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FIELD DEPENDENCE/INDEPENDENCE AS A PREDICTOR OF INFERENCING AND PROBLEM SOLVING ABILITIES IN COMMUNITY COLLEGE STUDENTS (READING, COGNITIVE STYLE)

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Date Issued:
1983
Summary:
Community college students are frequently characterized as students who were previously under-represented in higher education. That characterization implies an approach to education that molds curriculum to the needs of these students. The problem addressed in this study was the lack of fit between traditional standardized testing to determine abilities in specific areas of reading comprehension and the nontraditional community college student population to whom the testing is directed. The purpose of this study was to determine if a measure of the cognitive style dimension of field dependence/independence could predict community college students' ability to: (1) make inferences in reading; and (2) solve problems. The sample consisted of 132 students from two campuses of Broward Community College in South Florida. The Group Embedded Figures Test (GEFT) was used to determine student cognitive style. Inferencing ability was determined using the Nelson-Denny Reading Test. Problem solving ability was assessed through the Problem Solving subtest of the McGraw-Hill Basic Study System Study Skills Test. Pearson Product Moment Correlations were obtained using GEFT score and corresponding problem solving and inferencing scores. The predictive equations, which were cross validated, indicated that the GEFT was a minimal predictor of both problem solving and inferencing abilities. However, further analysis was performed using Analyses of Variance after dividing the sample into high and low scoring students (field independents and field dependents, respectively). Results of the ANOVAs indicated significance (p .05) regarding inferencing ability among these same students. Demographic information revealed other findings: (1) Non-Caucasians were more highly represented in the field dependent category; (2) Males were more highly represented in the field independent category, whereas females dominated the field dependent category; and (3) females tended to be older than males, with the largest age disparity existing between female and male Caucasian students. The study gives evidence that the GEFT is an effective predictor of problem solving ability among community college students identified as highly field dependent or field independent. Implications and recommendations for instruction, counseling and curriculum design are presented.
Title: FIELD DEPENDENCE/INDEPENDENCE AS A PREDICTOR OF INFERENCING AND PROBLEM SOLVING ABILITIES IN COMMUNITY COLLEGE STUDENTS (READING, COGNITIVE STYLE).
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Name(s): CAGLEY, CONSTANCE ELAINE, author
Florida Atlantic University, Degree grantor
Childrey, John, Thesis advisor
Type of Resource: text
Genre: Electronic Thesis Or Dissertation
Issuance: monographic
Date Issued: 1983
Publisher: Florida Atlantic University
Place of Publication: Boca Raton, FL
Physical Form: application/pdf
Extent: 124 p.
Language(s): English
Summary: Community college students are frequently characterized as students who were previously under-represented in higher education. That characterization implies an approach to education that molds curriculum to the needs of these students. The problem addressed in this study was the lack of fit between traditional standardized testing to determine abilities in specific areas of reading comprehension and the nontraditional community college student population to whom the testing is directed. The purpose of this study was to determine if a measure of the cognitive style dimension of field dependence/independence could predict community college students' ability to: (1) make inferences in reading; and (2) solve problems. The sample consisted of 132 students from two campuses of Broward Community College in South Florida. The Group Embedded Figures Test (GEFT) was used to determine student cognitive style. Inferencing ability was determined using the Nelson-Denny Reading Test. Problem solving ability was assessed through the Problem Solving subtest of the McGraw-Hill Basic Study System Study Skills Test. Pearson Product Moment Correlations were obtained using GEFT score and corresponding problem solving and inferencing scores. The predictive equations, which were cross validated, indicated that the GEFT was a minimal predictor of both problem solving and inferencing abilities. However, further analysis was performed using Analyses of Variance after dividing the sample into high and low scoring students (field independents and field dependents, respectively). Results of the ANOVAs indicated significance (p .05) regarding inferencing ability among these same students. Demographic information revealed other findings: (1) Non-Caucasians were more highly represented in the field dependent category; (2) Males were more highly represented in the field independent category, whereas females dominated the field dependent category; and (3) females tended to be older than males, with the largest age disparity existing between female and male Caucasian students. The study gives evidence that the GEFT is an effective predictor of problem solving ability among community college students identified as highly field dependent or field independent. Implications and recommendations for instruction, counseling and curriculum design are presented.
Identifier: 11840 (digitool), FADT11840 (IID), fau:8764 (fedora)
Degree granted: Thesis (Educat.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 1983.
Collection: FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection
Note(s): College of Education
Subject(s): Cognitive styles
Field dependence (Psychology)
Reading--Ability testing
Problem solving--Ability testing
Held by: Florida Atlantic University Libraries
Persistent Link to This Record: http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/11840
Sublocation: Digital Library
Use and Reproduction: Copyright © is held by the author with permission granted to Florida Atlantic University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder.
Use and Reproduction: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Host Institution: FAU
Is Part of Series: Florida Atlantic University Digital Library Collections.