The Effect Of Temperature On Students Mathematical Skills

Our research is about the effect of room temperature on student mathematical skills. So we have performed the research in which we would be finding new hypothesis. In our research we want to see how student perform when they are exposed to the two temperatures 18-28(degree) ° C, 30-40(degree) ° C. Our research was backed by solid literature that have given us the plentiful ground to start the research is these areas. We have taken sample of 100 students undergraduate and graduate from our college. We have made three groups (control and two experimental groups which include cold and hot) these were tested under the temperature ranges. The randomly selected sample have above average, average, and under average grades taken in math courses. We have conducted our research by giving mathematical skill questions, with two temperatures mentioned above. One room was selected to conduct our research, it was important to see the schedule of load shedding in order to properly conduct our research.

Our results have showed us that in a higher temperature condition will lead the student to poorly perform. When the same batch was assign another test in the cooler environment the results were positive. By this outcome we have concluded that our hypothesis is realistic.

Introduction

The global warming is affecting the temperature of whole world so it has also been effecting in our daily lives. Now days the room temperatures are not well managed, the load shedding has been a problem for everyone living in this country, which is affecting our research also.

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Problem statement:

Our research main purpose is to determine whether or not ones thinking capability is affected when temperatures are unfavourable. Since ICBS also faces electricity dilemma we would like to find out that if the temperature does affect the students of ICBS.

Literature review:

Main studies which have shown that temperature does affect students performance in hot and cold temperature,

Aluciems (1972) collected data from 23 classes of children, drawn from 19 secondary schools. Aluciems opened the windows of the classroom and recorded the temperature before, during, and after the completion of the task.

Nelson, Nilsson, and Johnson (1984) had its participants write stories to accompany pictures in ambient temperatures of 55.4°, 73.4°, and 86° F. They also measured changes in participants’ subjective fatigue and mood using the Feeling Tone Check List and Mood Adjective checklist. Interestingly, Nelson found that participants’ wrote more words and stories in a cooler temperature (55.4° F).

Dawson, B., & Pyke, F. S. (1988)’s research has shown that when the surrounding air is cool, heat can be lost from the body by the process of radiation (transfer of heat by electromagnetic waves), convection (by air movement), conduction (by contact), and evaporation (by sweating) and thus gives a cooling effect to the mind and body.

Another recent research review by Mendell and Heath (2005) stated the factors that might influence student performance found only one peer-reviewed study of how the air temperature in classrooms affects schoolchildren’s performance (Schoer and Shaffran 1973).

As the above experiments conducted do show how temperature can affects students performance more proof was found by Holmberg and Wyon (1969) in this experiments, three parallel classes of 9 to 10 year-old children were exposed for two hours to each of three classroom temperatures -20[degrees]C, 27[degrees]C, and 30[degrees]C, 68[degrees]F, 80.6[degrees]F, and 86[degrees]F), encountered in balanced order, and four classes of 11- to 12-year-old children were similarly exposed to 20[degrees]C and 30[degrees]C (68[degrees]F and 86[degrees]F) in the morning and the afternoon in a 2 x 2 design, again in balanced order of presentation of conditions.

As far as we can see that the impact of temperature does affects students as many of the experiments were conducted in various ways. The results of the studies summarized above suggest that increased classroom temperatures can have negative effects on the performance of schoolwork by children

According to Dr.Wyon from the Technical University of Denmark commented that “.reduced temperatures increased work rate in subtractional and reduced temperature at increased ventilation rate increased work rate in a set of logical thinking…..”.

Hence, identifying the temperature of the working environment is essential for the significance of the concentration of the student’s academic performance.

Theoretical Framework:

In our research we evaluated that does temperature affect the way students perform in their mathematical skills. To have the accurate figures one must first understand that what are the independent variable, the dependent variable and the intervening variable. A variable is anything that can take on differing or varying values or it is the most important factor that can alter the results of the experiment.

Dependent variable:

It is the variable of primary interest to the researcher. In this research Mathematical skills test would be the dependent variable since it can’t be in control of the experiment. We randomly choose students who have an average, above average and under average grade in their math courses hence gave them mathematical skills questions to solve with varying room temperature.

Independent Variable:

An independent variable is one that influences the dependent variable in either a positive or negative way. Here in our research independent variable would be the temperature since we can control it. That is, when the independent variable is present (temperature), the dependent variable is also present (Mathematical skills test) and with each unit of increase in the temperature there will be an increase or decrease in the dependent variable. In other words, the students who performed in high temperature had less concentration on their test, leading to their test scores getting affected. It have the inverse relationship between the temperature and mathematical skills.

To establish a causal relationship the independent variable is manipulated. One should remember that cause precedes the effect. The cause will be the dependent variable which would be the mathematical skills test and the effect would be the independent variable.

• Temperature
• Mathematical Skills Tests
• Comfort of chair
• Comfort of table
• Color of the room
• Independent Variable Dependent Variable
• Intervening variable

Figure 1: Theoretical Framework

3. Intervening Variable:

Intervening variable is also known as anticipating, moderating variable. Intervening Variables are those that risk the relationship between independent and dependent variables. Intervening variable is one that surfaces between the time the independent variable starts operating to influence the dependent variable and the time their impact is felt itself on it. In our experiment the intervening variable is the comfort level of the chairs if they are hard to sit on resulting in the dependent variable (mathematical skills test) scores affected, the desks on which the students took their test can be unstable allowing the students to get frustrated and disturbed during their test.

Furthermore, the colour of the carpet and walls can make some student annoyed thus resulting in bad test scores. There can be many intervening variables.

Hypothesis:

Null: is a proposition that states a definitive exact relationship between two variables.

Ho: p=0

No effect of temperature on mathematical skill test.

Alternative: an educated conjecture that sets the parameters that one expects to find.

HA: p≠ 0

Temperature does have an effect on the student’s mathematical skills test.

Methodology

Participants:

We selected students from our college who were range between ages 18-30. Our sample size was 100 undergraduates and graduates; randomly chosen above average, average and under average students in math courses.

Apparatus:

The equipment which was important for carrying out the research was math skills questions, watch, room thermometer and a classroom.

Procedure:

In order to conduct our research we had set up a sample of 100 students to be divided between a control group comprising of 35 students and two experimental groups.

Experimental group A

Experimental group B

The remaining 30 students were the part of the abovementioned experimental groups. A list of our college student was taken so that we can randomly choose students. Experimental group A was the group which took the math test in a room with temperature falling between the range of 18-28° C and we observed on the thermometer 25° C temperature while conducting the test. Further experimental group B was one in which same students of group A took the test but this time between a temperatures ranges of 30-40C. We observed on the thermometer 37C temperature while conducting the test.

On 17th July Saturday we invited 15 people in Room A1 and administer the cold test. It took us almost 20 minutes to create the cold environment. Air conditioners were turned on beforehand. Duration of the tests was for 20 minutes. On the 24 July we take the remaining 15 students for Experimental group A (cold test) were asked to take the test. This way we completed giving 50 students test in one temperature condition. On 18th July Sunday, we conducted second part of our experiment. We gathered 15 same students from Cold test. We had taken down all their names and requested them to become part of our experiment for a second time. Experimental Group B was given the math test in Room A1 with a temperature range of 30-40° C and we observed a temperature of 37° C during the experiment. On 25 July we take 15 remaining students took the math test in Room A1. The Control group was given the test on 19th July which was Monday we take a sample of 35 students in A1 and on 26 July Monday in room A1 with a sample of 35 students, showing 30° C on the thermometer.

Reliability

The reliability of the instruments was ensured through test-retest method. We again took 35 students of the same control sample we took before and another 35 students who already sat for the experiment (which were of the experimental Group A and B).

Validity

The content validity was ensured since all the questions of math were taken from the SAT book

Result

The data is collected using the questionnaires that were filled in by the participants. The control questionnaire was given out to be filled and the results were tabulated and arranged in ascending order, the total marks were out of 10. The same procedure was done for the hot and cold questionnaire and the total marks were the same. Then the correlation was found which came out to be 0.981, hence this shows that there is a relationship between temperature and student’s mathematical skills.

We also computed the result on excel to tabulate the ANOVA Table. As per the above table is shows that the mean of Control group was 5.96 while the cold was 9.2 and hot group had a mean of 5.24. Therefore, since the F statistic is greater than the critical value, we accept the alternative hypothesis. The result shows that temperature it does affect students hence for good performance of students one should keep room temperatures preferable to cooler temperatures in summers.

Table 4: Marks obtained in Control Test

As per the above graph the control group had a temperature of 30 ° C hence the obtained mark of respondents are shown.

Table 5: Marks Obtained in Hot Test

The experimental group (hot) had a temperature range of 30-40 ° C. When we conducted the experiment the temperature on the thermometer shown was 35° C hence the obtained marks of respondents are shown on the graph.

Table 6: Marks Obtained in Cold Test

The experimental group (cold) had a temperature range of 18-28° C. When we conducted the experiment the temperature on the thermometer shown was 25° C hence the obtained marks of respondents are shown on the graph.

Table 6: Comparison of marks obtained in all three tests

Results of our research have shown us that students performed better in the cold comparative to the warm temperature as shown in the above line graph the Green line which represents cold was on a higher peak than hot and normal temperatures.

Discussion

We have concluded that we have agreed to our alternative hypothesis. Because that unfavourable temperatures have effected on our mathematical skills. According to the results of our research one can confidently say that there are a lot of drawbacks when the temperature is not according to ones choice. In our case we are talking about the high temperatures which did not allow students to perform well in their tests. We support our research based on the previous researches made on the fact that because of high temperature raises one does get effected health in the thinking capability, reading skills, physical skills (exercise) all of these factors and many more can result into negative effects to the body.

We propose that ICBS should keep a temperature range of 18 to 28° C in the summer so as the student’s academic performance doesn’t fall short.