Data Collection
All research needs data to support its findings. A three point data system is a strong way to give credibility to findings. For this project I will be working to collect data that addresses 1) My observations, 2) Samples of student work, and 3) Student feedback that gives insights into their perception of their performance. It is important to collect multiple forms of data to ensure that findings are grounding in reliable data that is coming from multiple sources and is not biased toward one particular point of view or perspective.
Field Notes and Observation Check List
According to Patton, 1990 (as cited in Falk, 2005), Field notes, “should contain detailed and concrete descriptive information about the setting, the context, and the personal interactions of what/who is being observed. Field notes do not include feelings or inferences. Inferences can be recorded in a separate journal or written in different columns to separate description (observations), inferences and feelings. I will use my field notes as an unbiased recording of actions, behaviors and interaction from and between students during instruction, group work, independent work and other various types of class activity structures. These notes will help me view situations and student progress with goal setting objectively so I can analyze my data with the least amount personal bias possible.
I will be monitoring student behavior through the day using a simple checklist. The list will have student names with two categories: yes and no. When student demonstrate behavior toward their goal they will get a tally mark on the yes. When they demonstrate behavior that is against their goal they will get a tally on the no part. This is so I can have a reference at the end of the week to see how many times they had behavior working toward or against their goal. Then I will compare my daily tallies to the number of stars students gave themselves based on their daily progress towards achieving their goals. I will pay more attention to each student’s growth rather than number of tallies. For example if a student remembers to raise their hand 4 times and calls out 7 times on Monday but raises their hand 4 times and calls out 5 times on Tuesday, that will be progress even though the student is still calling out more than raising hand. Progress is more important to me that perfection.
Along with this checklist I will include field notes. I will use my field notes as an unbiased recording of actions, behaviors and interaction from and between students during instruction, group work, independent work and other various types of class activity structures. These notes will help me view situations and student progress with goal setting objectively so I can analyze my data with the least amount personal bias possible.
Although these notes do not include student perspective of why a certain action was chosen, I can use these to compare my notes to student notes. This should be a helpful tool in identifying what students are aware of versus my observations.
I will be monitoring student behavior through the day using a simple checklist. The list will have student names with two categories: yes and no. When student demonstrate behavior toward their goal they will get a tally mark on the yes. When they demonstrate behavior that is against their goal they will get a tally on the no part. This is so I can have a reference at the end of the week to see how many times they had behavior working toward or against their goal. Then I will compare my daily tallies to the number of stars students gave themselves based on their daily progress towards achieving their goals. I will pay more attention to each student’s growth rather than number of tallies. For example if a student remembers to raise their hand 4 times and calls out 7 times on Monday but raises their hand 4 times and calls out 5 times on Tuesday, that will be progress even though the student is still calling out more than raising hand. Progress is more important to me that perfection.
Along with this checklist I will include field notes. I will use my field notes as an unbiased recording of actions, behaviors and interaction from and between students during instruction, group work, independent work and other various types of class activity structures. These notes will help me view situations and student progress with goal setting objectively so I can analyze my data with the least amount personal bias possible.
Although these notes do not include student perspective of why a certain action was chosen, I can use these to compare my notes to student notes. This should be a helpful tool in identifying what students are aware of versus my observations.
Goal Planning Worksheet
There are three components to this sheet. The first part of the sheet lists the goal and why the student is setting it. I will most likely fill out the sheet for ease. This section is filled out based on the conversation I will have with students regarding which goal they would like to set and why. There will be a box on the sheet where their goal will be written big without the explanation so they can clearly see what they are working on.
The second part is a daily assessment of their goal behavior. At the end of the day students will be given some time to reflect on their goal and decide how they did with their goal for the day, then give themselves stars based on their performance.
The three choices are 1 star they forgot about their goal, 2 stars they remembered their goal and tried to work on it but did not do a great job following it or 3 stars they think they did a perfect job following their goal. I want to see if students are aware of their progress on achieving their goal throughout the day. Additionally I would like to see if their reflection matches my observations through the day. This information will hopefully be used to assess student self-perception of how well they followed their goals.
The third and final part of the goal sheet is a small end of week reflection. Although I will have either small group or one on one discussion in more depth with students I also wanted to include a quick weekly reflection so students could focus on one idea, how they think they did for the week. Students will explain to me how they think they did with their goal for the week and why. From this we will decide if next weeks goal should be the same, slightly modified, or completely different. I will also ask students why they believe whichever choice they chose.
Students will have this assessment plan and a note card with their goal on their desk to remind them of the goal they are working toward.
The second part is a daily assessment of their goal behavior. At the end of the day students will be given some time to reflect on their goal and decide how they did with their goal for the day, then give themselves stars based on their performance.
The three choices are 1 star they forgot about their goal, 2 stars they remembered their goal and tried to work on it but did not do a great job following it or 3 stars they think they did a perfect job following their goal. I want to see if students are aware of their progress on achieving their goal throughout the day. Additionally I would like to see if their reflection matches my observations through the day. This information will hopefully be used to assess student self-perception of how well they followed their goals.
The third and final part of the goal sheet is a small end of week reflection. Although I will have either small group or one on one discussion in more depth with students I also wanted to include a quick weekly reflection so students could focus on one idea, how they think they did for the week. Students will explain to me how they think they did with their goal for the week and why. From this we will decide if next weeks goal should be the same, slightly modified, or completely different. I will also ask students why they believe whichever choice they chose.
Students will have this assessment plan and a note card with their goal on their desk to remind them of the goal they are working toward.
Conferences With Students
The second aspect of my data collection is notes from conferring with students at the end of phase one. I will ask and discuss the questions below with my students. These questions will help to aid in my understanding of the information and data I gather from students’ self-assessment and my field notes. These questions will play a key part in developing my second phase, so I can better facilitate goal setting in the classroom.
Questions for conferences:
1. Over the past few weeks you’ve set several goals, which goal worked best for you and why?
2. Did you like setting goals? Why or why not?
3. Did your goals change how you did in class?
4. How can we make goal setting better for this class?
5. Do you have anything else you would like to share?
Questions for conferences:
1. Over the past few weeks you’ve set several goals, which goal worked best for you and why?
2. Did you like setting goals? Why or why not?
3. Did your goals change how you did in class?
4. How can we make goal setting better for this class?
5. Do you have anything else you would like to share?