methodology - shodhgangashodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/65697/9/09...vi. draft scale vii....
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Chapter 3
METHODOLOGY
• Method adopted for the study• Variables of the study• Tools employed for the collection
of data• Sample selected for the study• Procedure for collection of data• Scoring and Tabulation• Processing of Data• Statistical Techniques
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Methodology involves systematic procedures starting from the
initial identification of the problem to its final conclusions. Its role is to
carry on the research work in a scientific and valid manner. Webster has
defined methodology as the "science of method or arrangement". It is a
way to systematically solve the research problem. It provides the tools
and techniques by which the research problem is attacked.
Methodology is the mapping strategy of research. According to
Clifford Woody (1984), "methodology is a procedure adopted by the
investigator in conducting investigation". It is the description,
explanation and justification of various methods of conducting research.
It is one of little value unless used properly. Proper use must be learnt
by the researcher.
The present study attempts to explore the relationship between
examination anxiety and academic achievement among prospective
teachers for the purpose of convenience this chapter has included the
following steps.
1. Method adopted for the study.
2. Variables of the study.
3. Tools employed for the collection of data.
4. Sample selected for the study.
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5. Procedure for collection of data.
6. Scoring and Tabulation.
7. Processing of data
8. Statistical techniques used for analyzing data.
1. Method adopted for the study
Research method refers to the method the researchers used in
performing research operations. A pre-planned and well-described
method will provide the researcher a scientific and feasible plan for
attacking and solving the problem under investigation.
The success of any research depends upon the suitability of
method adopted. In research many different methods are used. The
different methods followed by the research workers are historical
method, normative survey method, experimental method etc. A
researcher must have a thorough understanding of all research methods
with particular reference to their strengths, limitations, applicability and
appropriateness.
The selection of a method and the specific design within that
method appropriate in investigating a research problem will depend
upon the kind of data that the problem entail. A systematic qualitative
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and quantitative procedure is necessary to collect the needed data. In
short, a pre-planned and well described method will provide the
researcher a scientific and feasible plan for attacking and solving the
problem under investigation.
In order to attain the major objectives of the study, the present
investigator has made use of the normative survey method as its chief
method. This method helps to gather data from a relatively large
number of cases at a particular time. It is concerned not with the
characteristics of individuals but with generalized statistics of the whole
population or a representative sample.
Normative survey method is concerned with the phenomena that
are typical of the normal conditions. It is one of the most commonly and
widely used methods of descriptive research in behavioural sciences.
This method can tell clearly what exists at present by determining the
nature and degree of existing conditions. Therefore the investigator has
selected the survey method to suit the requirements of the present
study.
2. Variables of the study
The present study employed the following variables under
various heads as detailed here under:
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A. Biographical and Personal Variables
(a) Sex of the subject - Male, Female
(b) Age - Between 20-25, Between 25-30, Above 30
(c) Religion - Hindu, Muslim, Christian
(d) Optional Subject - Science, Arts
(e) Locality of Institution - Urban, Rural
B. Independent Variables
Examination Anxiety
C. Dependent Variable
Academic Achievement
3. Tools employed for the collection of data
Data collection is essentially an important part of the research
process. A researcher requires many data gathering tools and
techniques. Tools are data gathering devices that have proven useful in
educational research. According to Best, "like the tools in a carpenter's
box, each research tool is appropriate in a given situation to accomplish
a particular purpose". Each tool is suitable for the collection of certain
type of information.
Selection of appropriate tool is very essential for any type of
study. The tool used should be reliable and valid, then only the study
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will give accurate measurement of the variables under investigation.
There are a large number of tools available for data collection in
research. By keeping various objectives and purposes of the study in
mind, the investigator used the following tools for the collection of
needed data.
A. Personal Data Sheet
B. Examination Anxiety Inventory
C. Achievement test scores
A. Personal Data Sheet
The personal data sheet is used to collect personal information of
the students. By using this, the investigator can collect information such
as age, sex, religion, optional subject, name of the college, locality of the
college, monthly income of parents, etc. A copy of the personal data
sheet is given as Appendix I.
B. Examination Anxiety Inventory
In the present study, in order to measure the examination anxiety
of prospective teachers, an examination anxiety inventory prepared by
the investigator was used. A copy of the Examination Anxiety Inventory
is given as Appendix II. For the scientific preparation of the tool, certain
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important procedures and steps are followed. The major steps and
procedures used are detailed below.
Tools Development
The researcher chooses the most appropriate instrument and
procedures that provide for the collection and analysis of data upon
which hypothesis may be tested. In some situations, the researcher may
find that the existing research tools do not suit his purpose and so he
may have to modify them or construct his own.
A survey on available scales on examination anxiety was carried
out and they were evaluated on the criterion of suitability of use in the
present study. However it reveals that there was no appropriate tool
available to measure the nature and extent of examination anxiety
among prospective teachers and this necessitated the modification of an
examination anxiety inventory already prepared by the investigator. The
major steps followed in the construction of this tool are described under
different heads.
Steps in the construction of the tool
i. Planning of the test
ii. Item writing
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iii. Item editing
iv. Arrangement of items
V. Preliminary try-out
vi. Draft scale
vii. Final try-out
viii. Item analysis
ix. Item selection
X. Establishing Reliability and Validity
xi. Final format of Test
i. Planning of the test
The 'Examination Anxiety Inventory' prepared by the
investigator aims at the measurement of examination anxiety among the
prospective teachers. Due considerations were given to the variables
tested and to the different aspects involved.
ii. Item writing
The important step in the construction of any research tool is
writing of suitable items. After a thorough and careful study of the
literature available on anxiety, the investigator collected materials on
different types of anxiety, especially examination anxiety. The
investigator prepared a number of positive and negative statements
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describing various factors of examination anxiety. The inventory covers
the decisive features of the needed data.
iii. Item editing
Greater care was taken in the editing of the items. Item editing is
the process of checking and scrutinizing items. The items were referred
to experts for modification. After careful examination, the ambiguous
items were rewritten in simple and meaningful language.
iv. Arrangement of items
All the items were then arranged in a random manner including
almost equal number of positive and negative items for the examination
anxiety inventory.
v. Preliminary try-out
A preliminary try out was made to find out the weakness and
workability of the items. The difficulties in responding the items were
noted. This step helped the investigator to modify certain variables,
which were vague and questionable. For this purpose the inventory was
given to prospective teachers.
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vi. Draft Scale
The first draft was prepared by printing the statements in
English. Necessary directions for the respondents were also included. A
separate answer sheet was supplied to the prospective teachers for
making their response.
vii. Final try-out
A sample of 400 prospective teachers were randomly selected
from the population for administering the draft scale for item analysis.
Scoring
The collected responses were scored with the help of a scoring
key prepared by the investigator. The answer sheet consists of a set of
three responses, namely Always, Sometimes and Never measuring
different levels of examination anxiety. Each positive and negative
statements possess a score of 2, 1 or 0. Based on the responses of
students on each statement they possess any one of the above mentioned
scores. A copy of the answer sheet is given as Appendix III.
viii. Item analysis
Items were analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively in
terms of their statistical properties.
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Qualitative analysis includes the consideration of content validity
and the evaluation of items in terms of effective item writing
procedures.
Quantitative analysis on the other hand includes principle, the
measurement of item difficulty and item discrimination. Both the
validity and reliability of any test depend ultimately on the
charactertistics of its items. High reliability and validity can be built into
a test in advance through item analysis.
The method of item analysis used in the case of the present
investigation is the one developed by Mathew (1982) called the Mathew
Item Analysis Table. This table gives item criterion correlation (Phi-
coefficient) and percentage of tests marking the keyed answer (P-value).
One of the advantages of phi-coefficients is that any convenient
proportion can be made use of in order to use the same table. It is
recommended regardless of the sample size.
The response sheets were arranged in the order of criterion score.
The criterion score is the total score of the trial form of the test itself.
Hundred response sheets having the highest criterion score were taken,
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constituting the upper tail. Similarly hundred response sheets having
the lowest score were taken forming the lower tail.
The final percentage needed for reading the item indices from the
table are the following.
PL Percentage of individuals in the lower tail marking the
keyed answer.
PU : Percentage of individuals in the upper tail marking the
keyed answer.
In the Mathew Item Analysis Table, indices for he same value of
FL have been grouped together, so in order to read the indices of an
item, the PL value of the given item was locked first, then in that
selection the PU and the corresponding Phi and P values were read.
Whenever the PL value was larger than the PU value, FL and PU values
were interchanged while reading the indices and then a negative sign
was attached to Phi-coefficient. When FL and PU are equal Phi is zero.
ix. Item selection
From the items having highest correlation values (Phi values) the
required number of items were selected. The special feature about the
'Phi' value is that since 'Phi' values tend to be high for items having
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medium 'P' value, item selection based on 'Phi' value alone would give
the desired result. Items with 'Phi' values below the 5 percent level of
significance are not considered usually.
When 'Phi' values of most items were high and the number of
items large, items with some spread of 'P' values would be desirables. It
may be mentioned here that 'Phi' values were computed for every
combination of PL and PV values of Guilford's (1954) formula.
X. Establishing Reliability and Validity
a. Reliability of the scale
Reliability of a test refers to the degree of consistency with which
it measures what it is intended to measure. According to Anne Anstasi
(1968), "the reliability of the test scores refers to the consistency of scores
obtained by the same individual on different occasions with different
sets of equivalent items".
The reliability of a test can be assessed in different ways such as
test-retest method, split-half method, rational equivalence method etc.
In the present investigation, the reliability coefficient was found
out by Split-half method. It measures the degree of homogeneity of
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items in a test. The reliability coefficient was calculated using Spearman-
Brown Prophecy formula.
xy
Nxy -
r'2½ =x2 - ( x)2 x y -
N N
Where r 1/2 1/2 - Reliability coefficient of the half test.
x - Total score for a section in odd items test.
y Total score for a section in even items test.
N
Total number of prospective teachers in the group.
The split-half reliability coefficient calculated which is in the table
shows a satisfactory reliability.
After correction using Spearman-Brown Prophecy formula,
rxy =
where,
rxy -
r1/21/2 -
2r 1/2 1/2
1 + r 1/2 1/2
Estimated reliability of the whole test.
Reliability coefficient of the half test.
The reliability of the test was calculated and noted in the table.
Table 3.1
Reliability Coefficient for the Examination Anxiety Inventory
Si. No. Variable Reliability coefficient
1. Examination Anxiety 0.62
b. Validity of the scale
The validity of a test may be defined as the accuracy with which
the test measures what it suppose to do. According to Gate and others
"A test is valid when it measures truly and accurately the ability or
quality one wants to appraise". Validity of a test answers the questions,
what does a test measure and how well it measures whatever it is
designed to measure for. In this study, the face validity was found out
by submitting the tool to a panel of experts from the field of education
and psychology.
The content validity of the present Inventory was established by
systematically analyzing the area under study. On the basis of the
opinion of experts from relevant field the tool has sufficient coverage to
its contents.
M. Final format of test
The final scale consisted of 35 statements with almost equal
number of positive and negative items.
Me
C. Achievement Test Scores
The main purpose of the study is to correlate examination anxiety
with academic achievement. In order to find this relationship
achievement test scores are necessary. Generally, achievement test refers
to test designed to measure the effects of specific teaching or training in
an area of the curriculum.
In the present study the investigator collected marks obtained in
the University examination conduced by the University of Kerala is
considered as the scores of achievement. Due of the limitations of time
and resources the investigator collected the University examination
marks from the college records.
4. Sample Selected for the study
The representative proportion of the population is called a
sample. By observing the characteristics of the sample, one can make
certain inferences about the characteristics of the population from which
it is drawn. Sampling is the process by which a relatively small number
of individuals or measures of individuals, objects, or events is selected
and analyzed in order to find out something about the entire population
selected. It helps to reduce expenditure, save time and energy, permit
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measurement of greater scope, or produce greater precision and
accuracy.
The sample for the study was selected in such a way as to yield
generalisable results for the study. The data for the present study has
been derived from a representative sample of size 400 consisting of
prospective teachers from five teacher training colleges of Kerala. The
sample was collected by using random sampling technique. The sample
also considered the categories like sex, age, religion, optional subjects,
locality etc. the main analysis are based on these samples which includes
all the groups described in the tables given below:
Table 3.2
Sex-wise Distribution of Subjects
Sex Number of students
Male 112
Female 288
Table 3.3
Age-wise Distribution of Subjects
Age Number of students
20-25 210
25-30 141
Above 30 - 49
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Table 3.4
Religion-wise Distribution of Subjects
Religion Number of students
Hindu 222
Muslim 93
Christian 85
Table 3.5
Optional subject-wise Distribution of Subjects
Optional subject Number of students
Science 199
Arts 201
Table 3.6
Locality-wise Distribution of Subjects
Locality Number of students
Urban 200
Rural 200
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Table 3.7
Monthly income-wise Distribution of Subjects
Monthly income Number of students
1000-2000 129
2000-5000 159
Above 5000 112
5. Procedure for collection of Data
After preparing a schedule, the investigator contacted the
principals of teacher training colleges of Kerala and requested for
permission to administer the tools for data collection. The purpose of the
study was explained to the Heads of the institutions and the teacher
educators concerned. They showed much co-operation for collecting the
data.
The investigator administered the test in selected colleges of
Kerala. Before the commencement of data collection, the investigator
gave a short explanation regarding the scope of the study and appealed
for their conscious participation and co-operation. To begin with they
were asked to fill in the personal details in the personal data sheet. Then
the answer sheets were distributed along with the examination anxiety
inventory. The investigator gave clear instructions and gave sufficient
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time for responding. The rules and procedures prescribed for the test in
the manual were strictly followed. Doubts raised by the students were
also clarified. When the students completed the test, all the response
sheets were collected and classified systematically.
The data thus collected were arranged according to the sub-
groups of the population to facilitate initial statistical processing.
6. Scoring and Tabulation
The data collected for the present investigation is mainly to study
the relationship between examination anxiety and academic
achievement. The collected answer sheets were scored systematically by
using appropriate scoring key prepared by the investigator. Then the
answer sheets were tabulated as per the scoring scheme of the tests
described earlier along with the test.
7. Processing of Data
The data collected was subjected to initial processing which
yielded data in an organized manner. The relevant data collected from
the subjects were consolidated for the purpose of statistical analysis.
This was done by assigning an identification number for each subject in
the coding sheet. Then against the number, the details of personal data
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sheet like sex, age, religion, optional subjects, locality, income of parents,
scores of examination anxiety inventory, achievement test scores, etc
were noted. Computer was employed for the purpose of analysis of
data.
8. Statistical Techniques
The major statistical techniques used by the investigator for
analyzing the data are the following.
i. Mean
ii. Standard Deviation
iii. Test of Significance (t-test)
iv. Correlation Technique
i. Mean
Mean is the most common type and widely used measures of
central tendency. "The mean of a distribution of scores is the value on
the scores scale corresponding to the sum of the scores divided by their
number or size of sample". It is more stable and suitable for further
calculations.
Mean is calculated using the formula,
=Ex
N
Where, N = The number of subjects
X Arithmetic Mean
= The sum of the series of all items
ii. Standard Deviation
Standard deviation is the most important measure of dispersion
and is widely used in many statistical formulae. It provides accurate
result. It is defined as the positive square-root of the arithmetic mean of
the squares of the deviations of the given observation from their
arithmetic mean. It is least affected by sampling fluctuations.
Standard deviation is calculated using the formula,
1S.D = ^X2 - (yX)
N
Where, N - No. of individuals
x - No. of series
iii. Test of Significance (t-test)
The data obtained were very often require a comparison and
analysis of two or more means, proportions, percentages, standard
deviation and other statistics obtained from different samples or from
the sample, under two or more experimental situation. The means error
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of two samples may be calculated. The investigator wishes to test the
significance of difference of two means. These measures are subjected to
sampling error, the difference between the two means may be
attributable to sampling error. The statistical treatment which lead in the
decisions of this type are known as test of significance or t-test.
Test of significance is used to find the significant level of
difference between two groups of populations. From the mean and
standard deviation of the two groups the t-values are calculated. If the
obtained t-value is 2.58 and above, then the significant level of difference
is 0.01 and if the values lie between 1.96 and 2.58, the significant level of
difference is 0.05. if the value is below 1.96, the difference is not
significant at any level.
The t-test is calculated using the formula,
Mi-M2t=
I +22
Ni\J N2
Where, Mi - Mean of the I sample
M2 - Mean of the II sample
01 - S.D of the I sample
- SD of the 11 sample
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Ni - Total number of frequency of the I sample
N2 - Total number of frequency of the II sample
iv. Correlation Technique
Correlation analysis is concerned with measuring the strength or
degree of relationship between the variables. It is defined as a statistical
study of relationship between two or more variables. It shows us the
extent to which values in one variable are linked or related to values in
another variable. The effect of correlation is to reduce the range of
uncertainty of our prediction. Sampling error can also be calculated.
Correlation is the basis for the concept of regression and ratio of
variation. The measure of correlation is called the correlation co-
efficient.
The correlation co-efficient is calculated using the formula,
NXY -r =
NX2 - (X)2 x NY2 - (Y)2
Where
r - Correlation co-efficient
- Sum of X-score
- Sum of Y-score
ME
-
-
xY--
N -
Sum of square of X-score
Sum of square of Y-score
Sum of product of X and Y
Number of students
According to Henry E. Garrett (1969) the interpretation of 'r' is
stated below in the table
Table 3.8
Interpretation of Correlation Coefficient 'r'
Value of 'r' Verbal description
0 Zero relationship or absolutely norelationship
0.0 to ± 0.20 1 Indifferent or negligible relationship
0.20 to ± 0.40 Low correlation; present but slight
0.40 to ± 0.70 Substantial or marked relationship
0.70 to ± 1.00 1 High to very high relationship
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