different the scores are from one another• Measure of Variability/Dispersion

– However, a visual representation of these two measures is much more effective when examining distributions.

Ten Ways to a Great Figure

Minimize the “junk” Plan before you start creating Say what you mean…mean what you say Label everything Communicate ONE idea Keep things balanced Maintain the scale in the graph Remember…simple is best Limit the number of words The chart alone should convey what you want to say

Frequency Distributions

Method of tallying, and representing the number of times a certain score occurs– Group scores into interval classes/ranges

Creating class intervals– Range of 2, 5, 10, or 20 data points– 10 -20 data points cover entire range of data– List class interval with a multiple of the interval– Largest interval goes at the top

Histograms

Class Intervals

Along the x-Axis

Histograms

Hand Drawn Histogram

Frequency Polygon

“continuous line that represents the frequencies of scores within a class interval”

Cumulative Frequency Distribution

Fat & Skinny of Frequency Distributions

Distributions can be different in four different ways…– Average value– Variability– Skewness– Kurtosis

Average Value

Variability

Skewness (lack of symmetry/lopsidedness)

Positive & Negative Skewness

Kurtosis (flat vs. peaked)

Platykurtic (flat) & Leptokurtic (peaked)

Cool Ways to Chart Data

Column Chart

Cool Ways to Chart Data

Line Chart

Cool Ways to Chart Data

Pie Chart

Using the Computer to Illustrate Data

Creating Histogram Graphs

Using the Computer to Illustrate Data

Creating Bar Graphs

Using the Computer to Illustrate Data

Creating Line Graphs

Using the Computer to Illustrate Data

Creating Pie Graphs

Conducting a Literature Review

7-part Model for Conceptualizing Quantitative Ed Tech Research

1. Select a Topic2. Identify the Research Problem3. Conduct a Literature Review4. State the Research questions and hypotheses5. Determine the Research Design6. Determine the Methods7. Identify Data Analysis Procedures

Purposes of Literature Review in Quantitative Research

1. Clarify the research project2. Clarify the research problem3. Verify the significance of the research

problem – worth studying ? 4. Specify the purpose of the study5. Identify relevant studies6. Identify relevant theories7. Clarify research subproblems

Purposes of Literature Review in Quantitative Research

8. Develop definitions of major variables

9. Identify limitations and assumptions

10. Select a research design

11. Identify tools of measurement

12. Direct data collection & analysis

13. Interpret findings

Use of the Literature

In quantitative research, typically there’s substantial amount of literature at the beginning of a study to:– provide direction for the research questions or

hypotheses.– describe a problem– introduce a theory

Deductively as a framework for the research questions or hypotheses

At the end of study, literature is revisited to compare the results with existing findings in the literature

Steps in Conducting Lit Review

1. Identify key words, descriptors, useful in locating materials in a library

2. With key words in mind, search library catalogs, focus initially on journals & books related to topic

3. Search online databases typically reviewed by social science researchers, e.g ERIC, PsycINFO, ProQuest, Google Scholar, etc.

4. Initially, try to locate about 50 research articles or books related to your topic

Steps in Conducting Lit Review

5. Skim this initial group of articles or chapters & duplicate those that are central to your topic

6. As you find useful literature, create a literature map – visual picture of groupings of literature on the topic

7. Draft summaries of the most relevant articles – include precise citations for the articles using APA, preferably use EndNotes

Steps in Conducting Lit Review

8. Assemble the lit review by organizing it thematically or by important concepts

9. End the lit review with a summary of the major themes and suggest how your study further adds to the literature.

Priority for Selecting Literature Material

Begin with broad synthesis of the literature, e.g. summaries of the literature on your topic in journal article, encyclopedia.

Next, look for refereed journal articles in respected, national journal. Start with most recent issues and work backward in time.

Follow up on references/bibliographies at the end of key articles for more sources

Turn to books related to the topic Next search recent conference papers Time permitting, scan the entries in Dissertation Abstracts Also search the Web

Group Research Project Possible Group Research Project Topic

7-part Model for Conceptualizing Quantitative Ed Tech Research

1. Select a Topic2. Identify the Research Problem3. Conduct a Literature Review4. State the Research questions and hypotheses5. Determine the Research Design6. Determine the Methods7. Identify Data Analysis Procedures

Selecting a Topic

Identify general area of interest, focus Find something that you’re passionate

about Topic that would “make a difference” Something fun that you’re curious about

(hopefully!) Groups’ topic areas – future schools; cyber

charter school; tech integration; what else?

Start with Questions

As a researcher in the field of educational technology, what do you think is your task? In other words, what do you want to do as a ETEC researcher?

Is there an exemplary research paper that you have read about the field of educational technology?

What changes do you want to make to the field? Is there a contribution that you want to make? If so, in which area of this multidisciplinary area?

Identify the Research Problem

Determine problem/concern within your topic area

How important is the problem to the field How does it expand on existing knowledge Requires knowledge of the literature &

current research activities Bounce research problem/focus off others

Library & Research Tools

Library Services

http://library.manoa.hawaii.edu

Voyager – Combined UH Libraries

http://uhmanoa.lib.hawaii.edu/ Basic Search tab– Search by title, keyword, author, call number– Limit by Manoa, DVD, Last 5 years

Guided Search tab– Boolean term combinations AND, OR, NOT

Voyager – Combined UH Libraries

Reserves– PDF format– Search by instructor’s name, campus, and/or course– Frequently linked from WebCT courses

Intrasystem Loan (within UH Libraries)– http://libweb.hawaii.edu/uhmlib/forms/forms_isl.html– Free for neighbor island students– Use “Request” tool in Voyager

• Login requires barcode• Pick up at your local UH library

Electronic Resources

Linked from Library Homepage– E-resources & Databases

Business / Humanities /Social Science ERIC (via Ebscohost version)– UHM License only– Activate your ID code• Enter ID barcode OR• Enter UH username & Password

Google Scholar

Google Scholar– http://scholar.google.com/– Advanced search tips• Author search• Publication restrict• Date restrict• Phrase search• Intitle: requires following term in document title

– Settings Library links

Online Resources

http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/literature_review.html

http://www.wisc.edu/writing/Handbook/ReviewofLiterature.html

APA style manual:– http://www.apastyle.org/– http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/

560/01/

What to do in Week 04

1. Do the required readings for Week 05.– Salkind, N. J. Chapter 7. Hypotheticals and You: Testing Your Questions– Salkind, N. J. Chapter 8. Are Your Curves Normal? Probability and Why

It Counts

2. Choose an article that interests you and complete an article critique workshop (Due by Tuesday, February 11th).

3. Continue the group discussion on the final research paper, and post the literature review outline for your paper to the Forum in Laulima (Due by Tuesday, February 18th).