Pretests/Posttests and Attrition

Pretests/Posttests and Attrition
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Pretests/Posttests and Attrition
For the Hernandez family scenario, a quasi-experimental design would be the most appropriate. Quasi-experimental designs are very effective in evaluating the productivity of educational interventions (Campbell & Stanley, 2015). Additionally, because the education program will be carried out over a specified period, the recommended design would involve measurement over that period. The results of the measurement will play a critical role in determining the effectiveness of the parenting classes in improving the parenting skills of the learners.
Moreover, the quasi-experimental design does not involve random selection of participants. Therefore, the design will not have a control group, and this means that the effectiveness of the learning program will only be evaluated based on the results obtained from the pretests and the posttests (Campbell & Stanley, 2015). More so, this approach will be pivotal in minimizing the level of attrition in the program. Consequently, the results of the study will be compared with the desired learning outcomes.
Moving on, the expected results will be internally valid because they will indicate the extent to which the program has improved the parenting skills of the learners. However, considering that the adopted design is quasi-experimental, the study may be limited in terms of generalizability (Campbell & Stanley, 2015). It may be considerably difficult to apply the results of the study in other scenarios since each scenario has different characteristics.

With the above discussion in mind, it is evident that the problem of attrition can be addressed by gathering the views of the learners and evaluating the relationship between the program’s content and the needs of the learners. This approach will be crucial in ensuring that the desired learning outcomes match with the needs of the learners (Campbell & Stanley, 2015). Subsequently, without a control group, the best-suited design to address the question posed is a quasi-experimental design.

ReferenceCampbell, D. T., & Stanley, J. C. (2015). Experimental and quasi-experimental designs for research. Ravenio Books.