Argosy UniversityCOURSE SYLLABUS

E7834Writing for Research and Professional Publications

Faculty InformationFaculty Name: Jane SjogrenCampus: ChicagoContact Information: jsjogren@argosy.edu or 312.777.7576Office Hours: Wed 3-5:30, Th 3-5:30 and by appointmentShort Faculty Bio: Jane Sjogren, former Vice President for Academic Affairs and Interim Chair of the Education Program at Argosy, Chicago, earned her Ph.D. and M.A. degrees from Stanford University and her undergraduate degree from Barnard College. After teaching economics at Wellesley and Simmons Colleges , she was a founding faculty member of the Ed.D. program in Educational Leadership at Johnson & Wales University where she specialized in higher education. Ms. Sjogren has both published and consulted in the higher education field. In particular, she has worked with online degree programs as well as policy issues in higher education. Before joining Argosy, Chicago, she served as Associate Provost for the Cardean Leaning Group.

Course description: This course builds on the introduction to the dissertation process provided in E7111 and leads students through the university researchproposal, formation of a dissertation committee, application for human subject review, and revision of dissertation research for journal publication. Students will develop their research questions or hypotheses and submit a finished research proposal or prospectus that is required prior to beginning the dissertation sequence. Course Pre-requisites: PC6521 or equivalent

Textbooks Suggested for Purchase:American Psychological Association. (2001). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association. 5th ed. Washington, D.C.: Author. ISBN: 1557987912

Bryant, M. T. (2004). The portable dissertation advisor. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press, Inc. ISBN: 0761946950

Cone, J. D., & Foster, S. L. (2006). Dissertations and theses from start to finish: Psychology and related fields. 2nd ed. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. ISBN: 1591473624

Hart, C. (1998). Doing a literature review: Releasing the social science research imagination. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Ltd. ISBN: 0761959750

Resource Guide: University Dissertation Guide

Recommended Texts:

DISSERTATION PROCESS

Babbie, E. R. (2001). The basics of social research. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing. ISBN: 0-534-51904-0

Bryant, T. (2004). The portable dissertation advisor. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press. ISBN: 0-7619-4696-9

Butler, F.P. (1999) Business research sources: A reference navigator. New York: Irwin/McGraw-Hill. ISBN: 0-256-23003-X

Galvan, J. (1999). Writing literature reviews. Los Angeles, CA: Prczak Publishing. ISBN: 1-884585-18-3

Girden, E. (2000). Evaluating research articles,(2nd ed). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. ISBN: 0-7619-2214-8

Issac, S. & Michael, W.B. (1995). Handbook in research and evaluation: A collection of principles, methods, and strategies useful in the planning, design, and evaluation of studies in education and the behavioral sciences.. (3rd ed.) San Diego, CA: EdiTS. ISBN: 0-912-73632-1

Locke, L. F., Spirduso, W.W. & Silverman, S.J. (1993) Proposals that work: A guide for planning dissertations and grant proposals. (3rd ed). Newberry Park, CA: Sage Publications. ISBN: 0-716-91707-1

Nicol, A. & Pexman, P. M. (1999). Presenting your findings: A practical guide for creating tables. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. ISBN: 1-55798-593-6

Nicol, A. & Pexman, P. M. (2003). Displaying your findings: A practical guide for creating figures, posters, and presentations.. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. ISBN: 1-55798-978-8

SURVEY DATA COLLECTIONBabbie, E. (1990). Survey research methods. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing. ISBN: 0-534-12672-3

QUANTITATIVE ANALYSISCramer, D. (1998). Fundamental statistics for social research. (2nd ed.) New York: Routledge. ISBN: 0-415-17203-9

Grimm, L. G. & Yarnold, P. R (Eds). (1995). Reading and understanding multivariate statistics. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. ISBN: 1-55798-273-2

Huck, S. W. (2000). Reading statistics and research (3rd ed.). New York: Addison Wesley Longman. ISBN: 0-321-02341-2

Levine, M., Berenson, M., & Stephan, D. (1999). Statistics for managers. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. ISBN: 0-13-020312-2

Sprinthall, R. C. (2000). Basic statistical analysis. Boston: Allyn & Bacon. ISBN: 0-205-29641-6

Sweet, S. (1999). Data Analysis with SPSS. Boston: Allyn & Bacon. ISBN 0-205-34057-1

QUALITATIVE METHODS AND ANALYSIS

Bogdan, R.C., & Biklen, S. K. (2003). Qualitative research for education. Boston: Allyn and Bacon Publishers. ISBN: 0-205-3755-61

Creswell, J. W. (2002). Research Design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications ISBN: 0-761-92442-6

Creswell, J. W. (1997). Qualitative inquiry and research design. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. ISBN: 0-761-90144-2

Delamont, S. (2001). Fieldwork in educational settings: Methods, pitfalls, and perspectives. Falmer Press. ISBN: 0-415-2483-7X

LeCompte, M. D., Milroy, W. L., Preissle, J. 1992). The handbook of qualitative research in education. Academic Press. ISBN: 0-124-40570-3

Merriam, S. (1998). Qualitative research and case study applications in education. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publications.

Merriam, S. & Associates (2002). Qualitative research in practice. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publications. ISBN: 0-7879-5859-6

Wolcott, H. F. (1990). Writing up qualitative research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. ISBN: 0-803-93793-8

Writing Textbooks:

E-Journals, Organizations, and Resources on the Web

http://aera-cr.asu.edu/links.html

http://www.springeronline.com/sgw/cda/frontpage/0,11855,5-40406-0-0-0,00.html

Canadian Journal of Educational Administration and Policy

http://www.umanitoba.ca/publications/cjeap/archives.html

Bilingual Research Journal http://brj.asu.edu/Advancing Women in Leadership http://www.advancingwomen.com/awl/awl.htmlAcademic Leadership http://www.academicleadership.org/Astronomy Education Review http://aer.noao.edu/Australian Association for Research in Education http://www.aare.edu.au/aer/aer.htmThe College Quarterly http://www.senecac.on.ca/quarterly/index.htmlContemporary Issues in Early Childhood http://www.wwwords.co.uk/ciec/?

http://www.weleadinlearning.org/ejournal.htm

WebliographyEvaluating Internet Sourceshttp://www.virtualsalt.com/evalu8it.htm

Publication Guideshttp://www.aresearchguide.com/US Federal Government and links to State and Localwww.firstgov.gov

Government Printing Office Accesshttp://www.gpoaccess.gov/index.html

The Grantmanship Centerhttp://www.tgci.com/

National Council of University Research Administratorshttp://www.ncura.edu/

Polaris Grants Centralhttp://polarisgrantscentral.net/

Proposal Writing and Research Developmenthttp://www.umass.edu/research/ora/dev.html

online multiple-language dictionaries http://www.alphadictionary.com/index.shtml

The New Teacher's Guide to the U.S. Department of Educationhttp://www.ed.gov/pubs/TeachersGuide

ERICwww.eric.ed.gov

Practical Teaching Ideaswww.ncte.org/teach

Education Resourceswww.educationindex.com/educator

Endnote 8 for Students Only [Endnote 7.0 for Mac] Software to create reference databases, create and format in-text citations and reference lists. Available at Amazon.com for $94.99. http://www.endnote.com/

Statistical software is helpful for data analaysis when they start writing their dissertations. SPSS 11.0 FOR Mac OS or SPSS 13.0 Graduate Version. Software for statistical analysis of data in table format. Able to compute parametric and non-parametric tests of significance, compute effect size and create graphs or figures. Available at www.spss.com, at local college books stores (such as University of California), online campus bookstores or through E-Bay. About $190

Periodicals

Kappan www.pdkintl.orgJournal of Research on Technology in Education (JRTE) www.iste.orgJournal of Information Systems Education www.jise.appstate.eduLearning and Leading with Technology www.iste.org/LLJournal of Computing in Higher Education www-unix.oit.umass.edu/~carolm/jche/Educational Leadership www.ascd.org

Reading online www.readingonline.orgTeachers College Record www.tcrecord.orgCurrent Issues in Education http://cie.asu.eduDeLiberations www.city.londonmet.ac.uk/deliberationsHarvard Educational Journal http://gseweb.harvard.edu/~hepg/her.htmlEducation Next www.educationnext.orgAcademic Leadership www.academicleadership.orgJournal for Research in Mathematics Education http://my.nctm.org/eresources/journal_home.asp?journal_id=1IEJ International Education Journal http://eij.cjb.netNational Forum Journals www.nationalforum.comJournal of Higher Education Policy & Management www.tandf.co.uk/journals/titles/1360080x.asp

Course length: 15 weeks

Contact Hours: 45 Hours

Credit Value: 3.0

Course Objectives:

1. Define a suitable topic for a research project with consideration of organizational and educational institutional issues (10%). 2. Craft a thesis or problem statement and research questions (5%).3. Explain the rationale for undertaking the proposed research (5%).4. Research the background of the topic area so that findings can be evaluated in the context of the wider body of knowledge and practice (10%).5. Critically evaluate prior research that supports or confirms the proposed study (5%).6. Evaluate current literature and compile reference list (5%).7. Develop a method of data collection and analysis (10%).8. Critically discuss expected results in the context of knowledge of relevant theory, policy and practice (10%).9. Consider possible conclusions that take into account limitations of their research (5%).10. Formulate realistic, justified and timely recommendations to indicate priorities for action (5%).11. Evaluate the blockages and hindrances expected in the research process (5%).12. Suggest ways to address, mitigate or overcome limitations of the research (5%).13. Hone doctoral-level academic writing skills (20%).

Assignment Table Note from the Instructor:The course layout described below is the Argosy University syllabus for this course. It should be used as a reference. You will receive a separate schedule for this course for Spring 2008 from the Instructor on the first class meeting.

Topics Readings Assignments1 The Comprehensive Examination

The University Dissertation Guide Institutional Review and data

collection Review

o APA formatting, reviewo What is research writing?o Article & electronic

dissertations online search (library)

Prospectus to Proposal to Dissertation

Dissertation Chapters and Proposal sections

o Purpose of the Studyo Background and Need for

Studyo Definition of Termso Title Page and Working

Titleo Your expertise

Cone & FosterChapter 2Chapter 5

HartChapter 1Appendix 1Appendix 3Appendix 4

APA ManualChapter 1Chapter 5

Discussion Questions:

1. In no more than 2 paragraphs, describe the theoretical framework that will under gird your proposed study. In the first paragraph concisely describe the disciplinary orientation and in the second paragraph succinctly describe the underlying concept, model or theory.

2. Include APA in-text citations for any references to prior studies. Include a properly formatted reference list below your two paragraphs for any references cited in your two summary paragraphs. (Note: you may not be able to format the hanging indent, but you will be able to punctuate and capitalize correctly.) Respond to at least two classmates for ask for clarification of the theory(s) or to provide suggestions for other relevant studies or theories from your readings or academic experiences that they may want to consider.

3. Research Topics and Purpose—Many times students pick topics that are either too broad or too narrow. Describe in no more than two paragraphs the general topic you have chose, state one sentence what is a problem you have identified within the general topic that needs to be studied, and briefly add why the study of this topic is important or of service to the field of education.

4. Include APA in-text citations for any references to prior studies. Respond to at least two classmates to ask for clarification of their topics or to provide suggestions to narrow or broaden their topics.

Assignments:

1. ApplicationComplete the assignment and submit it to the Discussion Board.a. The Comprehensive Examination—Set up an appointment with your

campus department chair to take the comprehensive examination before the end of this course.

b. Title Page, Purpose, Background and Need for Study, Operational Definitions

Title Page—All weekly assignments will have a title page formatted in correct APA format (see the APA Publication Manual and according to university specifications (check the Dissertation Guide provided by your campus). For now, you will have a “working title” that may change as your proposal is revised and finalized in the Dissertation sequence. The general guideline for a title is it should succinctly describe the study, contain the sample, the major variables and measures. Remember—this is a working title. The title may change over the next few weeks as you refine and focus your study, and it may change again as your work with your dissertation committee in subsequent coursework.

Proposal SectionsPurpose—The purpose statement is a declarative sentence such as This study will analyze (or study, or explore)…. State the Purpose of the Study in one sentence.

Background—The Background is the context of the Problem that you have chosen to study and is one way to demonstrate that your study has attracted the attention of the educational research community. Remember, Bryant (2004) stated that virtually no work on your topic may signal that the topic is very necessary OR may signal that the topic is not significant. State the Background of your topic in one or two paragraphs.

Need for the Study— The Need for Study follows from the Background; it is the “however” statement. IN other words, you are leading the reader logically to see that “This much has been done in the past, however, no studies have explore that.” Add the statement that summarizes prior research and states clearly why your study is necessary.

Definition of Terms—Operational definitions are included only to ensure that all readers understand the terms you use in the dissertation; you will continue to add to this list as you refine your literature research. Add a list of Definition of Terms for only those terms that are not commonly understood by all readers and include in-text citations for each definition.

References—Include a complete and properly formatted reference list for all in-text citations you have included in each section written above. You will add to this list as you write each weekly assignment and section of a research proposal.

You do not know how to use styles and insert TOC features, now is the time use the Help feature in the software (or a user’s manual) to learn about this very useful tool.

2. See Course Project towards end of syllabus.2 Evaluating prior studies (results and

discussion sections) Problem statement Research Questions Access to

Participants/populations/educational institutions

Read APA Manual:Chapter 1

Read the article Evaluating Internet Research Sources found at http://www.virtualsalt.com/evalu8it.htm

Bryant Chapter 2

Cone & FosterChapter 4

Discussion Questions:

1. Use your campus library to connect to Electronic Journals in Education and find the American Educational Research Association [AERA] (http://aera-cr.asu.edu/links.html). In the list of research journals, click on the link to Advancing Women in Leadership Journal (http://www.advancingwomen.com/awl/awl.html) and access the article Activism among Feminist Academics: Professionalized activism and activist professional (Hart). Write a short evaluation of the study’s credibility, accuracy, reasonableness and support. Next focus on the study’s results and discussion sections. Can you identify or suggest another study that “steps off” this study? A different population? A more diverse participant group? A different location? A different focus? Has the author suggested any “recommendations for future research” on which you could propose a study?

2. Use your campus library to connect to Electronic Journals in Education and find the American Educational Research Association [AERA] (http://aera-cr.asu.edu/links.html) In the list of research journals, click on the link to the Bilingual Research Journal (http://brj.asu.edu/). Using the Archive button on the top of the page, access Volume 29, number 1,

Spring 2005 and click on the link to Reexamining Identification and Reclassification of English Language Learners: A critical discussion of select state practices (Mahoney & MacSwan). Write a short evaluation of the study’s credibility, accuracy, reasonableness and support. Next focus on the study’s results and discussion sections. Can you identify or suggest another study that “steps off” this study? A different population? A more diverse participant group? A different location? A different focus? Has the author suggested any “recommendations for future research” on which you could propose a study?

3. Use your campus library to connect to Electronic Journals in Education and find the American Educational Research Association [AERA] (http://aera-cr.asu.edu/links.html). In the list of research journals, click on the link to the Canadian Journal of Educational Administration and Policy (http://www.umanitoba.ca/publications/cjeap/archives.html). Click on the link to Issue 19, February 24, 2001 and access the article Building Capacity for a Learning Community (Mitchell & Sackney). Write a short evaluation of the study’s credibility, accuracy, reasonableness and support. Next focus on the study’s results and discussion sections. Can you identify or suggest another study that “steps off” this study? A different population? A more diverse participant group? A different location? A different focus? Has the author suggested any “recommendations for future research” on which you could propose a study?

Respond to at least two other postings challenging or supporting your colleague’s opinion(s). Remember, if you disagree with the posting, phase your counterpoint in a kind and considerate manner.

Assignments:

1. ApplicationComplete the assignment and submit it to the Discussion Board.a. Problem Statement—Problems abound in education and the social

sciences. Add the problem statement to the Background and Need for the Study sections completed last week and submit both for evaluation.

b. Research Question(s)—The research question is your guide to what

data you seek and what data you select as important. The research question is “1. precise, 2. covers exactly the issue you wish to address, and 3. indicates how will create your answer” (Bryant, 2004, p 50). Draft the research questions and add to the Purpose section written in the last module (if you are doing pure quantitative research, you will need null hypothesis statements) and submit both. [NOTE: These sections will be revised and included in Chapter 1 of the Research Proposal. These question(s) will be elaborated on in a separate section of Chapter 3—Methodology.]

c. Access Plan—Submit a draft of your plan for how you will gain access to the location and planned population (school, institution of higher education, professional organization) who will be invited to participate in your study. You should include how you plan to obtain any permission you will need, e.g., the principle, the district superintendent, and parents. [NOTE: A quick summary of access will be included in Chapter 1 of the Research Proposal. Exact details of the plan to gain access will be included in the Chapter 3—Methodology of the Proposal. Later, the exact steps of what you actually did to gain access will become part of Chapter 3—Methodology of the Dissertation. And, the signed permission letters will be included in the Appendixes of the Dissertation.]

Other Requirements: Include the (revised) Title Page. Include a complete and properly formatted reference list for all in-text citations.

Format according to APA Publication Manual (see sample paper that starts on page 306) and University Dissertation Guide. Include all appropriate in-text citations to prior studies.

2. See Course Project towards end of syllabus.3 Chapter One

o Writing style and tenseo Connection to subsequent o Chapterso Educational Significanceo Theoretical Framework

HartChapter 2

Cone & FosterChapter 6

Bryant

Discussion Questions:

1. Click on the link to the International Educational Journal for Leadership in Learning (http://www.ucalgary.ca/~iejll/) and click on the link to Volume 9, number 5. Find the study called The Story of 10 Principals Whose Exercise of Social and Political Acumen Contributes to Their Success (McGinn). Discuss the limitations and delimitations of this study. If you

o Limitations/Delimitations Chapter 3

APA ManualChapter 1Chapter 3

were to decide a follow-up study, how could the limitations or delimitations be mitigated in a future study? Respond to at least 2 prior postings.

2. Click on the link the International Journal of Whole Learning (http://www.wholeschooling.net/Journal_of_Whole_Schooling/05-03/V1%20N2%20IJWS.html) and click on the link to Volume 1, Number 1, September 2004. Access the article An Inquiry Based Instructional Planning Model that Accommodates Student Diversity (Jorgensen). Discuss the limitations and delimitations of this study. If you were to decide a follow-up study, how could the limitations or delimitations be mitigated in a future study? Respond to at least 2 prior postings.

3. Click on the link to The College Quarterly (http://www.senecac.on.ca/quarterly/index.html) and access the study in the Spring 2005, Volume 8, number 2 titled An Experimental Design to Study the Effectiveness of PBL in Higher Education in First Year Science Students at a University in Peru, South America. Discuss the limitations and delimitations of this study. If you were to decide a follow-up study, how could the limitations or delimitations be mitigated in a future study? Respond to at least 2 prior postings

Assignments:

1. ApplicationComplete the assignment and submit it to the Discussion Board.

a. Theoretical Framework—Theory forms an important foundation for your research question; a short section in Chapter 1 presents the theoretical base of the research, which is discussed at length at the beginning of the Literature Review, Chapter 2. Submit the draft of the summary of the Theoretical Framework that will be included in Chapter 1 of the Research Proposal. [NOTE: The topics included in the summary from Chapter 1 should match the order of topics in the full discussion included in Chapter 2—Literature Review.]

b. Educational Significance—The Significance section answers the question “why should anyone care about the results of my study? In

the Proposal, this section is usually very brief and outlines expected significance. After you complete the data analysis in your Dissertation, the significance may prove to be something other than you expected in the proposal. Draft the statement of the expected impact or significance of your study will have on the field of education or the potential significance of what you hope to add to the scholarly literature. [Note: you should use conditional verb forms—“The results may lead to a better understanding of the adolescent learner.” The evaluation of teacher attitudes could help curriculum developers design curriculum that is more closely aligned with national standards.”]

c. Limitations—Limitations are the built-in limits of the method you use to explore your question. Draft the limitations, those restrictions created by your methodology that could affect your study’s validity. These factors may cause expected validity issues because of such things as your choice of participants, the location you selected for the study, or proposed method of data analysis.

d. Delimitations—Delimitations are those factors that may affect the generalization or relevance of your study to other populations or individuals. Examples of delimitations could be accepting participants from only those “students currently enrolled in high school science” or only using participants “who speak Spanish as a second language”. In the first case, the results may not be relevant to students enrolled in English; in the second case the results may not be generalizable to the whole school population (who may or may not speak only one language) or may not be relevant to those students who speak other second languages, such as Tagalog.

e. Other Requirements: Include the (revised) Title Page. Include a complete and properly formatted reference list for all in-text citations

Format: Format according to APA Publication Manual (see sample paper that starts on page 306) and University Dissertation Guide. Include all appropriate in-text citations to prior studies.

2. See Course Project towards end of syllabus.4 Chapter Three Methodology

o LocationCone & FosterChapter 7

Discussion Questions:

o Participants and populationo Planned Method of Data

Collectiono Instrument and analysiso Permission Letters

Chapter 8Chapter 9

BryantChapter 4

APA ManualChapter 1

1. Read the qualitative study called The Poor Litle Rich District: The Effects of Suburbanization on a Rural School and Community (Howley) found in the Journal of Research in Rural Education, Volume 20, 2005 (http://www.umaine.edu/jrre/articles/index.htm), and discuss how to change the method to either action research or quantitative study. Include possible limitations that may occur from the proposed method and ways to reduce the effect on validity or reliability of the study. Suggest a possible population from which participants could be selected.

2. Read the quantitative study Relationship Between Personality Characteristics and Observable Teaching Effectiveness of Selected Beginning Career and Technical Education Teachers (Gordon and Yocke) in the Journal of Vocational and Technical Education, Fall, 1999, (http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/JVTE/) and discuss how to change the method to either action research or qualitative study. Include possible limitations that may occur from the proposed method and ways to reduce the effect on validity or reliability of the study. Suggest a possible population from which participants could be selected.

Assignments:

1. ApplicationComplete the assignment and submit it to the Discussion Board.a. Methodology—A very brief summary of the method you will use to

examine your research question is included in Chapter One. Dissertation and proposal convention reserves Chapter Three for the detailed discussion of methodology. The proposal version of Chapter Three, written in future tense, provides as much detail as possible of what you intend to do to collect and analyze; the dissertation versions of Chapter Three, written in past tense, provides exact replicable details of what you actually did to collect and analyze data.

b. Submit a brief summary of the intended methodology that will be included in Chapter 1. This summary should be about a paragraph long, two at the most.

c. Submit the full Chapter 3—Methodology that includesi) Description of the location from which participants will be

selected

ii) Access permissions needed and method for obtaining permission from both participants and “gatekeepers”

iii) Description of participants and any possible permissions that will be required (i.e., from parents if participants are under 21)

iv) Description of data collection method (observation, survey, etc.)v) Description of any instrument that is planned to be used and any

pilot study needed (e.g., if you design your own survey). Include any validity and reliability scores for all standardized assessment instruments (available in Buros Mental Measurements Yearbook, http://www.unl.edu/buros/bimm/html/00testscomplete.html)

vi) Brief description of planned data analysisd. Permissions—Submit a draft of all permission letters you may need to

send out in order to accomplish your study. These could be a request to a principal to come to the school to interview teachers, a letter to accompany a survey that you intend send out, a request to use a mailing list of an organization (i.e., Phi Delta Kappa membership), or a letter to parents for permission to observe their child in the classroom. [NOTE: All permission letters you plan to send out must be included in the Appendix of the Proposal. All signed letters granting permission must be included in the Appendix of the Dissertation.]

2. See Course Project towards end of syllabus.5 Chapter Two Literature Review

o Major topicso Evidenceo In-text citations and

references

HartChapter 4Chapter 5Chapter 6

APA ManualChapter 1Chapter 4

Discussion Questions:

1. Using the Digital Dissertations link from your local campus library (NOTE: You will need a login and password; see your local Argosy University campus librarian), access the following dissertation: The Use of Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) as a Predictor of Student Success and Retention in a Community College Recording Studio Techniques Course (Van Regenmorter, 2004). Compare the organization and logic found in Chapter 1, Introduction and Chapter 2, Literature Review. Explain why you believe the organization needs or does not need work.

Assignments:

1. Application

Complete the assignment and submit it to the Discussion Board.a. Related Studies, Chapter 1—Submit the narrative summary of topics

and in-text citations of the related research literature to be included in Chapter One.

b. Literature Review plan, Chapter 2—Submit the full list of the topics and related sub-topics with in-text citations that you will be discussing in the literature review in Chapter 2 of the Research Proposal. You started the outline for Chapter Two with the Research Prospectus completed in E7111 [NOTE: The topic headings in the Chapter 2—Literature Review will follow the topics introduced in the brief summary in Chapter 1.]

2. See Course Project towards end of syllabus.6 Dissertations online

Expanding the Proposal Sections into Dissertation Chapters

o More literatureo Changing tenseo Revise, revise, revise

Reference Section

Cone & FosterChapter 9

BryantAppendix BAppendix C

Discussion Questions:

1. Using the same dissertation, The Use of Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) as a Predictor of Student Success and Retention in a Community College Recording Studio Techniques Course (Van Regenmorter, 2004) compare the results and conclusions sections. Do the conclusions logically “grow” from the results of this study? What about the recommendations for future research; do you believe these are viable? Can you suggest any more?

Assignments:

1. ApplicationComplete the assignment and submit it to the Discussion Board.Select a dissertation from Electronic Dissertations and submit a one-page summary and critique of this dissertation. The summary is written like an abstract, which according to APA is less than 150 words, and should include the need for the study, the purpose of the study, the theoretical framework, the method and participants, results, and recommendations for future research. Using Appendix C in Bryant (2004) as a guide, critique the dissertation. The critique should include a discussion of any issues you believe may have an impact on the validity or reliability of the results of this study, any recommendations for future research that you believe should be added, and any other reactions you have to this study.

2. See Course Project towards end of syllabus. 7 Chapters 4 and 5

o Discussion of Results (descriptive, inferential)

o Conclusions from Resultso Implications for practice of

Educationo Recommendations for

Future Research The Proposal Defense Turning the Dissertation into

Publishable Article(s)o Appropriate Journalso Other Style Manualso Revising 200-page

Dissertation down to 3500-word article

Use of Human Subjects Application Review and Conclusions

Cone & FosterChapter 11Chapter 12

BryantChapter 5Chapter 6

Discussion Questions:

1. Assume you have completed your proposed study and have found some (statistically) significant results. Post the succinct ABSTRACT of your proposed study that you wrote for this modules assignment. Respond to at least two writers to critique their abstracts.

Assignments:

1. Assignment: ApplicationComplete assignments as directed by the Facilitator and submit to the Discussion Board.a. Assume you are going to submit the proposal as a publishable article.

Write a succinct yet complete 150-word abstract of your research study as if it has been completed including (expected) results (e.g., the results are statistically significant or the study has produced in some important findings) and post online in the discussion forum.

b. Set up an appointment with your campus department head or academic advisor to discuss possible members of your dissertation committee and Application for Use of Human Subjects. Send an email to the instructor when you have met with your campus department head.

c. Before signing up for the first course in Dissertation Sequence, be sure to either take or make an appointment to take the Department’s Comprehensive Examination. Send an email to the instructor when you have made an appointment to take the comprehensive examination.

2. See Course Project towards end of syllabus.8 Final Proposal presentations

Critique and feedback on ProposalsDiscussion Questions:

1. Discuss the most significant challenges you faced while developing your project.

2. Report on the most significant learning experiences that occurred during

the development of your project.

3. Outline how developing your project affected you as a student and as a person.

4. Conclude how your understanding of qualitative research changed as a result of developing your project. Give examples.

Assignments:

1. See Course Project towards end of syllabus.

Course Project: Title: Research Proposal

OverviewThroughout this course, you will be writing the first draft of your research proposals that will be revised and polished during the first block of the year-long Dissertation sequence, E7935. Most of you will write your research proposals from the Research Prospectus written in E7111, Introduction to Advanced Academic Study; some of you, however, will start fresh with a completely new topic; and yet others among you will begin with the short 3-5 page mini-proposals written in their research classes.

The research proposal includes the first draft of the first 3 chapters of the dissertation—Introduction (chapter 1), Literature Review (chapter 2), Methodology (chapter 3). It is recognized that you may not be able to complete the full literature review that will be required for the dissertation (upwards of 50 to 100 pages or more) in 7 weeks, but this chapter will be developed further in the dissertation sequences.

General Project Instructions

Group AssignmentsStudies have shown that almost one half of all students who start doctoral programs leave as ABD (all but dissertation) and one of the proven methods that helps students actually finish is the formation of “support” groups of students who not only encourage other students but assist with initial writing processes for peers. As you will be writing their proposals during the length of this course, there will no “graded” group assignments. You will, however, be placed into “writing groups” that will read and critique the sections of the group members’ proposals that are assigned each week. Group members will function as editors, reviewers, and supporting colleagues for the three or four proposal writers in the group.

Weekly Discussion Assignments

Each week you will access the discussion forum and choose from one of three discussion threads to join. Generally, you will be discussing a section of an assigned research article in education leadership, curriculum and instruction, or higher education, or an electronic dissertation. All of the articles and dissertations assigned in the discussion module readings are available electronically and can be accessed through the local Argosy campus libraries. You may need to request a password from the local campus librarian to have access to the electronic dissertations, so plan accordingly. It is suggested that you access discussion modules before the due date in order to have time to read through the assigned article to be discussed.

Individual Project AssignmentsYou will complete and submit sections of their research proposals for evaluation and comment by the instructor. These comments will be incorporated in the revisions that will become the full proposal due at the end of the course.

PresentationYou will create a PowerPoint presentation to be shared with the class that summarizes your research proposal.

Field ExperienceYou will attend either a dissertation or proposal defense on your home campus (or a campus in another university system) and submit a personal reflection paper on the process that will be placed in your Field Experience Journal.

Additional AssignmentsYou will have some “ungraded” assignments in this class that must be completed before receiving permission to enroll in Dissertation Sequence, E7935.

1. You will need to sign up for the Comprehensive Examination sometime during the course of E7834. All sections of this examination must be passed before you are allowed to enroll for Dissertation, E7935.

2. You will need to meet with your academic advisor or department chair to discuss possible Dissertation Committee members. At this meeting, you will need to provide, at minimum, the Research Prospectus and at most your proposal draft from E7834. Setting up the committee is not officially done until you enroll in Dissertation Sequence, E7935, however, you can approach faculty to ask about interest in serving on the committee.

Task ListingsAs you progress through the course, you will incorporate various aspects of Proposal Project that are drafted as individual assignments related to the module content in each Learning Module The course project—the Dissertation Proposal—will include the revised sections from each module.

Format for Written WorkAll written work submitted to the instructor, including the DISSERTATION PROPOSAL, should be submitted as a Microsoft Word or RTF file. All papers should be double-spaced, in 12pt font, and formatted strictly conform to APA guidelines, except where superseded by the University formatting conventions as published in the Argosy University Dissertation Guide.

Weekly Assignments Week 1

Task 1: Defining a problem.

Writing Group Assignment:Set up writing group and share initial plan or prospectus. Share your background, abilities to undertake and briefly explain the research you will propose. Critique group members’ Theoretical Framework, Background, Need for Study sections.

Individual Assignment:Draft Theoretical Framework, background and need for study sections.

Grading Criteria—Purpose, Background, and Need for Study Sections Maximum Points

Purpose of the Study 5Background and Need for Study 5Title Page and working TitleDoctoral-Level Writing and Correctly Applied APA 5th 5Provides constructive criticism on at least two group members Theoretical Framework, Background, and Need for Study sections.

5

Total 25

Week 2

Research QuestionsWriting Group Assignment: Share drafts of week’s assignments with group for critique.

Individual Assignment: Draft of Problem Statement, Research Questions, and Population access.

Grading Criteria—Research Questions Maximum Points

Problem Statement 5Research Questions 5

Access Plan—Permissions 5Doctoral-Level Writing and Correctly Applied APA 5th 5Provides constructive criticism on at least two group members’ draft of Problem Statement, Research Questions, and Population access sections.

5

Total 25

Week 3

Educational Significance, Limitations, and Theoretical Framework Writing Group Assignment: Share drafts of week’s assignments with group for critique.

Individual Assignment: Draft of expected Significance to Field of Education, Limitations and Delimitations sections.

Week 4—Method to Collect Data

Task 4: Writing Group Assignment: Share drafts of week’s assignments with group for critique.

Individual Assignment: Draft of Methodology Section

Grading Criteria—Educational Significance, Limitations and Theoretical Framework

Maximum Points

Expected Significance to Education 5Expected limitations and delimitations 5Theoretical Framework 5Doctoral-Level Writing and Correctly Applied APA 5th 5Provides constructive criticism on at least two group members’ Significance to the Field of Education, Limitations and Delimitations sections.

5

Total 25

Grading Criteria—Methodology Maximum Points

Location Description and access permissions 5Participants description and permissions 5Method of Data collection, instrument, and data analysis descriptions 5Doctoral-Level Writing and Correctly Applied APA 5th 5Provides constructive criticism on at least two group members’ Draft of Methodology sections.

5

Total 25

Week 5—Initial Literature ReviewWriting Group Assignment: Share drafts of week’s assignments with group for critique.

Individual Assignment: Full discussion of the Theoretical Framework listed in Introductory Chapter. Full cited discussion of major topics supported by prior studies relevant to writer’s proposed research

Grading Criteria—Theoretical Framework, Maximum PointsExpanded Theoretical Framework, discussion of studies and citations 5Prior studies in field or topic discussion and citations 5Evidence supporting claims exhaustive and complete 5Doctoral-Level Writing, (no writer’s opinion, bias, or unsupported claims) and Correctly Applied APA 5th

5

Provides constructive criticism on at least two group members’ assignments. 5Total 25

Week 6

Task 6: Expanding Proposal Sections to Dissertation ChaptersWriting Group Assignment:None

Individual Assignment:

Critique of Published Dissertation. [will be posted online for all class to read]

Grading Criteria—Dissertation Critique Maximum Points

Summary of Dissertation 5Critique of Literature Review and Procedure 5Analysis of Results, Conclusions and Recommendations for Future Research 5Doctoral-Level Writing and Correctly Applied APA 5th 5Total 20

Week 7

Task 7: From Proposal to Dissertation to PublicationWriting Group Assignment: None

Individual Assignment: Create PowerPoint presentation that summarizes whole proposal to be shared with whole class [will be posted online and graded]

Grading Criteria—Presentation of Proposal Maximum PointsOrganization 5Content 5Use of visuals 5Mechanics 5Correctly Applied APA 5th (citations or quotes in slides) 5Total 25

Field ExperienceAttend either a dissertation or proposal defense on your home campus (or a campus in another university system). Submit a personal reflection paper on the process. Also, remember to place this paper in your Journal to be submitted in the final week.

Grading Criteria—Field Experience Maximum Points

Brief description of the dissertation or proposal defense. 10Personal reflection paper on the process. 15Doctoral-level writing 5Correctly Applied APA 5th (citations or quotes in slides) 5Total 35

Week 7.5

Task 8: Final Project Submission Writing Group Assignment: None

Individual Assignment: Write a summary of your project experience. The summary should be like a journal, self-reflective, and should be a comment on your experiences through the project. It must include a statement of the identified phenomena, the qualitative tradition used to study the phenomena, a statement of the qualitative tradition, research questions specific to your investigation, and the data gathering method(s) you proposed to use.

Grading Criteria—Final Project Submission Maximum Points

Self-reflective, Experiential 5Correct grammar and spellings 5Doctoral-Level Writing and Correctly Applied APA 5th 5Includes Purpose, Background, Need for study, Problem Statement, Research Questions and Access Plan 10

Critique Drafts of Assignments 10Discussion of Theoretical Framework 10Critique of Published Dissertation 10Created Power Point Presentation 10Total 65

Grading Criteria: Grading Scale Grading requirements

Library:

All resources in Argosy University’s online collection are available through the Internet.  The campus librarian will provide students with links, user IDs, and passwords. 

Library Resources: Argosy University’s core online collection features nearly 21,000 full-text journals and 23,000 electronic books and other content covering all academic subject areas including Business & Economics, Career & General Education, Computers, Engineering & Applied Science, Humanities, Science, Medicine & Allied Health, and Social & Behavior Sciences.  Many titles are directly accessible through the Online Public Access Catalog at http://library.argosyu.edu.  Detailed descriptions of online resources are located at http://library.argosyu.edu/misc/onlinedblist.html.

In addition to online resources, Argosy University’s onsite collections contain a wealth of subject-specific research materials searchable in the Online Public Access Catalog.  Catalog searching is easily limited to individual campus collections.  Alternatively, students can search combined collections of all Argosy University Libraries.  Students are encouraged to seek research and reference assistance from campus librarians.

Information Literacy: Argosy University’s Information Literacy Tutorial was developed to teach students fundamental and transferable research skills. The tutorial consists of five modules where students learn to select sources appropriate for academic-level research, search periodical indexes and search engines, and evaluate and cite information. In the tutorial, students study concepts and practice them through interactions. At the conclusion of each module, they can test their comprehension and receive immediate feedback. Each module takes less than 20 minutes to complete. Please view the tutorial at http://library.argosyu.edu/infolit/

Academic Policies

Attendance/participation 25%Weekly Assignments 20%Final paper 35%Optional 10%Optional 10%

100%

A 100 – 93A- 92 – 90B+ 89 – 88B 87 – 83B- 82 – 80C+ 79 – 78C 77 - 73C- 72 – 70F 69 and below

Academic Dishonesty/Plagiarism: In an effort to foster a spirit of honesty and integrity during the learning process, Argosy University requires that the submission of all course assignments represent the original work produced by that student. All sources must be documented through normal scholarly references/citations and all work must be submitted using the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th Edition (2001). Washington DC: American Psychological Association (APA) format. Please refer to Appendix A in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th Edition for thesis and paper format. Students are encouraged to purchase this manual (required in some courses) and become familiar with its content as well as consult the Argosy University catalog for further information regarding academic dishonesty and plagiarism.

Scholarly writing: The faculty at Argosy University is dedicated to providing a learning environment that supports scholarly and ethical writing, free from academic dishonesty and plagiarism. This includes the proper and appropriate referencing of all sources. You may be asked to submit your course assignments through “Turnitin,” (www.turnitin.com), an online resource established to help educators develop writing/research skills and detect potential cases of academic dishonesty. Turnitin compares submitted papers to billions of pages of content and provides a comparison report to your instructor. This comparison detects papers that share common information and duplicative language.

Americans with Disabilities Act Policy

It is the policy of Argosy University to make reasonable accommodations for qualified students with disabilities, in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). If a student with disabilities needs accommodations, the student must notify the Director of Student Services. Procedures for documenting student disability and the development of reasonable accommodations will be provided to the student upon request.

Students will be notified by the Director of Student Services when each request for accommodation is approved or denied in writing via a designated form.  To receive accommodation in class, it is the student’s responsibility to present the form (at his or her discretion) to the instructor.  In an effort to protect student privacy, the Department of Student Services will not discuss the accommodation needs of any student with instructors. Faculty may not make accommodations for individuals who have not been approved in this manner.

The Argosy University Statement Regarding Diversity

The Argosy University provides equitable access through its services and programs to students of any social, geographic and cultural background, regardless of gender, and strives to prepare all candidates to work with and provide services to diverse populations.  Argosy demonstrates its commitment to diversity through the development and support of a diverse educational community.