A problem of the effects of teaching a course in Algebra II and trigonometryvia the traditional method, the Colorado Schools Computing Science Materials method and the ALTRIG Computer-Based Teaching System method

Purposes The purposes of this study were to determine and compare the effectiveness of three methods of instruction in a second year algebra and trigonometry course. Specifically, the objectives of the study were: 1. To determine if there were significant differences in the achievement of students taught by: (a) the Traditional Method, (b) the Colorado Schools Computing Science (CSCS) Materials Method, and (c) the ALTRIG Computer-Based Teaching System Method of teaching the Colorado Schools Computing Science Materials. 2. To determine if attitude had a significant influence on the performance of the students taught utilizing the three methods. 3. To determine if there were significant changes in the achievement of the students within the groups taught utilizing the three methods of instruction. 4. To determine if there were significant changes in the students' attitudes toward mathematics within each of the groups. 5. To determine the reactions of the students in the ALTRIG class after having taken the course utilizing the ALTRIG Computer-Based Teaching System Method of teaching the CSCS materials. Procedures The study was conducted in the Fall of 1976 at one of the Houston, Texas, area high schools, which had an enrollment of about 2,200 students, most of whom were of Anglo origin and drawn from a community of the middle socioeconomic range. The subjects used in the study consisted of 79 sophomore, junior, and senior high school students. The measures of effectiveness used were achievement and attitude. Overall comparisons in achievement among the three methods were considered by using the F Distribution with a level of significance of .05 in addition to comparison of achievement within each of the three methods made by using Fisher's t with a level of significance at .05 to determine if there existed any significant difference in the means of the achievement pretest and posttest scores of the students taught by the three methods of instruction. A simple analysis of covariance was utilized to determine if pretest attitudes influenced the performance of the students taught utilizing the three methods, after residualizing pretest attitude out of the pre- and post-achievement test scores. Comparisons in attitudes within each of the three methods were made by using Fisher's t with a level of significance of .05 to determine if there were significant differences in the means of attitude pretest and posttest scores of students taught by the three methods. A Computer-Based Teaching System (CRTS) Reaction Scale was administered to each of the students in the ALTRIG group at the end of the study to gain insight into the level of acceptance of the students who had come into contact with a computer-based teaching system. By computing the percentages for each level of responses for the four units in the CBTS, it was possible to gain insight into the level of acceptance of the students in the ALTRIG group. Conclusions In summary, the following conclusions were drawn: 1. There was no significant difference in the overall achievement between the Traditional Method, the CSCS Materials Method, and the ALTRIG Method. 2. There was no significant difference in the overall achievement among the three methods when controlling for pretest attitude. 3. There were significant gains in both achievement and attitude within the Traditional group. 4. There were significant gains in achievement and negative changes in attitude within the CSCS Materials group. 5. There were no significant gains in achievement and negatively significant changes in attitude within the ALTRIG group. 6. There was no contact with the computer in the Traditional Method, while both the CSCS Materials and the ALTRIG Methods utilized computer-supported instruction. When taken into consideration, the findings in this study through the analysis of data and the student/computer interaction requirements for each of the three methods utilized in the study, it is possible that anticipation of using the computer in this course had a positive effect on the ALTRIG and CSCS Materials groups. When limited access to the computer terminals were apparent, there was a negative affect on the attitudes of the students in the ALTRIG and CSCS groups. The negative affect of limited access to computer terminals was not allowed to persist in the CSCS Materials group, because of the limited student/computer interaction requirements for the instructional process in this approach. The teacher was in a position to regulate computer reinforced concepts based on access to the computer terminals. The student/computer interaction could not be controlled through the instructional process alone in the ALTRIG approach. Thus, it was possible that access to computer terminals negatively affected attitudes which, in turn, negatively affected the achievement of the ALTRIG group.