ILLINOIS STATE UNIVERSITY
EAF 508: APPLIED EDUCATION RESEARCH
SPRING 2008
Phone: (309) 438-2051
Fax: (309) 438-8683
Email: jkrugut@ilstu.edu
Web page: http://people.coe.ilstu.edu/jkrugut/
Required Texts:
(JP) James, P. Stevens (1999). Intermediate Statistics: A Modern Approach. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, Associates, Inc. (ISBN: 0-8058-2961-X)
(GS) Green, S. B., & Salkind, N. J. (2008): Using SPSS for Windows and Macintosh: Analyzing and Understanding Data (5th). Pearson Education, Inc.
Recommended Texts:
Creswell, J. W. (2008). Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research (3rd ed.). Merrill Prentice Hall. ISBN-13: 978-0-13-613550-0
American Psychological Association. (2000). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association. (5th ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Best, J. W., Kahn, J. V. (2006). Research in Education (10th ed.). Allyn & Bacon.
Frankel, J. R. & Wallen, N. E. (2003). How to design and evaluate research in education (6th ed.). New York: McGraw Hill.
Vogt, W. P. (2007): Quantitative Research Methods for Professionals. Allyn & Bacon. ISBN: 0-205-35913-2
Please click here for a word version of the course syllabus.
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The purpose of this course is to prepare educational practitioners to use key concepts and methods of quantitative (main focus) and qualitative educational research to carry out strategic data-driven inquiry for school improvement. Specifically, the purpose is to present technical and analytical tools needed to assess school district and unit performance and to conduct research on educational problems and issues. Using recent texts focused on data use and data-driven decision making in schools, web/internet resources, and the instructor’s resources, participants will learn about different ways of measuring educational and school processes, as well as strategies for conducting data-based inquiries within their own institutions. Specifically, as a result of participating in this course, students will learn how to:
1. Use quantitative (main focus) and qualitative data to assess how well their schools are meeting goals and standards;
2. Use statistics and graphic data displays to describe student achievement levels and other variables;
3. Use statistics to examine differences between and among groups;
4. Use statistics to examine relationships between variables;
5. Report and display data in ways that are understandable to parents, teachers, and students;
6. Perform basic statistical analyses and data displays using SPSS (a statistical analysis program).
Students will develop these skills through reading assignments, lectures, class discussions, in-class activities, and assigned projects.
1. Participate in all class activities, complete all assigned readings, and be prepared to discuss them in class;
2. Complete the assignments by the due dates;
3. Complete a final paper and deliver presentation of the paper (may be in-class or through Blackboard).
Note: The completion of the above assignments and the final research report can also be used to meet the requirement for your superintendent certification. You will need to upload your final report to the appropriate WebCT/Blackboard certification site.
The following point allocation will be used to determine final grades for the class:
1. Class participation/attendance 5 points
2. Research Project Assignment 15 points
3. Midterm 25 points
3. Final Project 20 points
4. Presentation of Final Project 10 points
5. Final Exam 25 points
Class Participation /Attendance. Attendance and active participation in class is very important and will be part of your grade. Note that work on data analysis using computers will be primarily an in-class activity, so attendance is particularly crucial. Being sick will not count as an absence. You will receive a maximum of 5 points for class participation and attendance.
Assignments. Research project assignment is worth 15 points. Handing in a well thought out and well written assignment on the due date is worth 15 points. Assignments turned in late will receive half-credit of 7.5 points if well done. A high-quality final paper submitted on time will receive 20 points. Final papers turned in one day late will receive a maximum of 15 points and final papers turned in more than one day late will receive half-credit, or a maximum of 10 points. A well-done final presentation of your results will receive 10 points. Students who do not present their results in class or through Blackboard will not receive credit for the presentation.
Points Letter
Grade
90-100 A (Exceptional Performance)
80-89
B (Above Average Performance)
70-79
C (Average Performance)
60-69
D (Below Average Performance)
0-59 F (Failing)
"Written or other work a student submits in a course must be the product of his/her own efforts: plagiarism, cheating, or other forms of academic dishonesty are prohibited." Cases of suspected copying, cheating, or plagiarism are referred to Student Dispute Office for a University hearing.
Course Delivery
This course will be presented using a variety of delivery systems: The class can combine lecture, discussion, and student presentation, and through the Internet (Blackboard), Elluminate.
Required Texts:
(JP) James, P. Stevens (1999). Intermediate Statistics: A Modern Approach. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, Associates, Inc. (ISBN: 0-8058-2961-X)
(GS) Green, S. B., & Salkind, N. J. (2008): Using SPSS for Windows and Macintosh: Analyzing and Understanding Data (5th). Pearson Education, Inc.
Topical/Content Outline...Subject to Change
The instructor reserves the right to make changes to the course syllabus as necessary.
It is the student's responsibility to keep up with changes to the syllabus
|
Week |
Date |
Topic |
Assignment |
Chapter |
|
1 |
01/19 |
Introduction and Review |
|
|
|
2 |
01/22 |
Introduction and Descriptive Statistics Introduction to Research |
|
JP, Ch1* Other** |
|
3 |
01/29 |
Frequency Distributions The Research Problem, Variables and Hypotheses |
|
JP, Ch1 Other |
|
4 |
02/05 |
Central Tendency & Measures of Variability Reviewing the Literature |
|
JP, Ch1 Other |
|
5 |
02/12 |
Normal Distribution—Standard Distributions Samples and Sampling Procedures |
|
JP, Ch1 Other |
|
6 |
02/19 |
Normal Distribution--Standard Distributions Instrumentation |
Research Assignment |
JP, Ch1 Other |
|
7 |
02/26 |
Introduction to t-distribution Hypothesis Tests with Two Independent Samples Causal Comparative Research Design |
|
JP, Ch1 Other |
|
8 |
03/04 |
Midterm Examination!!! |
|
|
|
9 |
03/11 |
Spring Break |
No Class |
--- |
|
10 |
03/18 |
t Test for Two Related Samples Introduction to Analysis of Variance-One-way ANOVA Experimental Research Design |
|
JP, Ch1, 2 Other |
|
11 |
03/25 |
Catch-up |
|
--- |
|
12 |
04/01 |
Factorial Analysis of Variance Factorial Research Designs |
|
JP, Ch2 Other |
|
13 |
04/08 |
Factorial Analysis of Variance Factorial Research Designs |
|
JP, Ch2 Other |
|
14 |
04/15 |
Correlation Analysis Correlation Research Design |
|
JP, Ch6 Other |
|
15 |
04/22 |
Ordinal and Nominal Procedures (Non-Parametric Statistics: Chi-square Distributions) |
|
Other |
|
16 |
04/29 |
Ordinal and Nominal Procedures (Non-Parametric Statistics: Chi-square Distributions) |
Project Presentation |
Other |
|
17 |
05/06 |
Final Examination |
Final Project Due |
---- |
Note: * Intermediate Statistics: A Modern Approach (James, P. Stevens [1999])
** Notes from the instructor
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