Action Research

Data Analysis
Tutorial
James Preston
Mike Steele
 Todays Goals
Provide the teacher candidate with
some background knowledge on
displaying their action research
results.
Provide support to small groups of
teacher candidates on completing their
literature review and data analysis
section of their action research
project.
 Purpose of the Data
Analysis Section
You are to concisely and accurately
display the results of your study.
In other words, someone who views
your data analysis section should get
an idea of the results of your study
at a glance.
 Big Idea
Much like your classroom
assessments should match your
objectives in every lesson you
conduct in the classroom
Your data analysis section in this
action research project should match
and display the answers to your
research questions.
 Choosing a Graph
A Line Graph
You want to use a line graph when you wish to show
a trend over a period of time.
A Bar Graph
Bar graphs are most often used to compare results
between two or more categorical variables.
A Pie Chart
The pie chart is often over used and is only
appropriate when you wish to compare parts to a
whole. Comparing pie charts to one another is
typically not a good idea.
Other graphs are available for your consideration
but the above are the most popular and
straightforward.
 Line Graph
A line graph is best used when you wish to
display a trend over a period of time.
For example, if you have been giving a
series of assessments along with
implementing a new teaching strategy and
you wish to show that achievement is
slowly rising (or mistakes are decreasing)
over time, a line graph would be
appropriate.
This table shows a series of average
test scores between two groups of
students

week week week week week

1 2 3 4 5

Old Strategy 83 84 85 87 89

New
Strategy 82 85 89 92 94
 Microsoft Excel gives you
this chart.
Average Test Scores

96
94
92
Percentage Correct

90
88
Control
86
Treatment
84
82
80
78
76
week 1 week 2 week 3 week 4 week 5
Weeks of Treatment
 Others would consider this the
appropriate use of a vertical scale
Average Test Scores

100
90
80
Percentage Correct

70
60
Control
50
Treatment
40
30
20
10
0
week 1 week 2 week 3 week 4 week 5
Weeks of Treatment
 This vertical scale can be
misleading
Average Test Scores

96

94

92
Percentage Correct

90
Control
88
Treatment
86

84

82

80
week 1 week 2 week 3 week 4 week 5
Weeks of Treatment
Consider plotting the change in scores
from the week 1 test

week week week week week

1 2 3 4 5

Old Strategy 0 1 2 4 6

New Strategy 0 3 7 10 12

In this chart, the change in scores from week to

week is calculated rather than showing the raw
scores.
Other than change, researchers could calculate
and plot averages and other statistics.
 Change in Average Test
Scores
Sample Line Chart

14

12

10
Change in Test Score

Control
6
Treatment

week 1 week 2 week 3 week 4 week 5

-2

Week of Study
 Bar Graphs
Bar graphs are best used whenever
you are comparing two or more
categorical variables. In the following
table the Pre-test and Post-test
scores of a group of students are
displayed.
Consider how you would
display this data.
Pre-test Post-test
Student 1 75 84
Student 2 88 99
Student 3 90 82
Student 4 63 80
Student 5 85 97
Student 6 79 89
Student 7 94 100
Student 8 83 80
Student 9 88 90
Student 10 68 86
This would be a typical bar
graph.
Adjusting the vertical scale
can again be misleading.
This bar graph shows the change
instead of raw scores
 Pie Charts
Typically, pie charts should be
avoided but they can be used to
relate a part to a whole.
For example
 A good use of a pie chart

In this pie chart,

the purpose is to
show that a large
portion of the
class has an
Individual
Education Plan.
 Data Table/Graph Construction
After you have decided on the basic graph format you want to use the last step is to
add some pizzazz. First, move your cursor to the white area around your graph and
right click the mouse and select the first icon FORMAT AREA with a left click. This
will give you a color pallet with the white square highlighted.

Move your cursor around the pallet and click on a nice background color, not too dark,
and left
click OK. Following the same steps as above, you can move your cursor into the graph
area and
right click again to select a complimentary color.

Now that you have the hang of it, you can also right-click on the bars and change their
colors to
compliment your previous background selections. If you need to, you can adjust the
size of your graph by clicking on the text box and adjusting the size. As in
WORDPERFECT, you can change fonts, add bold type, or increase or decrease the size
of your letters and numbers for a better fit. You can also highlight the textbox within
your graph and correct or change a title. Make sure that you save what you have
done. Dont be afraid to explore the program and make creative adjustments.

Remember, this guide is not written in stone and is only designed to provide you with
a starting point. Off course, you can always COPY AND PASTE your XL data into
POWERPOINT for a presentation. The next two slides are some sample XL graphs that
were moved into POWERPOINT for reference.
Sample Pre- and Post-Test Summary for Fifteen Item Test for 3rd Grade
Students (PSSA Math Standard 2.5 - Problem Solving). This slide is a
bar graph from XL with color added to highlight the data. The data
table is also included below with both the average score and number of
students included.
Once the data table/graph have been completed in XL, it is a simple task to cut the
graph/table from XL and paste it in POWERPOINT for a professional effect. Dont
be afraid to add a little color this is your project and you want it to reflect well on
your work.
Data can be reported to illustrate how effective certain strategies were
based on the use of a scoring guide. The example below could be used
for a similar analysis of open-ended tasks in math.
 DIRECTIONS TO THE PADOE AND PaTTAN
WEBSITE

Pennsylvania Department of Education (PA DOE)Website can be found at

-- http://www.pde.state.pa.us/ Once you enter the site, first:

CLICK ON - the tab (Pre K 12) at the top of the page and look to the left
under Learn About and you will see a number of underlined links

CLICK ON - Assessment.

CLICK ON - PSSA Results - You want the 2005-2006 PSSA Results.

You can track data back over time by going to previous years. A page will
appear with a listing of the various Intermediate Units across the
Commonwealth. Find the county your school is in and CLICK ON
Performance Levels Reading and Math 3, 5, 8 & 11. A list of schools in
the IU will appear. Look for your school and see what the proficiency
levels were from the 2006 testing. Remember, these were last years
scores. If you are currently teaching 6th grade, for example, you can see
how well your students did as a group when they were tested in 5th grade.
You can track performance trends for planning purposes and population
trends over time using this site.
 DIRECTIONS TO THE PADOE AND PaTTAN
WEBSITE (cont)
When you go back to the Pre K 12 tab you can also access Assessment
Anchors, Assessment Anchor Toolkits, Release Items, Standards,
NCLB, Eligible Content, and many other resources. The Special Education
link is extremely important for every student teacher and regular school
employee.

You are a professional. There is an absolute expectation that you will learn
what is on the PA DOE website and use this information for planning and
instruction. The answers are not supposed to be a secret. The PA DOE
wants you to have and use this information. Spend some time exploring the
PA DOE website over the next few weeks.

What you find out could help you get a position this fall. It will definitely
make you a better teacher. Remember, assessment drives instruction, and
the PSSA is the Coin of the Realm for anyone in PA public education.

Another must know website for teachers in Pennsylvania is the PA Training &
Technical Assistance Network (PaTTAN) located at
http://www.pattan.k12.pa.us/ PaTTAN is a data-based website that can
be most helpful in finding information related to data analysis and
instructional decision making pertaining to the PSSA.
Consider the following when
creating your charts
Usually, simpler is better
Avoid using 3-D charts, they can be
difficult to read and misleading.
Choose color carefully, some colors can
make portions of a chart look larger or
smaller and can be misleading.
Always give the chart a title, always label
the axes, and provide a key if
appropriate.
Consider the following when
creating your charts (cont.)
Include a table of values with each chart
if possible.
Use summary statistics such as the
mean, median or mode.
Your goal is to accurately and concisely
display your data.
This was by no means a comprehensive
summary of the data analysis options
available to you. Check the documents
on Blackboard for more information.
 References
Miller, J. E. (2004). The Chicago guide to writing
about numbers. Chicago: The University of
Chicago Press.

M. Steele - steelemd1@aol.com
J. Preston james.preston@sru.edu