Imagine that you heard complaints that a particular instructor is difficult to understand, while others teaching the same course are much more straightforward with their content and expectations. You wonder whether these differences in teaching have an effect on learner outcomes. This week, you’ll explore whether actual group differences in grades exist, based on who’s teaching the course.
Readings
Read about how to apply your knowledge of ANOVA and run some analyses in SPSS.
George, D., & Mallery, P. (2019). IBM SPSS statistics 25 step by step: A simple guide and reference (15th ed.). Routledge.
Chapter 12, pages 159–168, describes how to run an ANOVA in SPSS.
Field, A. (2018). Discovering statistics using IBM SPSS: North American edition (5th ed.). Sage.
Review Chapter 12’s information on post hoc procedures and output from one-way ANOVAs to help you with your assignment.
The 7864 Course Study Guide [PDF] highlights content to focus on as you read and absorb the materials. You may also find some additional articles with direct relevance to your field here.
One-Way ANOVA and the SPSS Data Set
Assignment Instructions
ANOVA APPLICATION AND INTERPRETATION
Complete the following for this assignment:
For this assignment, you will use the Data Analysis and Application template (DAA Template [DOC]).
For help with SPSS, refer to IBM SPSS Step-by-Step Guide: One-Way ANOVA [DOC].
For help copying SPSS output into your DAA, review the Copy/Export Output Instructions [HTML].
For information on the data set, you may find the Data Set Instructions [DOC] helpful.
Refer to the 7864 Course Study Guide for information on analyses and interpretation.
The grades. sav file is a sample SPSS data set. The data represent a teacher’s recording of student demographics and performance on quizzes and a final exam across three sections of the course. Each section consists of 35 students (N = 105). There are 21 variables in grades. sav.
This week’s assignment is on ANOVA. You will analyze the following variables in the grades.sav data set:
SPSS Variable Definition
Section Class section
Quiz3 Quiz 3: number of correct answers
Step 1: Write Section 1 of the DAA: The Data Analysis Plan
Name the variables used in this analysis and whether they are categorical or continuous.
State a research question, null hypothesis, and alternate hypothesis for the analysis of variance (ANOVA).
Step 2: Write Section 2 of the DAA: Testing Assumptions
Test for one of the assumptions of ANOVA – normality.
Create SPSS output showing the Shapiro-Wilk test of normality. Run the Shapiro-Wilk test on the dependent variable test for the entire sample. Do not split the data up by gender before running the normality test.
Paste the table in the DAA.
Interpret the Shapiro-Wilk test and how you determined whether the assumption of normality was met or violated.
Step 3: Write Section 3 of the DAA: Results and Interpretation
Paste the following SPSS tables into the document:
Descriptives table
ANOVA table
Multiple Comparison table
Report the means and standard deviations of quiz3 for each group of the section variable.
Report the results of the F test and interpret the statistical results against the null hypothesis and state whether it is accepted or rejected.
Finally, if the F is significant, interpret the posthoc tests (multiple comparisons).
Step 4: Write Section 4 of the DAA: Statistical Conclusions
Provide a brief summary of your analysis and the conclusions drawn about this ANOVA.
Analyze the limitations of the statistical test and/or possible alternative explanations for your results.
Step 5: Write Section 5 of the DAA: Application
Analyze how you might use the ANOVA in your field of study.
Name an independent variable (the IV should have three or more groups/categories) and a dependent variable that would work for such an analysis and why studying it may be important to the field or practice.
Submit your DAA template as an attached Word document in the assignment area.
Competencies Measured
By successfully completing this assignment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following course competencies and assignment criteria:
Competency 1: Analyze the computation, application, strengths, and limitations of various statistical tests.
Analyze statistical assumptions.
Competency 2: Analyze the decision-making process of data analysis.
Articulate the data analysis plan.
Competency 3: Apply knowledge of hypothesis testing.
Interpret statistical results and hypotheses.
Competency 4: Interpret the results of statistical analyses.
Explain statistical conclusions, the limitations of the test, and possible alternative explanations.
Competency 5: Apply a statistical program’s procedure to data.
Run the analysis and post the findings in the DAA.
Competency 6: Apply the results of statistical analyses (your own or others) to your field of interest or career.
Analyze the potential applications of the test in the field and their implications.
Competency 7: Communicate in a manner that is scholarly, professional, and consistent with the expectations for members in the identified field of study.
Communicate in a manner that is scholarly, professional, and adheres to APA style and formatting.
