creating a good questionnaire ib geography internal assessment
TRANSCRIPT
Creating A Good Questionnaire
IB Geography Internal Assessment
Requirements for the IA
• 50 Completed Questionnaires (English/Spanish) – No limit on how many questions, though it must
not take up more than the front and back of 1 sheet of paper.
– Include demographic questions first– 6 Completed Interviews – Typed Transcripts must be submitted
Advantages and Disadvantages of Questionnaires
• Advantages– Can assess a large group quickly– Easy to analyze if constructed correctly
• Disadvantages– Requires “good” language skills– Some people give answers they think you want– Not very good for getting in-depth information
The Basics
• The purpose of a questionnaire in this case is to yield quantifiable data based on participant responses.
• There are 2 main types of questions asked in questionnaires: open and closed.
Open Questions
• Used to explore topics in-depth• Advantage: Gives people a chance to
respond in detail and explain their opinion
• Disadvantage: They are time-consuming for you to summarize and analyze
Examples of Open Questions
• What do you think of ….?• What do you like about….?
Open Questions • Open-ended Questions
– Example:– What changes would you like to see in our science class?
• Stem Plus Questions
Example:• Some things I would like to see change in our science class are
_________________
Closed Questions
• A closed question is one where the respondent is limited to one or more of a limited range of options.
• Advantages: – Questionnaires based on closed questions are
much easier and quicker to analyze. – A large amount of information can be processed
in a short period of time.
Closed Questions • Disadvantages:
– Respondents tend to presume the answer in advance– Respondents may put what they think you want to see – Data may not be entirely accurate because they may be
rounding to fit your answer choices– More inclined to lie when they see possible answers – it is sometimes necessary to add a catch-all category of
“Other”. – Questionnaires that have numerous Yes/No questions are
unlikely to yield much useful data, or allow for interesting methods of presentation
Examples of Closed Questions
• Here are 2 examples of closed questions: – Do you agree that the new school is good for the
community? Yes/No– How many times do you visit the grocery store
each month? 1, 1-2, 3-5, >5
Closed Questions
• Dichotomous Questions (2 choices)– Yes/No– Agree/Disagree
Do you think a paper recycling program should be started in your school?
Yes No
Closed Questions
• Multiple-choice Questions– Give respondents options– May ask for single or multiple answers
Example:How did you hear about our Website?
___ Newspaper___ Magazine___ Radio___ Internet___ Other: Please specify __________
Closed Questions• Rank Order Questions
– Respondents place things in order
– Example:– Which activities do you like to do in your spare
time? Place a “1” next to the activity that you like to do most, a “2” by the next favorite, and so on to the least favorite.
• ___ Watch TV• ___ Read• ___ Visit friends• ___ Surf the Internet• ___ Shop
Closed Questions
• Rating Scale (Semantic Differential)– Also called a “Likert Scale”– Give a statement; choose your response along a scale
– Example:My students are motivated to learn.
Strongly
Agree
Agree Not Sure Disagree Strongly Disagree
Effects of Scales
• The police need to do a better job of enforcing traffic laws.
– 2 Level
- 3 level
Agree Disagree
90% 10%
Agree Neither Agree or Disagree
Disagree
70% 28% 2%
Effects of ScalesStrongly Agree
Agree Undecided Disagree Strongly Disagree
7% 63% 28% 1% 1%
5 Level
Demographics Questions• Demographic questions may ask about
personal characteristics such as --– age– ethnicity– gender– home characteristics
Things to Avoid
Unclear or ambiguous questionsExamples:What do you think about school?
What role should the principal play in educating students?
Things to Avoid
• Know your audience
• Make sure that the length, content, and wording matches the intended audience
• Keep questions clear and concise• Avoid technical wording
Things to Avoid
• Will the question help you to answer the fieldwork question? Will it help you formulate a good argument?
• A question may be well-written, but possibly won’t yield you good enough data to answer the fieldwork question.
• This is why it is so important to sit down with your group and really think about what data you need to answer your fieldwork question.
Some Guidelines for Interviewees • Choose who you interview very intentionally. • Divide your interviewees into 2 groups:
– Experts: doctors, alderman, police, park district workers, priests, grocery store managers, etc.
– Sample of the varying population groups: sample of men/women, black/white/hispanic, high education/low education, many children/no children, good health/poor health, someone who lives in food desert/someone who doesn’t, someone from high crime neighborhood/someone from low crime, etc.
The Questions
• Your questions will change depending on who you’re interviewing.
• Aim to have enough questions to get an in-depth response in between 15-20 minutes.
• Questions should all be open ended, providing plenty of opportunity for interviewee to respond with explanations, details, and examples.
• Avoid bias at all costs!
Timeline of due dates• Thursday (9/11) and Friday (9/12) (after map quiz):
Time in class to work with group on creation of questionnaires
• 10 blank questionnaires due Monday (9/15)• Questionnaire first draft (paper copy, 1 per group) due
Wednesday (9/17)• Return of graded first drafts/feedback provided Friday
(9/19)• Final Draft of Questionnaire due, 1 English, 1 Spanish
Copy, Thursday (9/25)
Making Meaning Protocol• Facilitator (1 per group) gives time for students
to read the text silently. Facilitator will ask questions and take notes of groups answers.
• Discussion Questions: – What do you see? (2 minutes) – What questions does this text raise for you? (2 min) – What is significant about this text? (2 min) – What are the implications for our own
questionnaires? (2 min)