Hurry

INTRODUCTION

This chapter will focus on the study design, variables, location of study, target population, sampling, data collection methods, data analysis and presentation and ethical considerations.

1. RESEARCH METHODS AND DESIGN

The study area will be “The Effect of Virtual Achievements on Student Engagement”.

The study design for this research will be a cross-sectional study design. In this case, the data collected will be entirely new and use various approaches to obtaining its data. The study will measure frequency more than occurrence. Our design will be descriptive cross-sectional as well as analytic cross-sectional.

Descriptive studies: On the descriptive design the study will determine the patterns of student performance in relation to virtual achievements.

Analytic studies: On the analytic cross-sectional, the hypotheses will be tested to determine the magnitude of the relationship between the virtual achievement and the learning outcomes of students. The analytic studies will be both observational and intervention analytic studies.

Observational studies: The observational studies will involve assigning groups and only observing the effects of the virtual achievements on the learning outcomes of students while in their natural learning/school environment. The mode of observational studies to be used will be comparative cross-sectional.

Intervention studies: the intervention studies will be employed whereby the learning situation will be manipulated. The intervention will be experimental to give a more reliable proof of the effects of virtual achievements on results. For instance, it would entail introducing the virtual effects on one group and not adding it to the other group so as to make comparisons.

2. POPULATION SAMPLE INSTRUMENTS

The target population includes teachers and students. The study population will be educators/teachers and students of Inglewood High School and Inglewood City honours charter school.

Sampling methods:

The study will use a probability and non-probability sampling method, specifically convenience sampling criteria. The Non-probability method will be a convenience method whereby only the available study units will be employed.

Sample size determination

For this study I will employ the use of the Andrew Fischer formula to calculate the target population.

The Fischer's et al. (1998) scientific standard formula will be used to obtain the sample size, where a sample of, approximately, 60 to 80 respondents will be arrived at. The formula is as follows:

n =

Where:

n =desired sample size for a population more than 10000.

z= the normal standard deviation, usually set as 1.96 (95% confidence level).

The “P”= proportion of the target population estimated to have characteristics set as 0.5. (Duru, C. B. et al., 2015)

q= 1-p

d= degree of accuracy desired, usually set as 0.05

n= =384

Since the study population will be less than 10000, the size sample will be calculated using the fisher’s method as follows:

nf= ṉ

1+ (n/N).

Where;

nf= desired sample size for a population less than 10000.

n= constant of 384.

N= estimated population size.

nf= 79.33

Sample size = 80 respondents.

Inclusion and exclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria

Eligibility for inclusion in this study would require;

i. An individual who is willing and able to give informed consent.

ii. An experienced teacher teaching in the institution of study.

iii. A student learning in the institution of research.

Exclusion criteria

Individuals who will be excluded from this study were;

i. Students and teachers/lecturers who are not willing to give informed consent

ii. Students who are not attending the institution of study

iii. Educators/professors do not teach in the institution of study.

3. OPERATIONAL DEFINITIONS OF VARIABLES

The dependent variables in the study will be the learning performance of the students while the independent variables will be virtual achievements. Also, the study will incorporate the background variables such as age and gender of the study population.

4. DATA COLLECTION

The data collection methods for this research will be quantitative whereby interviews, key informants, focused group discussions (FDGs) and self-administered questioners will be used. The interviews will use a highly structured interviewer guide. The interviews will be administered by the teachers and students while recording the responses obtained. The self-administered questionnaire design will be that of closed questions. In this case, the students and teachers will be required to read the questions on the questionnaires and fill them out on their own. The key informants will be the management of the institution of study.

5. DATA ANALYSIS AND PRESENTATION

Quantitative data will be entered and analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20 software.

With the use of popular Microsoft Office Suite software, the results will be displayed in the form of tables, bar graphs and pie charts

6. ANALYSIS ASSUMPTIONS AND LIMITATIONS

Assumptions

The study assumes that Virtual learning-based achievement is the only learning motivating factor for students.

Limitations

i. The observation method is subject to personal biases

ii. A section of the target population might not be willing to cooperate.

7. ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS

Ethical principles:

· Autonomy:

This study will respect the rights of the individuals to self-determination that the research will ensure that any consent to participate in the study will be well informed and in real time. This study will allow for freedom of choice for the individuals in the study area to decide whether to be a part of this study or not. There will be no coercion of any sort.

· Non-Maleficence:

The study will not inflict any harm on or expose the study population to any unnecessary risk during the study.

Ethical rules

· Veracity (Truths):

All subjects in the research will be told the truth regarding the study.

· Informed consent

Before field data collection, the research team will explain the objectives and procedures of the study to authorities at the study site. After obtaining permission from them, the team will visit the respondents and explain the research to them. They will be informed of the research objectives, potential risks, and their right to refuse or withdraw participation at any time and their decision will have no consequences or impact on their status. Respondents must indicate their acceptance of their involvement through signing the informed consent form.

Each participant will provide a signed and informed consent before enrolment in this study. Although we will observe and record performance behaviours of some students and teachers in the learning institutions, we will not seek individual consent from other faculty and students since no identifying information about the participants will be collected. The field team will be fluent in U.S. language (English).

· Approval

Permission for carrying out this proposed study will be sought from the relevant authorities who include:

· Confidentiality

The Information obtained will be treated with confidentiality. Names or any other form of identification will not be used.

References

Check, J., & Schutt, R. K. (2011). Research Methods in Education. SAGE Publications.

Denny, P. (2013). The effect of virtual achievements on student engagement. CHI '13 Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, 763-772 . Retrieved from The ACM Digital Library: http://dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=2470763

Duru, C. B., Oluoha, U. R., Uwakwe, K. A., Diwe, K. C., Merenu, I. A., Chigozie, I. O., & Iwu, A. C. (2015). Prevalence and Sociodemographic Determinants of Malnutrition among Under-Five Children in Rural Communities in Imo State, Nigeria. American Journal of Public Health Research, 3(6), 199–206. http://doi.org/10.12691/ajphr-3-6-1

Kumar, R. (2014). Research Methodology: A Step-by-Step Guide for Beginners. SAGE Publications.

Sahu, P. K. (2013). Research Methodology: A Guide for Researchers In Agricultural Science, Social Science and Other Related Fields. Springer Science & Business Media.