ERIC Number: ED170214
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1979-Apr
Pages: 29
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
A Factor Analytic Approach to Studying Changes in Student Attitudes Toward Other Nations.
Smith, Victor A.
This paper describes a study to explore the impact of experimental social studies materials on student attitudes toward other nations. The experimental materials were developed as part of the Global Studies Project sponsored by the Social Studies Development Center at Indiana University. Designed for the junior high level, the materials focused on basic human phenomena such as food and communication which are parts of all cultures. The hypothesis of the study was that students using the experimental materials would show a change in international attitudes after the experimental period, whereas students in a control group, which did not use the materials, would show no attitude change. For the study 15 junior high classes in six states were each divided into control and experimental groups. All groups received pre- and posttests before and after 15 weeks. The test measured students' attitudes toward 15 nations including Mexico, Canada, India, Ghana, China, and Russia. Extensive factor analysis was performed on the data. Contrary to the hypothesis, students in the experimental groups did not show a change of attitude. This suggests that children's international attitudes are formed before the junior high years. It is recommended that elementary curriculum be changed to incorporate more international studies in earlier grades. (AV)
Descriptors: Area Studies, Attitude Change, Cross Cultural Studies, Cultural Education, Educational Research, Elementary Secondary Education, Experimental Curriculum, Factor Analysis, Foreign Countries, Global Approach, Grade 6, Grade 7, Grade 8, Junior High School Students, Research Methodology, Social Science Research, Social Studies, Speeches, Statistical Analysis, Student Attitudes
Publication Type: Reports - Research; Speeches/Meeting Papers
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A
Note: Paper presented at Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association (San Francisco, California, April 1979); Testing charts in the Appendix may not reproduce clearly in hard copy due to broken print type