Research Topic
The conceptualization of research is fundamental before research is initiated because it facilitates meaningful and systematic study. This paper proposes structuring a hypothetical study, identifying the variables of interest to deal with the hypothesis, and selecting an appropriate statistical design. Such practice is precious as it serves as a basis for developing academic research skills and identifying a framework that can be used in the future. Specifically, the proposed study will be based on whether there are differences in academic performance between boys and girls in some schools.
Identification of Variables
Two variables are involved in the research design: the independent variable is the participants’ gender, and the dependent variable is the student’s final performance in the past year on summative testing. First, the independent variable is defined on a categorical scale and is represented by binary values, male or female. Second, the final performance indicator is defined on a continuous scale and is the result of summative testing; this variable is ranked from 0 to 100, where 100 is the maximum possible score a student can achieve.
Choice of Test Statistic and Justification
Given the structure of the research question and the variables used, an appropriate statistical design is to conduct a t-test of independent samples, which will determine the statistical significance of the differences in academic performance between the two gender groups. Strictly speaking, this test is used when there are two comparison groups when the dependent variable is defined on a continuous scale (NU, 2023).
Research Hypothesis and Null Hypothesis
Accordingly, the study’s null hypothesis is the belief that there is no difference between boys and girls in terms of scores. On the contrary, the alternative hypothesis (aka working hypothesis) postulates that differences in achievement between the two groups exist. Since the directions for these hypotheses are not named, they should be regarded as non-directional. The analysis results, namely the p-value, will be compared to a chosen level of statistical significance (typically.05), and if the result is below alpha, the differences between the groups are recognized as significant and valid.
Reference
NU. (2023). Independent samples t-test. National University. Web.