HGSE Student Research Conference 2006

Challenges and Rewards of Teaching as an International Graduate Student

Asil Ali Özdoğru

As a major cluster of graduate student population in the USA international students carry out teaching responsibilities of various college courses from helping as a teaching assistant to being an adjunct instructor. This single-subject study aims to outline effective ways of dealing with linguistic and cultural barriers international graduate student instructors or TAs might experience through a self-observation case analysis and a review of the extensive educational psychology literature.

Keywords: International students, college teaching, multicultural education

Citation: Özdoğru, A. A. (2006, February). Challenges and rewards of teaching as an international graduate student. Paper presented at the 11th annual Harvard Graduate School of Education Student Research Conference, Cambridge, MA, USA.

EPSY Brown Bag 2006

Rho-Bustness of Research on Humor in Teaching and Testing: What We Have Learned from Research and Practice

Robert F. McMorris, Temi Bidjerano, and Asil Ali Özdoğru

In an attempt to outline the research done by Robert McMorris and colleagues, several studies looking at the influence of humor on instruction and testing were revisited. Performance and self-report outcomes within each of the two domains were discussed along with corresponding studies. While studies on the effect of humor in learning yielded non-significant results, inclusion of humor in classroom tests to improve test scores and to reduce test anxiety produced inconsistent results. Student perceptions, however, consistently supported the use of humor in education. Methodological considerations and their effects on the findings of the studies have been discussed in the light of researcher-developed concept of rho-bustness.

Keywords: Humor in education, learning, testing, rho-bustness

Citation: McMorris, R. F., Bidjerano, T., & Özdoğru, A. A. (2006, February). Rho-bustness of research on humor in teaching and testing: What we have learned from research and practice. Invited talk at the Brown Bag seminar of the Department of Educational and Counseling Psychology at the University at Albany, Albany, NY.

FYI 2006

It is science. It is a work of human conjecture, the task of formulating alternative paradigms and hypotheses with luck being able to test some of them, none of them ever completely.

Jerome S. Bruner (2005) Virginia and Leonard Marx Lecture, Teachers College


A theory is then a special gift, a gift for the mind in a society (of science, not the world) where thought and understanding are preeminent. A gift from one human being to another, to us all.

Roald Hoffmann (2003) Why buy that theory? American Scientist

Sharp Eye © 2006 Lolita Asil

NERA 2005

After-School Activities of Second-Shift Students in Turkey and Bulgaria

Asil Ali Özdoğru, Temi Bidjerano, and Çağrı Özköse-Bıyık

After-school activities compose a major developmental context for children to develop skills, build relationships, and learn about their selves and the society. This study looks at the after-school activities of non-traditional students in a cross-cultural framework. One hundred and eighty-six second-shift fourth graders in Turkey and Bulgaria completed a questionnaire about their regular daily schedule for given three days of a week. Results indicated similarities and differences between first- and second-shift students in the amount and type of activities they engaged in. Differences and similarities between the countries also implied the importance of cultural values and norms on the time-use of young people in different cultures.

Keywords: After-school activities, cross-cultural comparison, second-shift students

Citation: Özdoğru, A. A., Bidjerano, T., & Özköse-Bıyık, Ç. (2005, October). After-school activities of second-shift students in Turkey and Bulgaria. Paper presented at the 36th annual conference of the Northeastern Educational Research Association, Kerhonkson, NY, USA.

Gardner 2005

The Impacts of Humor in Instructional Materials: Conclusions Dependent on “Rho-Bustness” of Methods

Asil Ali Özdoğru and Robert F. McMorris

In this study, the effects of humorous cartoons on graduate students’ perceptions and learning of psychological concepts were investigated by taking sense of humor as a moderator variable. Fifty-five graduate students were given 3 concepts with cartoons and 3 without cartoons to study. Then students were handed survey items including demographic questions, Likert-scale items asking their perceptions about the materials, the Multidimensional Sense of Humor Scale, and 24 multiple-choice test items, 4 per concept, on the given concepts. The self-report data were very supportive of using cartoons in instructional material. Students reported favorable attitudes for inserting cartoons into reading passages; however there was no apparent effect of humorous cartoons on students’ learning of concepts. The methodological considerations and robustness of the design has been discussed in terms of their effects on the findings of the study.

Keywords: Humor, sense of humor, cartoons, robustness

Citation: Özdoğru, A. A., & McMorris, R. F. (2005, October). The impacts of humor in instructional materials: Conclusions dependent on “rho-bustness” of methods. Paper presented at the 43rd annual Eric F. Gardner Conference, Auburn, NY.

ISHS 2005

Humorous Cartoons in College Textbooks: Student Perceptions and Learning

Asil Ali Özdoğru and Robert F. McMorris

In this study, the effects of humorous cartoons on graduate students’ perceptions and learning of psychological concepts were investigated by taking sense of humor as a moderator variable. Fifty-five graduate students were given 3 concepts with cartoons and 3 without cartoons to study. Then students were handed survey items including demographic questions, Likert-scale items asking their perceptions about the materials, the Multidimensional Sense of Humor Scale, and 24 multiple-choice test items, 4 per concept, on the given concepts. The self-report data were very supportive of using cartoons in instructional material. Analyses of the test results, however, showed no significant difference in the performance scores of students in humorous and non-humorous concepts. In summary, students reported favorable attitudes for inserting cartoons into reading passages; however there was no apparent effect of humorous cartoons on students’ learning of concepts. Sense of humor was also seen to be an important variable associated with students’ tendency to read cartoons.

Keywords: Humor, sense of humor, cartoons, learning

Citation: Özdoğru, A. A., & McMorris, R. F. (2005, June). Humorous cartoons in college textbooks: Student perceptions and learning. Paper presented at the 17th annual conference of the International Society of Humor Studies, Youngstown, OH.

Jean Piaget Society 2005

The “Hurried Child” in Turkey: After-School Activities and Anxiety in Fourth Graders

Asil Ali Özdoğru, Çağrı Özköse-Bıyık, and Joan Newman

After-school activities play major roles in the development of children and they can vary from unstructured and self-selected ones to programmed and adult-controlled activities. David Elkind (1988) proposed that children are ‘hurried’ throughout their development and expected to excel in many different areas by their parents. In the context of collectivistic Turkish culture, in which respect for elders, protection of youngsters, and obedience are among the primary values, it is important to investigate the prevalence of hurrying among Turkish children who may have less control over their activities. Ninety-eight students from one state (N = 74) and one private elementary school (N = 24) were included in the study. Results indicated that Turkish fourth graders spent more time in self-chosen and highly enjoyable activities than adult-chosen and less enjoyable activities. This study pointed out the importance of children’s control on deciding their own activities, their degree of enjoyment from those activities, and related emotional outcomes.

Keywords: Hurrying, after-school activities, anxiety, Turkish culture

Citation: Özdoğru, A. A., Özköse-Bıyık, Ç., & Newman, J. (2005, June). The “Hurried Child” in Turkey: After-school activities and anxiety in fourth graders. Paper presented at the 35th annual meeting of the Jean Piaget Society, Vancouver, Canada.

Cultural Studies Matters

Occupational Models for Boys and Girls: Content Analysis of Turkish Elementary School Textbooks

Asil Ali Özdoğru, Gizem Aksoy, Nurçin Erdoğan, and Fatma Gök

One of the essential functions of educational systems is to assist students’ development of personal as well as professional identities. The present study investigated the occupations men and women associated with in the Turkish elementary school textbooks to discern the range of occupational opportunities the Turkish educational system provided their students with. Content analysis of the first, second, and third grade Turkish Language and Social Studies textbooks published by Ministry of Education in 2001 searched for explicit and implicit gender biases in occupations presented. Men were involved in economically and/or socially prestigious jobs, whereas women were mainly housewives and mothers, and their narrow career options were limited to low-status occupations. Male students received a wider range of occupational models, whereas female students had limited options other than being a housewife or mother. Textbooks can be employed to offer students alternatives and to encourage them to make use of their abilities in the ways that will fit to them.

Keywords: Gender roles, occupational models, content analysis, textbooks

Citation: Özdoğru, A. A., Aksoy, G., Erdoğan, N., & Gök, F. (2005, April). Occupational models for boys and girls: Content analysis of Turkish elementary school textbooks. Poster presented at the Cultural Studies Matters: A Conference on Cultural Studies and Education at Teachers College, Columbia University, New York, NY.

SRCD 2005

Report Cards: A Universal Source of Anxiety for Children?

Asil Ali Özdoğru, Chin-Cheng Kao, Joan Newman, and John J. Johnson

The present cross-cultural study examined how children themselves and their parents responded to their report cards and how it relates to their anxiety level. Fourth grade elementary school students from predominantly middle class schools in Taiwan (n = 291), Turkey (n = 90), and USA (n = 189) completed the Revised Children’s Manifest Anxiety Scale (RCMAS) and a report card reaction questionnaire developed by the researchers. The report card questionnaire asked children to report their own reactions and parents’ reactions to their last report card by selecting among 32 statements with positive and negative connotations. Results showed that perceived pressure for academic achievement subsequent to receipt of the report card was associated with children’s manifest anxiety levels. Children’s self perceptions about their report cards were more influential on their anxiety levels than their perceptions of parental reactions. Male students’ report card reactions had a closer association to their anxiety levels than female students’ in each country.

Keywords: Academic achievement, report cards, anxiety, parental reactions

Citation: Özdoğru, A. A., Kao, C.-C., Johnson, J., & Newman, J. (2005, April). Report cards: A universal source of anxiety for children? Poster presented at the biennial meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development, Atlanta, GA.

Kelly 2005

Computer Skills and Student Attitudes toward Online Courses: A Narrative Review of the Literature

Asil Ali Özdoğru

Online education as the major form of distance education is getting widespread use in higher education institutions across the world. Student attitudes towards online courses play important roles in the future of online education. One of the various factors influencing student attitudes is computer literacy skills. This review analyzed and discussed the studies about student attitudes toward online courses in relation to computer literacy. A general bi-directional relation between attitudes and computer literacy has been identified. A higher level of computer knowledge was associated with more positive attitudes. A positive attitude toward online courses was also found to be important in yielding higher computer literacy. In combination with other instructional and institutional factors computer literacy is important in the formation of positive attitudes. Literature needs a conceptual clarification among various similar terms and methodologically rigorous studies with more sound conclusions.

Keywords: Online courses, student attitudes, computer literacy, literature review

Citation: Özdoğru, A. A. (2005). Computer skills and student attitudes toward online courses: A narrative review of the literature. In M. Bose, & D. A. Chapin (Eds.), Proceedings of the nineteenth annual Edward F. Kelly evaluation conference (pp. 105–121). Albany, NY: Evaluation Consortium.