10:00-10:50 a.m. HIGHER EDUCATION (Discussion Session) Salon A

Presider: Kenneth Clawson, Eastern Kentucky University

DIFFERENCES IN STUDENT RATINGS OF INSTRUCTIONAL EFFECTIVENESS BASED ON THE DEMOGRAPHIC AND ACADEMIC CHARACTERISTICS OF INSTRUCTORS

Michele H. Wollert and Russell F. West, East Tennessee State University

             The improvement of instructional delivery has been of paramount concern in higher education in recent years. One particular concern has been the rising number of adjunct faculty teaching courses at universities and the potential impacts on instructional programs. The purpose of this study was to examine student course evaluations of classes within the College of Education at East Tennessee State University (ETSU) and determine if there were differences in the perceived levels of instructional quality based on faculty characteristics. This information will help identify the characteristics that are most strongly associated with high ratings of instructional performance, as measured along the dimensions of attitude, methods, content, interest, and instructor characteristics. These data will allow comparisons with other institutions of higher learning.
             Both undergraduate and graduate students within the College of Education are given the Student Assessment of Instruction (SAI) instrument for course evaluation. Data for the years 1992 through 1999 were used in this analysis. The five SAI subscales (attitude, methods, content, interest, and instructor) comprise the total score on the instrument. Analysis of variance and t-tests were used to identify differences on the SAI subscales based on instructor rank, department, year of administration, and semester.
             Analysis of the data revealed differences on the total rating scale (F=13.49, p <.05) and on each subscale. Scheffe's post hoc multiple comparisons test indicated that those at the rank of instructor received higher ratings than full-professors on all but one of the five subscales. Adjunct faculty ratings were similar to those of full professors. There was a significant difference in ratings between the different academic departments, but no significant difference was found between fall and spring semesters. Differences in ratings may have been due to factors other than instructional delivery, which may call for further exploration.

FACULTY AND STUDENT PERCEPTIONS OF TEACHING STYLES: DO TEACHING STYLES DIFFER FOR TRADITIONAL AND NONTRADITIONAL STUDENTS?

Evelyn D. McCollin, The University of Southern Mississippi

             The influx of adult learners in collegiate classrooms suggests the need to examine the extent to which college faculty employs adult learning principles in their classrooms. The primary purpose of this study was to determine whether there was a difference between college faculty and students' perceptions of teaching styles and the extent to which faculty employed different teaching styles for traditional and nontraditional students at The College of the Bahamas. In addition, the instructor variables such as age, gender, nationality, years of teaching experience, work status, educational level, and type of course facilitated were examined for relationship with teaching style. Student variables such as age, gender, course taken, academic major, length of attendance, and part-time or full-time status were also investigated.
             The design of the study was a self-reported survey method to elicit the responses of a faculty sample of 84 instructors and a sample of 585 students at The College of the Bahamas. The student sample consisted of 243 traditional students (under age 25) and 342 nontraditional students (25 years and over).
             The findings of this study revealed a significant difference in the perceptions of teaching styles of faculty and students at The College of the Bahamas. The perceptions of teaching styles were measured by the faculty's scores on The Principles of Adult Learning Scale (PALS), and by the students' scores on The Adapted Principles of Adult Learning Scale (APALS). Regression analysis of the predictor variables indicated that 27.2% of the variance in the instructors' PALS score was explained by the instructors' educational level and type of course taught. The results also revealed that 14% of the variance in the students' APALS score was explained by the students' academic major and type of course taken.

TEACHING STYLES: A COMPARISON STUDY OF PUBLIC AND CHURCH AFFILIATED UNIVERSITIES

Amany Saleh, Arkansas State University, and Candace Lacey, Barry University

             This paper reported on the results of a study of teaching styles of university professors in one public university and a private, church-affiliated university. Teaching styles were described in terms of sensitivity and inclusion. Based on these characteristics, teachers were identified as Experts, Providers, Enablers, Facilitators or Neutral.
A demographic survey and the Van Tilburg/Heimlich teaching beliefs scale were sent, via campus mail, to faculty members in both universities. The members of the faculty were asked to anonymously complete both the demographic profile and the scale and to return them to the researchers. A total of 247 scales were collected and analyzed using descriptive statistics and t-tests.
             The results demonstrated no significant differences between professors in the public and private universities. However, a large percentage of professors in both universities (46.6% in the public university and 41.8% in the private university) were identified as Enablers. In contrast, a small percentage of professors in both universities were identified as Facilitators (7.35% in the public university and 8.25% in the private university).
             This study explored the characteristics of each of the teaching styles and the implications of teaching style in the public and private university classroom. It further encouraged teachers in higher education to examine their teaching styles and consider how their beliefs affect their teaching and students' learning. In-depth studies of the factors influencing teaching styles such as gender, culture, and academic fields are warranted to enhance college professors' awareness of their teaching styles.

10:00-10:50 a.m. INSTRUCTION (Discussion Session) Salon B

Presider: Trey Fitch, Morehead State University

HERE'S MY TWO CENTS WORTH: AN INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGY THAT REALLY WORKS

Jack J Klotz, The University of Mississippi, and Melissa Whiting, The University of Southern Mississippi

             This paper centered on one of the greatest frustrations faced by classroom teachers at all levels: getting students to actively participate in classroom discussions. In fact, the term itself is not reality based since most discussions are a monologue where the teacher throws out a statement or question and then expects students to effectively respond with an answer that may already be teacher-predetermined. As evidenced, for many educators, the "correct" answer often means the teacher's predetermined and/or desired response (Hunkins, 1994). Such patterns of practice, in effect, can actually impact on silencing students rather than encouraging active "risk-free" class participation by all students. Thus, many students often prefer to play it safe and remain silent and not actively participate in such discussions.
             Given the preceding perspective, this paper shared a series of thoughts and observations on how one strategy had been implemented within the confines of one university's cohort student master's degree program for preparing school administrators. Indeed, the implementation of this strategy had effectively and creatively drawn all students within this instructional program into focused-dialogue situations, where students truly voiced their own, not the instructors, thoughts or convictions on selected critical issues facing instructional leaders within "real-world" settings.
             This instructional strategy is both easy to implement and only requires a minimum set of rules for student engagement. This paper shared not only the derived rules for student engagement, but also how to fully infuse this strategy within any instructional arena.

EFFECTS ON MOTIVATIONAL ORIENTATIONS AND LEARNING STRATEGIES OF THE CASE STUDY METHOD OF INSTRUCTION

Glennelle Halpin, Jennifer Good, Gerald Halpin, and Susanne MacGuire, Auburn University

             An important objective in education is to combine theory with practice in a manageable manner. Because the case study method of instruction has been recognized as an instructional tool that promotes this kind of learning, educators often use case studies to teach complex course content. Can the case study method possibly have other benefits in the affective domain that has been unexplored? For instance, what are the effects of the case study method of instruction on students' motivation and learning strategies? The purpose of this study was to illustrate motivational and strategic benefits to students who have been taught with the case study method of instruction.
             The Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ), an 81-item self-report instrument designed to be class specific, was given to two groups of students taking engineering-design courses. The experimental class was taught using a case-study approach, while the comparison class was taught using a traditional lecture format. Theoretically, if motivational orientations and learning strategies used by students are context specific, varying responses to the MSLQ should occur for students in the two different courses.
             The two primary parts of the MSLQ can be broken into 15 scales or constructs. Mean ratings of the comparison class exceeded those of the experimental class for three constructs: Intrinsic Goal Orientation, Extrinsic Goal Orientation, and Rehearsal. Mean ratings for the experimental class exceeded those of the comparison class on seven of the constructs: Elaboration, Organization, Critical Thinking, Metacognitive Self-Regulation, Time and Study Environment, Help Seeking, and Peer Learning. These results suggested that use of the case study format had more of an impact on students' learning strategies than on motivational orientations. With the case study, students are provided with engaging and challenging instructional opportunities wherein they can employ the more complex and sophisticated approaches to learning.

PEDAGOGICAL AND DELIVERY SYSTEM ISSUES ON Internet-based TEACHING AND LEARNING: HOW SHARP IS THE CUTTING-EDGE TECHNOLOGY?

Gunapala Edirisooriya, East Tennessee State University

             A great deal of attention is being focused on Internet-based teaching and learning (IBTL), especially in higher education. In this regard, there are two aspects that need to be examined closely: pedagogy and course delivery. Pedagogy issues include instructional design, content, context, presentation, and authenticity. Delivery issues concern technological infrastructure at the institutional level, technology access at the learner level, technological know-how at the instructor level, and security and intellectual property rights. Therefore, research on IBTL is warranted in light of the sketchy evidence on many unanswered questions.
             While many faculty members and higher education institutions experiment with Internet teaching methods, a large number of private corporations offer Internet-based course delivery systems. In the absence of standards and procedures for IBTL, trial-and-error methods seem to prevail. Accordingly, the following questions have been raised: (1) What are the appropriate instructional designs for different subject areas? and (2) What are the appropriate delivery systems for different instructional strategies?
             To answer these questions, two sources of data were used: (1) a literature review and (2) a survey data matrix. This data set resulted from an electronic survey conducted in 1999 on various aspects of Internet-based course delivery systems used by higher education institutions across the United States.
             The preliminary findings indicated that there was no: (1) coherent structure or framework to evaluate pedagogical benefits of IBTL, (2) clear grasp of organizational changes needed to implement a given IBTL system, (3) clear understanding of how to integrate a given IBTL delivery system(s) with IMSs within organizational structures, (4) explicit and solid pedagogical basis(s) underlying IBTL delivery system(s), (5) clear vision among policy makers on the long-term implications of IBTL delivery system(s), and (6) proper facilities and preparation to fully implement a given IBTL system(s). This paper delineated some guidelines to help educators choose IBTL delivery systems.

10:00-10:50 a.m. LEARNING (Discussion Session) Meeting Room 1

Presider: Arlene Amos, Choctaw County (MS) Department of Education

WRITING DISABILITIES: FROM DIAGNOSIS TO INTERVENTION

Eden M Abramson and Christopher H. Skinner, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville

             Writing is not an isolated task; it occurs throughout children's school routines from seatwork to writing reports, and from taking tests to taking notes. In order to better combat deficits in this area, educators need to recognize the distinct characteristics of writing disabilities and the variety of beneficial interventions. However, relative to other academic skills (e.g., reading) there has been much less focus on the basic psychological processes involved in writing and writing disabilities (Berninger, Mizokawa, & Bragg, 1991).
             The definition of a specific learning disability provided in Public Law 94-142 expressly mentions a relationship between learning disabilities and writing. However, without a precise diagnosis indicating areas of need, individuals with writing disabilities may not receive the appropriate remediation services to address their deficits. Overall, understanding what defines a learning disability, diagnosing a particular disability, and then implementing interventions will lead to beneficial results.
             This paper reviewed current research within the area of writing and writing disabilities. Analyzed within this review were a definition and diagnosis of writing disabilities, instructional strategies that have been implemented and found effective, and the role that technology is beginning to play in intervention. In addition, directions for future research were described.

METACOGNITION TECHNIQUES TO ENHANCE STUDENT LEARNING IN A TECHNOLOGY-BASED CLASSROOM

Lary C Rampp, RidgeCrest Learning, Inc., and Steven G. Lesh, Southwest Baptist University

             In technology-based classrooms teachers are adapting their teaching methods of being more effective. Real student achievement occurs when metacognition techniques are an integrated element of the learning unit. Students can no longer be observers to the learning process happening around them in a technology-based classroom. This presentation investigated the more helpful metacognition techniques that can be artfully used by students to assist in the amount of learning occurring in a technology classroom. The objective was to illustrate the more useful metacognition techniques as used in a technology-based classroom, specifically, active listening, listening, learning styles, and critical thinking. Students must be as involved as the teacher when it comes to technology. No longer may students just sit back and be passive learners. Students must be active learners, particularly when the teacher is at a distant site or the learning is asynchronous. Specific examples of the best metacognition techniques were presented and illustrated to the participants. Also, handouts were made available.

METACOGNITIVE PROTOCOLS: A QUALITATIVE STUDY OF PERCEPTIONS OF "SMARTNESS" OF ADULTS AND CHILDREN

Linda W. Morse, Geraldine Mallette, and Eileen Talento-Miller, Mississippi State University

             Metacognition is a theoretical construct used to describe individuals' perceptions of their thinking processes and their own control over their thinking processes. Largely derived from information-processing literature, metacognition plays a large role in how information is transformed and controlled as it is being learned. Despite its popularity recently, very little is known about how to assess metacognition, and few studies are available that look at qualitative analyses of what individuals report.
             The present study examined the protocols of 78 undergraduates who responded to three of the questions from the Swanson Metacognition Questionnaire, a 17-item structured, written interview questionnaire with moderate reliability. This questionnaire asks how people think and how to solve problems with the subject providing written responses with no time limit. The three questions chosen for this study were: (1) What makes someone really smart? (2) How do children figure out things, like how to do something? and (3) Is there any reason why adults are smarter than children? Why? Each protocol was independently analyzed by two researchers for major themes that emerged.
             Several distinct themes emerged. First, the most dominant themes regarding what makes someone smart were described as: (1) academic knowledge, (2) common sense or street smarts, and (3) the role of genetics. Second, the most dominant themes regarding children's intelligence were that they learn: (1) by observation, (2) through asking questions, and (3) by trial and error. For the third question, the respondents reported having more life experience and a larger knowledge base than children. Additionally, comparisons were made between responses of high GPA and low GPA subjects with few differences found. Thus, these findings supported the assumption that there are common or dominant themes that people report. This could further illuminate the metacognitive processes that people have and how they use these metacognitive processes to control information or learn new information.

10:00-10:50 a.m. STATISTICS (Discussion Session) Meeting Room 2

Presider: Gail Weems, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale

THE CORRECTED ETA-SQUARED COEFFICIENT: A VALUE ADDED APPROACH

J. Jackson Barnette, University of Iowa, and James E. McLean, The University of Alabama at Birmingham

             Eta-squared (ES) is often used as a measure of strength of association of an effect, a measure often associated with effect size. It is also considered the proportion of total variance accounted for by an independent variable and simple to compute and interpret. However, it has one critical weakness that has been cited by several authors (Huberty, Snyder & Lawson, and Snijders), and that is a sampling bias that leads to an inflated judgment of true effect. The purpose of this research was to determine the degree of inflation by determining how large ES is likely to be by chance, finding methods of predicting the mean inflation, and then proposing the use of a corrected ES coefficient, which is the observed ES minus the mean expected ES, a value added approach.
             A Monte Carlo study was set up using number of samples from 2 to 10 and sample sizes from 5 to 100 in steps of 5. In each number of samples and sample size configuration, 10,000 one-way ANOVA replications, using samples drawn from the unit normal distribution, were conducted for a total of 1,800,000 replications.
             Patterns of observed ES values were examined for influences of number and size of samples. It was clear that ES was influenced by both of these factors. Trend analysis was conducted to determine equations that could be used to predict the mean chance-based ES for given number and size of samples. In a given research situation, the expected ES coefficient may be determined for comparison with the observed ES. Such an approach removes the bias cited as the major weakness of the use of eta-squared as a measure of strength of association and makes it a more useful measure of non-chance influence.

ARE ALL EFFECT SIZES CREATED EQUAL?

James E. McLean and Marcia R. O'Neal, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, and J. Jackson Barnette, University of Iowa

             The publication of the Glass et al. book on meta-analysis created a cottage industry in effect-size computation. The recent debate over statistical significance testing has reinforced the interest in effect size. Much of the current knowledge about effect sizes comes from the work of Cohen presented in his text on power analysis. However, the literature makes no distinctions among effect sizes based on the data metric upon which they are applied. The purpose of this study was to compare effect sizes applied to raw, scaled, and normal curve equivalent (NCE) data.
             Recommendations for the interpretation of effect sizes vary. For example, some books suggest that an effect size below .50 is small, between .50 and 1.00 is moderate, and above 1.00 is large. These are products of the criterion formally used by the U.S. Department of Education's Joint Dissemination Review Panel (JDRP) and the Program Effectiveness Panel (PEP). It is clear from the context of these articles that it is assumed that they were dealing with raw scores or scaled scores, not NCEs. NCE scores for individual students and, particularly, mean NCE scores for schools would not be expected to change from year to year without some type of intervention.
             This study computed gain effect sizes for the raw, scaled scores, and NCEs by school for grades 4, 6, and 8 on a national norm-referenced test for 796, 655, and 546 schools respectively. The effect sizes were compared for each type of score. The results showed that, as expected, the effect sizes for raw and scaled scores were similar while the effect sizes for NCE scores were lower. These results suggested that when rules-of-thumb for effect sizes are presented, they should take into account the type of metric upon which it is being applied.

EFFECT SIZES IN QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

Anthony J. Onwuegbuzie, Valdosta State University

             The APA Task Force recommended that researchers always report and interpret effect sizes for quantitative data. However, no such recommendation was made for qualitative data. Thus, the first purpose of this paper was to provide a rationale for utilizing effect sizes in qualitative research. Arguments were presented that non-use of effect sizes in qualitative research stems from the failure to distinguish descriptive from inferential statistics. Yet, because the purpose of both qualitative data analysis and descriptive statistics is to describe data stemming from underlying samples without making inferences beyond these samples, both data analysis techniques are compatible. Moreover, use of descriptive statistics enhances the process of verstehen/hermeneutics promoted by interpretive researchers. Examples were given illustrating various applications of effect sizes. For instance, when conducting typological analyses, qualitative analysts only identify emergent themes; yet, these themes can be quantitized to ascertain the hierarchical structure of emergent themes.
             The second objective was to demonstrate how effect sizes can be used to undertake confirmatory thematic analyses, wherein replication qualitative studies are conducted to assess the replicability of previous emergent themes. The final purpose was to illustrate how inferential statistics can be utilized in qualitative research. This can be accomplished by treating words arising from individuals, or observations emerging from a particular setting, as sample units of data that represent the total number of words/observations existing from that sample member/context. Consequently, inferential techniques can be used to generalize words/ observations arising from persistent observations/prolonged engagement to the population of words/observations representing the underlying context. As such, an array of statistical techniques, including those belonging to the general linear model, can be utilized to undertake multi-stage, mixed-methodological analyses (Onwuegbuzie, 2000). Heuristic examples were provided to demonstrate how inferential statistics can be used to provide more complex levels of verstehen than is presently undertaken in qualitative research.