Paper Example on Factors Affecting Student Achievement

Introduction

People interested in the education of the youth in past years have often relied upon the focus on a 'normal individual.' The focus has been primarily on understanding the child socialization as a process and the problems that youth from both genders face while adjusting to the culture (Schoeppe, Haggard & Havighurst, 1953). Comparing the effectiveness of sixteen-year-olds using five crucial developmental tasks is a superb way of understanding how this particular group functions.

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Hypothesis

Due to the cultural patterns, most tasks bear a different definition for both genders, and hence their achievement would rely upon different variables. Therefore, the hypothesis of the study stated that: The significant factors towards the accomplishment of these tasks were determined separately for each sex.

Participants

The study subjects comprised of 15 girls and 15 boys to make a sample total of 30 individuals. The group was intensively studied as a part of the research project by the Midwest Community Study, which is an interdisciplinary research program conducted by the University of Chicago's Committee on Human Development. The subjects were chosen from an original sample which was made up of 115 children, all born in 1932, and residents of the Midwest and its surrounding rural territories in 1942 (Schoeppe et al., 1953). The participants were ranked in a classified status with one boy in the upper middle class, 13 girls and 12 boys in either upper lower class or lower middle class, and two of both genders in lower lower class. The selection of children to be placed under intensive study was determined by being unadjusted or adjusted as defined by arbitrary composite criteria. The cases selected for exhaustive analysis were those that represented extreme socialization patterns because they would present the most precise contrasts.

Methods

The researchers started by collecting extensive materials that covered the life history of each subject from the age of 10 to 16. It included the results of 32 test instruments and ten others that were specifically designed for the project. A minimum of eight members from the research staff compiled individual ratings for each subject on 47 social and personality items at the ages of 10, 13, and 16(Schoeppe et al., 1953). The records of their academic performance in both school marks and Metropolitan Achievement Tests were also studied. There was a quantitative analysis that explored the probability of a relationship between the rating of each task and the items on the Trait Rating List at the age of 16. The qualitative analysis of the data looked at the individual patterns of achievement on various developmental tasks by the subjects. The life history of the six most qualified subjects was intensively scrutinized with the aim of depicting the behavioral dynamics of the subjects per the Midwestern American culture.

Results

The variables that represented the achievement of every task were outlined in seven tables. The tables showed the importance of the factors used and the primary contrasts between those who achieved highly and those who did not do so well. On almost all the tasks, self-understanding, emotional features, self-directed rationality, and rational socialized motivation are more discriminatory compared to the level of functional intelligence. The results showed the core factors that differentiated the achievers from non-achievers. Another statistic that was doggedly present in the qualitative analysis is that children who lived under strict parental control in their formative years were hindered in the accomplishment of the developmental tasks. In the qualitative analysis, the researchers made case studies of the six adolescents who had achieved uniquely in the five tasks with the aim of translating the findings into a meaningful form for other adolescents. The three girls and three boys studied ranked accordingly on most factors but displayed instances where they overachieved or failed to achieve due to one element greatly overshadowing the others.

Credibility

I found this article to be credible, and hence any reader can trust its findings. One aspect that enhances the article's credibility is the richness of the data compiled. There were extensive materials and test results for each of the thirty subjects. A minimum of eight researchers made individual ratings on 47 personality item at different ages for the subjects. The records of academic performance were also included. This exhaustive interdisciplinary data covers many aspects that are key to understanding the performance of the adolescents in various tasks. The use of multiple data sources and collection methods is an aspect of triangulation that enhances credibility. Validity

The validity of research is based on whether it measures what it is expected and also on the truthfulness of the results. The study aimed to uncover the systematic understanding of the social learning that occurs in child socialization within our culture (Schoeppe et al., 1953). The developmental tasks used show how each of the subjects performed to help in determining their behavior. The different data collected, as well as the five different tasks, assisted in identifying the adolescent behaviors by relating the results with their characteristics. Highly socialized adolescents from both sexes displayed consistency in developmental life experiences and patterns. Poorly socialized students indicated a similar consistency, which suggests a truthfulness in the experimental findings.

Reliability

Reliability is concerned with the quality of the measurement criteria used in data collection. The consistency of the measurements over a repeated period gives research its reliability. This study utilizes the inter-rater reliability method where different subjects take the same analysis. All 30 adolescents and later the six uniquely specialized individuals undergo a similar analysis to gauge their socialization habits, but each has their results (Schoeppe et al., 1953). The results show the importance of the factors used as well as the contrast between those who did not do well and the high achievers. The research article is also reliable because it provides a reference list to support the ideas it presents.

This article is relevant to the topic in because it points to different outcomes from both sexes involved in the study. It shows that there is different social learning for each and gender depending on a myriad of factors. The achievement of students is therefore subject to numerous underlying factors that affect the personal characteristics and social sphere of their lives. Future researchers will use it as a reference for the social factors that affect the performance of adolescents since the topic is covered extensively. This article is appropriate for anyone considering future directions for research on this topic since it shows some of the crucial and diverse data that must be collected and analyzed. The use of tables for illustration is another essential tactic to be considered by other researchers. In the future, people researching this topic should learn to include both qualitative and quantitative analyses to come up with a conclusive view of the issue.

The article contributes to the collective understanding of the topic by showing the relationship between individual characteristics and the successful accomplishment of the specific tasks. The research aims to come up with a list of variables that will assist towards child development while facilitating the process of socialization. My understanding of the topic is that different factors affect the performance of every student. It shows that the personal nature of an adolescent can hinder them from achieving since it is negative energy. The development of adolescents is subject to underlying factors that affect how they perform in life as shown by the different results of the developmental tasks. The research findings stress the great importance of emotionality to an individual. Adolescents who wish to accomplish developmental tasks must master self-acceptance and impulsivity to mobilize all the energy in dealing with the opposing cultural and social forces (Schoeppe et al., 1953). Institutions like families and schools impact the life and achievement of students by affecting their emotions and personality. The individual achievements heavily rely upon the social environment of the students.

A new conclusion could be reached based on the evidence presented in the articles. The social and emotional positioning of students will affect how they make decisions. It all reverts to the core fact that students' achievement is a factor of internal and external social forces. Parents and the community play their part in the extrinsic emotion and social context, but the individual is responsible for the intrinsic. The most important aspect is to ensure that numerous approaches are utilized in helping students to achieve at optimal levels.

A new direction of the research in future would involve looking at how financial factors play a role in determining the achievement and productivity of students. Individuals from diverse economic backgrounds could help researchers to see how family income is a factor towards the progress of students. A person willing to take the next step in this topic area should look at the broad-ranging external issues that influence student performance.

References

Schoeppe, A., Haggard, E., & Havighurst, R. (1953). Some factors affecting sixteen-year-olds' success in five developmental tasks. The Journal Of Abnormal And Social Psychology, 48(1), 42-52. doi: 10.1037/h0054913