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Does Systematic Exposure to Monty Python’s Flying Circus Cause Children to Acquire Vocabulary More Rapidly

John Q. Scholar Center for Research on Applied Practice ( CRAP ) Harvard University April, 2011. Does Systematic Exposure to Monty Python’s Flying Circus Cause Children to Acquire Vocabulary More Rapidly. What Are My Research Questions?.

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Does Systematic Exposure to Monty Python’s Flying Circus Cause Children to Acquire Vocabulary More Rapidly

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  1. John Q. Scholar Center for Research on Applied Practice (CRAP) Harvard University April, 2011 Does Systematic Exposure toMonty Python’s Flying CircusCause Children to Acquire VocabularyMore Rapidly Vocabulary Learning & Monty Python Slide #1 John Q. Scholar, Center for Research on Applied Practice, 2011

  2. What Are My Research Questions? • Does watching Monty Python’s Flying Circus cause first graders to acquire academic vocabulary more rapidly than children who do not? • Cleese, et al. (1964). • Milligan & Sellers (1959). • Snow & Chall (1987). • Is the impact of the Monty Python’s Flying Circus treatment On Children’s Vocabulary Learning Greater for Children Who Are Expatriate English? • Secombe & Milligan (1962). Vocabulary Learning & Monty Python Slide #2 John Q. Scholar, Center for Research on Applied Practice, 2011

  3. Where Did I Conduct My Study? • Principal Site: Public School System, Amherst & Belchertown, MA (Quantitative). • Follow-Up Site: Belchertown State School (Case-Study). Pioneer Valley, Western Massachusetts. Five-College Area. Six public elementary schools. Community is ethnically diverse, with a large and influential Gay and Lesbian community. Many local residents employed in five local colleges and universities. Others in agriculture, agricultural support services, and arts & crafts. Large transient population of undergraduate/graduate students during academic year. ... Local Elementary School Teachers Demonstrate In Support Of The Intervention Vocabulary Learning & Monty Python Slide #3 John Q. Scholar, Center for Research on Applied Practice, 2011

  4. Whom Did I Include In My Sample? • Target Population: • All with children about to enter first grade, in public schools. • Families volunteered their participation. • … • … • Sample: • All 248 children who entered one of the six Amherst/Belchertown public elementary schools, as first graders, in 2009. • Important demographic stats on sample? • …. • …. • Statistical Power Analysis: • At this sample size, I had moderate power (.80) to detect a small effect size (.10 st.dev.) at traditional levels of Type I error (.05). Families of Members of the Out-of-Control Group. Vocabulary Learning & Monty Python Slide #4 John Q. Scholar, Center for Research on Applied Practice, 2011

  5. What Procedures Did I Employ? Academic Vocabulary Measured, Repeatedly, Over Time, for each child: • Seven waves of data, equally-spaced in time. • Collected biweekly at school, Sept thru Nov. Randomized Experiment: • Children assigned randomly to theTreatment(n=124) and Control (n=124) conditions: • Treatment families received free set of DVDs containing 120 Episodes of Monty Python’s Flying Circus. • Order of episodes on each family’s DVD randomized. • Target child instructed to watch one episode per day, after school, on weekdays, for three months (Sept thru Nov). • Control families received no DVD, but did get popcorn. • Intent-to-Treat study, treatment fidelity not monitored. Vocabulary Learning & Monty Python Slide #5 John Q. Scholar, Center for Research on Applied Practice, 2011

  6. Control Mean = 24.19 Treatment Mean = 25.12 What Are My Measures? • Outcome Variable: • VOCAB: Score on the academic vocabulary subtest of the SPLUD score (0-50), nationally-normed, vertically equatable over time (sample standard deviation 15). • Question Predictors: • T: Time (weeks). • TREAT: Dichotomous variable indicating child’s experimental assignment (1=Treatment; 0=Control). • EXPAT: Is target child expatriate English (1=Yes; 0=No)? • Covariate: • S: Vector of six dichotomous variables to distinguish each of the public elementary schools (Fort River School was omitted from all statistical models as the reference category). Vocabulary at Baseline Treatment Control Scaled SPLUD Score Vocabulary Learning & Monty Python Slide #6 John Q. Scholar, Center for Research on Applied Practice, 2011

  7. What Data-Analyses Did I Conduct? Individual growth modeling (IGM), with the Multi-Level Model for Change (MMC): RQ #1: Does Watching Monty Python’s Flying Circus Cause First Graders To Acquire Academic Vocabulary More Rapidly Than Children Who Do Not? • Level-1 individual vocabulary learning trajectory (assumed linear): • Level-2 model for inter-individual differences in vocabulary learning: • Usual assumptions on the residuals. RQ #2: Is The Impact Of The Monty Python’s Flying Circus Treatment On Children’s Vocabulary Learning Greater For Children Who Are Expatriate English? • Level-2 model replaced by: Causal Impact of Treatment on Rate of Change in Vocabulary Differences in Causal Impact of Treatment on Rate of Change in Vocabulary, by expatriate status Vocabulary Learning & Monty Python Slide #7 John Q. Scholar, Center for Research on Applied Practice, 2011

  8. We estimate that watching Monty Python causes children’s vocabulary score to increase by almost 7 points more per week, than control children. RQ #1: Monty Python Means Greater More Rapid Vocabulary Learning! Treatment Control *p<.05 ** p<.01 *** p<.001 Parameter estimates for covariates not included to save space. Vocabulary Learning & Monty Python Slide #8 John Q. Scholar, Center for Research on Applied Practice, 2011

  9. There is a statistically significant interaction between treatment and expatriate status (p<.01). RQ #2: Monty Python Matters More for Children of the Expat English! Treat/Expat Treat/US Controls *p<.05 ** p<.01 *** p<.001 Parameter estimates for covariates not included to save space. Vocabulary Learning & Monty Python Slide #9 John Q. Scholar, Center for Research on Applied Practice, 2011

  10. Threats to Validity? • Internal Validity: • Attrition from the study was minimal: • Three transgendered parents withdrew their children from the treatment, to protest the portrayal of female impersonators in Episode #24. • Findings insensitive to data-imputation for these cases. • Investigators were unable to monitor whether control families purchased their own copies of the Complete Monty Python, or borrowed copies from treated families. • Only the intent-to-treat estimates support causal attribution. • External Validity: • Generalize only to a population of volunteer middle-class families, with children entering first-grade. • … Vocabulary Learning & Monty Python Slide #10 John Q. Scholar, Center for Research on Applied Practice, 2011

  11. What Is the Big Picture? • Monty Python Clearly Makes A Difference for All Children: • On average, children acquire academic vocabulary more rapidly, if exposed to Monty Python’s Flying Circus (p<.001). • Estimate that, after one year of exposure to Monty Python , children’s academic vocabulary is almost one standard deviation larger than peers who were not similarly exposed. • Monty Python Effect is Doubly Effective for Children of Expatriates: • On average, children of expatriates enjoy an even greater benefit (p<.01). • Estimate that their vocabulary increased at a rate that is double that of their non-expatriate peers during 1st Grade. Vocabulary Learning & Monty Python Slide #11 John Q. Scholar, Center for Research on Applied Practice, 2011

  12. Where Do We Go From Here? • Current findings estimate causal impact of an “offer” of the Monty Python treatment on children’s learning of academic vocabulary: • More research needed to obtain unbiased estimates of treatment “take-up.” • Use frequent power outages in Pioneer Valley as instrument for treatment take-up? • Extensive observational research in Belchertown State School suggests: • May be Monty Python effects on children’s learning of science, mathand potty-training. • May also be a “gender gap”: • Monty Python effects may be vastly reduced for girls. • Harvard cognitive scientists hypothesize that there may be genetic differences in the structure of the female brain, thereby preventing girls from appreciating the humor in Monty Python. • More research is needed on whether Monty Python effects persist into high-school, through college and into the labor-force: • Humor Capital Theory (HCT) suggests that treated children may enjoy greater lifetime earnings, because they are happier and easier to get along with, in the labor force. • Don’t forget to watch “The Bachelor: On the Wings of Love.” • … Vocabulary Learning & Monty Python Slide #12 John Q. Scholar, Center for Research on Applied Practice, 2011

  13. Pay Due HomageThere may be folk in the audience who can place your paper in a forthcoming special issue of the journal they edit!Or, they may be asked to write a letter for your tenure review! Bibliography Vocabulary Learning & Monty Python Slide #13 John Q. Scholar, Center for Research on Applied Practice, 2011

  14. Appendices: • Document the construction of your dataset, especially if you have used national data. • Provide ancillary descriptive statistics on the analytic sample and important subgroups. • Provide additional tables containing results of fitting alternative model specifications, sensitivity analyses, etc. • Describe approaches you used to deal with missing data, and other analytic problems. • Include ancillary slides to anticipate potential audience questions. • Etc. … Vocabulary Learning & Monty Python Slide #14 John Q. Scholar, Center for Research on Applied Practice, 2011

  15. Overview of the Main Points:The Four P’s …

  16. Prepare Your Presentation … • Establish A Sensible Slide Format That Is Common Across All Slides: • Make sure each slide has an explicit title that explains what’s on that slide. • Don’t put too much on any one slide. • Use footers and headers to maintain your title, authorship, affiliation, date.. • Provide An Attention-Grabbing Opening: • Slide #1: State title, author, affiliation, date, mention your personal interests. • Slide #2: State your research questions, discuss the literature and abiding issues. • Document The Background And Context Of Your Research: • Slide #3: Identify and describe your site. • Slide #4: Identify and describe your dataset. • Slide #5: Describe your sample, include selected descriptive statistics/plots, if possible. • Slide #6: Describe any important procedures used in the design or data collection. • Slide #7: Define your measures – outcome, question predictors, instruments, covariates. • Slide #8: Present your statistical models, by question, identifying critical parameters. • Present Your Main Findings, By Research Question: • Slide #9a: Prepare decent, sparse, well-annotated summary tables, by RQ. • Slide #9b: Create interpretive visuals to accompany answer to each RQ, if possible. • Provide A Memorable Closing: • Slide #10: Discuss your threats to validity. • Slide #11: Provide a “big picture” summary in words, directly addressing the RQs. • Slide #12: Outline the implications of your work for the future. • Prepare Appendices and Supplementary Slides (optional) • Prepare A Handout For Your Audience, Including a Bibliography.

  17. Practice Your Presentation … • Review Your Visuals Carefully: • Examine them for clarity, clutter and relevance. • Decide, in advance, which slide(s) you’ll skip, if time runs out. • Identify some additional slides you’ll comment on if time allows. • Prepare To Present: • Plan every word you intend to say. • Write your script out in a large font, formatted to emulate spoken phrasing. • Use cautious animation to stage the presentation of each slide. • Rehearse Your Talk: • Videotape a practice run and review your performance with remote control & coach. • Obtain feedback from your coach on: • The strength of your opening & closing. • Your logical flow. • The credibility and clarity of evidence presentation. • The clarity and comprehensibility of your key points. • Your distracting verbal mannerisms and physical ticks. • Check the physical environment in which you’ll present, in advance: • Check that you have everything you need (including a pointer). • Check audience sightlines in advance, moving or removing seats as needed. • Fix your computer so that it doesn’t go to sleep while you’re being introduced. • Make sure that the projected image can be read from the back of the room. • Establish a reasonable surface to place (hide) your notes in plain sight.

  18. Be Positive When You Present … • Be Positive About Your Talk: • Project a sense that you valueyour material. • Do NOT readthe script, but use your slides as “prompts.” • Be Positive About Yourself: • Be confident, yet relaxed. • Don’t be afraid to acknowledge a mistake, but don’t grovel. • Build Rapport With Your Audience: • Be yourself, be sincere. • Establish and maintain eye-contact with your audience. • Connect your message to what you think their experiences are. • Don’t adopt a “defensive” position -- move out towards, and into, the audience if that is possible. • If you don’t want questions until the end, say so! • If you don’t know the answer, don’t bluster – say “I don’t know the answer to that right not, but I will certainly look into it!” • Hold the Audience’s Attention: • Don’t stand rigidly, gripping the podium with white knuckles. • Have decisive body animation. • Don’t be afraid to direct audience questions back to other audience members (or to the rest of the panel!).

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