Since the hypothesis will be proven or disproven through an experiment, the method used for this study would be a quantitative method. The results of the experiment will be analyzed through statistical and mathematical means, as they are expected to show the effectiveness (or lack of it) of the advanced learning methods. The results of the testing group would be compared to the results of the control group, as well as to the results shown before switching to the new program. Any other researcher, using a test group of similar or larger size, should be able to repeat this experiment.
Research Questions
- What are the effects of using science word walls for ELL?
- What are the effects of using multi-sensory instruction in the everyday curriculum to improve the quality of language learning for young and foreign students alike?
- How will introducing vocabulary science words (on science wall) with example images differ from introducing science vocabulary words by themselves?
- What are some examples of innovating teachers’ vocabulary practices in class?
The hypothesis: Using advanced English-teaching methods in science class would improve the understanding of scientific material for ELL and ESL students, as well as their overall level of speaking the language.
Setting and Participants
The participants eligible for taking part in this research would be boys and girls ranging from 8 to 16 years of age. The participants would have to be ELL and ESL students that are studying the language within mixed groups, in a realistic setting. Convenience sampling is the most appropriate method for this research, as the student conducting it would likely not have the physical ability to travel across many schools to gather participants (“Convenience Sampling” par. 4). The estimated amount of participants is between 20 to 40. The method’s bias lies in the fact that not every nationality would be represented among the ESL students (“Weighting the Convenience Sampling Pros and Cons” par. 3).
Research Design
The students will be split in half, with one-half representing the control group. Their science classes would be conducted involving traditional methods of teaching new words, with no alterations. The other group would be taught using the advanced teaching techniques such as word walls, multi-sensory instructions, and other innovative approaches. The experiment would last for several months, with intermediary tests taken in between, to record progress, if there is any.
Measures
In order to estimate the effectiveness of word walls and multi-sensory instruction, the students would have to pass surprise tests. There would be two kinds of tests – the science tests and the language tests. The former would help judge if the advanced techniques managed to improve the overall understanding of the sciences involved, while the latter would help assess if there is any improvement in language. The results of the test group would then be compared to those of the control group. The element of surprise for the tests would ensure no extra preparation would take place (Basu 1).
Activities
In order to conduct the research, there are several activities that need to be performed. First, the researcher must instruct the teachers of the test groups about the newest techniques that are the focus of this research, such as word walls (Jackson, Tripp, and Cox 47), and multi-sensory instructions (Carrier 1). Other than that, it would be the researcher’s duty to analyze and control the results of the tests taken throughout the study period of three months.
Data Analysis
The primary method of data analysis will be analysis by comparison. The results of the tests would be compared between the control group and the test group to determine any significant differentiations. In addition, the test results of the test group would be compared to their test results prior to undergoing the new program, to see if there was any personal improvement among the students. The statistical significance level would be set to 5% (“Significance Level” par. 1).
Works Cited
Basu, Indrani. Surprise Tests to Evaluate Civic School Students. Web.
Carrier, Sarah. Effective Strategies for Teaching Science Vocabulary. Web.
Convenience Sampling, 2012. Web.
Jackson, Julie, Sherry Tripp, and Kimberly Cox. “Interactive Word Walls: Transforming Content Vocabulary Instruction.” The Science Scope 35.3 (2011): 45-49. Print.
Significance Level, 2016. Web.
Weighting the Convenience Sampling Pros and Cons, 2016. Web.