Kelli Shipley SS Methods Skill/Formative LP 20 November 2013 Research Methods: Graph says what?

Grade: High School Class: Introductory Psychology Essential Question(s) What does a graph really mean/show? What is the significance of using graphs? Objectives Educational Students should be able to: 1. Interpret graphs showing data 2. Explain graphs showing data 3. Create a graph showing data Standards NCSS Thematic Standards o People, places, and environments Context This lesson would be used in an introductory psychology class for high school students. The lesson would be taught after learning about the scientific method. Students would be expected to have prior knowledge about graphs. Graphs are often used in psychological research to report findings of all kinds of data. This is also an important skill for many other classes such as other social studies, social sciences, science, and math. Materials Pre-test- notebook paper Partner Activity Worksheet Posttest Procedures/Timing 1. (Prior Day: 10 minutes ) Pretest. Students will take a pre-test the class before in order to gauge the overall current understanding about graphs. This pretest will consist of one question. a. Tell me everything you know about graphs in general and then how they are presented in psychology. 2. (Day 1: 10 minutes ) Students will come to class and notice many graphs taped around the room. Students will be instructed to find a partner and visit each graph for two minutes while filling out the corresponding section on a worksheet they have been given.

3. (Day 1: 10 minutes ) Students will be asked the following; a. Which graphs seemed familiar? Why? b. Which graphs seemed confusing or incomplete? Why? (Students will be asked if anyone can explain it.) c. Why are graphs important? Does it matter what subject you are in? d. What can graphs tell us? Why is it important? Research? Facts? 4. (Day 1: 20 minutes) Students will individually create a graph with give data and answer questions. Assessment Formative o Writing exercise. This exercise allows students to see where the class will be going the next lesson. It will also allow for accommodation of the lesson if necessary. o Partner activity. Students will also put their ideas on paper while working with partners. Students are asked to pull out important general ideas about graphs as well as being able to interpret what a graph is showing. This activity allows students to actually participate in doing what is asked of them in the essential question. o Discussion. Students will discuss the graphs in their partner groups. Students will also discuss as a class. Students thoughts and ideas surrounding the graphs will help others learn more or reassure their current knowledge as well as address deficits. Summative o Create your own graph. Students will have the freedom of taking data and making a graph either on paper or excel. This will show whether or not they know how a graph should look. Answer the questions that go along with the data will allow students to explain their choices and interpret their graph. By having students create their own graph their use of graph interpretation and reasoning will be well shown in order to reassess their current understanding. Extensions and Adaptations 1. Extension: Students who finish early will be instructed to use the database EBSCO to find studies about psychology and write 2-3 sentences about what the graphs in the data show or if there are graphs. If there are no graphs, students would be asked to predict or find out why the data found could not be represented in a graph. 2. Adaptation: Students struggling will be partnered with students of higher ability in order to help them think through the graphs in the partner activity. Struggling students may also be given just one column of the data to create a graph with and still answer the questions.

Graphs on the wall:

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Name: ____________________ Partner: ____________________ Date: ____________________ Graph Activity Directions: Answer the following questions for the graphs in the room. Make sure to write the number that corresponds to each graph correctly. (Each graph is labeled with a different number.) (You will not make it to every graph station- that is okay!) 1. Is there anything missing from the graph? 2. What kind of graph(s) is/are shown? 3. Write three things you learn looking at the graph(s). 4. What is the graph representing? Graph Number: _________

Graph Number: _________

Graph Number: _________

Graph Number: _________

Graph Number: _________

Graph Number: _________

Graph Number: _________

Graph Number: _________

Name: __________________ Date: __________________ Create a Graph Directions: Create a graph using the data below. You may either use graph paper or the program Microsoft Excel on the computer. When you have properly labeled and created the graph or graphs make sure to answer the questions that follow. If you are using Excel and want to type the answers you may do so. If you are using graph paper please write answers on a separate sheet of notebook paper or on the back of this sheet.

Course A Course B Course C Student Hours per week Student Hours per week Student Hours per week Joe 9 Hannah 5 Meena 6 Peter 7 Ben 6 Sonia 6 Zoey 8 Iggy 6 Kim 7 Ana 8 Louis 6 Mike 5 Jose 7 Keesha 7 Jamie 6 Lee 9 Lisa 6 Ilana 6 Joshua 8 Mark 5 Lars 5 Ravi 9 Ahmed 5 Nick 20 Kristen 8 Jenny 6 Liz 5 Loren 1 Erin 6 Kevin 6
1. Why did you choose the graph or graphs that you did? 2. What does your graph show? 3. Can you represent the data in other ways using a different kind of graph? If so, what kind/ what else could you have done? What other data could you have found? 4. How are graphs used in the following courses: psychology, history, and science? 5. If you were a psychologist, how might you use this data? (Use your imagination!)