Canonical Tag Script

Friday, December 29, 2023

Educational Method of John Dewey | Philosophy of Education | Course code 8609 |

Discuss the main focus of John Dewey in making teaching methods effective.

Course: Philosophy of Education

Course code  8609

Level: B.Ed Solved Assignment

ANSWER

Educational Method

Dewey, himself a successful educational psychologist, has presented many novels and useful ideas on educational methods in his two books, How We Think and Interest and Efforts in Education.

1. Learning by doing.

The most well-known principle enunciated by him is the theory of learning by doing, in which the child learns best when he performs actions related to particular subjects. The educator is not to stuff the child's mind with the information he has gathered throughout his life but to guide the child to those activities by which the child can develop his own natural abilities and qualities. The child should be acquainted with facts while he is engaged in activities relating to those facts. Besides, the child should be confronted with practical difficulties and problems which he should try to solve. Problem-solving is a good technique because it adds to the child's experience.

2.   Integration of life and subjects.

Dewey believes that there should be integration between the child's life, his activities and the subjects he studied. All subjects to be taught to the child should be arranged around his activities in such a manner that he acquires knowledge in the process of doing activities to which he is accustomed. Dewey's principle was later on adopted by Mahatma Gandhi in his plan of basic education.

3.   Catering to child interest.

The next question that arises is that of designing the method of teaching according to the child's interests. Dewey considers interest and effort to be of supreme importance in the process of education. The educator must understand the child's interest before organizing the activities which are useful for the child. Given the opportunity to formulate programmes on their own, children will be able to make programmes according to their own interests. It is better if this effort is free of any fear or compulsion, because only then can the children make a programme independently. Once this is done, all school activity takes on the form of self-willed activity. Dewey's ideas on educational methods later on led to the evolution of the project method in which the child was made to indulge in those activities which helped in the development of enthusiasm, self-confidence, self-reliance and originality.

4.   Participation in collective activities.

In a democratic educational pattern, the child should be made to participate in a collective activity which can help in evolving a cooperative and social spirit. This method of education is apparently very suitable since it meets the requirements of educational psychology. But in fact, it has one inherent shortcoming if the education of the child is fashioned exclusively according to the child's natural inclination he will remain ignorant of many subjects. Besides, even his knowledge of other subjects will remain disorganized, objections which are accepted by Dewey himself.

Role of the Educator

Pragmatic education grants considerable importance to the educator, who is conceived as a servant of society. His task is to create in the school an environment which will help in the development of the child's social personality and enable the child to become a responsible democratic citizen. Dewey considers the educator to be so important that he goes so far as to call him God's representative on earth.

In determining the educator's own behaviour in the school, Dewey accepts democratic principles and educational psychology as suitable guides for shaping the educator's conduct. To realize the values of equality and independence in the school, the educator should not treat himself as superior to the children. He must also consciously abstain from imposing his own ideas, interests, views and tendencies on the children. He must confine his own activity to an observation of the child's own natural inclinations and personality traits, to engaging the child in suitable activities which will help in developing these traits. Hence, the educator needs to pay constant attention to the individual differences of the children. If this is done, administration of the school becomes easier. The educator must also try and engage the children in activities which compel them to think and reason out things for themselves.

Discipline

If the educator conducts himself on the lines suggested above, discipline in the school becomes easy. Difficulties arise only when discipline takes the form of an external force employed to restrain the child from expressing his natural desires. This is the traditional concept of discipline, which was severely criticised by Dewey. He argued that discipline depends not only upon the child's own personality but also upon the social environment in which he is placed. True discipline takes the form of social control and this is evolved when the child engages in collective activity in the school. It is therefore desirable to create an atmosphere in the school which encourages the children to live in mutual harmony and co-operation. Discipline and regularity of habit can be induced in children by making them act in consonance with each other in trying to achieve a single objective.

This objective may be social, moral, intellectual or purely physical. School programmes go a long way in creating the child's character. It is therefore better to provide the child with a social environment and a mode which inspires him to self-discipline rather than to subject him to long lectures. By methods such as these, the child can be turned into a really social being. A  peaceful atmosphere is undoubtedly conducive to good and rapid work, but peace is only a means, not an end in itself. The educator's real task is to engage the children in work which suits their natural inclination. If, in the process, the children come into conflict with each other, it is not desirable to scold them and compel them to be peaceful. Self-discipline is a better weapon, and this can be taught through responsibility. When the eductand is faced with the responsibility of looking after most of the work of the college or school he automatically evolves self-discipline.

Participation in social activity is an essential part of educational training, in Dewey's opinion. The school itself is a rudimentary form of society. If the child is encouraged to take part in all collective activities in the school, he will not only be able to maintain discipline in the school, but he will also be simultaneously trained for many activities he must perform in social life. Thus he will also learn to lead a disciplined life as an adult.


Related Topics

Concept of John Dewy's Philosophy of Education

Imam Ghazali's Philosophy of Education

Friedrich Froebel's Views Regarding Philosophy of Education

Curriculum Supported by Aristotle to be taught to Children

Discuss Platos' Idea of education

The Educational views of Ahmed Ibn-e-Muhammad Ibn-e-Ya'qub Ibn-e-Miskawayh

Educational Inmplications of John Dewy's 

Discuss that authoritative knowledge is not objective and logical

Comparison of the teaching Practices Demanded by Pragmatism and Naturalism

Different Educational Philosophies. Which one is the dominant?

What is the role of the teacher in the philosophy of idealism? Which teaching method is used by an idealistic teacher?

Ways in which philosophy provide guidelines for the education.

The Role of Contemporary Philosophies in Education?

Describe the Different Sources of Knowledge

Discuss the main Tenets of Idealism and Realism

The Role of Branches of Philosophy in System of Education (i. Epistemology, ii. Axiology)

Relationship of Education and Philosophy

Discuss the Branches of Philosophy

John Dewey in making Teaching Methods Effective

Thursday, December 28, 2023

Curriculum of Education by Plato| Philosophy of Education | Course Code 8609

How had Plato classified the curriculum of education into different parts? Discuss in detail.

Course: Philosophy of Education

Course code  8609

Level: B.Ed Solved Assignment

ANSWER

Curriculum of Education

Plato's education has its objective in the realization of truth, a comprehensive truth, not limited or narrow. Plato, therefore, believes that the development of the mind, body, and soul is essential. For this reason, he has divided the curriculum into three parts:

1. Bodily Development. 

Plato's philosophy believes bodily development to be of the utmost importance in education, but this bodily development is achieved not merely through exercise and gymnastic activity, but also through a regulated and controlled diet. The educator must guide and train the educator to attend to his food. He must be the kind of doctor who advises a particular kind of diet after acquainting himself with weaknesses of the educand's body. This must be done to get rid of these debilities and finally to lead to the complete development of the body.

2.  Educational Impressions.

 But it must be remembered that bodily development is only a means to mental development because a healthy mind resides only in a healthy body. Although much importance is attached to bodily development, even greater importance is attached to mental development. Being under the influence of Pythagoras, Plato recommended the teaching of mathematics as of supreme importance. The first step in the teaching of mathematics is the teaching of arithmetic. Geometry and algebra should then be taught. Plato believed that the teaching of mathematics could remove many mental defects. In addition to mathematics, Plato considered the teaching of astronomy as of great significance, as part of higher education.

3.  Training in Music.

 To achieve balance in education, Plato stressed the value of musical training as a supplement to training in gymnastics. Exercise is the source of bodily development while music helps in the development of the soul. But music and literature taught to the student must be capable of building character.

Plato suggested that the child's curriculum should be purged of all literature and musical epics which tended to generate such qualities as cowardice, weakness, selfishness, egoism, etc. He was critical of the epics of Homer and other contemporary poets on this ground. Plato considered balance in human life to be of the greatest importance because, in the absence of such a balance, man should neither fulfill his social obligations nor enjoy his own private life to the full. Hence it can be concluded that Plato suggested a balanced curriculum for education.

Role of Educator

In Plato's plan of education, the educator is considered to have the greatest importance. He is like the torch bearer who leads a man, lying in a dark cave, out of the darkness into the bright light of the outside world. His task is to bring the educator out of the darkness of the cave into the light of the day. He is thus the guide.

In his methods of teaching Plato believes imitation to be of the greatest importance, for he realizes that the child learns a great deal through imitation. He will acquire the behavior of the people among whom he is made to live. Hence, keeping in mind the status of the child, he should be made to live among people from whom he can learn good habits and avoid bad ones.

Education According to Classes

Plato's plan of education does not envisage uniform education for one and all. He accepted the concept of social stratification and suggested that since different individuals had to perform different tasks in society, they should also be educated differently, to train each one in his own respective sphere. He believed that different individuals are made of different metals. Those made of gold should take up administration and government, while those made of silver were best suited for trade and defense. Others made of iron and baser metals should become laborers and agriculturists. The state must make different arrangements for the education of these different kinds of people, although Plato implicitly agrees that the education of governing classes is of the greatest importance. The education of the other classes in society does not concern him very much.


Faced with the problem of determining the class of each individual, Plato suggested various kinds of tests to be conducted at different age levels. In the first place, primary education will be given to all between the ages of seven and twenty, following which a test shall be administered to everyone. Those who fail the test are to be sent to labor in various occupations and productive trades. The successful candidates will be sent to the armed forces where training will be imparted to them for the next ten years. This will again be followed by a test; the failures will be compelled to remain in the armed forces while the successful ones will be sent to join the government. Then this governing class will be subjected to further education in science. Later on, one from among the governing class will be elected as the philosopher administrator whose task will be to look after the government and education of the state. This individual will occupy the highest position in the land, his word will be the law of the land. Apart from this supreme individual, all other members of the governing class will continue to receive education throughout their lives, most of this education consisting of teachings in philosophy. It is thus evident that Plato granted the highest place to philosophy in his educational scheme (Shrivastava, 2003).


Related Topics

Concept of John Dewy's Philosophy of Education

Imam Ghazali's Philosophy of Education

Friedrich Froebel's Views Regarding Philosophy of Education

Curriculum Supported by Aristotle to be taught to Children

Discuss Platos' Idea of education

The Educational views of Ahmed Ibn-e-Muhammad Ibn-e-Ya'qub Ibn-e-Miskawayh

Educational Inmplications of John Dewy's 

Discuss that authoritative knowledge is not objective and logical

Comparison of the teaching Practices Demanded by Pragmatism and Naturalism

Different Educational Philosophies. Which one is the dominant?

What is the role of the teacher in the philosophy of idealism? Which teaching method is used by an idealistic teacher?

Ways in which philosophy provide guidelines for the education.

The Role of Contemporary Philosophies in Education?

Describe the Different Sources of Knowledge

Discuss the main Tenets of Idealism and Realism

The Role of Branches of Philosophy in System of Education (i. Epistemology, ii. Axiology)

Relationship of Education and Philosophy

Discuss the Branches of Philosophy

John Dewey in making Teaching Methods Effective

Platos' Classification of the Curriculum for Education

Tuesday, December 26, 2023

Empirical Knowledge | Philosophy of Education | 8609

What is empirical knowledge? Justify its objectivity with the help of suitable examples.

Course: Philosophy of Education

Course code  8609

Level: B.Ed Solved Assignment 

ANSWER

Empirical Knowledge

Epistemology has many branches and includes essentialism, historical perspective, perennials, progressivism, empiricism, idealism, rationalism, constructivism, and others. Empiricism and rationalism can be specified as the two major constructing debates within the field of epistemological study. Empiricism accepts personal experiences associated with observation, feelings, and senses as a valid source of knowledge, whereas rationalism relies on empirical findings gained through valid and reliable measures as a source of knowledge. Empirical knowledge relies on objective facts that have been established and can be demonstrated.

The empirical knowledge is an attempt to discover a basis for our knowledge in the sense of experience. In other words, empirical knowledge is the type that finds recourse or is confirmed by the evidence of sensory experience. It is thus derived from the use of the five senses since knowledge can only be acquired from the experience of seeing, hearing, smelling, feeling, and tasting. It is the evidence of the senses that gives meaning to empirical knowledge since the senses, according to the empiricists, are the source and originator of our knowledge. The thrust of the empiricists as regards knowledge is that there is no knowledge before sense experience and there can be no knowledge outside sense experience. Since empirical knowledge is fundamentally rooted in sense experience, it stands to reason that observation and experimentation will also be basic to empirical knowledge.

Empiricists hold that all of our knowledge is ultimately derived from our senses or our experiences. They therefore deny the existence of innate knowledge, i.e. knowledge that we possess from birth. Empiricism fits well with the scientific worldview that places an emphasis on experimentation and observation. It struggles, however, to account for certain types of knowledge, e.g. knowledge of pure mathematics or ethics. 


Empirical knowledge is knowledge of such facts as one may meet in experience. These are always particular and may be of many kinds,  including such as needing a lot of training or some apparatus to experience them.

This doctrine states that experience is the primary source of all human knowledge. For that, it relies on the assertion that when human beings are deprived of various kinds of experiences, they do not know any truth, regardless of its clarity. This shows that human beings are born without any innate knowledge. They begin their awareness and knowledge as soon as they begin their practical lives. Their knowledge widens as their experiences widen, and their knowledge becomes varied in kind as their experiences take on different forms.

The empiricists do not admit necessary rational knowledge before experience. Rather, they consider experience as the only basis of sound judgment and the general criterion in every field. Even those judgments that the rational doctrine alleges to be necessary knowledge must, [according to the empiricists], be subject to the empirical criterion, and must be admitted following the determination of experience. This is because human beings do not have any judgment whose confirmation does not require experience. 

This results in the following:

First, the power of human thinking is delimited by the limits of the empirical field; so that, any metaphysical investigation or study of metaphysical issues becomes useless. [In this, the empirical doctrine] is exactly the contrary of the rational doctrine. Second, the movement of thought progresses in a way contrary to the manner asserted by the rational doctrine. Thus, whereas the rational doctrine asserts that a thought always moves from what is general to what is particular, the empiricists assert that it moves from what is particular to what is general; that is, from the narrow limits of experiments to universal laws and principles. It always progresses from the empirical particular truth to the absolute truth. The general laws and universal principles that human beings have are nothing but the result of experiences. The consequence of this is a progression of induction from individual things to a discovery of general objective truths.

For this reason, the empirical doctrine relies on the inductive method in [its] search for evidence and in thinking, since this method ascends from the particular to the universal. 

The natural sciences, which the empiricists seek to establish based on pure experimentation, are themselves in need of primary rational principles that are before experimentation. This is because the scientist carries out his experiment in his laboratory on limited objective particulars. Then he puts forward a theory for explaining the phenomena that the experiment in the laboratory had disclosed, and for justifying them by one common cause. This is exemplified in the theory that states that the cause of heat is motion, based on several experiments interpreted in this way. It is our right to ask the natural scientist about how he offers this theory as a universal law applicable to all circumstances resembling those of the experiment, even though the experiment did not apply except to several specific things. Is it, not the case, then, that this generalization is based on a principle stating that similar circumstances and things alike in kind and reality must share in-laws (p. 83) and decrees? Here, once again, we inquire about how the mind reached this principle. The empiricists cannot claim that it is an empirical principle. Rather, it must be a piece of rational knowledge that is before experimentation. The reason is that if it were supported by experimentation, then the experimentation on which this principle is based also, in turn, treats only specific subjects. How, then, can a general principle be based on it? Thus, the establishment of a general principle or a universal law in light of one or more experiments cannot be accomplished except after admitting prior rational knowledge.

With this, it becomes clear that all the empirical theories in the natural sciences are based on several pieces of rational knowledge that are not subject to experimentation. Rather, the mind accepts them immediately. Although there is great value in experience for humanity and the extent of its service in the fields of knowledge. However, experiments are not the primary criterion and the fundamental source of human thought and knowledge. 

The seed of the positivist school in philosophy germinated during the nineteenth century, in which the empirical tendency prevailed. Thus, this school developed under the auspices of this empirical tendency. 


Related Topics

Concept of John Dewy's Philosophy of Education

Imam Ghazali's Philosophy of Education

Friedrich Froebel's Views Regarding Philosophy of Education

Curriculum Supported by Aristotle to be taught to Children

Discuss Platos' Idea of education

The Educational views of Ahmed Ibn-e-Muhammad Ibn-e-Ya'qub Ibn-e-Miskawayh

Educational Inmplications of John Dewy's 

Discuss that authoritative knowledge is not objective and logical

Comparison of the teaching Practices Demanded by Pragmatism and Naturalism

Different Educational Philosophies. Which one is the dominant?

What is the role of the teacher in the philosophy of idealism? Which teaching method is used by an idealistic teacher?

Ways in which philosophy provide guidelines for the education.

The Role of Contemporary Philosophies in Education?

Describe the Different Sources of Knowledge

Discuss the main Tenets of Idealism and Realism

The Role of Branches of Philosophy in System of Education (i. Epistemology, ii. Axiology)

Relationship of Education and Philosophy

Discuss the Branches of Philosophy

John Dewey in making Teaching Methods Effective

Platos' Classification of the Curriculum for Education


What is Empirical Knowledge? Justify its objectivity with the help of suitable examples

Friday, December 8, 2023

Contribution of Existentialism in Education | Philosophy of Education | Course Code 8609

QUESTION

What is the contribution of existentialism in education?

Course: Philosophy of Education

Course code  8609

Level: B.Ed Solved Assignment 

ANSWER

Contribution to Education

Existentialism developed as a reaction against the contemporary social, economic, and political situation in which man has lost his self. This philosophy has widely influenced art and literature. In politics, it has stood against war. Its followers are active pacifists. In the field of education, the contribution of existentialism is as follows:

1.   Total development.

Existentialists have aimed at the total development of personality through education. Education should aim at the whole man. It should aim at character formation and self-realization.

2.   Subjective knowledge.

The present age of science has made too much of objective knowledge, so much so that the term subjective has come to mean unreal, non-sense, ignorant, and irrelevant. The existentialists rightly point out that subjective knowledge is even more important than objective knowledge. They rightly hold that truth is subjectivity. It is a human value and values are not facts. The reduction of values to facts has led to a widespread loss of faith in values. Therefore, along with the teaching of science and mathematics, the humanities, art, and literature should also be given a suitable place in the curriculum at every stage of education. Most of the ills of modern man are due to an over-objective attitude. This requires a subjectivist correction in the light of existentialist ideas.

3.   Importance of environment.

The present industrial, economic, political, and social environment is valueless. Therefore, it helps confusion and corruption, tensions and conflicts. Existentialists seek to provide an environment proper to self-development and self-consciousness. This environment in the school requires contributions from humanities, arts, and literature. These will help in the development of individuality in education so that he may cease to become a cog in the social wheel. Rather he should develop a self-conscious and sensitive individual


Related Topics

Concept of John Dewy's Philosophy of Education

Imam Ghazali's Philosophy of Education

Friedrich Froebel's Views Regarding Philosophy of Education

Curriculum Supported by Aristotle to be taught to Children

Discuss Platos' Idea of education

The Educational views of Ahmed Ibn-e-Muhammad Ibn-e-Ya'qub Ibn-e-Miskawayh

Educational Inmplications of John Dewy's 

Discuss that authoritative knowledge is not objective and logical

Comparison of the teaching Practices Demanded by Pragmatism and Naturalism

Different Educational Philosophies. Which one is the dominant?

What is the role of the teacher in the philosophy of idealism? Which teaching method is used by an idealistic teacher?

Ways in which philosophy provide guidelines for the education.

The Role of Contemporary Philosophies in Education?

Describe the Different Sources of Knowledge

Discuss the main Tenets of Idealism and Realism

The Role of Branches of Philosophy in System of Education (i. Epistemology, ii. Axiology)

Relationship of Education and Philosophy

Discuss the Branches of Philosophy

John Dewey in making Teaching Methods Effective

Platos' Classification of the Curriculum for Education


What is Empirical Knowledge? Justify its objectivity with the help of suitable examples

Contribution of Existentialism in Education

Thursday, December 7, 2023

Types of Pragmatism | Philosophy of Education | 8609 |

  QUESTION

Describe the types of pragmatism.

Course: Philosophy of Education

Course code 8609

Level: B.Ed Solved Assignment 

ANSWER

PRAGMATISM

One of the most important schools of philosophy of education is pragmatism. The term pragmatism has been derived from the Greek term pragma which means use. Thus pragmatism is an ism according to which use is the criteria of reality.  Pragmatism as a philosophical tradition began in the United States around 1870.  Charles Sanders Peirce is generally considered to be its founder.

Pragmatism rejects the idea that the function of thought is to describe, represent, or mirror reality. Instead, pragmatists consider thought an instrument or tool for prediction, problem-solving, and action. Pragmatists contend that most philosophical topics—such as the nature of knowledge, language, concepts, meaning, belief, and science—are all best viewed in terms of their practical uses and successes. The philosophy of pragmatism emphasizes the practical application of ideas by acting on them to actually test them in human experiences.

 

Forms of Pragmatism

According to H.H. Home, "The main principle of pragmatism is that the theories that work are true". As E.S. Brightman maintains, "Primarily, pragmatism is a criterion of truth." According to them everyone should discover his truth according to his experience and commonsense. The following four types of pragmatism are distinguished according to emphasis:

1.  Humanistic pragmatism.

 This type of pragmatism is particularly found in social sciences. According to it the satisfaction of human nature is the criterion of utility. All truths are human truths. As the British humanist philosopher F.C.S. Schiller pointed out, "Some London squires are circular". Contradiction in this statement disappears when we know that the term squire here means the meeting of roads and not the geometrical figure known by this name. Similar instances may be multiplied in different social sciences. In philosophy, in religion, and even in science man is the aim of all thinking and everything else is a means to achieve human satisfaction.

2.  Experimental pragmatism.

 Modern science is based on experimental methods. The fact that can be ascertained by experiment is true. In other words, whatever works in the real world is the truth. The truth of a theory in science can be ascertained by its workability. No truth is final, truth is known only to the extent it is useful in practice. The pragmatists use this criterion of truth in every field of life.

The field of experiment, however, is the widest in the field of science In science, experiment is the only basis for arriving at a conclusion in a controversial matter. Human problems can be solved only through experiments. This is true even in the field of religion. In his famous book Varieties of Religious Experience William James has advised that everyone should discover his God, mode of worship, and man-God relationship by experiments in his own life. No other proof is required for a belief. By experimenting in a field of life, one may know what to believe and what not to believe, what to do and what not to do. Whatever is proved by experience is true.

3.  Nominalistic pragmatism.

 When we do any experiment we attend to the result. Our aim is an examination of the material. Some hypothesis about the results invariably precedes every experiment. According to nominalistic pragmatism, the results of an experiment are always particular and concrete, never general and abstract. According to medieval European nominalistic philosophy, a  universal is only a name. While only particulars exist, the universals have no concrete existence. For example, while we find existing human individuals, we do not find humanity outside these individuals. In the words of E.S. Brightman, "This kind of pragmatism is closely affiliated with sense experience as a criterion for the particulars that we meet are mostly sense data, including their relations". In the field of education, emphasis is laid on concrete particular things and their experiences in comparison to verbal knowledge.

4.  Biological pragmatism.

According to John Dewey, "The pragmatic test is found in the function of thought in adapting the human organism to its environment". The experimentalism of John Dewey is based upon this biological pragmatism according to which the ultimate aim of all knowledge is harmony of the man with the environment. Education develops social skill which facilitates one's life. The school is a miniature society that prepares the child for future life. From the biological point of view, man is a psycho-somatic being. Every day we begin our work utilizing set habits. Suppose someday we receive a letter that raises a problem requiring immediate decision the success of thinking in this function depends upon the best answer to the problem.

Sunday, December 3, 2023

Chi-Square | independent test | Educational Statistics | 8614 |

 QUESTION

Explain Chi-Square. Also, discuss it as an independent test.

  • CourseEducational Statistics
  • Course code 8614
  • Level: B.Ed Solved Assignment 

ANSWE

The Chi-Square Distribution

The Chi-Square (or the Chi-Squared - χ2) distribution is a special case of the gamma distribution (the gamma distribution is a family of right skewed, continuous probability distribution. These distributions are useful in real life where something has a natural minimum of 0.). a chi-square distribution with n degree of freedom is equal to a gamma distribution with a = n/2 and b = 0.5 (or β = 2).

Let us consider a random sample taken from a normal distribution. The chi-square distribution is the distribution of the sum of these random samples squared. The degrees of freedom (say k) are equal to the number of samples being summed. For example, if 10 samples are taken from the normal distribution, then the degree of freedom df = 10. Chi-square distributions are always right-skewed. The greater the degree of freedom, the more the chi-square distribution looks like a normal distribution.

Uses of Chi-Square (χ2) Distribution

The chi-square distribution has many uses which include:

i)  Confidence interval estimation for a population standard deviation of a normal distribution from a sample standard deviation.

ii)  Independence of two criteria of classification of qualitative variables (contingency tables).

iii)  Relationship between categorical variables.

iv)  Sample variance study when the underlying distribution is normal.

v)  Tests of deviations of differences between expected and observed frequencies (one-way table).

vi)  The chi-square test (a goodness of fit test).

What is a Chi-Square Statistic?

A Chi-Square Statistic is one way to a relationship between two categorical (non-numerical) variables. The Chi-Square Statistic a is a single number that tells us how much difference exists between the observed counts and the counts that one expects if there is no relationship in the population.

There are two different types of chi-square tests, both involve categorical data. These are:

a)  A chi-square goodness of fit test, and

b)  A chi-square test of independence.

In the coming lines, these tests will be dealt with in some detail.

 

Chi-Square Independence Test

A chi-square (χ2) test of independence is the second important form of a chi-square test. It is used to explore the relationship between two categorical variables. Each of these variables can have two or more categories.

It determines if there is a significant relationship between two nominal (categorical) variables. The frequency of one nominal variable is compared with different values of the second nominal variable. The data can be displayed in the R*C contingency table, where R is the row and C is the column. For example, the researcher wants to examine the relationship between gender (male and female) and empathy (high vs. low). The researcher will use the chi-square test of independence. If the null hypothesis is accepted there would be no relationship between gender and empathy. If the null hypothesis is rejected then the conclusion will be there is a relationship between gender and empathy (e.g. say females tend to score higher on empathy and males tend to score lower on empathy).

The chi-square test of independence being a non-parametric technique follows less strict assumptions, some general assumptions should be taken care of:

Random Sample –

 The sample should be selected using a simple random sampling method.

Variables –

Both variables under study should be categorical.

Independent Observations –

Each person or case should be counted only once and none should appear in more than one category of group. The data from one subject should not influence the data from another subject.

If the data are displayed in a contingency table, the expected frequency count for each cell of the table is at least 5.

Both the chi-square tests are sometimes confused but they are quite different from each other.

  • The chi-square test for independence compares two sets of data to see if there is a relationship.
  • The chi-square goodness of fit test is to fit one categorical variable to a distribution.


Related Topics

ANOVA and its Logics

Measures of Dispersion

Descriptive and Inferential Statistics

What is data Cleaning? Importance and Benefits of Data Cleaning 

Explain the terms Degree of Freedom,Spread of Score,Sample,Z Score,Confidence Interval 

What is measure of difference? Explain different types of test

Concept of Reliability, Types and methods of Reliability

Level of Measurement

Types of Variable in Stats 

Measures of Central Tedency and Dispersion, 

Role of Normal Distribution, and also note on Skewness and Kurtosis

Methods of Effective Presentation


Friday, December 1, 2023

ANOVA and its logics | Educational Statistics |8614|

QUESTION

Explain ANOVA and its Logic?

  • Course: Educational Statistics
  • Course code 8614
  • Level: B.Ed Solved Assignment

ANSWE

Introduction to Analysis of Variance (ANOVA)

The t-tests have one very serious limitation  –  they are restricted to tests of the significance of the difference between only two groups. There are many times when we like to see if there are significant differences among three, four, or even more groups. For example, we may want to investigate which of three teaching methods is best for teaching ninth-class algebra. In such a case, we cannot use a t-test because more than two groups are involved. To deal with such types of cases one of the most useful techniques in statistics is analysis of variance (abbreviated as ANOVA). This technique was developed by British Statistician Ronald A. Fisher (Dietz & Kalof, 2009; Bartz, 1981)

Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) is a hypothesis testing procedure that is used to evaluate mean differences between two or more treatments (or populations). Like all other inferential procedures. ANOVA uses sample data as a basis for drawing general conclusions about populations. Sometimes, ANOVA and t-tests may be two different ways of doing exactly the same thing: testing for mean differences. In some cases this is true – both tests use sample data to test hypotheses about population mean.

However, ANOVA has many more advantages over t-tests. t-tests are used when we have to compare only two groups or variables (one independent and one dependent). On the other hand, ANOVA is used when we have two or more two independent variables (treatment). Suppose we want to study the effects of three different models of teaching on the achievement of students. In this case, we have three different samples to be treated using three different treatments. So ANOVA is the suitable technique to evaluate the difference.

 

Logic of ANOVA

Let us take the hypothetical data given in the table.




There are three separate samples, with n = 5 in each sample. The dependent variable is the number of problems solved correctly These data represent results of an independent-measure experiment comparing learning performance under three temperature conditions. The scores are variable and we want to measure the amount of variability (i.e. the size of the difference) to explain where it comes from.

 To compare the total variability, we will combine all the scores from all the separate samples into one group and then obtain one general measure of variability for the complete experiment. Once we have measured the total variability, we can begin to break it into separate components. The word analysis means breaking into smaller parts. 

Because we are going to analyze the variability, the process is called analysis of variance (ANOVA). This analysis process divides the total variability into two basic components:

i)  Between-Treatment Variance

Variance simply means difference and calculating the variance is a process of measuring how big the differences are for a set of numbers. The between-treatment variance measures how much difference exists between the treatment conditions. In addition to measuring differences between treatments, the overall goal of ANOVA is to evaluate the differences between treatments. Specifically, the purpose of the analysis is to distinguish is to distinguish between two alternative explanations.

a)  The differences between the treatments have been caused by the treatment effects.

b)  The differences between the treatments are simply due to chance. 

Thus, there are always two possible explanations for the variance (difference) that exists between treatments

1)  Treatment Effect: 

The differences are caused by the treatments. the scores in sample 1 are obtained at room temperature of 50and that of sample 2 at 70o. The difference between samples may be caused by the difference in room temperature.

2)  Chance: 

The differences are simply due to chance. If there is no treatment effect, even then we can expect some difference between samples. The chance differences are unplanned and unpredictable differences that are not caused or explained by any action of the researcher. Researchers commonly identify two primary sources for chance differences.

  Individual Differences

Each participant in the study has their own individual characteristics. Although it is reasonable to expect that different subjects will produce different scores, it is impossible to predict exactly what the difference will be. 

   Experimental Error

In any measurement, there is a chance of some degree of error. Thus, if a researcher measures the same individuals twice under the same conditions, there is a greater possibility of obtaining two different measurements. Often these differences are unplanned and unpredictable, so they are considered to be by chance. 

Thus, when we calculate the between-treatment variance, we are measuring differences that could be either by treatment effect or could simply be due to chance. To demonstrate that the difference is really a treatment effect, we must establish that the differences between treatments are bigger than would be expected by chance alone. To accomplish this goal, we will determine how big the differences are when there is no treatment effect involved. That is, we will measure how much difference (variance) occurred by chance. To measure chance differences, we compute the variance within treatments

ii)  Within-Treatment Variance

Within each treatment condition, we have a set of individuals who are treated exactly the same and the researcher does not do anything that would cause these individual participants to have different scores. For example,  the data shows that five individuals were treated at a70oroom temperature. Although these five students were all treated exactly the same, their scores are different. The question is why are the scores different? A plain answer is that it is due to chance.  the overall analysis of variance and identifies the sources of variability that are measured by each of the two basic components.










Related Topics

Discuss Historical Research covering the Concept of Primary Sources, Secondary Sources Internal and External Criticism.

Discuss historical research covering the concept of primary sources, secondary sources internal and external criticism. Course: Research Met...