Quantitative Study Article Critique
This paper is a critique of an article written by McKinney and Jones (1993) entitled: “Effects of a Children’s Book and a Traditional Textbook on Fifth-grade Students’ Achievement and Attitudes toward Social Studies”. In their research the authors examined the effects of a children’s book and a traditional social studies textbook on knowledge acquisition and attitudes toward social studies and the textbook in a sample of 57 fifth-graders. It is the intention of the present paper to develop analytical discussion and the holistic interpretation of the McKinney and Jones’s quantitative study (1993).
Research Problem
The purpose of the research was implied in the introduction and clearly and succinctly stated as follows, “… to examine the role of a children’s book and a regular textbook on fifth-grade students’ knowledge acquisition and attitudes toward social studies and their textbook” (McKinney & Jones, 1993, p. 91). The problem explicitly indicated the population studied (fifth-grade students) and the experimental nature of the research as there were mentioned the independent variables (the textbook and children’s book), the dependant variables (knowledge and attitudes toward social studies and their textbook), and their relationships (the effect of books on knowledge acquisition and attitudes). The authors defined both variables by providing an overview of the book and textbook and describing tests and tests items, however, more detailed information about variables was needed to promote the rigorous understanding of authors’ criterion in selecting them.
McKinney & Jones’ (1993) six hypotheses are clearly stated in a declarative form and expected differences between groups could be tested thr...
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... information on the American Revolution should be added.
Works Cited
McKinney, C. W., & Jones, H. J. (1993). Effects of a children's book and a traditional textbook on fifth-grade students' achievement and attitudes toward social studies. Journal of research and development in education, 27(1), 56-62. Retrieved April 2, 2014 from the University of Manitoba EDUA-5800-D01 online course materials.
McMillan, J.H. (2012). Educational research: Fundamentals for the consumer (6th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson.
Renaud, R. (2014a, April 10). Unit 10 - Understanding Statistical Inferences [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from the University of Manitoba EDUA-5800-D01 online course materials.
Renaud, R. (2014b, April 9). Unit 13 - Action Research and Discussion and Conclusions [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from the University of Manitoba EDUA-5800-D01 online course materials.
Wilson, J. Bradely Cruxton and W. Douglas. Spotlight Canada Fourth Edition. Toronto: Oxford University Press, 2000.
Hinde, E.R., & Perry, N. (2007). Elementary Teachers’ Application of Jean Piaget’s Theories of Cognitive Development during Social Studies Curriculum Debates in Arizona. The Elementary School Journal, 108(1), 63-79.
National Council for the Social Studies (1988). Social Studies for Early Childhood and Elementary School Children: Preparing for the 21st Century. Retrieved February 21, 2014, from http://www.socialstudies.org/positions/elementary.
...the data did not involve member checking thus reducing its robustness and enable to exclude researcher’s bias. Although a constant comparative method was evident in the discussion which improved the plausibility of the final findings. Themes identified were well corroborated but not declared was anytime a point of theoretical saturation Thus, the published report was found to be particularly strong in the area of believability and dependability; less strong in the area of transferability; and is weak in the area of credibility and confirmability, although, editorial limitations can be a barrier in providing a detailed account (Craig & Smyth, 2007; Ryan, Coughlan, & Cronin, 2007).
Parens, Erik. "Special Supplement: Is Better Always Good? The Enhancement Project." Hastings Center Report 28.1 (1998): s1-s17. Web. 1 Apr 2011. .
In a similar research study conducted by Christine M. Rubies-Davies of the University of Auckl...
...ible tool for examining data from this study. Word study’s origin is based on the belief of the student’s constructivism in understanding and comprehending new knowledge by the word study developers, the generalized belief by education specialists that it is the way students learn, its foundational role in teacher preparation programs, and its acceptance of the dynamics within the classroom as playing a role in appropriate instruction. Hence, for this study, it is advantageous to use the constructivism theories of both Piaget and Vygotsky, cognitive and sociocultural, as theoretical frameworks. Together these theories will be the lens for analysis of the data collected within the study. By using both, I am able to examine both the an individual’s internal and external construction of information. In the ensuing chapter, I establish the methodology of this study.
With all of the textbooks available in the market, often written by famous authors with years of experience, choosing a textbook is a very demanding and thought provoking task. What makes a textbook valuable in the classroom? We must decide which points are important to us as teachers. What method or methods does the textbook use to convey its ideas? How is the language presented? Is it attractive to the audience? Are there additional materials that can be used to supplement our book such as additional listening or video material, web search ideas, interactive whiteboard software and other additional resources that could be used to enhance the class? Along with these criterion we must analyze the differences between textbooks to come up with the optimal choice for our needs. There are many different approaches used to teach the four skills: reading, writing, listening and speaking, the tactic we take as to which one best suits the intended audience will depend on the necessities of the group to be taught, as well as the teacher’s personal preference as to method of teaching. Let’s look at these two textbook chapters and compare the way they look at the four basic skills.
Sunal, C.S., & Haas, Mary E., (2011), Social Studies for the elementary and middle grades: A Constructivist Approach (4th ed) Boston, MA: Pearson Education INC.
...ed to consider how long their text should last, if it is going to be long or short and the availability of the texts or books. Therefore, they need to consider if such texts fit with syllabus and what different kinds of texts will be needed in order to exploit the text given. Nevertheless, in order to find out what their learners are interested in, teachers’ use various ways of gathering data from their learners. One common way of collecting data is by interviewing or questioning the students. Another way of gathering data is by using a checklist. With checklists, teachers can remove or add any criteria they find important or less important throughout their research. Nevertheless, teachers need to consider a lot of things when teaching literature in the language. Consequently, if they are well prepared, then any disciplines in the language classroom will be avoided.
Turk, D. B., Klein, E., & Dickstein, S. (2007). Mingling "fact" with "fiction": Strategies for integrating literature into history and social studies classrooms. History Teacher, 40(3), 397-406.
Kinniburgh, L., & Busby, R. (2008). No social studies left behind: Integrating social studies during elementary literacy block. Journal of Content Area Reading , 7 (1), 55-85.
Besides, a textbook can guarantee that students in different classes will receive a similar content and therefore, can be evaluated in the same way. In other words, textbooks provide the standards in instruction. Moreover, they include a variety of learning resources such as workbooks, CDs and videos, etc., which make the learning environment colorful and interesting for the students. They do not only provide a framework for teachers in achieving the objectives of the course, but also act as a guide to the teacher in the classroom. The content of English language textbooks influences what teachers teach and learners
Strategies to Teach Social Studies. Social Studies Center for Educator Development. 2000. Texas Education Agency. 11 Feb. 2005. <http://www.tea.state.tx.us/ssc/downloads/toolkits/Shared%20Sections/Resources/Strateg ies/Strategies.pdf#xml=http://www.tea.state.tx.uswww.tea.state.tx.us/cgi/texis/webinator/search/xml.txt?query=SSCED&db=db&id=1838605184e9a2b0>
This chapter summarizes the current study and presents its conclusions and recommendations. The chapter begins with summarizing the results of the study, and then it presents some pedagogical recommendations for teachers. Finally, the suggestions for further research are provided.