Creating my survey/ questionnaire

As I sat down to start producing my trail questionnaire, part of my SIG - fairy godmother Lauren Harper - sent me a useful link on how to successfully create an expert survey. Below is a screenshot of one page, showing how important it is to know what you are trying to achieve from each question. 

Relevant questions provide relevant results.

Here is the link (courtesy of Lauren), I hope it helps others as well.

https://cdn.smassets.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/survey-planning-eguide.pdf?ut_source=content&ut_source2=content_blog_rr_downloadguide&utm_source=content&utm_medium=blog&utm_campaign=content_blog_rr_downloadguide 

tools of inquiry

Survey - yes

purposive or random

purposive - more valuable to know who my data is coming from as I will be able to choose a variety of people to get a better scope of information. Every individual is connected to teaching - every individual has learnt something from another individual. With this in mind I will not just be asking teachers, but those affected by their impact:

• teaching assistant
• senior leadership
• governors
• parents

I will also be using a range of 'teachers':

• newly qualified teachers (NQT's)
• in the profession up to 10 years
• in the profession over 10 years
• former teachers

This will provide me with mainly quantitative data, which I can analyse and view the evidence clearly on a chart.

Questionnaire - yes

This will allow me to collect more qualitative data than the survey, which could developer a deeper understanding of my inquiry.

Focus group - no
feel the result may not be reliable as people may not feel they can be honest, saying what is ethically ' right' rather than what they believe.

Interview - no

I feel I will struggle to analyse the data effectively, the evidence gathered may be unreliable due to my interpretation of their response being open to assumption.



For both of my chosen tools of inquiry, I will provide consent forms prior to handing out the survey/questionnaire. Making sure my participants are fully aware of what I am doing, why I am asking what I am asking and where the information will go from there. I will make it clear to the participants that in my inquiry they will only be known as participant 1 for example, this will keep their identities confidential and therefore encourage them to be more honest and open with their answers.

quality rather than quantity

I have been trying to set myself goals for the week, of what I would like to achieve within my inquiry process and the time I would put into this. However, I got home from work this evening, made my dinner and couldn't get my mind to focus. So, I decided not to force it, relax and give my mind the peace it needed. I then decided I would have a look into a few areas of interest, that had been buzzing around. I have got so much more out of the past 15minutes studying than I have on previous 3hour slogs!

Developing my inquiry - research questions

WHAT MAKES AN EFFECTIVE TEACHER?

What defines a teacher?

What influences a teacher?

How can support staff be utilised to promote effective/good teaching practice?

Can the skills of a good teacher be learnt?

What interdisciplinary skills does the arts give to make an effective teacher?

How do outside agencies effect your teaching practice?

Does teaching children with SEN effect your teaching practice rather than mainstream?

What personal qualities are important?

Does the length of a school term impact effective teaching?

Are relationships between teacher and pupil important to help children learn?

Any thoughts would be greatly appreicated :)

Using SIG's

Here are a few examples of how my Sig's have helped me so far....

When I was debating which avenue to take my inquiry down, I was advised to use the imagery of an umbrella, to use sub-sections to gather my ideas together.

More recently, I have been pondering on research questions. As part of my SIG, Lauren Harper and I have regular skype calls and relaying of messages. Today, Lauren has helped me massively, I asked her to have a look at my research questions and offer any advice she may have. This is an image of my original research questions.

Lauren advised:

Reader 6 - How is professional inquiry similar to other professional activity you are involved with?

Targets

At the start of term, teachers gather evidence from previous years to draw together targets and aims for each individual to achieve by the end of term or more long term for the end of the year.

We then discuss how we could help them achieve this target:

What strategies we could put in place. 

What starter activities could we do to put them on the right path.

Looking at Reader 6 and the common pitfalls in research, I can compare how these relate to producing valid and realistic targets:

Having vague and ill-defined aims

If it is not clear what the student needs to have achieved to meet their target, how will we know if they have met it?

Lacking detail about the research design

There needs to be enough detail in the target to be able in order for the student, teacher, support staff, senior leadership and outside agencies to understand what level the student is currently at and where they are required to be by a specified time. It is not enough for the teacher to understand the students targets - if they are absent, support staff should have the knowledge to continue with the planned strategy to help each student. Also, the supply teacher should be able to come in to the class with no prior knowledge, read the class file (a folder, containing all the information anyone working with the children in the class needs to know about each student: behaviour plans, medical notes, targets) and understand the needs of the  class.

It is also important not to give too much detail so the aim becomes unclear.

Being overly ambitious and unrealistic in terms of scope and timetable

(Fox, Martin, Green, 2007, p .118)

Setting targets that are currently beyond the reach of that student will not help in anyway: the student may feel inadequate; the teacher's methods may be questioned; the school could appear to be underachieving. It is the same if the students are constantly over achieving: the teacher's methods may be questioned as they could appear to not be able to understand their students, or they could be questioned as it could appear that they are trying to manipulate the end results.

In terms of timetable, there is enough pressure within a classroom to deliver a certain amount of the curriculum within a time period without being unrealistic with what you wish to achieve.

Theories of Ethics

An act is morally right if, and only if the act maximises the good.

The greatest happiness for the greatest number.

To determine whether an action is morally right depends on the outcome eg, killing one person to save nine people is justified.

The motive behind and action determines if it is morally right.

This theory emphasises the character rather than the rules or consequences. 

Actions taken reveal something about the individuals character.

Traced back to Plato and Aristotle where there is great emphasis on being rather than doing.

References:

https://www.slideshare.net/aclaudiacampos/business-ethics-ethical-theory