Background Questionnaires: Why Ask About Social Identity? Ruth A. Childs & Orlena Broomes Ontario...
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![Page 1: Background Questionnaires: Why Ask About Social Identity? Ruth A. Childs & Orlena Broomes Ontario Institute for Studies in Education University of Toronto.](https://reader036.fdocuments.in/reader036/viewer/2022082820/5697bfac1a28abf838c9bb6d/html5/thumbnails/1.jpg)
Background Questionnaires: Why Ask About Social Identity?
Ruth A. Childs & Orlena Broomes
Ontario Institute for Studies in Education University of Toronto
Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Canadian Society for the Study of Education, Montreal, May 2010.
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Why have Background Questionnaires?
Large-scale assessments provide important information about what students know and what they know how to do
But, not which students are performing well and which are struggling – or, more importantly, why
Background Questionnaires often include questions about… Students
Social identities Experiences Attitudes & Beliefs Goals
Teachers Social Identities & Experiences Instruction & Assessment Practices Beliefs Resources
Schools Community
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What do we mean by “Social Identity”?
Carla O’Connor, a professor at the University of Michigan describes social identity as “how people are differentially positioned in the social
world” She emphasizes that
“any one individual reflects multiple social identities” “these identities are simultaneously structured and
cultured and operate differentially across place and time”
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Why ask about Social Identity?
The Ontario Human Rights Code gives four reasons for collecting social identity data: To monitor and evaluate potential discrimination To identify and remove systemic barriers To ameliorate or prevent disadvantage To promote equality
One of the Ontario Ministry of Education priorities is “Reduced gaps in student achievement”
A gap is a difference between groups
To reduce gaps in achievement, we have to first identify the gaps
To identify the gaps, we need to have information about group membership
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An Example
Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT) High School graduation requirement In 2007/08, 156,151 Grade 10 students who were eligible
to sit the English-language version of the test Results
122,324 students passed 23,279 failed 4,357 were absent 6,191 received permission to defer taking the test
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122,309
23,275
4,355 6,1910
20,000
40,000
60,000
80,000
100,000
120,000
140,000
Successful Not Successful Absent Deferred
OSSLT 2007-2008
All Students
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59,503
14,4662,224 3,711
62,806
8,809
2,131 2,4800
20,000
40,000
60,000
80,000
100,000
120,000
140,000
Successful Not Successful Absent Deferred
OSSLT 2007-2008
Female
Male
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119,983
21,684
4,171 4,171
2,326
1,591
184 2,020
0
20,000
40,000
60,000
80,000
100,000
120,000
140,000
Successful Not Successful Absent Deferred
OSSLT 2007-2008
ELL
Not ELL
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97,548
4,1511,038 1,038
21,747
13,592
1,942 1,553
759
3,094
409 1,518
0
20,000
40,000
60,000
80,000
100,000
120,000
140,000
Successful Not Successful Absent Deferred
OSSLT 2007-2008
Locally Developed English Course
Applied English
Academic English
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Writing the Questions
Choose the dimensions that matter in the particular context (this may vary regionally and by the academic subject being tested)
Explain why the information is important and how it will be used – why would someone respond?
Specify if the information will be anonymous or confidential Describe social identity dimensions clearly (e.g., sex vs. gender; race
vs. ethnicity) Choose categories thoughtfully
What distinctions are important? What level of specificity is needed? Gerber (1999) found that
respondents “paid close attention not only to the category that applied to their own group, but to the categories available for others as well,” wanting to “make sure that the categories were evenhanded, and did not give preferential treatment to specific groups” (p. 230)
What is the precise meaning of terms? What terms will respondents recognize?
Include an “I prefer not to respond” option
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Testing the Questions
Approaches Expert review Cognitive interviewing (think-alouds)
Questions How do respondents decide whether to answer? How do respondents decide how to answer? Do students at different ages understand the questions
differently? Roger Levine in testing NAEP questions found differences by age.