Reflection (Week 3b & 4)

          Basically, this week we will be learning about surveys and how to analyse data using SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) software in Assignment 5. Tasks in Assignment 5:-

1. Create survey forms using SurneyMonkey (Pilot Test) - 10 Questions and Google Docs - 30 Questions
2. Using SPSS, analyse the results obtained from the surveys.
3. Write a report in journal article form which include:
• Title
• Abstract
• Introduction
• Literature Review
• Research Approach
• Finding
• Discussion
• Recommendation and Conclusion

          I have started Assignment 5 by exploring the use of SurveyMonkey as our pilot test before creating the real survey using Google Docs. My partner and I created 10 multiple choice questions which were related to Topic of Assignment 1 (Original and Licensing Software). Our survey form looks like this. After that, we used Google docs's spreadsheet to create another survey form which consisted of 30 questions with 3 different question type: 1. YES/NO questions, 2. multiple choice questions and 3. scales. To view our 30 questions survey form please click here. Our aim for this survey was to investigate the tendency for teacher trainees from IPG KS and IPG KDRI to use pirated software.

          When the form was ready, we need to have at least 10 respondents for us to come up with the analysis. Hence, we urged fellow coursemates (teacher trainees from both IPG KS and IPG KDRI) to answer the survey forms via e-mail and facebook. Only then we were able to proceed to our next task which was to analyse data using SPSS. There was a problem that we encountered upon completing the task. Not everyone of our coursemates cooperate in completing the survey sheets. Thus, this affected the pace of our assignment. Luckily, we managed to obtain 16 different response from various respondents to start our analyis and interpretation of data.

          Before I started to use SPSS, I downloaded it before hand. However, the download was a failure. I was not sure with the cause of the problem, but the files just cannot be downloaded to my laptop, no matter how hard I tried. Thanks to Mr. Fariduddin who passed around a soft copy of the software for us to have a copy of it. The SPSS software from Mr. Fariduddin is a version of SPSS 14.0. Window 7 in my laptop seemed to be incompatible with some of the functions of the software. Hence, some features of my window was forced to be changed in order to suit the SPSS software. Anyhow, the software worked properly without causing much trouble afterwards. As SPSS was a total stranger software to me, I was quite lost when I first handle it. Once again, I really appreciated our course lecturer's help by guiding me through all the problem I faced.

          In order to analyse the results from the survey we conducted, we would have to first download the data from google docs. Following are the steps to analyse data using SPSS:-

1. Go to google doc where the survey spreadsheet is created.
2. Download it as excel.
3. Save the file.
4. Open SPSS.
5. In SPSS, go to File > Import "Data".
6. Choose the file saved in excel previously. Variables are being copied.
7. Change all the variables to codes as SPSS is unable to read words. For example, for YES/NO questions which consisted of only 2 choices, the 1st choice will be 0 and 2nd will be 1.
8. As for multiple questions which as 3 choices or more, the 1st choice will be 1, 2nd is 2, 3rd is 3 and so on.
9. Data in scales need not to be changed as it is already in numbers.

          Finally, we were taught to present our results in frequencies form. Go to Analyse > Descriptive Frequencies and data will be shown in output viewer of SPSS. Later, my partner and I produced a report in journal article form (posted in yahoogroup).

Xin Txin