Course Instructor

Dr. L. K. Curda
Associate Professor
Office Address: Building 77 Room 115
Telephone Number: (850) 474-2295
Email: lcurda@uwf.edu
Office Hours: Online - Monday 9 AM - 3 PM; Tuesday 9 AM - 2 PM; On campus by appointment

Course Description

This course develops skills for evaluating and for conducting applied research studies in an appropriate area of emphasis. Content includes strategies of research appropriate for a particular area of emphasis and methods appropriate for those strategies. Students are required to select a problem, plan a research study, and write a research proposal.

Course Prerequisites

EDF 6404

Purpose of the Course

The purpose of this course is to provide students with the knowledge, skills, and abilities for educational inquiry. It is assumed that most of the students in this course do not aspire to roles in which the conduct of research is a responsibility of any magnitude. Most students will go on to serve the profession as teachers, administrators, and other educational practitioners. In order to develop as empowered persons and professionals and to use their creativity and critical thinking skills to their utmost, educational leaders must have a knowledge base and an awareness of the factors involved in educational research. The course objectives are designed for all the clients of the educational system and to assist them to function as counselors/therapists, ethical/moral beings, and lifelong learners.

Major Topics

Topic 1: The Research Process and Approaches to Research

Topic 2: Identifying a Research Problem and Conducting a Literature Review

Topic 3: Analyzing and Synthesizing Research Literature

Topic 4: Qualitative and Quantitative Data Collection and Analysis

Topic 5: Measurement and Sampling

Topic 6: Qualitative and Quantitative Research Designs

Course Textbooks

Required:

Creswell, J. (2008). Educational research: Planning, conducting, and evaluating quantitative and qualitative research (3rd Ed.). Prentice Hall.

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association 5^th Edition (2001). APA: ISBN: 1557987912.

Suggested:

Galvan, J. L. (1999). Writing literature reviews: A guide for students of the social and behavioral sciences. Pyrczak Publishing: ISBN: 1884585183.

Course Requirements and Grading

You are expected to complete all requirements of this course on time.

Weekly Assignments, Discussions, and Chapter Quizzes (35%)

One Research Proposal (45%) - This percentage will be broken down as follows:

• Turning in Complete Rough Drafts On Time (10%)
• Final Proposal Document (25%)
• Application of APA Style (10%)

Final Exam (20%)

NOTE: For test security purposes, you will be required to log-on during a specified window of time for your Final Exam as identified in the course schedule. THERE WILL BE NO EXCEPTIONS to this time so please make note of it now. 

Assignment specifications and grading criteria will be distributed on-line.

The main elements of your Research Proposal will be:

1. Statement of the Problem
   1. Topic for the study appropriate for your field
   2. The research problem within this topic
   3. A justification for the problem based on past research and practice
   4. Deficiencies or shortcomings of past research or practical knowledge
   5. The importance of addressing the problem for diverse audiences
2. Literature Review (Study-by-Study)
   1. Analysis and synthesis of the primary research that assist in validating and supporting the research problem using a study-by-study approach grouped under broad themes
   2. Summarize major themes and present reasons for a proposed study or the importance of studying a research problem
3. Specifying a Purpose and Research Questions or Hypotheses
   1. A concise statement of the purpose of the study based on the research approach chosen (qualitative or quantitative)
   2. The research questions or hypotheses to be addressed as appropriate for the research approach
4. Methods
   1. Statement of research approach and research design
   2. Setting for your study (what type of access do you have?)
   3. Participants and how selected
   4. Instrumentation - Identify types of data needed, instruments or measures used.  Include actual copy of the survey or instrument as well as evidence of reliability and validity
   5. Summary of data collection procedures
   6. Summary of data analysis techniques that will be employed

Grades will be assigned using the following scale:

A	95% - 100%
A-	91% - 94.9%
B+	88% - 90.9%
B	84% - 87.9%
B-	81% - 83.9%
C+	78% - 80.9%
C	74% - 77.9%
C-	70% - 73.9%
D	64% - 69.9%
F	0% - 63.9%

Late Assignments

Your participation grade will suffer if you continually post to threads late or complete weekly assignments late. Points will be deducted for each item that is turned in late. In relation to other assignments (i.e., papers, tests, etc.), my late policy is:

For every day the assignment is late I take off 10% of the total possible points for that assignment.

For example, if an assignment is worth 100 points and you turn it in 1 day late, the most points you can receive is 90. If you turn it in 3 days late, the most you can receive is 70. After 10 days, your assignment is worth 0 points so there is no reason for you to turn it in. If you have any questions about this policy please let me know. I am generally a pretty understanding person so it would behoove you to contact me BEFORE the DUE DATE if you know something will be late to receive an approved extension.  If an extension is approved by me then the late charges do not apply. The bottom line here is keep me informed!

Discussions

During the course, you are expected to participate in threaded discussions. The purpose of these discussions is to reinforce material covered in the lessons and to allow you to collaborate and share information with your peers. Do not use the threaded discussions to chat with students or to share comments that are not directly pertinent to the information solicited by the assignment.  Do not use the threaded discussions to pose questions or comments for the instructor or graduate assistant.  If you have a problem or question for the instructor or graduate assistant, submit it via email.

When participating in the threaded discussions, do not attach documents to your submissions.  If you want to use a word processor to type your posts and replies, please copy and paste the text from the word processed document (rather than attaching the document) in the discussion form.  The reason that you should not submit attachments is that other students and the instructor may not have access to the software used to create the file.

To ensure that the quality of your assignments meet my expectations please be sure to revisit threaded discussions from previous weeks to check for any comments or suggestions I may have provided you. I will not respond to every individual every week even though I do read everyone's postings. At times, I will simply add to the comments you have made and give you an atta boy/girl for a good submission. Other times, you may find that I ask you to elaborate or provide more depth to your postings. You may also find that your peers ask you to do the same. If you see these types of replies it should indicate that you have not fully met the requirements or expectations of the assignment. Here, I do expect you to post a reply in response to my questions or your peers' questions. If you do not bother to go back and read and add additional postings when necessary then your participation grade may take a small downward turn throughout the semester. If you happen to check the threads and I did not respond to you then please expect that I was satisfied with your answer and you have complete credit for participation.

You should be concerned that your participation grade will suffer if you habitually post your assignments late. Posting late reduces the likelihood that your peers will be able to go back and read your post and provide you with feedback, input, etc. if you do post late it is your responsibility to email the Assistant Librarian (Melissa) and let her know. Melissa will not be checking all the past weeks for late assignments. Once she is done with the checklist for the previous week, there is no reason for her to continually backtrack unless she is notified by you that it is necessary. If you do notify Melissa of a late posting please be as detailed as possible. Some weeks there are many assignments to choose from and it will help her find your postings if she knows which ones to check.

When you participate in a threaded discussion I expect that you will read the posts of your peers and respond to them just as you would if they made a similar statement in class. You may ask for clarification, reaffirm what they say, add on to their example, question the legitimacy of their statements, etc. This creates discussion around the topic which is the goal of the exercise. Replies should not simply consist of "I agree" or "Right on." It must be more thoughtful and in depth than that. As many of us (myself included) are procrastinators, most people do not post to the required threads until the day they are due. This creates some difficulty if everyone is also trying to respond to everyone by the same date. Therefore, my general policy is that you post your original response to the thread during the first week it is assigned.

The following week you should spend some time reading everyone's posts and responding to your peers. In addition to your post I require that each student respond to at least 3 of their peers within each thread in which they participate. To clarify... you should respond to 3 others' original posts as well as reply to those who reply to YOUR original post if anyone queries you. An original post is not the same as a reply to a post or a reply to another reply. When participating in the discussions, make sure that you recognize the difference between an original post, a reply to an original post, and a reply.

If, when you post your original response, there are others to whom you would like to reply then feel free to post your replies within the same week. However, this extra week given for response to peers allows you some leeway in responding to others. I am going to insert reminders in each thread to make sure this is clear and everyone receives their points for participation so I hope this will help. The idea is that you read how others are thinking about the topic and to clarify, expand, or reaffirm your own understanding. Please let me know if you are still unclear about these requirements and I will try to clarify further. You will notice that your weekly checklists will have separate post and reply columns because I view these as separate assignments within the weeks they are listed. Feel free to post replies early.

Participation Checklists

The Circulation Desk has weekly checklists posted. The purpose of the checklists is to provide you with a current assessment of your status related to weekly assignments, including threaded discussions. Each of you will be listed by the last 4 digits of your social security number (NOTE: Please send me a different 4-dogot number if you choose). Each Friday the Assistant Librarian will update the checklists for assignments during the previous week to reflect the assignments you have completed. The weekly checklists should be used by you to determine that your participation in weekly assignments is noted but is not evaluative in any way.

If you submit an assignment late (or after the checklist has been updated), it is your responsibility to email the Assistant Librarian (Melissa) and let her know. Melissa will not be checking all the past weeks for late assignments. Once she is done with the checklist for the previous week, there is no reason for her to continually backtrack unless she is notified by you that it is necessary. If you do notify Melissa of a late posting please be as detailed as possible. Some weeks there are many assignments to choose from and it will help her find your postings if she knows which ones to check.

If you find an error in a checklist, please send an email message that includes:

• Your name
• The name or number of the course
• The week number of the error
• The name of the assignment
• An explanation of the error

If you do not provide sufficient information about the error, it will delay the process of checking and correcting the error.

Special Technology Utilized by Students:

• Students will need regular and consistent access to a computer that supports the eLearning system.
• Students will need access to word processing software that is capable of reading and saving DOC or RTF files.
• Students will need access to an Internet browser that has JavaScript enabled.
• Students must be able to complete online forms to participate in threaded discussions.
• Students will need access to Adobe Acrobat Reader© (version 5 or higher) to open PDF files that are used during the course.

Other Course Policies

1. Students not completing any course assignments on time (this includes on-line and other assignments) will receive a grade of zero. If you are ill or have a serious problem that prevents you from "attending" class the day an assignment is due, please contact your instructor PRIOR to that day and we will arrange an alternate due date.
2. Scholastic Dishonesty: Students who violate the University rules on scholastic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary penalties including the possibility of failure in the course and dismissal from the University. All policies on scholastic dishonesty will be strictly enforced.
3. Any student in this course who has a disability that may prevent him or her from fully demonstrating his or her abilities should contact your instructor(s) personally as soon as possible so we can discuss accommodations necessary to ensure full participation and facilitate your educational opportunity.