AD ALTA
JOURNAL OF INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH
which all the characteristics are the most suitable according to
the recognized relation (alternative search).
The analogue mappings applied during the research are
consistent while the structure mapping processes playing a role
in the analogue are selective. The latter one refers to both the
individual characteristics and relation (Boulton-Lewis, Halford,
1992).
The test examining diagrammatic thinking was focused at
accomplishing tasks as well as recognizing and accomplishing
them. Flow charts are presented through which the impacts
exerted by the so-called operators (rules) on various figures can
be detected. The first task of the experimentee is to conclude the
functions of the certain operators or operations based on the
diagrams (flow charts), and then relying on this knowledge,
select the missing output.
The test measures the ability of how logically the subject is able
to follow the arranged sign series. Although the test consists of
simple flow charts, its solution requires the experimentee to be
able to track the changes taking place in the form, colour and
size of the objects. This skill is outstandingly important, for
example, when analysing certain system processes, in error
correction and in system planning (Stieff et al., 2010).
Items similar to the applied test can be seen at:
http://www.psychometric-success.com
Several researches examined whether it was possible to draw
conclusions in relation to the difficulty and performance from
the time used for the solution of identical items. Jacobs and
Vanderventer thought that the difficulty level of the items was in
connection with the number of the characteristics that had to be
compared and remembered (Georgiev, 2008), so those achieving
better results were able to keep several thing in mind at the same
time; however, it could also mean that they spent more effort on
the given item (Jacobs, Vandeventer, 1968). Vodegel et al. refer
to the work of Home and Habon who found it was not possible
to draw conclusions concerning the difficulty level of the items
from the time spent on solution (Vodegel et al., 1994).
4 Materials and methods in research
The research involved 204 first-grade teacher students of J.
Selye University. The demographical data of the participants are
summarized below:
Gender: 17.6% (N=36) male, 82.4% (N=168) female,
Age: M=25.10 years, MOD: 20 years, SD=8.267 years, 76
persons (37.2%) between 19 and 20, while 49 persons
(24.0%) between 21 an 22,
Father’s highest education level: primary school 9 persons
(4.4%), vocational school 85 persons (41.7%), secondary
technical school 72 persons (35.3%), secondary grammar
school 18 persons (8.8%), higher education 20 persons
(9.8%),
Mother’s highest education level: primary school 17 persons
(8.3%), vocational school 47 persons (23.0%), secondary
technical school 85 persons (41.7%), secondary grammar
school 24 persons (11.8%), higher education 31 persons
(18.2%),
Place of living: city 92 persons (45.1%), other settlement
112 (54.9%),
Country of secondary school leaving exam: Slovakia 120
persons (58.8%), Hungary 83 persons (40.7%),
Type of the school of secondary school leaving exam: four-
grade secondary grammar school 70 persons (34.3%), eight-
grade secondary grammar school 9 persons (4.4%),
secondary technical school 113 persons (55.4%) and adult
education 12 persons (5.9%),
Language of teaching at secondary school: Hungarian 182
persons (89.2%), Slovakian 12 persons (5.9%), bilingual 10
persons (4.9%),
Specialization: teacher training 57 persons (27.9%), nursery
school education 127 persons (62.3%), pedagogy and public
education 19 persons (9.3%),
Training: full-time 145 persons (71.1%), correspondence 59
persons (28.9%),
Place of stay during the studies: live at home 127 persons
(62.3%), at dormitory 71 persons (34.8%), in lodgings 6
persons (2.9%),
Family conditions: live with their families 160 persons
(78.4%), with life-partner or spouse 31 persons (15.2%),
alone 7 persons (3.4%), with a friend 6 persons (2.9%).
According to the above presented data, most of the students hade
their secondary school leaving exams in Hungarian, at secondary
technical schools, and the rate of those having applied for the
full-time nursery school teacher training is high. A high
proportion of the students took their exams in Hungary. As for
the parents’ education level, the rate of those with secondary
vocational education is high.
5 Results
First we compare the results achieved by the students during the
solution of the certain tasks. There were 179 students who
solved each type of the exercises. As shown in Figure 2, the
results remained under the average. The students’ diagrammatic
reasoning proved to be especially underdeveloped. The best
results were reached in the exercises demanding analogue
thinking, however, standard deviation is also the biggest here.
According to Kolmogorov and Smirnov, the components of
abstract reasoning and thinking are not of normal distribution,
however, because of the permissive conditions (Kurtosis/Std.
Error of Kurtosis and Skewness/Std. Error of Skewness, i.e. they
are under 2.58) (Rumelhart, 1989) we still accept them as that.
Figure 2: Breakdown of averages and standard deviation of
abstract reasoning by exercises
During the pilot measurement, the students had 25 minutes to
solve the problems, which proved to be insufficient in some
cases. The items could be solved only one after the other. The
online system registered the time used by the students by items.
Analysing the gained data, two statements can be made.
Figure 3 indicates the average time spent by the students
who started to solve the given item. As for task types 4 and
5, it can be seen that the average amount of time spent on
the first exercise is very high as compared to that spent on
the rest of the items. This means that it was difficult to
understand these two types and to explore the
interconnections. The high standard deviation value of the
tasks proves this fact, as well.
We created three categories by task types (weak
performance: 0-2 points, medium performance: 3-4 points,
good performance: 5-6 points). Figure 4 shows that the
number of those gaining low numbers of points swelled at
Task 4.
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
0
0,5
1
1,5
2
2,5
3
3,5
Task 1
Task 2
Task 3
Task 4
Task 5
Mean
Standard Deviation
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