Post on 29-Nov-2014
description
A Q METHODOLOGICAL
STUDY ON PERCEPTIONS OF
WHAT WOULD ENHANCE
DISTANCE EDUCATION
Dr. Joseph A Meloche and Dr. Ying Sun
A philosophical and cross-disciplinary framework for studying different
forms of human practices as developmental processes, with both
individual and social levels interlinked at the same time” (Kuutti, in
Nardi, 1996).
Activity Theory
Activity Theory
Activities are the basic units of analysis
An Individual’s actions + meaningful context = an Activity
Activities are not static
Each activity has a history of its own
Activities are under continuous change/development
Activities always contain various mediating artifacts
There is an relationship between people and these artifacts
Notion of consciousness as something directly related to the conditions current in a person’s situation
Unifies consciousness and activity
Activity Theory Tools
Q Methodology
Originally developed by the British physicist-
psychologist, William Stephenson (1935). He
introduced this method in a letter to the Nature.
A research method used to study people's
"subjectivity" -- that is, their viewpoint such as
personal thinking, notion (Stephenson, 1968).
Currently used in the social sciences with research
settings to examine how people think about a topic.
Q Study Process
Q population, collecting statements
Q samples, selecting statements
P sample, collecting Q sorters
Q sorting, rank-orders of a set of statements from “most agree” to “most disagree”
Q analysis
Q Study Brainstorming Session
Q Study Factor Analysis
Q methodology referred to "a population of n different tests (or essays, pictures, traits or other measurable material), each of which is measured or scaled by m individuals“ (Stephenson, 1935). Given a set of statements, Q will analyze the factors among the m individuals (Q-sorters).
The number of factors identified depends in part depends upon the degree of agreement among participants, and in part on how much detail the researchers feel is useful to analyze.
The selected factors will then be interpreted in order to present the social discourses revealed.
Experiment: Q Study with 2 Sessions
Session 1: a concourse/brainstorming session where participants’ views on effective distance education were sought.
Session 2: seeks the views students and educators hold based upon their opinion and experience with distance education.
The topic for the brain storming session was:
What is important for effective learning in distance education?
Session 1: Brainstorming & Concourse
Q
Samples
for
Enhancing
Distance
Education
(N=40)
presented
in the
order and
original
way they
were
collected
1. Classes that are interactive
2. Classes that are not dependent on interactions
3. The ability of students to decide on the level of interaction they have with other
students
4. Having a pre-established meeting time for classes
5. Having no established class meeting time
6. Opportunities to teleconference or videoconference with other students easily
7. The opportunity for online students to interact with on-campus students taking
the same course
8. Having a set of rules to apply to group work
9. Flexible group participation
10. Advanced notice of synchronous sessions
11. Continuity among different distance education software platforms
12. The incorporation of multimedia
13. Having a user friendly distance learning interface
14. Having a tutorial session for the learning software that will be used at the
start of the semester
15. Easy to use software
16. Reliable software
17. Use of familiar technologies
18. Taking full advantage of the features of distance education software
19. Explicit information about the technical requirements for utilizing distance
learning software
20. A class structure which keeps pace with new technologies such as tablets or
smart phones
21. Use of podcasts and YouTube videos as a substitute for live lectures
22. Detailed instructions and expectations for assignments and participation
23. A solid, stable class structure
24. Classes that are structured as similarly to a classroom setting as possible
25. Clear instructor guidance
26. Timely feedback from instructors about grades
27. A set submission area for assignments and announcements so that confusion is
decreased
28. Assignments tailored specifically to fit an online setting
29. Practical assignments
30. A well-planned syllabus
31. Incorporating of aspects of a traditional lecture into the class structure
32. Access to different modes of communication
33. Having a contact person to assist online students with administrative needs
34. Regular communication with instructors outside of class meetings
35. Having a contact person to assist online students with technical difficulties
36. Frequent communication with instructors
37. Instructors having proactive contact with students
38. Consistency in announcements
39. Having access to contact people who are affiliated with the organization
offering the course
40. Having ways to access and participate in associations, activities, information
related to the program
Session 2: Q Sort
Sorting
Spreadsheet
Agree Neither Agree Nor Disagree Disagree
-5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5
Strongly
Disagree←
Neither Agree
Nor Disagree→
Strongly
Agree
Once you have Pre-sorted the Statements via the Statement-Blocks, you are to arange the statements based upon the extent to which you agree or
disagree with them relative to the scale provided. Do this by moving the Statement-Blocks into place on the Sorting Grid. On the scale, -5 represents
total disagreement with a given Statement, and 5 represents total agreement with a Statement.
Position is only important in terms of horizontal placement along the scale. Vertical placement is unimportant.
Sorting Grid
Results
Reported here are the analytical results of the 27 participants’ sorting 40 statements on the question:
What is (most) important for effective learning in distance education?
The factor analysis produced 4 factors:
1. Traditional Distance Learning
2. The Independent Learner
3. Highly Structured Instructor Driven Courses and Collaborative Opportunities
4. The Highly Collaborative, Web 2.0 Factor
Factor I: Traditional Distance Learning
22 detailed instructions and expectations for assignments and participation (1.953)
25 clear instructor guidance (1.834)
30 a well-planned syllabus (1.698)
5 having no established class meeting time (1.681)
26 timely feedback from instructors about grades (1.240)
38 consistency in announcements (1.223)
10 advanced notice of synchronous sessions (1.019)
23 a solid, stable class structure (1.002)
39 having access to contact people who are affiliated with the organization offering the course (-0.883)
1 classes that are interactive (-1.172)
6 opportunities to teleconference or videoconference with other students easily (-1.291)
4 having a pre-established meeting time for classes (-1.528)
7 the opportunity for online students to interact with on-campus students taking the same course (-1.749)
24 classes that are structured as similarly to a classroom setting as possible (-2.021)
31 incorporating of aspects of a traditional lecture into the class structure (-2.089)
High Positive Q Sample & z-score High Negative Q Sample & z-score
Factor II: The Independent Learner
2 classes that are not dependent on interactions (1.791)
3 the ability of students to decide on the level of interaction they have with other students (1.490)
5 having no established class meeting time (1.270)
14 having a tutorial session for the learning software that will be used at the start of the semester (1.160)
9 flexible group participation (1.110)
18 taking full advantage of the features of distance education software (1.080)
7 the opportunity for online students to interact with on-campus students taking the same course (1.010)
26 timely feedback from instructors about grades (-0.840)
13 having a user friendly distance learning interface (-0.910)
36 frequent communication with instructors (-1.010 )
29 practical assignments (-1.020)
1 classes that are interactive (-1.400)
30 a well-planned syllabus (-1.551)
High Positive Q Sample & z-score High Negative Q Sample & z-score
Factor III: Highly Structured Instructor Driven
Courses and Collaborative Opportunities
22 detailed instructions and expectations for assignments and participation (0.872)
4 having a pre-established meeting time for classes (0.828)
25 clear instructor guidance (0.784)
16 reliable software (0.722)
13 having a user friendly distance learning interface (0.678)
10 advanced notice of synchronous sessions (0.643)
26 timely feedback from instructors about grades (0.590)
1 classes that are interactive (0.493)
40 having ways to access and participate in associations (-0.537)
activities, information related to the program (-0.572)
7 the opportunity for online students to interact with on-campus students taking the same course (-0.572)
12 the incorporation of multimedia (-0.590)
39 having access to contact people who are affiliated with the organization offering the course (- 0.616)
21 use of podcasts and YouTube videos as a substitute for live lectures (-1.004)
5 having no established class meeting time
High Positive Q Sample & z-score High Negative Q Sample & z-score
Factor IV: The Highly Collaborative,
Web 2.0 Factor
21 use of podcasts and YouTube videos as a substitute for live lecture (0.939 )
15 easy to use software (0.756)
6 opportunities to teleconference or videoconference with other students easily (0.692)
12 the incorporation of multimedia (0.557)
14 having a tutorial session for the learning software that will be used at the start of the semester (0.533)
28 assignments tailored specifically to fit an online setting (0.493)
10 advanced notice of synchronous sessions (0.446)
18 taking full advantage of the features of distance education software (0.438)
20 a class structure which keeps pace with new technologies such as tablets or smart phones (0.438)
8 having a set of rules to apply to group work (-0.517)
22 detailed instructions and expectations for assignments and participation (-0.517)
37 instructors having proactive contact with students (-0.541)
4 having a pre-established meeting time for classes (-0.557)
24 classes that are structured as similarly to a classroom setting as possible (-0.756)
31 incorporating of aspects of a traditional lecture into the class structure (-0.780)
23 a solid, stable class structure (-0.891)
High Positive Q Sample & z-score High Negative Q Sample & z-score
Discussion & Implications
Enable the design of more effective learning systems and services to better support distance education
Inform the development of delivery that will improve the delivery by the informed use and design of the distance learning environments
Advance the understanding of collaborative information seeking in non-traditional library environment
Increase our understandings of this context and improve the ability of librarians and information professionals to work together collaboratively and effectively in non-traditional environments
Future Work
Conduct interviews of the participants and with an analysis of the material based on the framework provided by Activity Theory,
Activity Theory allows for a refined analysis that maintains the user’s perspective and incorporating a holistic approach to the ongoing evolution of learning environments.
Collect more data.
Expand the study to include researchers from other countries.
Schedule conferences and present findings,
Recently submitted proposal to16th Distance Library Services Conference, April 23-25, 2014, Denver, CO, USA.
Presentation designed by Sarah Harris, MA, MLS
Joseph A Meloche
School of Library and
Information Sciences
North Carolina Central
University
Durham, NC 27707,
U.S.A.
jmeloche@nccu.edu
Ying Sun
Department of Library
and Information
Studies
University at Buffalo, the
State University of
New York
Buffalo, NY 14260,
U.S.A.
sun3@buffalo.edu