Master's Dissertation First Full Draft

Appendix H – Example of participant information sheet for learners

Psychology School of Human & Community Development University of the Witwatersrand Private Bag 3, Wits, 2050 Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone]

Participant information sheet

Hello,

I am Thomas Wrigley, a Psychology Research Master’s student from the Department of Psychology at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (Wits).

I would like to invite you as a secondary school student to participate in a research study! I am investigating the effectiveness of personal computing devices like tablets and laptops when we use them for educational purposes – how do they compare to traditional pen and paper? This research forms part of a Master’s thesis.

If you would like to participate, I will ask you to attend four sessions over a period of four weeks. Each session will last approximately 40 minutes and will take place after school. In each session I will require you to perform a reading and writing task using either a tablet PC, a desktop or laptop PC, an E-ink electronic reader or printed paper and a pen. This task will take you approximately 30 minutes. I will also ask you to return after one week and complete a second task which is related to the first. This second task (when you return one week later) will also take you between 15 and 30 minutes.

Participation in this study in voluntary – you not be disadvantaged in any way if you choose not to participate. You have the right to withdraw from this study at any time without any penalty. Your responses are anonymous and no personally-identifying information of yours will be captured or stored by me. Please also note that your participation in this study will not disrupt ordinary teaching and learning.

If you would like to participate in our study, you need to sign a letter of informed consent. If you are under the age of 18, then you will need to sign a letter of informed assent and your parent/guardian will need to sign a letter of informed consent.

Thank you for considering this invitation. This research will contribute to our understanding of educational technology and the impact of personal computing devices on educational outcomes. Your responses will be invaluable in accomplishing this task. Should you have any queries, you are welcome to contact me via the email address provided below.

Kind regards

Thomas Wrigley

[e-mail]

Appendix I – Example of information sheet for parents of participants

Psychology School of Human & Community Development University of the Witwatersrand Private Bag 3, Wits, 2050 Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone]

Parent/Guardian Participant information sheet

Hello,

I am Thomas Wrigley, a Psychology Research Master’s student from the Department of Psychology at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (Wits).

I would like to invite your child as a secondary school student to participate in a research study! I am investigating the effectiveness of personal computing devices like tablets and laptops when we use them for educational purposes – how do they compare to traditional pen and paper? This research forms part of a Master’s thesis.

If you would like your child to participate, I will require them to perform a reading and writing task using either a tablet PC, a desktop or laptop PC, an E-ink electronic reader or printed paper and a pen. This task will take your child between 15 and 30 minutes. I will also ask your child to return after one week and complete a second task which is related to the first. This second task (when your child returns one week later) will also take between 15 and 30 minutes.

Participation in this study in voluntary – your child will not be disadvantaged in any way if they choose not to participate. Your child has the right to withdraw from this study at any time without any penalty. Their responses are anonymous and no personally-identifying information of theirs will be captured or stored by me. Please also note that your child’s participation in our study will not disrupt ordinary teaching and learning.

If your child is under the age of 18 and you would like your child to participate in this study, please sign the letter of informed consent in which you formally give permission for your child to participate in this research. If your child is under the age of 18, then they will need to sign a letter of informed assent in addition to you as the parent/guardian signing a letter of informed consent.

Thank you for considering this invitation. This research will contribute to our understanding of educational technology and the impact of personal computing devices on educational outcomes. Your responses will be invaluable in accomplishing this task. Should you have any queries, you are welcome to contact me via the email address provided below.

Kind regards

Thomas Wrigley

[e-mail]