EDUL 6300 Research

Summer I 2010

Appropriate arrangements/accommodations can be arranged. Verification of disability and processing of special services required, such as note takers, extended test time, separate accommodations for testing, will be determined by OSPD. Please do not assume that adjustment/accommodations are impossible. Please consult with the associate director of OSPD. 

            Committing an act of academic or scholastic dishonesty. Scholastic dishonesty includes but is not limited to cheating, plagiarism, collusion, the submission for credit of any work or materials that are attributable in whole or in part to another person, taking an examination for another person, any act designed to give unfair advantage to a student or the attempt to commit such acts.

a. Cheating involves:

1) copying from the test paper of another student, engaging in written, oral, or any other means of communication with another student during a test, or giving aid to or seeking aid from another student during a test;

2) possession and/or use during a test of materials which are not authorized by the person giving the test, such as class notes, books, or specifically designed "crib notes;"

3) using, obtaining, or attempting to obtain by any means the whole or any part of an unadministered test, test key, homework solution, or computer program;

4) collaborating with or seeking aid from another student for an assignment without authority;

5) taking an examination for another person, or permitting another person to take an examination of one's self; and

6) falsifying research data, laboratory reports, and/or other academic work offered for credit.

b. Plagiarism means the appropriation, buying, receiving as a gift, or obtaining by any means another's work and the unacknowledged submission or incorporation of it in one's own academic work offered for credit.

c. Collusion means the unauthorized collaboration with another person in preparing academic assignments offered for credit or collaboration with another person to commit a violation of any provision of the rules on scholastic dishonesty.

For further information access the UTPA handbook of operating procedures section 5.5.1 (Student Conduct) and section 5.5.2 (Student Conduct Code)

Also, for further information access the UTPA handbook of operating procedures section 4.10.1 (Use of copyrighted material)

All assignments should be scholarly written, typed and submitted on or before the assigned due date.  Always save a copy of what you submit. An assignment submitted past the due date will have a 10 point (on a 100 scale) deduction per day missed. Due to the short turn around time during the summer term, feedback on late assignment will not be provided and returned to the student. Missed assignment will result in a grade of zero.

As a courtesy to other students and the professor the volume setting on cell phones and beepers must be turned to low in the classroom. During quizzes or tests the phones and beepers must be turned off.

This course is a study of research methods in education including settings that culminates in the successful completion of a research project/paper. Students will demonstrate skills in the utilization of research facilities and be introduced to graduate programs in education.

This course is designed to provide graduate students with basic knowledge and skills in quantitative and qualitative educational research.  Students will be required to review and critique research articles, write annotated bibliographies and develop, in part, a scholarly research proposal.  Through step-by-step, hands-on research exercises, students will be able to build competencies in educational research and data analysis.

(2)        1.4       use various types of information (e.g. demographic data, campus climate         

inventory results, student achievement data, emerging issues affecting education) to develop a campus vision.

(3)        3.8       promote to continuous and appropriate development of all student.

(3)        5.5       use formative and summative student assessment data to develop,

support, and improve campus instructional strategies and goals.

(1)        6.5       use formative and summative evaluation procedures to enhance the

                        knowledge and skills of campus staff.

(1)        6.6       diagnose campus organization health and morale and implement

                        strategies to provide ongoing support to campus staff.

(1)        7.2       implement procedures for gathering, analyzing, and using data from a

                        variety of sources for informed campus decision making.

(2)        7.6       apply skills for monitoring and evaluating change and making needed

                        adjustments to achieve goals.

The goals for this course are to help students become competent as both consumers and producers of educational research:

• to understand the nature of educational research and the various research methodologies used by educators and others;
• to become an intelligent consumer of educational research and comprehend the concepts and language of those educators who conduct original research;
• to develop the skills used in the evaluation and analysis of a given piece of research; and
• to increase the likelihood of future use of educational research to guide professional practice.

In the course, you will be exposed to learning activities that will involve you in the research processes, starting with the development of a problem, generation of research questions or hypotheses, research design, measurement of variables, data collection, analysis and interpretation of the data, and finally conclusions.  The class time activities will consist of lectures, group discussions, peer critiques, library research, and individual work with the instructor, peers or independently.  An attempt will be made to provide as much flexibility as possible taking into account individual differences in learning styles, interests, etc.

By the end of the course, students will be able to demonstrate the following research knowledge and skills:

   - select a research problem characterized by both practicality and interest

   - state a research problem as the relationship between two or more variables

  -  identify literature sources and their characteristics (e.g., ERIC, Psyinfo, Other Indexes, etc.)

  -  conduct a literature search, including locating relevant titles, abstracts and primary source documents

  -  demonstrate the technique of reviewing and abstracting

   -  identify testable hypothesis

   -  constructing operational definitions of variables

   -  define the population

   -  conduct random sampling

   -  establish specifications for stratified random sample

   -  determine sample size

   -  identify techniques for the manipulation and control of variables

   -  identify and describe procedure for observation and measurement

   -  construct and use questionnaires and interview schedules

   -  construct experimental design including pre-experimental designs, true experimental design and quasi-experimental design

   -  identify characteristics of qualitative research, including research problems and questions

   -  describe qualitative research methodology, including various data sources

   -  describe procedures for conducting a qualitative study including data analysis and report preparation

   -  calculate a mean, median, and standard deviation

   -  analyze data and report statistical findings using

      -- a t-test

      -- a Pearson product-moment correlational analysis

      -- a Spearman rank-order correlation, and

      -- a Chi-square test

   -  choose a statistical test appropriate for different combinations of variables and different levels of measurement (e.g., ANOVA, MANOVA, multiple regression, ANCOVA, MANCOVA etc.)

  - Identifying and discussing ethical issues related to conducting human subject research

  - Writing a scholarly research proposal including an introductory section and a methods section, which will be ready for application if students so desire after the course is completed.

Gay, L. R., Mills, G., & Airaisian, P. (2009). Educational Research: Competencies for analysis and application  (8th ed.). Columbus, OH: Merrill/Prentice Hall.

APA (2010).  Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6^th ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

To gain access to the website for this course use an internet browser and type the following as you URL http://onlinelearning.utpa.edu/ then log in using your UTPA username and password. If you have not activated your UTPA e-mail account you may do so in the Academic Services Building room 1.102. (Department and program announcements will be sent through your UTPA email account. You are to check your UTPA email regularly.)

• Obtain a UTPA Identification (Bronc) card in the Academic Services Building
• Obtain a barcode for your ID at the library reference desk  allowing check out  of library materials.

Other required readings will be posted on the website for this course or announced in class meetings.

            To assist you in the development of your research proposal (your main assignment in this course) you will be required to develop and write two annotated bibliographies. The topics of your annotated bibliographies should relate to the research proposal topic you select. The assignments you submit should contain:

• The assignment heading (i.e. Annotated Bibliography #1) centered on the top
• Followed by your full name and student identification number (not your social security number) on the second line.  If you are involved in a partnership/group, for the proposal development, write the names of the group members in parenthesis on the line under your name.
• On the line below your identification number, write a general statement regarding your research intent.
• On the next line write the complete reference for the first source (it will be typed using APA format specific for the type of source you are using (book, chapter of book, monograph, periodical, paper presentation, etc.). Many magazines, newspapers and websites are not considered credible, scholarly, substantial research sources for the literature that you collect. Therefore, you should avoid them unless you can determine their credibility.
• After the reference, you will present a synopsis of the most significant parts of the literature source that you have retrieved. This will consist of just one paragraph. The information should be related to the research topic you select for the course and thus the proposal you will write.
• The remaining four sources will be developed in the same fashion--complete reference followed by the one-paragraph synapses.

Each annotated bibliography assignment will consist of five (5) sources (references and abstracts/summaries/synapses) and is not to exceed 5 double spaced pages. You will be held individually accountable for these assignments, i.e., each student will prepare their own annotated bibliographies. If you are working in pairs/groups for your proposal development, you need to converse with your group member(s) to make sure you do not turn in duplicate sources in your annotated bibliographies. The weighted grade for this assignment consists of content (50%) and APA style (50%). For an example of an annotated bibliography see the resource folder on the web page and open handout 1.

To provide you with an opportunity to fine tune your skills in manuscript writing of references or work cited you will produce a reference list based on the annotated bibliographies you have already completed. The assignment you turn in should contain the assignment title (References) centered on the top followed by your name and student identification number on the line below. If you are involved in group work for your proposal development, write the names of your group members in parentheses on the line under your name. On the line below your name or group member names, type the complete reference for the first source using APA format specific for the type of source you are using (book, chapter of book, monograph, periodical, etc.). The reference list must follow APA 6^th Edition manuscript format. You will be held individually accountable for this assignment. If you are working in groups for your proposal development, you need to converse with your group members to make sure you do not turn in duplicate sources in your reference lists. For an example of a reference list see the Resource Folder for Handout 2 on the web page.

As part of the course, you will develop a research proposal on a topic of your own choosing (and interest) to include:

1. Nature of the problem (theory, hypothesis, definitions),
2. Review of the literature,
3. Design of study (a research plan to deal with sample, experimental procedures, measurement of variables, methods of analysis,
4. Test statistics,
5. References,
6.  Appendices
7. Preliminary pages. 

The research proposal must be typed using APA style.  Specific components of the proposals will be discussed in class, individual meetings, and depends on the nature of the research question that the student develops. Group work of 2-3 individuals per group is an option. (Seriously weight the advantages and disadvantages of participating in a group).  Only one research proposal will be submitted by each group.  As graduate students some of you are required to complete a thesis or applied research project as a requirement for your degree. If you have selected such a route, you are encouraged to produce an individual proposal for this class, since it may be refined or become work that will later on evolve to a thesis or applied research project. The group or individual is held accountable for this assignment. For assistance on writing a proposal see the Resource Folder on the home page for Handout #3.

The critiques of research articles or research instruments will help you in the learning process of critically evaluate published materials. The professor will select the material to critique for you. Group work is an option.  In such a case one completed assignment will be submitted per group. The questions that you will address in the critique may also be used as a guide when you develop your research proposal. Download the critique questions from the website’s handout icon.

These exercises will measure your ability to create a portion of a research design with a set of information provided to you, and part of the knowledge you have acquired in the course. I may also be used as a diagnostic tool for the instructor to measure the level of understanding of the students regarding the course materials that have been assigned or discussed in the class. The quiz content and occasion will not necessarily be announced in advance.  You will be held individually accountable for these exercises or quizzes.

The tests will assess an individual's knowledge and skills in designing research.  Each Friday you will take a test. Test 1 will cover the contents of the first and second concepts: literature sources/searches and research types. Test 2 will cover the second and third concepts: research problems, questions, hypotheses and operational definitions, and research types. Test 3 will cover the third and fourth concepts: research types, and sampling.  Test 4 will be comprehensive with the exception of literature sources/searches.  You will be held individually accountable for these tests.

Abstracts-The development of an abstract will help you to perfect your writing skills in terms of clarity and format.  You may abstract articles (according to APA guidelines) that you select for your review of the literature for your proposal, articles the professor assigns, or include an abstract of a proposed study.  You will be held individually accountable for this assignment.

Library resources-You may be asked to identify professional research journals in your field.  Specifically you may be asked to identify how the journal is organized, what the manuscript guidelines state, etc. Group work is an option.

Research concepts-You may be asked to explain a research concept in writing using your own words. In addition you will present your own example to clarify the concept.

Scenarios-Scenarios will aid you in designing research in terms of type of design, sampling, instrumentation, etc. Group work is an option.

Annotated Bib            #1                                                                   100

Annotated Bib #2                                                                   100

Intro, Lit. Review, Methodology, Reference                        100

Final Proposal                                                                         200

Quizzes/In class Assignments                                                 100

Test 1                                                                                      100

Test 2                                                                                      100

Test 3                                                                                      100

Total Points                                                                             1000

Grading scale

900-1000 = A

800-899 = B

700-799 = C   

Due dates and assignments will be listed in the tentative activity calendar or online.

Discuss the research literature concept and give examples. Incorporate

(1) the function of the literature review,

(2) sources for a literature review (types of research sources, primary and secondary sources),

(3) steps for conducting a literature review,

(4) computer searches (advantages and disadvantages, descriptors, Boolean logic), and 

(5) guidelines for evaluating and writing the literature review.

Discuss the concepts behind the methods and give examples.

(1) qualitative methods with an emphasis on historical and case study methods,

(2) descriptive methods (observational vs. survey),

(3) correlational methods,

(4) causal-comparative or ex post facto methods, and

(5) experimental methods

Discuss the concepts behind (1), (2), (3) and (4) and give examples.

(1)  research problems,

(2)  research questions

(3)  hypotheses, and

(4)  operational definitions.

How are some of these concepts interrelated?

Discuss the sampling concepts (1), (2), and (3) and give examples.

(1)  probability sampling (simple random, stratified, cluster, systematic, etc.)

(2)  nonprobability sampling (convenience, purposive, quota, etc.)

(3)  sampling in qualitative and quantitative research

Discuss the concepts and give examples.

(1)  methods of measurement (objective/standardized tests, interviews, questionnaires, observations),

(2)  levels of measurement or scaling levels (nominal, ordinal, interval, ratio),

(3)  validity, and

(4)  reliability

Discuss the concepts regarding the strategies to control potential intervening variables in a study (when random sampling cannot be used), and give examples.

(1)  Holding the intervening variables constant.

(2)  Matching the intervening variables.

(3)  Using subjects as their own controls.

(4)  Building the intervening variables as independent variable.

(5)  Statistically controlling the intervening variables.