BSRLM Conference
Mood:  special
Now Playing: Ghost (Bananarama)
Topic: Seminars

Well, I went to the Cambridge seminar on Tuesday - which was fun getting the students' feedback - I think the things I've gained from that has mostly been in the preparation of the materials and doing some preliminary qualitative analysis. Fatin suggested that I probably could let students who did the black-box software do it again sometime later on the glass-box to see if there were any effects ... hmm ... interesting - don't think I'll have any time for that in this PhD but something to think about for future research perhaps?

I also went to the BSRLM conference on Saturday - I was hoping to get more feedback from it - unfortunately my audience was really low (I think perhaps because the people who were interesting in my talk were mostly Cambridge students who had already seen it and I was clashing with a workshop of Geogebra). I was hoping to get some feedback on my videos.  One person (Nicole) suggested I might looks at Hoyles and Noss concept of situated cognition ... and I've been doing some browsing on the concept and it might be useful but not sure how it actually fits in with the data I have ... well as I understood it situated abstraction is where students make sense of what is given to them in the situation in which they're. Noss (2002) in his paper of mathematical epistemologies that students in these abstracted situations should be able to transfer their knowledge and not be wholly confined to the situation as suggested by Resnick (1991).

Hopefully, I've looked at this correctly and I've interpreted it correctly. What was interesting when I was reading Noss's work and all other stuff on situated abstraction I was trying to figure where students were sense-making based on the software - and based on the bits of video data I've browsed through I can't say whether there was actually any abstraction based on the software perhaps in the open-box in the choice of the the variables in which students chose any variable wildly ... however, what did strike me is this notion of moving from the situated abstract and applying it in a different situation. So, I went and did an ANOVA (or rather a comparison of means) to check whether students were doing badly when they had to do the abstract problem in comparison to the real life problems.

Of course I found no difference in the 20 students (I removed the 2 outliers)! However, the means suggest that students who were doing the abstract problem (interpretive and constructive) last were students who were doing worse at it - I do have to check whether the problems that students were doing last in general - that students were doing bad in it. Because students who were doing problem 1 last also did very badly for both the interpretive and the constructive. I'm not sure whether that student's energies peter off to the last and weren't able to think ... looking at problem 2 - students also did bad when it was the last question but only for the constructive problem ... did students reach their cognitive limits? Was the time they were taking a strain on them - or were students generally couldn't handle the abstract problems? (I don't think it is the latter - I have a feeling students just do badly for the last problem!). So, much for my brief stint in checking out situative abstraction - but it still might come in useful so would keep it in mind.

Interestingly, at the BSRLM spoke about someone (I think it was on Schonfeld) who said that if students cannot work out a problem in less than 7 mins they think it is impossible - so, I need to check this out more carefully.

Interesting update to the LP software :)
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: Heart and Soul (The Monkees)
Topic: LP Software

So, I bumped into Shannon and Joanna from Geography during lunch today and I was telling them about my research and the problem I was having with the students who are not recognising that some constraints are binding ... i.e. for example when the labour hours has finished but lumber feet has increased that students still think they can build chairs because they're not looking at the whole problem and connecting it but rather just part and then relating it to real life. Joanna then said this reminded her of the machine in the museum which was used to teach capital flows etc. in economics by using pumps and water tubes, and checking to see what happens if they put a pressure (such as increase taxes) what would happen to the capital flow.

This got me thinking that perhaps students might benefit (but obviously not something for me to do in this study but perhaps as a recommendation) - an animation or graph that shows how much resources they have remaining - i think an interactive graph/animation might be interesting - one where the resources are being increased and what happens to production etc. Just a thought :D.

Data analysis
Mood:  chillin'
Now Playing: Incessant noise of the Jennie Lee Building
Topic: Data Analysis

Well, I've done some preliminary data analysis with the 22 participants I have, there seems to be two outliers (J&E) which seems to be influencing the data unduly so I may have to remove them in the final analysis - but we shall see what happens.

With the Latin square design, thankfully it seems as if the order does not make a difference to how the problems are answered, however, problem 2 is being done significantly better by students than problem 1 and 3. There is no clear indication that any of the boxes are actually helping the students unfortunately - although I am still hoping something will happen in the next 14 data collection which would show something ... so far the things that I'm looking out for it seems that the students are doing better in the constructive problems using the black-box than the open and glass box ... but this is only in the marks they're receiving - I still have to see what is happening in terms of self-explanations ... hopefully there is something there which might be able to help. Further, in high conceptual stuff, the glass box seems to be doing the worse, but in general everyone is doing worse with this stuff, so it might be as Doug's say a glass-bottom effect. I think the reason why students are getting the high conceptual parts wrong in the LP is because they're drawing from real life experience which is interesting as this usually helps people in getting the answer correctly in most problems but as James' says it is because they're not seeing or formulating it as a linear programming problem in their minds.

However, I think for the high conceptual it is dependent on part on some low conceptual in the interpretive questions and the procedural in the constructive questions, probably should look when they get the 1st part correct, do they go on and do the high conceptual part right ... which I think might be more interesting. 

Hopefully, when I come to the self-explanations I can see something happening which might explain the differences between the boxes (hopefully!)

14 participants!
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: Noise of the OU
Topic: Data Collection

Well, things are getting better on the data collection front. I have 14 participants so far .... still need another 22 ... but let's worry about that a little bit later.

Here are the bigger worries - is trying to transcribe all of the data which I haven't started but I think that'll be a huge headache - but got to start sometime soon otherwise I'll never do it.

On the other front - got my writing to get done which I'm never keen on ... but in three weeks time got to submit my methodology chapter - which when I think about it ... is quite long - and needs a lot of literature which I don't quite have at the moment ... so, got to work on that whilst transcribing and collecting data.

Trying to figure out my design!
Mood:  irritated
Now Playing: the noises of the house and the housemates
Topic: LP Software

I'm trying to figure out why I made the glass-box the way it is ... that is, why I don't show all the steps rather than ask them to click iteration for each ... and for the life of me I can't remember why. I've checked my meeting notes but not able to see anything there or either in this blog. I think the reason it's because I inherited the style from the expected-values pilot study, since I did it that way for each section in the expected values.

Well, so in fact the glass-box may not be completely glass-box -well its in a sense, but it doesn't show all the steps with one click, you've got to do several clicks to get all the steps. I felt and I vaguely remember I did it this way so, it would be somewhat mid-way between the OB and the BB. I think I had two options, I could have made it more BB looking (i.e. one click and just all the steps shown) or more OB looking (click iteration for each of the steps to appear). I guess at the time I was thinking about the amount of interaction the student had withe the software and with GB they had more interaction. So, is it really GB? I think it is, it's GB with interaction. Perhaps in future studies, one can look at GB with and without interaction.

Now, why did I choose GB with interaction rather than GB without interaction ... this is what I'm uncertain of. I know I wanted it to be closer to OB but why? Well, I had two choices really, and I wanted to end up with a Latin square design ... so only could do three anyhow. I think I wanted to look at whether the level of interaction would affect how the participant uses the software and as I had already drop one level of interaction in the OB, this was a compromise situation. In the GB with interactions, calculations were shown at each step and still maintains the phenomena of a GB. I don't know if that is a strong case - but there it is. So, we really have three levels: no interaction (BB), some interaction (GB) and lots of interaction (OB). So, it is somewhat on a scale. We can also have it has no steps (BB); steps shown in a modular fashion (GB); and steps determined by user and shown in a modular fashion (OB).

The Hunt for Participants Continues!
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: Another Day In Paradise (Phil Collins)
Topic: Data Collection

Well, again I've put up adverts on facebook ... this time I'm trying on the marketplace for London, Manchester etc. (pay US$4 to advertise it in a noticeable place - this is just a test - just want to see if it will work) - if that fails got to go back to my flyers I guess.

And E. hasn't replied me as yet - maybe she isn't so keen in doing it again ... feeling a bit as if this thing is running away with me again. Got to contact R. and see if he can get me some more participants. Got to be on the ball on this - otherwise this might stretch till Dec., and that won't be good.

On a brighter note, I've made a really detailed plan on my thesis outline - so I really can see how the story can be told - just got to flesh it out now :D.

Skype works!!!
Mood:  happy
Now Playing: When You Were Sweet Sixteen (Perry Como)
Topic: Data Collection

Well, after much worrying and testing (with Macs and PCs), changes in Ports ... I've finally hit on the problem why I was unable to receive Skype video. As it seems, when I upgraded Skype, it seems that caused me not to receive video ... but once I downgraded it work. And just in time as well!!

I have data collection this afternoon with a student from Bristol ... but I do so need more undergraduate students from the UK ... if anyone is reading out there - HELP ME!! I thought the 10 pound voucher was sufficient incentive but it seems it wasn't - well at least not for the facebookers for whom I've been advertising constantly with ... I got to try some other forums.

 I'm going to advertise again sometime next week ... hopefully I can get some. I've only got 3 proper data collections and I need to get 33 more ... I've still got one to finish off from E., so that will make it 4. So, need to just talk to her and see what happens. Also, got to see whether Amalia and Ritchie would try and get some more for me. Should be testing the webcam and application sharing with Amalia today in UWI. Because she said she might be able to get some from there for me. So, we'll see :D.

Getting worried about data collection ....
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: Listening to the workmen pound at something
Topic: Data Collection

Well, it's almost October and I've only collected data for 2 persons ... although I really didn't get the equipment etc. working properly till about late August ... but still, that is really no excuse when you need to get your work done and your PhD submitted on time.

So, getting really worried about that ... and I feel as if I'm not making sufficient progress in my work as I should ... hopefully things should pick up by next week ... anyway, off to supervision now.

Facebook flyer
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: To Where You Are (Josh Groban)
Topic: Data Collection

Well ... I decided to advertise to recruit students using the facebook flyer ... I'm not sure if this will generate any response but I have it posted over the next two days ... so will see what happens ... it is supposed to have 5000 views (that should generate some response ... shouldn't it?)

Anyway, if all else fails ... I go home in August ... I'm gonna recruit some people from there and if not there well ... then it is going to be in the OU!

Well, we shall see how this goes.

PME Conference
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: PME president talking :)
Topic: Seminars
I'm at the PME conference at the moment and so far it is going well ... although the lunches could be better :D. My presentation is this afternoon ... hopefully it will go well but not sure ... bit nervous about getting hard questions and I'm not certain if I've practiced enough. Well ... right now in the PME AGM but going to slip out soon and go practice my presentation soon. And I'm only doing this to fulfil my obligation of writing in my blog :) ... because forgot to do it before I left.