Developing Capacity for Advanced Quantitative Methodology by Enhancing Learner Agency
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Stirling
Department Name: Applied Social Science
Abstract
Researchers and students in Psychology often find quantitative methodology difficult -
disempowering because it relies on an unfamiliar language (maths), and disjointed because it is
presented as a set of unrelated procedures. Statistics is a hurdle both during time as an
undergraduate and at later stages in studies and careers.
However, quantitative methods are an essential and ever-evolving part of psychology, and
providing successful learning approaches is vital for both students and researchers. The proposed
project seeks to examine the benefits that can be gained from a new approach to learning
quantitative methods developed by the applicant and proposed first supervisor. This new
approach uses purpose-written simulation software, BrawStats focused on design decisions, providing instant
outcomes using a graphical interactive interface to support advanced quantitative learning.
This project will investigate learner agency as the key concept to changing outcomes. The most
successful learners have 'high agency': they are independent, take initiatives and make decisions
in their learning, and have a degree of self-belief in their capabilities (Mercer, 2011; Personalize
Learning, 2015). We adopt the ecological approach to agency (Biesta and Tedder, 2007) which
emphasises the joint roles of previous experience, present environment (social and physical) and
expectations of future progress, and apply it to learning, particularly within digital environments.
Since the 1980s 'e-learning' and 'educational technology' researchers and developers have
adapted constructivist and social constructivist theories to account for the ways learning occurs
when using digital technologies (Ito 2010). These accounts suggest that (well-designed) digital
environments and resources can provide 'authentic' virtual contexts in which learners can solve
problems and take part in practices that simulate real-world activities, particularly when these
digital environments enable participatory collaboration around shared challenges. The design of
'digital epistemic games', which mirror the tasks found in professional occupations, is a prime
example of how e-learning has been successfully applied to the development of learner agency.
Context:
Strong negative views and a concern about standards currently exist within Psychology and
beyond, evidenced by recent events such as the replication crisis (OSF, 2015), which reported a
low replication rate of ca. 40% for psychological studies. Although it is presumed that this
percentage is due to poor scientific rigour, it is equally true that the phenomenon demonstrates
the lack of advanced skills and understanding in researchers. Further, a recent meta-analysis
publicised findings that a staggering 50% of papers published over a 28-year period contained
quantitative statistical inconsistencies. While there are many researchers who are confident in their abilities and believe that the replication
crisis is not quite as disastrous as it appears, it is clear from this paper that difficulties exist that must be addressed.
disempowering because it relies on an unfamiliar language (maths), and disjointed because it is
presented as a set of unrelated procedures. Statistics is a hurdle both during time as an
undergraduate and at later stages in studies and careers.
However, quantitative methods are an essential and ever-evolving part of psychology, and
providing successful learning approaches is vital for both students and researchers. The proposed
project seeks to examine the benefits that can be gained from a new approach to learning
quantitative methods developed by the applicant and proposed first supervisor. This new
approach uses purpose-written simulation software, BrawStats focused on design decisions, providing instant
outcomes using a graphical interactive interface to support advanced quantitative learning.
This project will investigate learner agency as the key concept to changing outcomes. The most
successful learners have 'high agency': they are independent, take initiatives and make decisions
in their learning, and have a degree of self-belief in their capabilities (Mercer, 2011; Personalize
Learning, 2015). We adopt the ecological approach to agency (Biesta and Tedder, 2007) which
emphasises the joint roles of previous experience, present environment (social and physical) and
expectations of future progress, and apply it to learning, particularly within digital environments.
Since the 1980s 'e-learning' and 'educational technology' researchers and developers have
adapted constructivist and social constructivist theories to account for the ways learning occurs
when using digital technologies (Ito 2010). These accounts suggest that (well-designed) digital
environments and resources can provide 'authentic' virtual contexts in which learners can solve
problems and take part in practices that simulate real-world activities, particularly when these
digital environments enable participatory collaboration around shared challenges. The design of
'digital epistemic games', which mirror the tasks found in professional occupations, is a prime
example of how e-learning has been successfully applied to the development of learner agency.
Context:
Strong negative views and a concern about standards currently exist within Psychology and
beyond, evidenced by recent events such as the replication crisis (OSF, 2015), which reported a
low replication rate of ca. 40% for psychological studies. Although it is presumed that this
percentage is due to poor scientific rigour, it is equally true that the phenomenon demonstrates
the lack of advanced skills and understanding in researchers. Further, a recent meta-analysis
publicised findings that a staggering 50% of papers published over a 28-year period contained
quantitative statistical inconsistencies. While there are many researchers who are confident in their abilities and believe that the replication
crisis is not quite as disastrous as it appears, it is clear from this paper that difficulties exist that must be addressed.
