A school district decides to compare a new math textbook with the textbook that has been used for the past few years. Each of the fourth graders in one school is randomly assigned to be in one of two classes, one in which a teacher continues using the old book and another in which a new teacher uses the new book. The school administrators compare the average scores of the two classes on a mathematics standardized test at the end of the year to determine which book is better. Which of the following is a potential confound in this study? a. Both classes have children who report that they do not like math. b. The teachers have different amounts of teaching experience. c. The standardized test is graded incorrectly. d. There are different children in fourth grade this year than there were last year.

Question

Monique Carr

Social Studies

12 July, 15:11

A school district decides to compare a new math textbook with the textbook that has been used for the past few years. Each of the fourth graders in one school is randomly assigned to be in one of two classes, one in which a teacher continues using the old book and another in which a new teacher uses the new book. The school administrators compare the average scores of the two classes on a mathematics standardized test at the end of the year to determine which book is better. Which of the following is a potential confound in this study? a. Both classes have children who report that they do not like math. b. The teachers have different amounts of teaching experience. c. The standardized test is graded incorrectly. d. There are different children in fourth grade this year than there were last year.

+2

Answers (1)

Know the Answer?

Cat · Answer 1

B. The teachers have different amounts of teaching experience.

Explanation:

The teachers having different amounts of teaching experience is the only problem that varies systematically along with the textbook version, so it is the only one that could be a confound. The Longer a teacher teaches a particular Course the more vast and learned he/she becomes and the more experience he/she becomes. He will know methods and things to do to ensure that the students understands better. Unlike a teacher that doesn't have much experience. So both of them handling the same course will definitely yield different results.