1. Brad Wuetherick, GMCTE Krista Trinder, College of Medicine

2.  Data Collection ◦ Reminder about key issues discussed in previously  Data Analysis ◦ Explore data analysis tools, and key issues to remember when analyzing SOTL data  Dissemination ◦ Explore where and what to disseminate, and what to look out for  Poster Tips ◦ Discuss what makes a good poster (and not so good poster)

3.  Prior to data collection ◦ Decide on your instruments and pilot test ◦ Try to use previously validated instruments when possible. ◦ When creating your own tools, have them reviewed by judges for clarity, content, etc.

4.  How many participants do you need? ◦ Sample size depends on the type of research and intended analyses. ◦ Quantitative methods should have a sample size of at least 30. ◦ Some analyses require sample sizes >100. ◦ Qualitative methods often need fewer participants.

5.  G*Power can help you estimate how large your sample needs to be to find a statistically significant result. ◦ Need to know your statistical test ◦ Effect size (d =.2 is small,.5 = medium,.8 = large) ◦ Probability of error (0.05) ◦ Power (.80) ◦ Allocation ratio (whether groups are equal) ◦ http://www.psycho.uni-duesseldorf.de/abteilungen/aap/gpower3/ http://www.psycho.uni-duesseldorf.de/abteilungen/aap/gpower3/

6.  Online vs. Paper/pencil  Online Pros ◦ Ability to reach more participants ◦ Can be completed at participants’ convenience ◦ Greater sense of anonymity ◦ Less paper! ◦ Saves time – can upload results into Excel/SPSS ◦ Reduces data entry errors  Online Cons ◦ Lower response rate ◦ Perceived privacy issues

7.  U of S Survey Tool The U of S offers a free survey tool that is very flexible and customizable – this survey works very well for small groups on campus (using an NSID login/password) http://www.usask.ca/its/services/websurvey_ tool/create.php http://www.usask.ca/its/services/websurvey_ tool/create.php

8.  Survey Monkey ◦ Free basic version  Up to 10 questions per survey  100 responses per survey  More limited options ◦ Professional version  Many survey options  Unlimited questions per survey  Unlimited responses per survey  $225/year – monthly rates of $25 available

9.  Hiring/Training a Research Assistant (undergrad or grad)  Some key issues: ◦ Hiring a student from your discipline  Pros: vested interest in the discipline, know the culture of the discipline, often known to the researcher  Cons: may be new to this type of research, need training/support on methods/analysis ◦ Hiring a student from education/social sciences  Pros: often know the research methods being used which can speed up project, can be a resource to researchers new to this area  Cons: usually less connected to specific disciplines, usually new to the researchers (which may make them harder to find)

10.  Quantitative Programs ◦ SPSS (PASW) ◦ Excel ◦ SAS ◦ R  Qualitative Programs ◦ NVivo ◦ ATLAS ti

11.  ITS offers training sessions in several data analysis programs  SPSS ◦ January 18 & 20 ◦ January 18 & 25  Nvivo ◦ By demand  Excel ◦ By demand

12.  Data screening  Check that data set is accurate and complete ◦ RAs should code data as soon as possible ◦ Check for errors in coding  Have 2 nd RA code some data independently to identify discrepancies. ◦ Make sure missing data is actually missing  Go to raw data ◦ Run frequency counts for all variables to identify out of range responses

13.  Missing data and outliers ◦ There are several options for dealing with missing data or with outliers. ◦ Options can be rather technical ◦ Please contact us or a statistician if you have any questions about your data.

14.  Good to know your analyses before collecting data  See handout  Don’t fall into the following traps ◦ Quantitative – data mining ◦ Qualitative – finding what you want to find while ignoring other data

15.  There are three main ways to disseminate: ◦ Publications ◦ Conferences ◦ Public Talks (or College/Department Committees, institutional symposia, GMCTE presentations, etc.)  Publications: ◦ Discipline-specific Education journals ◦ General Higher Education ◦ General Education (often themed – ie. technology, international, etc.) ◦ Monographs/Edited Volumes

16.  Conferences: ◦ Discipline-specific conferences ◦ Higher Education Teaching and Learning Conferences  Practice-oriented  SOTL-oriented  Research-oriented  Key things to remember: ◦ What type of audience? What type of session (concurrent session, roundtable, workshop, poster)? What are the conferences expectations (interactive, conference proceedings, etc.)?

17.  Can use PowerPoint, Adobe Illustrator, or Adobe InDesign  ITS offers training sessions: ◦ PowerPoint – January 27 ◦ Illustrator – by demand ◦ InDesign – February 16

18.  Attract attention ◦ Draw people to your poster ◦ Should be able to review in less than 10 minutes  Simple and uncluttered ◦ Don’t use too much text; at least a 24 pt serif font ◦ Summarize key points ◦ You can explain the rest  Light background and dark font  Use charts and images where appropriate

19.  General sections to include (may vary slightly by conference) ◦ Title ◦ Introduction ◦ Materials and methods ◦ Results ◦ Conclusions ◦ Literature cited ◦ Acknowledgments  See: http://www.swarthmore.edu/NatSci/cpurrin1/posteradvice.htm

21.  Thank you!