mr. gregg wants to help his second-grade students improve their reading skills. he tests the students with 20 reading comprehension questions at the beginning of the year. every week throughout the year he gives the students 30 minutes of reading comprehension tips. he tests the students at the end of the year with 20 reading comprehension questions that are similar in difficulty to those on the original test. he finds that the students’ reading comprehension has increased and concludes that his tips worked. which of the following describes the most significant problem with mr. gregg’s study?
What is the most significant problem with Mr. Gregg’s study?
Answer:
The most significant problem with Mr. Gregg’s study is that it lacks a control group. In an experiment, a control group is essential to compare the outcomes of the intervention. Without a control group in this study, Mr. Gregg cannot confidently attribute the improvement in reading comprehension solely to his tips.
In this case, the absence of a control group makes it challenging to determine if factors other than Mr. Gregg’s reading comprehension tips contributed to the students’ progress throughout the year. A control group would help establish a baseline for comparison and ensure that any improvement in reading comprehension is actually a result of the reading tips given by Mr. Gregg.
Therefore, without a control group, Mr. Gregg’s conclusion that his tips worked lacks the necessary evidence to support it conclusively. Including a control group would strengthen the validity of the study and provide more reliable results regarding the effectiveness of his teaching method.