Methods of Studying Children and Adolescents — Mastery

Q1. In the opening case of the material, Navin — a Class VIII boy in a rural government school — behaves differently from the other students. The material uses Navin's example mainly to show that

• A. Rural children always need a different national syllabus.
• B. A teacher cannot teach a child whose behaviour is unusual.
• C. Every classroom throws up children whose learning and behaviour the teacher must investigate, so classroom research is a daily teacher need.
• D. Class VIII is too late an age for behaviour change to be studied.

Q2. Ms Rekha, a primary teacher in Lucknow, decides to study why Class IV children rarely speak in class. She involves parents, the school's anganwadi worker, the head teacher and even two senior peers in designing the inquiry. Which characteristic of classroom research does this BEST illustrate?

• A. Collaborative — because various stakeholders contribute to the research.
• B. Practical and relevant — because it is rooted in real classroom problems.
• C. Scholarly — because it consults the wider community.
• D. Context-specific — because it relates to one school.

Q3. In the running example of action research in the material, teacher Anita identifies the basic problem as

• A. Students have poor handwriting in English.
• B. Students cannot speak fluent English.
• C. Students do not attend school regularly.
• D. Students lack thinking skills — they can attempt direct questions but not indirect ones.

Q4. After Anita has collected diary notes on each student's contribution across the three groups, she sits with the data and examines whether the group that received the power-point presentation showed higher thinking-skill responses than the text-only group. In the eight-step process, this is BEST classified as

• A. Step 3 — Selecting a course of action.
• B. Step 4 — Data collection.
• C. Step 5 — Analysis.
• D. Step 6 — Organising data and writing.

Q5. A Class III teacher decides to give up her usual chalk-and-talk approach and try the 'storytelling method' to teach a maths chapter on patterns. She observes whether children attempt more questions afterwards. Under which use of action research listed in the material does this fit BEST?

• A. Teaching methods — trying out an innovative method.
• B. Learning strategies — encouraging cooperative learning.
• C. Evaluative procedures — open-book testing.
• D. Administration — improving community participation.

Q6. While preparing a case study of a Class II child who falls asleep during morning lessons, the teacher records the child's height, weight, eyesight test, hearing test and recent illnesses. As per the material, this set of information falls under

• A. Family background data.
• B. Psychological and social data.
• C. Educational data.
• D. Health record data.

Q7. Raghav, a Class IV child in Indore, consistently scores more than 95% in every subject and finishes the textbook two months before others. His teacher wants to study him in depth so that his strategies can guide other children. Per the material, preparing a case study of Raghav is

• A. Appropriate — 'exceptionally high achievement' is one of the situations the unit lists for a case study.
• B. Inappropriate — case studies are only meant for children with learning difficulties.
• C. Inappropriate — high achievers do not need any teacher intervention.
• D. Appropriate only if Raghav fails one test next term.

Q8. Statement A: Observation can be used to measure the frequency and duration of a behaviour, e.g., how often a child raises his hand in a 40-minute period. Statement B: Observation as a research tool relies on direct watching of behaviour in the natural setting; it does not depend on the child's verbal report. Choose the correct option.

• A. Both A and B are correct.
• B. A is correct; B is incorrect.
• C. A is incorrect; B is correct.
• D. Both A and B are incorrect.

Q9. A teacher wants to study whether boys and girls in her primary school engage in risky behaviour on the playground. She decides in advance that she will watch the playground every Monday and Wednesday from 11:00 to 11:20 a.m., and will tick behaviours against a fixed checklist of 'climbing high', 'pushing peers', 'jumping from swings'. This is BEST described as

• A. Natural observation, because the playground is a natural setting.
• B. Self-report, because children fill in the checklist themselves.
• C. Participant observation, because the teacher works in the same school.
• D. Controlled observation, because the time, place and behaviour categories are planned in advance and the procedure is standardised.

Q10. The material gives an example of natural observation involving adolescents in mountaineering and river-rafting expeditions. The point of the example is to show that natural observation is appropriate when the researcher wants to

• A. Watch how adolescents actually behave during real activities in their natural surroundings, with the least possible interference.
• B. Set up an artificial laboratory and bring adolescents in for testing.
• C. Ask adolescents to fill a questionnaire about adventure preferences.
• D. Replace the activity instructor and lead the expedition herself.

Q11. Which of the following is listed in the material as an ADVANTAGE of self-report methods (especially questionnaires)?

• A. Respondents are forced to answer in a fixed numerical scale.
• B. They are not suitable when a large sample has to be covered.
• C. Information from a large sample can be obtained quickly and at low cost.
• D. They cannot be administered through the mail.

Q12. A teacher has a written list of 8 topics she wants to discuss with parents, but she allows herself to skip a topic, add a follow-up question or change the order based on what the parent says. Per the material, this is BEST classified as

• A. Structured interview.
• B. Semi-structured interview.
• C. Unstructured interview.
• D. Close-ended questionnaire.

Q13. Aman, a Class IV child in Bhopal, is reading two grade-levels below his peers. His teacher arranges a 30-minute remedial reading group every afternoon and asks Sneha, a strong reader, to pair-read with Aman during the class library period. Per the material, this combination of measures is BEST described as

• A. Emotional support.
• B. Classroom organisation.
• C. Instructional support.
• D. Anecdotal record.

Q14. Among the 'common problems faced by adolescents' that the material expects a teacher to be aware of, the FIRST issue named is

• A. Lack of financial planning.
• B. Issues related to physical and sexual maturation.
• C. Inability to choose between regional languages.
• D. Conflict between online and offline gaming.

Q15. A teacher claims: 'Children's diaries are the SINGLE BEST tool to study a child — they remove the need for any other research method.' Evaluate this claim against the material.

• A. The claim is fully correct — the unit calls the diary the best single tool.
• B. The claim is partly correct — diaries do give accurate details and more information, but the unit lists them as ONE tool that supplements information from other methods, not as a replacement.
• C. The claim is fully correct because diaries are written by the child himself.
• D. The claim is fully wrong — the unit says diaries are not a valid research tool at all.

Q16. A Class III teacher in Rampur, after action research, changes her seating plan from rows to U-shape and reports that Priya's participation has improved. According to the material, this BEST reflects which characteristic of classroom research?

• A. Scholarly — because she has written a research paper.
• B. Practical and relevant — because findings are usable in her own classroom and tied to a felt need.
• C. Collaborative — because parents have been involved.
• D. Continual — because the research never ends.

Q17. The 'scholarly' characteristic of classroom research is described as one that

• A. Requires the teacher to ignore the existing literature on the topic.
• B. Requires the teacher to review related literature and consult experts before and during the inquiry.
• C. Requires the teacher to publish in an international journal.
• D. Restricts the inquiry to one academic term only.

Q18. After analysing whether the power-point group answered indirect questions better, Anita prepares a written summary of her finding with tables and a short discussion of the three groups, ready to share with her mentor. In the eight-step process, this is BEST classified as

• A. Step 4 — Data collection.
• B. Step 5 — Analysis.
• C. Step 6 — Organising data and writing.
• D. Step 8 — Review.

Q19. The material lists 'Identification of the child' as a procedure in case study. According to the material, this step is mainly concerned with

• A. Identifying the child whose detailed study will best serve the purpose, on the basis of preliminary observation.
• B. Writing the final case-study report.
• C. Conducting an IQ test on the whole class.
• D. Choosing the cheapest stationery for data recording.

Q20. After completing her case study of Priya, a Class III child who has stopped attempting questions, Ms Anjali writes a section that suggests two remedial steps — paired reading and an emotionally supportive morning circle — to be implemented in collaboration with the class teacher. In the five-element structure of a case-study report, this section is

• A. Introduction.
• B. Overview and analysis.
• C. Suggestions for remediation.
• D. Appendices.

Q21. While compiling her case-study report on a Class IV child, Ms Verma attaches the child's eyesight-test report, two anecdotal records, a sample of his maths notebook, and signed parental consent forms at the end of the report. In the five-element structure, these belong under

• A. Introduction.
• B. Status report.
• C. Suggestions for remediation.
• D. Appendices.

Q22. Statement A: Participant observation is helpful when the researcher wants to understand WHY adolescents develop genuine subject interest, not just how often they raise hands. Statement B: In participant observation, the observer keeps a maximum distance from the participants so as not to influence them. Choose the correct option.

• A. Both A and B are correct.
• B. A is correct; B is incorrect.
• C. A is incorrect; B is correct.
• D. Both A and B are incorrect.

Q23. Which of the following CONTRADICTS the unit's description of 'natural observation'?

• A. The observer stays as objective as possible.
• B. The observer intervenes minimally in the process.
• C. The result is expressed in quantitative terms.
• D. The observer pre-defines a small list of behaviour categories and ticks them on a checklist.

Q24. A self-report method is defined as one in which

• A. The teacher observes the child without speaking to him.
• B. Participants describe their own feelings, attitudes, beliefs, behaviours or experiences in response to a set of questions.
• C. A health professional measures the child's height and weight.
• D. The principal compiles the school's overall pass percentage.

Q25. A teacher gives parents a one-page form: 'Tick one — My child does homework: (a) daily, (b) 3-4 times a week, (c) 1-2 times a week, (d) rarely.' This is BEST classified as

• A. Open-ended questionnaire.
• B. Close-ended questionnaire.
• C. Unstructured interview.
• D. Anecdotal record.

Q26. A teacher posts a 30-item questionnaire to 200 parents to study attitudes about homework and gets only 24 returned. Per the material, the BEST evaluation of her method is

• A. The low return shows that questionnaires are scientifically invalid as a self-report tool.
• B. The teacher has hit a known limitation of mailed questionnaires — low response rate — and should plan for follow-up or use face-to-face administration to strengthen the sample.
• C. Self-report should not be used in education at all.
• D. Twenty-four responses are enough to generalise to all schools in India.

Q27. Aarav, a Class III boy in Jaipur, has been quiet and tearful for a week because his grandmother passed away. His teacher sits with him during the break, says she understands his sadness and assures him that she is there for him. Per the material, this is BEST described as

• A. Emotional support — understanding children in difficulties and assuring them support.
• B. Classroom organisation — including isolated children in class activities.
• C. Instructional support — arranging remedial classes or peer tutoring.
• D. Action research — testing a new teaching method.

Q28. Meera notices that Anjali, a shy Class IV child, sits alone every recess. Meera deliberately makes Anjali part of the science-corner cleaning team, the music group and the morning storytelling circle so she is regularly engaged with peers. This BEST illustrates

• A. Anecdotal recording.
• B. Classroom organisation — involving students who appear isolated in class activities.
• C. Cumulative record card.
• D. Structured interview.

Q29. A Class V teacher reports four issues in her late-primary class: repeated bullying of a quieter child by a group of three boys; a child asking 'who am I, miss?' after a family relocation; a child not knowing what to choose after Class XII; rising restlessness about body changes. Per the material, the case of group bullying BEST maps to which 'common problem of adolescents'?

• A. Issues related to physical and sexual maturation.
• B. Lack of career guidance.
• C. Confusion regarding self / identity.
• D. Peer-related problems including aggression.

Q30. A school head argues: 'Anecdotal records, cumulative record cards and reflective journals are basically the same thing — they all just record what the child does. We can drop two of them.' Evaluate this claim against the material.

• A. The claim is correct — all three tools are interchangeable.
• B. The claim is wrong — the three tools have distinct purposes: an anecdotal record captures a SIGNIFICANT EPISODE observed by the teacher; a Cumulative Record Card is a LONG-TERM, COMPREHENSIVE record of personal, academic, health, co-curricular and personality data; a reflective journal is written BY THE CHILD as a meta-cognitive self-assessment of learning.
• C. The claim is correct, but only at primary level.
• D. The claim is wrong because all three are only used by the school principal.