I finally had a chance to break apart the responses of the parent survey and I would never have imagined the results that I got. Before I get into that, I have three papers that I am unsure on how to document the responses for. Below, is one of the surveys. Question 6 states I would like my child to have homework and question 8 says homework is helpful to my child. This parent responded to both of these with a question mark between agree and disagree. The parent also wrote "Only if he needs practice on a particular skill." How should I code that? Would you put that as a agree or disagree or just leave it out?
Another example of a survey where the parent put conditions instead of circling one way or another was on the survey below. This parent (for the same two questions) wrote that they were indifferent to having homework for their child. The parent also commented on question 8 that it depends on level of understanding.
The last survey that I have addresses question number 6 again. This parent comments that she would like her child to have homework "sometime not daily". As well as homework being "sometime" helpful to her child. This survey can be seen below.
Now that I have discussed my difficulties with these surveys, I will report (as promised) the outcome of them. Keep in mind that my research question is how does student choice and rewards in homework impact student attitudes towards homework. Of the 15 parents who responded to the survey, only 3 said that they agreed that their child's attitude towards homework has improved with the change in homework. That means that 80% of parents say that their child's attitude towards homework has not improved.
After reading through the student surveys I handed out to my kids at the beginning of the study I was struck by one student who responded that he wished he had less homework so that he could have more time to spend with his dad. That prompted me to ask question 3 on the parent survey, which was "due to the change in the homework policy, have you had more quality time with your child?" I was shocked to see that 67% of parents said that due to the change in the homework policy, they have had more quality time with their child after school.
3 comments:
For the first one, I would put agree because the parent does feel as though homework is important when it refers to a particular skill. I would also note it or put a star by it to be able to remember this. You might even want to include it as a quote in your paper. Then you could talk about some of the responses you have received about the homework.
I love the survey you came up with! This data is so important and valuable especially since the parents' attitudes and thoughts are so impressionable onto their children.
Don't get discouraged. Even though the data was low for this week, it actually gives you insightful feedback too! Are your students only eager to do it because they want to please YOU?!? Since you were gone for two days, I imagine that is why there was a decrease in homework. Your students more than likely didn't think they had to put forth as much effort because you weren't there. That is another interesting point to think about and consider as you continue to analyze and reflect on your data. Keep up the good work! This week will be better I am sure! :)
Wow... I never thought about it that way. Thank you for pointing out that my students may not have taken so much homework this week because I wasn't there to see it. I didn't ever think about that factor, the students wanting to please me. I only came up with these questions because of yours on your blog! So thank you again for letting me steal the ideas. I may not have heard what I was hoping for, but I did learn from what they said.
Yes! Amy, you are right... If a parent has a negative outlook about homework then it is likely the child will feel similar.
I also believe that the students are wanting to please you. Since you were not there to even mention it, they probably were less likely to consider it as a possibility.
And with the survey- I would definetely keep the data because it will have the potential to be useful in the future. As Amy mentioned, I would put it under the category which makes most sense.
Don't get discouraged! You are doing great and coming to some interesting conclusions to help make these decisions in the future.
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