Action Research Data Analysis Tutorial James Preston Mike Steele

Today’s Goals Provide the teacher candidate with some background knowledge on displaying their action research results. Provide support to small groups of teacher candidates on completing their literature review and data analysis section of their action research project.

Purpose of the Data Analysis Section You are to concisely and accurately display the results of your study. In other words, someone who views your data analysis section should get an idea of the results of your study at a glance.

Big Idea Much like your classroom assessments should match your objectives in every lesson you conduct in the classroom… Your data analysis section in this action research project should match and display the answers to your research questions.

Choosing a Graph A Line Graph –You want to use a line graph when you wish to show a trend over a period of time. A Bar Graph –Bar graphs are most often used to compare results between two or more categorical variables. A Pie Chart –The pie chart is often over used and is only appropriate when you wish to compare parts to a whole. Comparing pie charts to one another is typically not a good idea. Other graphs are available for your consideration but the above are the most popular and straightforward.

Line Graph A line graph is best used when you wish to display a trend over a period of time. For example, if you have been giving a series of assessments along with implementing a new teaching strategy and you wish to show that achievement is slowly rising (or mistakes are decreasing) over time, a line graph would be appropriate.

This table shows a series of average test scores between two groups of students week 1 week 2 week 3 week 4 week 5 Old Strategy New Strategy

Microsoft Excel gives you this chart.

Others would consider this the appropriate use of a vertical scale

This vertical scale can be misleading

Consider plotting the change in scores from the week 1 test In this chart, the change in scores from week to week is calculated rather than showing the raw scores. Other than change, researchers could calculate and plot averages and other statistics. week 1 week 2 week 3 week 4 week 5 Old Strategy01246 New Strategy

Change in Average Test Scores

Bar Graphs Bar graphs are best used whenever you are comparing two or more categorical variables. In the following table the Pre-test and Post-test scores of a group of students are displayed.

Consider how you would display this data. Pre-testPost-test Student Student Student Student Student Student Student Student Student Student

This would be a typical bar graph.

Adjusting the vertical scale can again be misleading.

This bar graph shows the change instead of raw scores

Pie Charts Typically, pie charts should be avoided but they can be used to relate a part to a whole. For example…

A good use of a pie chart In this pie chart, the purpose is to show that a large portion of the class has an Individual Education Plan.

Data Table/Graph Construction Data Table/Graph Construction After you have decided on the basic graph format you want to use the last step is to add some pizzazz. First, move your cursor to the white area around your graph and right click the mouse and select the first icon FORMAT AREA with a left click. This will give you a color pallet with the white square highlighted. Move your cursor around the pallet and click on a nice background color, not too dark, and left click OK. Following the same steps as above, you can move your cursor into the graph area and right click again to select a complimentary color. Now that you have the hang of it, you can also right-click on the bars and change their colors to compliment your previous background selections. If you need to, you can adjust the size of your graph by clicking on the text box and adjusting the size. As in WORDPERFECT, you can change fonts, add bold type, or increase or decrease the size of your letters and numbers for a better fit. You can also highlight the textbox within your graph and correct or change a title. Make sure that you save what you have done. Don’t be afraid to explore the program and make creative adjustments. Remember, this guide is not written in stone and is only designed to provide you with a starting point. Off course, you can always COPY AND PASTE your XL data into POWERPOINT for a presentation. The next two slides are some sample XL graphs that were moved into POWERPOINT for reference.

Sample Pre- and Post-Test Summary for Fifteen Item Test for 3 rd Grade Students (PSSA Math Standard Problem Solving). This slide is a bar graph from XL with color added to highlight the data. The data table is also included below with both the average score and number of students included.

Once the data table/graph have been completed in XL, it is a simple task to cut the graph/table from XL and paste it in POWERPOINT for a professional effect. Don’t be afraid to add a little color… this is your project and you want it to reflect well on your work

Data can be reported to illustrate how effective certain strategies were based on the use of a scoring guide. The example below could be used for a similar analysis of open-ended tasks in math.

DIRECTIONS TO THE PADOE AND PaTTAN WEBSITE DIRECTIONS TO THE PADOE AND PaTTAN WEBSITE Pennsylvania Department of Education (PA DOE)Website can be found at Once you enter the site, first: CLICK ON - the tab (Pre K – 12) at the top of the page and look to the left under Learn About and you will see a number of underlined links … CLICK ON - Assessment. CLICK ON - PSSA Results - You want the PSSA Results. You can track data back over time by going to previous years. A page will appear with a listing of the various Intermediate Units across the Commonwealth. Find the county your school is in and CLICK ON – Performance Levels Reading and Math 3, 5, 8 & 11. A list of schools in the IU will appear. Look for your school and see what the proficiency levels were from the 2006 testing. Remember, these were last year’s scores. If you are currently teaching 6th grade, for example, you can see how well your students did as a group when they were tested in 5th grade. You can track performance trends for planning purposes and population trends over time using this site.

DIRECTIONS TO THE PADOE AND PaTTAN WEBSITE (cont…) When you go back to the Pre K – 12 tab you can also access Assessment Anchors, Assessment Anchor Toolkits, Release Items, Standards, NCLB, Eligible Content, and many other resources. The Special Education link is extremely important for every student teacher and regular school employee. You are a professional. There is an absolute expectation that you will learn what is on the PA DOE website and use this information for planning and instruction. The answers are not supposed to be a secret. The PA DOE wants you to have and use this information. Spend some time exploring the PA DOE website over the next few weeks. What you find out could help you get a position this fall. It will definitely make you a better teacher. Remember, assessment drives instruction, and the PSSA is the “Coin of the Realm” for anyone in PA public education. Another must know website for teachers in Pennsylvania is the PA Training & Technical Assistance Network (PaTTAN) located at PaTTAN is a data-based website that can be most helpful in finding information related to data analysis and instructional decision making pertaining to the PSSA.

Consider the following when creating your charts Usually, simpler is better Avoid using 3-D charts, they can be difficult to read and misleading. Choose color carefully, some colors can make portions of a chart look larger or smaller and can be misleading. Always give the chart a title, always label the axes, and provide a key if appropriate.

Consider the following when creating your charts (cont.) Include a table of values with each chart if possible. Use summary statistics such as the mean, median or mode. Your goal is to accurately and concisely display your data. This was by no means a comprehensive summary of the data analysis options available to you. Check the documents on Blackboard for more information.

References Miller, J. E. (2004). The Chicago guide to writing about numbers. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. M. Steele - J. Preston –