Week 4 Readings

When thinking about PowerPoint and the multimedia principle as described in chapter three of ELSI, onoe thing in particular that caught my attention was the fact that graphics should support learning.  It occurs to me that in designing PowerPoint slides we sometimes have a tendency to select clipart and icons that are cute or catchy but don't necessarily reinforce the content being delivered in text and perhaps speech.  I also pondered the discussion in the Atkinson and Mayer article about how we have an inclination to format PowerPoint slides (or any multimedia, for that matter) in a certain way because the features within the program are most convenient or lend themselves to that particular formatting.  However, research shows that these ways of organizing and delivering content are not necessarily effective or appropriate according to cognitive learning theory.

I think that the best way to present the multimedia and contiguity principles to my colleagues would be to demonstrate contrasting good and bad examples.  Since PowerPoint is likely going to be the medium of choice for many of them, I would also show them a short YouTube video from Guy Kawasaki where he explains his 30 20 10 principle.  It's a great way to sum up the best practice for text on PowerPoint slides.

Barb's thoughts on Week 4 Readings

The Multimedia principal is best incorporated into e-learning when the learner has little or no prior knowledge of the topic. On page 69 the authors, Clark and Mayer (2008) summarize the principal, “Overall, we recommend that you be sensitive to the level of prior knowledge of your learners…they may be able to learn well mainly from text or even mainly from graphics.” I created a flash video explaining the use of this principal.
http://barbsedtech.com/edtech513/videos/mutlimediaprinciple-output/Web/mutlimediaprinciple

As for the contiguity principal the authors, Clark and Mayer (2008), explored two techniques of this principle and summarized them nicely on page 93-94. This link shows how I would explain it to a colleague:
http://barbsedtech.com/edtech513/videos/contiguityprinciple-output/Web/contiguityprinciple

Clark, R. C., and Mayer, R. E. (2008). E-learning and the science of instruction: proven guidelines for consumers and designers of multimedia learning. Pfeiffer and Co.

The Atkinson and Mayer article, Five ways to reduce PowerPoint overload, reminded of another article I read called PowerPoint is evil by Edward Tufte which can be read by following this link: http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/11.09/ppt2.html. It also appeared in the September 2003 issue of Wired Magazine. I’m proud to say that I have always taught my students to make their PowerPoint slides short and sweet. Use words that make the point right away and images that represent the words. Now, with Web 2.0 tools galore who needs Power Point (sorry Bill Gates).

Week 4 Readings

This week’s readings were very good and applicable immediately. I think most people, at least to a degree, have suffered from PowerPoint overload. We have been on the receiving end of it and have probably made more than a few students endure our own presentations that were, in hindsight, poorly put together.

The way I would go about defining and demonstrating these principles is, oddly enough, a PowerPoint presentation. I think it is important to show a good and a bad way. I would design a presentation that explains each of these principles, using the proper principles of course. After each point, I would take one of my own presentations for my classes and show both the traditional (or old fashioned or wrong ) way of presenting the material. I would explain why it was not a good slide Then, I would contrast that slide with one following the proper principle we were discussing at the time. At that time, I would try to encourage discussion on why the new slide is better than the old slide.

To close, I would explain to my colleagues that we have got to re-evaluate how we are teaching. When preparing a lesson, we have got to have these principles in mind and constantly eliminate the material causing an extraneous load on our students. In combining that line of thinking with these principles, I think our students would have a better overall learning experience

Week 4 Readings

There were two main points from the reading this week, it is better to have graphics in addition to words rather than just words and the graphics and their corresponding words need to be in close proximity. The article added to these points that segmenting information is important and that each segment needs a heading. Ultimately, all these principles are aimed at reducing cognitive overload.

The most concise way to explain these points to a colleague is through the phrases, 'less is more' and 'keep it simple'. All the principles discussed this week lead to reducing the amount of 'stuff' in a presentation, whether it is background images, text, extraneous information, not pertinent images, etc. Multimedia presentations need to be the minimum amount of 'stuff' needed to convey the necessary content. For example, a presentation slide with a heading and a pertinent graphic that serves a purpose past decoration simultaneously accompanied by spoken information should minimize cognitive overload.

PowerPoint type slide presentations are the most frequent offenders of these guidelines. I have seen many slide presentations that violate most of these principles. As the article stated, the abundance of cluttered slide presentations is due largely to the program and how it aides the creation of cluttered slides. I am certain that I am guilty of many of these presentation offenses.

Week 4 Readings - Christina Talley

It is important to realize that in the realm of multimedia and presentation for learning, less is often more. While it can be tempting to get bogged down in using the wide variety of creative features we now easily have at our fingertips, such as animations, videos, audio, and eye-catching graphics, these instruments can have the unpleasant side-effect of making material difficult to sift through.

Multimedia is important to include in a wide variety of works. It can be found everywhere, in all forms—from an interactive slideshow in a news article to a flash animation on a school website. When used correctly, it helps enhance and bring to life what would otherwise be a very bland block of text. As Atkinson and Mayer (2008) point out, it has been discovered by numerous studies that people learn more from text with graphics than text alone. Effective multimedia can be as simple as a photograph and as elaborate as an interactive learning simulation, but one must be careful to ensure the focus of the viewer is not distracted by what they are viewing.

Therefore, I sincerely believe—and would explain the process of adding multimedia to a colleague—that multimedia should only be used to support the base information being presented. A rule of thumb that I use is this: if the viewer’s attention is more on the type of multimedia that was used rather than the information being conveyed, it is probably not an effective application.

Week 4 Readings

I really appreciated the clear and straightforward manner of presenting information in this week’s readings. Clark and Mayer even defined three very simple terms--“words,” “graphics,” and “multimedia presentation”--so readers would understand those terms in the context of the textbook (ELSI, p. 56). Chapter 3 of ELSI, regarding the “Multimedia Principle,” was especially pertinent to my own immediate situation at work. The dilemma posed at the beginning of this chapter is the exact situation faced in my workplace (primarily by our clients): costs versus benefits of multimedia e-learning design. Graphics, especially custom simulations, DO require more time and money, and it can be difficult to justify the expense of the more elaborate designs. The discussion about static versus animated graphics was especially relevant, since the client for two of my current e-course projects is weighing the cost of having us produce new simulations versus using static images they already have. Of course, our flash programmers are chomping at the bit to create the cool simulations, but Chapter 3 certainly provides evidence to support the use of static images to promote learning. However, one aspect that was not really discussed in Chapter 3 was learner motivation. Figure 3.9 may be more effective at producing knowledge transfer than words alone, but it certainly didn’t motivate me to spend much time looking at it! I would like to know what the research says about motion as a motivating factor in graphics. My e-course projects at work will have bulleted text that slides onto the screen in time with the voiceover text, and I find that I pay much more attention to these bits of information that slide onto screen than the static text. What would the research say about learning with this type of design element?

Chapter 4 on the Contiguity Principle contained some solid information and examples about keeping text close to graphics. Likewise, the Atkinson and Mayer article on principles for Powerpoint design was clear and straight to the point. I am looking forward to reading more about the Modality Principle in the next chapter of ELSI, because I happen to prefer to read text on screen than to listen to narration. If I have the option of a transcript or audio, I will choose the transcript.

Week 4 Readings PowerPoint Tips

In conclusion to the Atkinson and Mayer article about reducing PowerPoint overload I found the information very interesting and helpful. If you think about it for years and years we have always been told how to write papers and make them meet the requirements of certain paper formats. As technology has improved over the years so has the use of PowerPoint. In the education field I would say that a good majority of teachers use PowerPoint on a regular basis. We are always trying to find ways to differentiate instruction. PowerPoint has been great to the world of educators but until reading this article I'm not sure I ever thought about how the PowerPoint should be formatted. I honestly just tried to make it the best, I figured if it looked good and was full of color and bullets than my students would find it interesting. As a teacher of students with disabilities I've probably been increasing the cognitive load with all this color and accidentally decreasing my chances of retention. I think Travis made a good comparison to on old acronym K.I.S.S. Keep it Simple Stupid. I really liked all 5 of the points that were made in the article. I really liked the first point about your title of the slide. I'm curious to go back and look at previous PowerPoints I've made and determine if the title is actually effective. I would be scared to view my presentations in Slide Sorter and see if the titles flow and tell a story. All of these points were very information and I know that this will help me develop much more effective PowerPoint presentations in the future.

Luke

Week 4 - Reading

Greetings all:

The best way for me to describe the week four readings is to use the acronym K.IS.S; Keep It Simple Silly.

The idea behind this week is to only utilize text and graphics that are absolutely  necessary for your presentation and design work. Images or animations that have no meaning should be removed and replaced with data or visuals that add value, create a relationship, or show process depending on your topic. Lastly, visuals and descriptions should synchronize and correspond near each other. Distance between them creates extraneous processing.  This creates a capacity issue to mentally integrate your material. Have a great weekend!

Cheers,
Travis

Loeffler Week 4

The single quote that stood out for me in this week's reading was by Clark and Mayer (2008) "instructional pros leverage both channels (visual and auditory) in ways that enable learners to  make sense out of material."  The overall thesis this week was finding the right balance between graphics and text.  Often less is more. By reducing extraneous overload learning can be more efficient and more effective.

How would I convey this thesis?

First, teaching by example, this includes designing instruction based on the concepts we are learning such as contiguity. 

Second, by basing instructional design on evidence based research.

Third, share research with co workers that supports the instructional design

Fourth, conduct research to further establish an evidenced based practice.

Multimedia and Contiguity Principles

In focusing on the Multimedia Principle and the Contiguity Principle I think that the best way to teach is through demonstrations to colleagues. If we want to help others learn about the principles the best way is to use those principles within our instruction.

In looking over Chapter 3 I think the main focus I took is that you need to carefully choose visuals and graphics that support and build the learning. For those who have taken a class from Dr. Perkins (or one he has built the curriculum for) you have probably done a reading quiz. One idea that really helps me learn about the concepts is to choose one picture to represent the concept using metaphors. An example of such a quiz is below:


This example demonstrates part of the idea of learning with multimedia.

When understanding about the contiguity principle I remembered watching a YouTube video that was discussing ways in which Microsoft could help Apple out by redesigning the Ipod Packaging for them, take a look below:



I firmly believe that we try and let the multimedia do the teaching and let the students make the connections off what they experience.

Week 4 Readings

This week we were asked to read Chapter 3& 4 in ELSI and to read the article “5 Ways to Reduce PowerPoint Overload.” As usual, I found the information quite informative. It is finally nice to know the “rules” of using multimedia. The three broad concepts to keep in mind when using multimedia are:

• Using visual+audio will help students learn better
• Be aware of cognitive overload- remove any extra words or visuals
• Learning comes from actively participating with the material

For example, if I were asked to convey the principles of multimedia, to colleagues, I would use the program Prezi to create a power point like presentation. I would also use Camtasia to add audio to the program and adhere to following guidelines:

• Use newspaper like headlines to introduce the concepts- the Signaling Principle
• Keep the words to a minimum- the Segmentation Principle & the Coherence Principle
• Add an image or graphic- the Multimedia Principle
• Use words and lines to connect the visual to words- the Coherence Principle
• The spoken word should be in-sync with the words and graphics- the Modality Principle

Using these guidelines will help ensure my colleagues (learners) have the best possible chance of retaining information and achieving the objectives of the presentation.

Crescitelli - Week 4 Contiguity Issues

Explaining Contiguity Principles

In Instructional Message Design, we studied the concepts of CARP, PAT, ACE, and ADDIE. These processes all deal with how instruction is designed. A presentation of those concepts can be found here:

http://prezi.com/dtnaps0vo9ie/creating-graphics-for-learning-and-performance/

The concept of contiguity simplifies many of those concepts. Contiguity is the coordination of spoken word and graphics to maximize instructional input. Contiguity is the instructors’ attempts to incorporate words and media to “guide the learner’s cognitive processing during learning (p.65)”.

This design must be done with care to allow the learner to make connections between the text and the media. Processing for each happens separately in the brain, but with proper instructional design and technique, learners make connections and integrate the modalities to create meaning. The key for learner success is to prevent cognitive overload by following the design principle that “less is more.”

Avoid decorative graphics that do not enhance the instructional message, instead focusing on graphics that are organizational, transformational or interpretive in nature. These encourage higher level thinking skills in your learners and offer engagement not present in decorative graphics (p. 58-59). Animated graphics do not enhance instruction; in fact, it has been shown that static graphics allow the learner time to process and alleviates extra cognitive load.

It’s about coordination of the message design, and maximizing learner memory.

Summey - ELSI Chapter 2

Chapter two of e-Learning and the Science of Instruction discusses cognitive processes and the importance of considering them when designing instruction while also establishing the importance of connecting research with practice.  One point in particular that resonates throughout the chapter is that educators should guide the use of technology by our knowledge of how learning works as opposed to what technology tools might seem to be best suited or most interesting in a particular situation.  I also thought a lot about managing cognitive resources in e-learning environments.  The online context presents so many opportunities for distraction which can lead to extraneous processing.  However, when used appropriately, technology can aide in both essential and generative processing.  Finally, there are four key processes which support e-learning:  selecting and focusing on key information, rehearsing within the working memory and organizing for the purpose of integrating with existing knowledge in long-term memory, managing cognitive load, and then being able to retrieve new knowledge in the appropriate context when needed.  Technology can either aid or hinder these processes.  Research-based methods should guide instructional design.

Chapter 2 in ELSI

The information in ELSI Chapter 2 was a good review of learning theory and cognitive load from Ed Tech 504, but I also appreciated the succinct treatment of the subject matter in this chapter. I especially liked this excellent guideline from page 37:

“The challenge for instructional designers is to create learning environments that minimize extraneous cognitive processing, manage essential processing, and foster generative processing.”

This guideline refers to the three types of demands on cognitive processing (extraneous, essential, and generative) described on pages 36 and 37. This simple categorization may make the complex issue of cognitive processing more manageable for those of us who design instructional materials.

It is common to hear that images and captions should be placed "together," but "together" is ambiguous. Figure 2.3 clearly demonstrates that text located immediately below a picture is not as effective as text placed immediately adjacent to the image, or "integrated." This example also demonstrates how a visual can be far more effective at fostering generative learning than words alone.

Finally, I also liked the explanation of using job-relevant "retrieval hooks" to promote knowledge transfer because this is an easy-to-understand concept and term that I may be able to use with clients in my job as an e-course developer.

Week 3 Readings - Derek Grimes

This week's reading was a really good review for me. I really tried to relate some of the material to my classroom today. I do not teach in an online environment (yet) but rather in a traditional classroom. The three metaphors of learning were interesting to me. As much as I would love to say that I spend most of my time on knowledge construction, fact of the matter is I don't. Most of my time is spent in the response strengthening area. I teach math, which is a little different than most subjects. What I have found is that my students basically do not come prepared. Instead of learning the basics for what I am teaching, they have learned concepts that will not help them in my class. This coupled with the tremendous amount of material we are required to cover makes getting beyond this metaphor is tough. Anyone else have that issue?

Secondly, I was reminded of how we, as educators, must not fall into a rut, but constantly be refining our teaching in the classroom. Managing the limited cognitive resources during learning was a great section for me to read. I think, at least for me, I do a lot of this subconsciously. I basically leave out any irrelevant information. However, I think my lessons would be much better and more efficient if I took the time to consciously eliminate extraneous processing and focused on the generative processing. From my experience, when the teacher can get to this point, the students are actually more responsive. It's just getting to that point that is tough for me.

Finally,I thought the section on statistics was interesting. I must say that, as a math teacher, I was very disappointed in how poorly this section was written. The math was not explained well at all. Also, I can not say that in my 7 years of teaching that I have ever given an exam that had a 10 point standard deviation. I just don't think that is possible. Students range (even from advanced honors to general classes) from highly motivated and wanting to do well to totally disconnected from their educational experience. The numbers here are good for theory but I don't think they are practical at all. Just my opinion.

Tymitz - Week 3 Readings

What occurred to me as I read through this chapter was the similarities that exist between creating effective e-learning and creating effective, memorable instruction. Many of the concepts are the same. Our district, as are almost all I imagine, is transitioning to a fully research based approach to instruction. This translates into e-learning as well as general classroom isntruction. "We recommend that e-lerning courses incorporate methods that are based on high-quality research" (Clark & Mayer, 2008).

Additionally, Clark and Mayer note that for successful transfer of information via e-learning, "e-lessons must incorporate the context of the job in the exampls and practice exercises" (2008). Without putting new information in context for the learner, regardless of delivery format, proper and useful retrieval of the information is unlikely. As a teacher, I am constantly trying to presente new material and make it meaningful for the students I teach. I refer to circumstances that they are familiar with and use new skills in ways that are appropriate and meaningful.

Clark, R.C. & Mayer, R.E. (2008). E-Learning and the Science of Instruction: Proven Guidelines for Consumers and Designers of Multimedia Learning (2nd edition). Pfeiffer.

Barb's thoughts on Chapter 2 - How do people learn from e-courses?

An interesting part of chapter two for me was learning about the three metaphors of learning: response strengthening, information acquisition, knowledge construction (Clark & Mayer, 2008, p. 33-35). The authors, Clark & Mayer (2008), ask the reader to pick their favorite description of how learning works (p. 33).
• Learning involves strengthening correct responses and weakening incorrect responses.
• Learning involves adding new information to your memory.
• Learning involves making sense of the presented material by attending to relevant information, mentally reorganizing it, and connecting it with what you already know.
Which one did you pick?
I picked all three because each one can be used to help a learner be successful. Response strengthening can assist learners in memorizing how to spell words or learn basic math facts, Colvin & Mayer (2008) referred to this as directive instructional architecture in chapter one (p. 27). Information acquisition maybe used successfully when a leaner is introduced to a new environment: here is the reading corner; learning centers are over there, etc. Colvin & Mayer (2008) connected information acquisition to respective instructional architecture discussed in chapter one. Finally, knowledge construction is found in the perfect project-based learning plan and referred to in, Colvin & Mayer (2008), chapter one page 27 as guided discovery architecture. Even though I believe all three can be used as a learning tool, I also believe that knowledge construction is by far the most desired from of learning.

I learned about the three metaphors of learning and as I progress in this course I will design lessons with one of these metaphors in mind, with an emphasis on knowledge construction.

Colvin, R. C., and Mayer, R. E. (2008). E-learning and the science of instruction: proven guidelines for consumers and designers of multimedia learning. Pfeiffer and Co.

Harmon - Week 3 Readings - How People Learn

Overall, I thought this chapter was a great review of learning theory, it seemed to pack many of the key elements of learning theory into one concise chapter. Although if you were not previously acquainted with learning theory it might prove to be a bit difficult to decipher some of what the authors are talking about. The end of the chapter also provided a good, general overview on research and statistics; however both of these subjects, like theories of learning, were covered in-depth in previous EdTech courses.

Two things that I liked in this chapter were the emphasis on the role of the learner and the discussion of "Las Vegas Style Media". I appreciated that the authors put emphasis on the importance of the learner taking an active role in their learning by consciously engaging in cognitive processing, I think the importance of the learner being actively involved in the learning is sometimes overlooked. Also, I liked the term "Las Vegas Style Media" because that phrase conjures exactly the right mental image, a glitzy, showy, bright, garish webpage which can quickly lead to cognitive overload.

The statement I found most helpful from an instructional design point of view was the statement on page 37 that instructional designers must "create learning environments that minimize extraneous cognitive processing, manage essential processing and foster generative processing." I found this to be a good perspective on the goal of instructional design, to encourage learners to understand new material and connect the new material to prior knowledge and not distract learners from the material with "Las Vegas Style Media".

Finally, I thought the section on Directing Selection of Important Information was brief yet important because as an online learner I am greatly aided by an arrow or colored box to draw my eye to important information. Also, the section on Methods for Integration contained important information about how integrating words and images properly aides learning and decreases cognitive overload.

Week 3 Readings- How do people learn from e-Courses?

In reflection to Chapter 2: How Do People Learn from e-Courses? I would like to reflect on three main ideas I got from the reading that I thought Clark and Mayer did a good job discussing. The three things that I will discuss are the Principles and Process of Learning in particularly the Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning. Clark and Mayer point out that there are three main cognitive processes indicated by the arrows in figure 2.1 on page 35.

1. Selecting Words and Images- I believe this to be very important especially for students with disabilities that I teach. You have to find a way to make learning meaningful. Individuals must learn how to learn per say. Clark and Mayer explain you must "pay attention to relevant words and images in the presented material." As a teacher of students with disabilities I have to ensure that my students are identifying the key point and pictures to associate with the key points. If I do this they have a much better shot at building mental models through different levels of processing.

2. Organizing Words and Images- Clark and Mayer explain that the second step of the Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning is to "mentally organize the selected material in coherent verbal and pictorial representation. " For my students in order to ensure that they are going through the levels of processing the material it would be very beneficial for me to provide them with an advanced organizer so that once they can pull out the important images and and key words I can help them in the organizational process. For instance at the beginning of a Unit I would provide more support and as they unit went on less support for arranging the data would take place. This would provide for good informal assessment through teacher observation.

3. Integrating- I think when Clark and Mayer talk about integrating the knowledge they are really talking about how can the learner generalize the new material to existing knowledge or real world experiences. For a student with learning disabilities if you can provide them the ability to generalize the newly processed information to something they are comfortable with and already know we have a better chance of retention.

These are just a few of my thoughts from the week 3 readings. I look forward to reading about what the rest of you thought about the material.

References

Clark, R. C., & Mayer, R. E. (2007). E-Learning and the Science of Instruction: Proven Guidelines for Consumers and Designers of Multimedia Learning (2nd ed.). Pfeiffer.

Loeffler Week 2 Readings

The key point that stood out for  me in this week’s assigned reading was the  management of limited cognitive resources during learning, and the need for an evidenced based practice.

 When managing  cognitive resources Clark and Mayer (2008) discuss three kinds of demands on cognitive processing capacity.

Extraneous processing -   instructional designers are challenged to “create learning environments that minimize extraneous cognitive processing”.  Extraneous processing can occur when objectives are not supported and with poor instructional design. 

Essential processing - Designers need to  manage essential  processing with the selection of material and lesson complexity.  

Generative processing  - Fostering generative processing is a deeper understanding of core material which can be  enhanced by the organization and intergradation of learning material  to establish and support  learner motivation.

 I though Clark and Mayer (2008)  discussion on research was important. As a nurse I have strived to base my career on an evidence based practice. When working with student nurses or mentoring new grads I strongly encourage them to establish an career based on research findings. Research gives credence to ones practice whether it be nursing, instructional design, or teaching. 

Relating Chapter 2 with Current Events

So I would love to have a little discussion on this blog about Idaho State Superintendent, Tom Luna's technology plan that he is proposing for the State of Idaho's Education in K-12.

For those who don't live in Idaho, the plan has 2 major components that are driving the most discussion and debate. The first is that every student (in 9th grade) would receive a laptop that would follow them through high school and they could keep it afterwards. (Very similar to what Maine and New York have done).

Here are some links to articles about their work:

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/04/education/04laptop.html?pagewanted=all

http://www.pbs.org/teachers/learning.now/2007/05/schools_drop_laptop_programs_b.html

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25782209/ns/technology_and_science-tech_and_gadgets/

The second portion of the plan is that every student will have 2 online courses as part of their graduation requirements to prepare them for possible online education in the future.

After reading this chapter and looking at the learner-centered approach rather than the technology-centered approach it got me thinking about what would be the best course of action when comes to not only developing multimedia, but the best course in which to present the material for our students (especially relating to Tom Luna's plan).

An online class or even a hybrid would give students the option to learn differently and find out what would work best for them. However, I have also seen a high level of high school students (both good and bad students) fail online classes offered by the Idaho Digital Learning Academy, due to a lack of personal management and motivation for learning (even though I believe the instructional material was developed in such a manner to be learner-centered).

I think that as educational technologists we should be the ones with the answers on the best course for Idaho to take, but sometimes I feel so clueless when others ask me about Luna's plan that I have started with the generic answer saying, "it's all in the implementation," which has me worried since the majority of Idaho teachers are against the plan - which almost seems to be setting it up for failure before it even begins.

Crescitelli - Week 3 - Oh Statistics!

Hi everyone. This may be an interesting post. Now, I am no braggart, not by any means, but I am a relatively sharp guy. I have just read pages 46-48 in the reading for the 4^th time. I have highlighted and taken notes, but I am going to admit that I can’t make heads or tails out of what they’re trying to relay in the explanations of probability and effect size. And I’ve been a math teacher for the past 20 years!

The explanation of standards deviation is vague and the rounding of all numbers to a standard deviation of 10 actually confuses the example. Figure 2.4 on page 47, I believe incorrectly displays SD=10, when it is shown as SD=5. Now, how they take that understanding and relate it to measure of probability really threw me. I cannot figure out, by text or graphic, where the example shows p < .05. Page 47 talks about probability being .05 or less but doesn’t relay how that number was calculated. Where does that number come from, and how was it calculated? Can anyone help here?

Then I just about lost it thinking about effect size. Dividing a number by an unrealistic standard deviation of 10 when the artificial difference between the control group and the test group is 10 yields an effect size of 1. ¿Qué? Of course it does. The book rounded everything so much; it’s hard to make real meaning here.

Now, I looked at a recent math test for comparison. The average standard deviation in my math class is around 40, sad but true. In a heterogeneous classroom, this is often the case. I know, I’m looking for a high average and low standard deviation, but reality is reality. For me to have any statistical significance in terms of effect size (according to page 48) using the understanding of standard deviation (using an ES of .5 as moderate), the mean score on my tests would need to yield a difference of 20 points. Wow! Looking at the mean for my tests and quizzes this year, I don’t think trying to yield a difference of 20 points in mean is possible. The mean in my room is often in the low 80s.

But I digress. How do the rest of you use data like this to make determinations about instructional practices? Do any of you find this information complex? How do you interpret research statistics?