Journal#8

Instructions:

Before starting the work:

• Listen to the following NPR story entitled How Happy is America?

http://www.npr.org/sections/money/2013/02/08/171414674/how-happy-is-

america (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

• Read the PDF file titled “ Questions to Consider When Writing a Survey”(Attached):

This PDF will be particularly helpful in part 3 below where you are asked to create

and critique a Parent Survey.

• Read the attached chapter(3) from the text book.

Do the following requirements:

1. Journal: Your journal is divided into 2 parts. (Note: that both parts should be in the same

journal entry)

Part 1: Provide three versions of a question asking people if they feel money can make

people happy. Word the question to be as follows:

a) Version 1: Word the question as unbiased as possible

b) Version 2: Word the question so that those surveyed are likely to respond

that money Does make people happy

c) Version 3: Word the question so that those surveyed are likely to respond

that money Does Not make people happy.

For each version include an explanation of WHY the wording of that question would most

likely elicit the desired response. For example, explain why you think the wording of

Version 3 is likely to get people to respond that money does not make them happy.

Part 2: Imagine that you have developed a survey to measure how happy Americans

are. A researcher well versed in gathering evidence of reliability and validity has

found your survey to be valid, reliable, and unbiased. Explain in your own words

what these findings mean.

2. Creating & Critiquing Parent Survey: The activity will involve one step.

Step 1: entails creating items for a survey. Explained bellow:

Step 1 – Creating Survey Items:

You have instituted a new behavior management program in your classroom and as a result,

you have observed in your classroom a decline in the number disciplinary problems and an

increase in the number of positive and supportive behaviors exhibited by your students. You

are curious as to whether or not this decrease in behavior problems and increase in positive

behaviors is also occurring at home so you decide to create a survey to send home with your

students. Specifically, you want to find out how the parents see the behavior management

program you implemented in your classroom as influencing their child’s behavior at home.

Create survey items designed to answer this question. As you create your survey items be

sure to take steps to avoid the seven pitfalls listed on page 42 in the Utts textbook.

(Attached).

3. Connecting Source to the attached chapter(3): In last week’s Agenda you were asked to do

the following:

(( Pick a newspaper, magazine, internet news site, or blog to follow in terms of how they

utilize and report statistical information. In future Week Agendas you will have

opportunities to reflect on what you are observing in your chosen news source.))

NOW: For this week, select a piece (e.g., article, story, blog, etc.) from your source that is

relevant to one of the topics discussed in Utts’ chapter 3 (Attached). Describe in your own

words the following:

1. how the piece relates to one of (chapter 3) topics.

2. In addition, critique the piece using what you have learned in this Utts chapter 3;

address what it did well and what it did not do well.

3. Post a link to or a pdf of the piece in the assignment page.

Due in 12 hours.