Saturday, June 28, 2014

Writing a Methods Section



Methods
            This was a descriptive study aimed at analyzing what conceptions of teaching and learning university science professors have. For this purpose, a prospective ex-post-facto design was chosen and the variables conceptions of teaching and consistency index were analyzed using the theories discussed as part of the theoretical framework.
Participants
            The study included 100 science professors from the National University of Mar del Plata, Argentina, belonging to different science departments within the university. They were divided into four groups according to their seniority as university professors. The first group had between 1 and 7 years' experience; the second group, between 8 and 14; the third group, between 15 and 20; and the fourth group, more than 20 years’ experience. They were informed about the purpose of the study and they agreed to participate in it.
Materials
            A dilemma questionnaire (See Appendix A), which had previously been adapted and validated for data collection purposes, was administered to all participants. The questionnaire was specifically designed to provide information on the variables conceptions of teaching and consistency index, and included questions related to the nature of teaching, learning and assessment, as well as to methods of assessment. In order to protect the participants’ identity, the questionnaire was anonymous and only asked participants to indicate the number of years of experience they had in university teaching but not their names.
Procedure
            First, one hundred science professors from the National University of Mar del Plata, Argentina, were recruited from various science departments within the university. Participants were then divided into four groups of 25 professors each according to the number of years of experience they had in university teaching. After such classification was completed, a dilemma questionnaire, previously adapted and validated for data collection purposes, was administered to all participants in order to analyze the variables conceptions of teaching and consistency index. These variables were then analyzed for each group under the light of the theories presented as part of the theoretical framework.

References
Mateos-Sanz, M.M., García, M.B., Villanova, S.L. (2011). Conceptions of teaching and learning held by University Science Professors [Abstract]. Revista Iberoamericana de Educación Superior, Vol 2, No. 3. Retrieved from


           


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