Deandra Henderson Seminar in Applied Theory & Research 1 Ed – Fall 2009

Research Design Threats to Internal Validity Threats to External Validity Proposed Data Proposed Data Analysis References

- Quasi Experimental: Nonequivalent Control Group Design. - Two groups that will not be randomly assigned. Groups will be exposed to a treatment (X) and later post tested (O). - There will be one treatment administered for both groups (X 1 & X 2 ) - SYMBOLIC DESIGN: OX 1 O & OX 2 O

- History:. Weather, fire drills, sickness, parents not showing up to the program, disturbances within the class during the time of program. - Instrumentation: One questionnaire and survey to the parents and students, this poses a threat because answers may not be consistent and true and may alter the actual results of what I am researching.

- Mortality: This will affect me greatly because I need all the parents who agree to participate to actually participate, when they don’t it inflates my actual research data. - Selection – Maturation Interaction: Even though I am using a class who is learning the same material, not all my samples are on the same reading levels within the class. Some of the students are noted to be more mature and more advanced in literacy already than others, regardless if their parent participates or not. So it is a valid threat.

- Ecological Validity: Study can be generalized to early learners in other environments because the overall message and intention is to encourage parental involvement with early learners overall. - Selection-Treatment Interaction: participants were not randomly selected and this could pose an external threat to validity.

- Multiple Treatment: Variety of parents coming in during this time students will be assessed over the time with surveys and questionnaires, so this may cause a possible external threat. -Experimenter Effects: I have been an active participant in the “Mystery Reader” program with my own child and have seen the positive affects it had on her and some of her friends within her own classroom, so my experience doing the program and being a literacy advocate can pose an external threat.

- Reactive arrangements/participants effects: Compensatory Rivalry Effect, awareness that other parents are participating and they may want to “outshine” in the program. The parents may even disregard the truth a bit based on the fact that they want to appear more literacy driven than others

Pre-Survey 12 of the 24 students will have parents that participated in the “Mystery Reader” Program. All Students will fill out surveys previously about their attitudes towards reading as well as the parents. Post survey : Students and Parents will share their attitudes about reading and how their involvement has influenced student reading at home.

Post Survey Question After Parent Participation in the Mystery Reader Program, I like reading at home (1)Strongly Disagree (2) Disagree (3) Agree (4) Strongly Agree

Parent/Guardian Survey I read to my child more at home since Mystery Reader? (4) (3) (2) (1) Strongly Agree Agree DisagreeStrongly Disagree

With a correlation coefficient of rxy= students read more at home when their parents participated in the “Mystery Reader” Program. With a correlation coefficient of rxy= , student’s who's parents did not participate in the “Mystery Reader” program did not read at home as much.

O’Connor Petruso, Sharon. A. (2009, February 5). Descriptive & Inferential Stats, Analyses, Threats, & Designs