The University of Texas at Arlington



|Department of Curriculum & Instruction |[pic] |

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|LIST 5385 |Fall 2009 |

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Instructor Information:

|Instructor: |Joy Wiggins |Phone: |(817) 272-0988 (email is a|

| | | |better way) |

|Office: |416 Hammond Hall |Fax: |(817) 272-2618 |

|E-Mail: |JWiggins@uta.edu |Mailbox: |Box 19227 |

|Office Hrs: | |By appt. only | | |

Course Information:

|Course Title: |Literacy Research Methods |

|Course Number: |LIST 5385 |

|Course Location and Time:  |Internet, UT Telecampus |

| | |

Catalog Description

|Designing Literacy Research (3-0) |

|This course is designed to build on the LIST 5325, Understanding Literacy Research, by providing an exploration of the |

|process for quantitative, mixed methods or qualitative research design. Includes an examination of various research designs |

|related to language and literacy development including models such as case studies, ethnography, observations and |

|interviews. Students are lead through the research process including forming a theoretical epistemology, formulating |

|research questions, reviewing literature, selecting methods of data collection, interpretation and analysis of data and |

|writing a research proposal. Students will be expected to complete this research focus in the program capstone experience, |

|LIST 5317. This course should immediately precede LIST 5317. Prerequisite: LIST 5325 |

|Students read a required textbook and a packet of articles centered on literacy research. Students "post" their reactions to|

|these readings regularly on the electronic bulletin board (or WebBoard). Students read "lecture" material on the TeleCampus |

|course site for 5 different modules. Each module usually takes about 2 weeks. Written feedback on all work is provided to |

|each student after each module. |

Course Prerequisites:

|LIST5325 is a prerequisite for this course. |

Textbook(s) and Materials: (Two books and a course packet)

Note: Texts can be ordered online, try your favorite distributor (E.g. Amazon,com)

• Creswell, J. W. (2009). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed method approaches. (3 rd ed.). Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications. ISBN:

• Glesne, C. (2006). Becoming qualitative researchers: An introduction. (3rd ed.). Boston: Pearson.

Course packet of readings is also required. See below for more information on obtaining it.

• Course packet Available at Bird’s Copies or online through UTA Library Researve.

1) Go to the Libraries’ homepage at .

2) Click on UTA Libraries' Catalog

3) Click on Course Reserves

4) You may search under the Instructor’s name (Wiggins, Joy),

Department (Education), or Course Name (LIST5385)

• Make sure to click “Search” not “Check your UTA courses”

5) You will need to login using your username and password to access the articles.

For more information about the UTA Libraries Distance Education Services, visit or call (toll free) 1-888-565-9023. For other questions, please contact Education Librarian, Eric Frierson at efrierson@uta.edu or Terry Wang at twang@uta.edu.

• Recommended Website:

Recommended Readings: These are great resources for your final research proposal.

Kirsch, G.E. and Mortenson, P. (Eds.). (1996). Ethics and representation in qualitative studies of literacy. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers for English.

Berliner, D. and Casanova, U. (1996). Putting research to work in your school. Thousand Oaks: Corwin Press.

Beach, R., Green, J. , Kamil, M., and Shanahan, T. (Eds.). (2005). Multidisciplinary perspectives on literacy research. (2nd ed.). Cresskill, NJ: Hampton Press.

Kamil, M.L., Mosenthal, P.B., Pearson, P.D. and Barr, R. (Eds.) (2002). Methods of literacy research: The methodology chapters from the Handbook of reading research Volume III. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

Denzin, N.K. and Lincoln, Y.S. (Eds.). (2003). Strategies of qualitative inquiry. (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.

Sagor, R. (2005). The action research guidebook: A four-step process for educators and school teams. Thousand Oaks: Corwin Press.

Recommended Website



University Mission:

|The mission of The University of Texas at Arlington is to pursue knowledge, truth and excellence in a student-centered |

|academic community characterized by shared values, unity of purpose, diversity of opinion, mutual respect and social |

|responsibility. The University is committed to lifelong learning through its academic and continuing education programs, to |

|discovering new knowledge through research and to enhancing its position as a comprehensive educational institution with |

|bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral and non-degree continuing education programs.  |

College Mission:

|The mission of the UTA College of Education is to develop and deliver educational programs that ensure the highest levels of|

|teacher, administrator, and allied health science practitioner preparation and performance. As a recognized contributor to |

|the fields of education and allied health science, the College engages in effective teaching, quality research, and |

|meaningful service.   The College is committed to diversity and to the advancement of active teaching and learning in all |

|educational environments and at all levels. |

|Core Values:  |

|Effective teaching |

|Active learning |

|Quality research |

|Meaningful service |

Conceptual Framework:

|The work of the College of Education is grounded in constructivism as a theory of teaching and learning and is done in a |

|spirit of expectation that all involved in the College of Education, whether candidate, faculty or administrator, will hold |

|the following as important:  Excellence, Student-Centered Environments, Research, Collaboration, Diversity, Technology, |

|Field Experiences and Life-Long Learning. |

|  |

|Partners for the Future serves as the theme of the College of Education and epitomizes the understanding that it takes a |

|village of partners to insure the future of education for all |

This course is intended to help students develop their:

1. Understanding of the nature, purposes, and types of literacy research and evaluation.

2. Understanding of procedures for reviewing research literature.

3. Understanding of concepts and procedures relating to case study, ethnographic, action research, and critical theory qualitative research designs; and to research and development studies.

4. Understanding of statistical techniques appropriate for analyzing data from different qualitative research designs.

5. Skills in preparing the various parts of a research proposal and report.

This course will address indirectly all TExES competencies and various program standards. The skills of research and evaluation are not directly tested within any particular competency. However, the skills of research and evaluation are an integral part of an educator / administrator conducting his/her duties on a day-to-day basis.

|Learning Outcomes |Assignments/ |National Standards |TeXes Domains and Competencies |

| |Assessments | | |

|To increase each student's |Journal Responses |NCTE |TeXes Comp. Domain IV- |

|understanding of qualitative |Electronic Postings |IRA |013 b,e,f |

|literacy research and evaluation|Module Exercises |AERA | |

|concepts and procedures, |Research Proposal | | |

|appreciation of the importance | | | |

|of research and evaluation in | | | |

|education, knowledge of | | | |

|educational research journals | | | |

|and professional associations, | | | |

|understand the Institutional | | | |

|Review Board process and skill | | | |

|in conducting qualitative | | | |

|literacy research and evaluation| | | |

|and writing reports. | | | |

About the instructor:

Dr. Joy L. Wiggins

Dr. Joy L. Wiggins is an assistant professor in the School of Education, Department of Curriculum and Instruction at the University of Texas at Arlington. She teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in early and middle level language arts methods, literacy research and multicultural children’s literature. Currently, her research focuses on critical and feminist theories. Her dissertation entitled, “Constructions of Preservice Teachers’ Biographies: Mediations of a Sociopolitical Children’s Text” examines preservice teachers’ notions of identity and the ways in which a sociopolitical text mediates understandings of self and pedagogy. She is also working on incorporating peace-keeping skills and yoga into local K-12 mainstream education curriculum.

Dr. Wiggins attended Texas Tech University with her bachelor’s in Multidisciplinary Studies with a minor in English. She then attended Western Washington University in Bellingham, Washington where she obtained her Master’s in Education with a concentration in literacy. During this time, she implemented a reading/writing workshop program at a local elementary school. She also taught in 2/3 and 4/5 grade classrooms.

After obtaining her Master’s degree, Dr. Wiggins spent a year in Hangzhou, China where she taught Oral and Written English to Chinese university students at Zhejiang University of Technology. After returning to the United States, she obtained her doctorate in education from the Ohio State University. Finally, she taught 6th grade for Dallas Independent School District where she implemented her theories of literacy and literature, social justice/action and anti-racist pedagogy in the classroom.

Dr. Wiggins enjoys rock climbing and running. Dr. Wiggins also enjoys traveling all over the world such as various countries in Europe and Asia (Germany; (2 years where she lived as a child), Holland, Belgium, Spain, Ireland, England, France, Switzerland, Italy, Thailand, Japan, Tibet, N. Africa, Mexico and Canada). Dr. Wiggins is currently working on the analysis of her peacekeeping curriculum that she developed and implemented with 4thgraders in an urban elementary school.

Attendance and Drop Policy:

Adds and Drops

Adds and drops may be made during late registration either by SAM, by the Web or in person in the academic department offering the course. Drops may continue in person through the 12th week of class. Students are responsible for adhering to the following regulations concerning adds and drops. These rules apply to regular semesters and to equivalent time limits in summer sessions as noted on the summer session calendar.

A student may not add a course after the end of late registration. 

No grade is given if a student drops a course before the Census Date of that semester.

A student may drop a course with a grade of W during the first six weeks of class.

From the seventh week of class through the 12th week of class, a student may drop a course with a grade of W if passing or a grade of F if failing.

A student may not drop a course after the 12th week of class. 

The dean of the college or school in which the student is majoring may require a student to drop a course at any time upon the recommendation of the instructor and the concurrence of the department chair. 

Students wanting to drop all courses for which they are enrolled must withdraw from the University.

Candidates should check the undergraduate catalog/university calendar to determine the official dates which govern dropping a course with a refund of fees as well as dropping the course with a grade of WP (withdraw passing) or WF (withdraw failing). Excellent attendance and class participation are expected.

Departmental Policies:

Email Communication:

|UTA e-mail will be considered the official means of communication between the university and students, effective August 22, |

|2005.  Utilize your UTA e-mail for all communications. |

| |

|You are responsible if you do not receive information because you do not regularly check your UTA email. |

American with Disabilities Act (ADA):

|If you are a student who requires accommodations in compliance with the ADA, please consult with me at the beginning of the |

|semester. As a faculty member, I am required by law to provide “reasonable accommodation” to students with disabilities, so as|

|not to discriminate on the basis of that disability.   Your responsibility is to inform me of the disability at the beginning |

|of the semester and provide me with documentation authorizing the specific accommodation.  Student services at UTA include the|

|Office for Students with Disabilities (located in the lower level of the University Center) which is responsible for verifying|

|and implementing accommodations to ensure equal opportunity in all programs and activities. |

Student Support Services:

|The University supports a variety of student success programs to help you connect with the University and achieve academic |

|success.  They include learning assistance, developmental education, advising and mentoring, admission and transition, and |

|federally funded programs.  Students requiring assistance academically, personally, or socially should contact the Office of |

|Student Success Programs at 817-272-6107 for more information and appropriate referrals. |

Academic Honesty:

|Academic dishonesty is a completely unacceptable mode of conduct and will not be tolerated in any form at The University of |

|Texas at Arlington. All persons involved in academic dishonesty will be disciplined in accordance with University regulations |

|and procedures. Discipline may include suspension or expulsion from the University.  “Academic 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.” (Regents’ Rules and Regulations, Part One, Chapter VI, Section 3, Subsection 3.2., |

|Subdivision 3.22). |

|Check out this website for more details about the discipline process. |

| |

| |

|I would like for you to also check out this tutorial on plagiarism. |

| |

Bomb Threats:

If anyone is tempted to call in a bomb threat, be aware that UTA will attempt to trace the phone call and prosecute all responsible parties. Every effort will be made to avoid cancellation of presentations/tests caused by bomb threats. Unannounced alternate sites will be available for these classes. Your instructor will make you aware of alternate class sites in the event that your classroom is not available.

Commitment to Diversity:

In our commitment to the furthering of knowledge and fulfilling our educational mission, the School of Education at the University of Texas at Arlington seeks a campus climate that welcomes, celebrates, and promotes respect for the entire variety of human experience. In our commitment to diversity, we welcome people from all backgrounds. We seek to include knowledge and values from many cultures in the curriculum. Dimensions of diversity shall include, but are not limited to, the following: race, ethnicity, religious belief, sexual orientation, sex/gender, disability, socioeconomic status, cultural orientation, national origin, and age.

Student Conduct and Discipline (Please see Course Policies and Helpful Information)

All students are expected to obey the civil and penal statutes of the State of Texas and the United States, the Regents’ Rules and Regulations of The University of Texas System, the rules and regulations of the University, and the orders or instructions issued by an administrative official of the University or The University of Texas System in the course of his/her duties and to observe standards of conduct that are compatible with the University’s functions as an educational institution. Any student who engages in conduct that is prohibited by the Regents’ Rules and Regulations or the rules of the University, or by federal, state, local law or regulation is subject to disciplinary action regardless of whether such conduct takes place on or off campus or whether civil or criminal penalties are also imposed for such conduct. Individuals who are not currently enrolled at a component institution of The University of Texas System remain subject to the disciplinary process for conduct that occurred during any period of enrollment and for statements, acts, or omissions related to application for enrollment or the award of a degree.

Information about the rules of conduct and due process procedures can be found by accessing the following Web addresses:

UTA Handbook of Operations Procedures:



Rules and Regulations



Grievances Other Than Grades

In attempting to resolve any student grievance, the student must first make a serious effort to resolve the matter with the individual with whom the grievance originated. Grievances involving matters other than grades are appealed to the department chair or office director, then to the senior vice president for finance and administration or the executive vice president for academic affairs and provost. If the matter remains unresolved at this level, the student may make a final appeal to the president. Appeals to the executive vice president for academic affairs and provost must be submitted in writing on an appeal form available in academic departments or the Office of the Registrar. (For grievances involving grades, see instructions in the Academic Regulations section of the catalog.)

Late Work:

You have one week to turn in any late work. That means all late work is to be turned in by the following Monday at 11:59pm, other wise it will not be accepted. I don’t need to know why it’s late. After the deadline you have up until the following Monday (11:59pm) and will receive 50% off the grade. No work will be accepted after that. Because Electronic postings require discussion, they will not be accepted after the module deadline. Please read the addendum to the syllabus under Syllabus/Course Content in the course itself for more information.

Quality of Work:

Quality of work, mechanics, thoughtfulness, and completeness will contribute to the points given for each assignment. Read over your work for clarity and spelling! Readings and assignments must be completed on time. You must also take care in understanding plagiarism. Your work will be screened for any plagiarized material. See the tutorial at . Also note the university policy if you do plagiarize.

WARNING: YOU CANNOT HAVE SUCCESS IN THIS COURSE IF YOU STOP CHECKING YOUR EMAIL OR ENGAGING IN ASSIGNMENTS VIA BLACKBOARD. IF, BECAUSE OF ILLNESS OR A FAMILY EMERGENCY, YOU SEE THAT YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO COMPLETE WORK AS ASSIGNED, PLEASE EMAIL THE INSTRUCTOR BEFORE YOU GET BEHIND. HOWEVER, YOU WILL NEED TO READ AND UNDERSTAND THE CONSEQUENCES OF LATE WORK LISTED ABOVE.

Course Policies

1. LATE POLICY. There are specific deadlines for ALL assignments, usually 11:59 pm Central Time on designated dates. Be careful of waiting until the last minute, as this may be peak access time for others. You can always turn work in EARLY. Complete all assignments by the due date and time posted. Late assignments for each Module will not be accepted AFTER the due date for the following Module. For example, assignments for Module 1 should be submitted by the deadline for Module 1. If you still wish to submit late assignments subject to the late penalty, you may do so until the deadline for Module 2. After that point, no more late assignments for Module 1 will be accepted. The same is true for each successive Module. Written feedback on all work is provided to each student after each Module’s assignments are completed via Blackboard. Check your UTA e-mail and announcements page frequently for general updates, too.

2. SAVING AND DOCUMENTING YOUR WORK. It is also generally recommended that students maintain copies of all work submitted. We urge you to compose and save all written assignments using your favorite word processing software, THEN go online to post them (by copying and pasting) on the Class Discussion Board (as required) or to e-mail them (as required). It can be very frustrating to compose a lengthy Class Discussion Board posting directly on the Class Discussion Board, for example, and then to lose it due to some technical glitch. You should not email the instructor for assignments or questions. Questions and assignments should be posted on Blackboard in the designated areas.

3. COURSE CHANGES. The instructor reserves the right to make changes in the syllabus and course, as deemed necessary. Students will be notified of any and all changes. Check your e-mail regularly (daily is best). Webpartners may be assigned to help you keep up. Deadlines may be changed, assignments refined, etc. Email is how new information is usually communicated. Read it. As your instructor, I aim to try to respond to all e-mails within 72 hours, unless I have previously announced my absence. I do not check email on the weekends. Be sure you have sent your instructor your e-mail address. Then KEEP in touch and KEEP that same e-mail address. If it changes, notify your instructor IMMEDIATELY. This is critical to success in this course.

How to Copy/Paste Text from This Document

You can copy and paste the text from this document or others like it in the course into a word processor document by selecting the Text Select tool and then

highlight the content you wish to copy and paste. The Text Select tool appears in the toolbar as a capital T with a small, dashed box next to it:

[pic]

Once you have highlighted the text, go to Edit and choose Copy. Then open the word processing program you use, and go to the Edit function and choose Paste. You can also use the keyboard shortcuts of ctrl-c / ctrl-v for the copy/paste functions.

Overview of Assignments

Assignments: Please read carefully. You should refer back to the detailed syllabus page several times during the quarter. All assignments should be typed, double spaced 12 point font with 1-1 1/2” margins. Please include sub-headings in papers and revise thoroughly. If not revised for grammar and structure, it makes it difficult to read and this will decrease your grade significantly. In addition, continually tie all assignment responses to your specialty area. If you have difficulty opening a link or finding information, I believe is the best search engine.

After the deadline you have up until the following Monday (11:59pm) and will receive 50% off the grade. No work will be accepted after that. Because Electronic postings require discussion, they will not be accepted after the module deadline. Feedback is provided in the Group Discussion Board for electronic postings and in the assignments section for the exercises. You are responsible for reading the feedback and adhering to it in the next assignment.

1) Exercises for each Module (5 required at 72 points each module at 360 points total for course)

(DUE every module)

Each module will have an exercise for you to do pertaining to the chapter readings. All the exercises should pertain to your proposed research study which will help you complete the final research proposal. Most of the exercises for modules 1-4 are in Creswell’s Research Design textbook except Module 5 which I will give you a choice of one of the lessons from Ch. 9, 10 (choose #1 for this Chapter) or 11. At this point, you will be well on your way to designing your own research study and should choose whether it will be a quantitative, qualitative or mixed method approach.

You will need to put the exercises into the “Assignments” tab labeled “Module Exercises”. Feedback is provided in this section.

|Module Exercises |Module exercise is |Module exercise is |Module exercise not included or |Total |

| |included and fully |included and a commentary |only briefly touched on. | |

| |explained and |is made on each. On-time | | |

| |interrogated. |(10 pts) | | |

| |(10 pts) On-time | | | |

|Content |Thoroughly and |Thoroughly and |Student only addressed the some | |

| |specifically addressed the|specifically addressed the|of the guidelines in the module | |

| |guidelines in the module |guidelines in the module |exercise. (0-15 points) | |

| |exercise. In addition, |exercise. | | |

| |student extended the |(20-30 points) | | |

| |exercise with additional | | | |

| |research and scholarly | | | |

| |writing. | | | |

| |(30 points) | | | |

|Total |40 points |30-35 points |Less than 20 points | |

2) Electronic Postings: (20 required, 18 points per posting; 72 points for each module and 160 total points)

DUE every module

You will be responsible for contributing to class discussion via electronic postings on our Group Discussion Board. These are also called “threads” or “posts”. I will use these two terms interchangeably. In order to get the discussion going, you should post at least twice and reply twice by the Monday before the Module deadline. This keeps the discussion going and prevents posting at the last minute where no one can really engage in discussion. By the module deadline, you should have four electronic postings/threads altogether. Again, these posts/threads should follow the guidelines below. No late postings will be accepted after the Module deadline. These postings should be related to the assigned readings or to the postings of other students or the instructor. They should be original posts not just replies. You should also post one question per thread to keep the discussion going and lively. They should be thoughtful reflections of some substance, although word length is not the goal; they should be about 100-500 words per posting. At the same time, your comments should be courteous, even when disagreeing.

How to structure your electronic postings:

To receive full credit, please adhere to these guidelines and the rubric below…

Please do not attach files as not all students can access them. I recommend cutting and pasting it into the thread.

There are four posts per module:

1) Discussion Related to Chapter Readings (Title this: “Post 1: Chapter Readings”

2) Discussion Related to Research Article (Title this: “Post 2: Research Article”)

3) Discussion Related to the module/course content. (Title this: “Post 3: Module/Course Content”)

4) Discussion Related to Personal Experience and Application of Topics. (Title this “Post 4: Personal Experience and/or Application of Topics”)

You will have questions to consider at the beginning of each module and you will need to address those in detail. A good rule of thumb is to include the question you are addressing. In addition, you can also include your personal and academic interactions with the readings. For instance, you can talk about your research or teaching experience as well as confronting the ideas/concepts presented in the professional article or chapter pertaining to that particular module. Have your perceptions changed regarding research and if so, in what way? A key question is how do the readings contribute to your academic/research knowledge? These are designed for self-reflection and new paths of understanding research.

Use subheadings to address each article/reading. For instance, Ch. 1 Creswell. Be thorough and specific. Make sure to address each chapter assigned AND the questions/exercises posed in the modules. You will lose points if you do not address all questions posed. So read each module carefully and include items in your electronic postings. See rubric below for specifics. Remember that you can google terms and learn more about each of the research approaches on your own. You don't have to rely on just the journal articles, modules etc. This course will require you to do you own investigative work. Show me you interacted and deconstructed the readings.

Each post should have one question and make sure to reply to others. You can also include a favorite quote.

AGAIN, PLEASE POST AT LEAST TWICE BY THE MONDAY BEFORE THE DEADLINE SO THAT YOUR CLASSMATES CAN REPLY TO THE DISCUSSION.

|Criteria for each posting|Expert |Acceptable |Unacceptable |Total |

|Timeliness |Three to four of the |At least two of the |Only 0-1 of the original | |

| |original posts/threads |original posts/thread are|posts/threads are | |

| |are submitted a week |submitted before the |submitted before the | |

| |before the module |module deadline. All |module deadline. (0-2 pts| |

| |deadline. All other posts|other posts are submitted|per post) | |

| |are submitted early. (4-5|on or before module | | |

| |pts per post) |deadline. (3 pts per | | |

| | |post) | | |

|Content |All posts/threads are |Most of the posts/threads|Only some of the posts | |

| |fully investigated and |are investigated and |are investigated and | |

| |include questions and |include questions and |include limited questions| |

| |comments posed to other |comments posed to other |and comments posed to | |

| |students. (5-8 pts per |students. (4 pts per |other students. (0-3 pts | |

| |post) |post) |per post) | |

|Replies |Six or more replies with |Four to five replies with|Less than four replies | |

| |depth and intense |depth and engagement with|with limited depth and | |

| |engagement with other |other students are |engagement are included | |

| |students are included |included before the |either on or after module| |

| |before the module |module deadline. (3 pts |deadline. (0-2 pts per | |

| |deadline. (4-5 pts per |per post) |post) | |

| |post) | | | |

|Total |52-72 pts total per |40-51 pts total per |0-54 pts total per module| |

| |module |module | | |

3) Literacy Research Proposal (240 points total)

(DUE: Monday December 1, 2008-no exceptions)

You will be writing a research proposal in the field of literacy. Throughout the course we will be compiling a research proposal. Each module will be devoted to a section of the research proposal so that at the end of the course you will have the beginnings of a sound research proposal. Each module exercise will address a particular section of the research proposal.

On pages 50-54 in Creswell’s Research Design textbook, there are three different formats for writing a Qualitative, Quantitative and Mixed Method proposal. Select one of the formats from those pages. You will see that all formats have relatively similar sections but vary in structure and content. Make sure you address which format you will be using in the beginning of the proposal. No matter which format you choose you should the following sections:

Introduction

Statement of the problem (for Qualitative formats, the Review of Literature will go in this section)

Purpose of the study

Research Questions

Definition of Terms

Review of the Literature (from Module 2 exercises)

Methods (Also called Procedures in Qualitative formats)

Data Collection (how you propose to collect the data)

Data Analysis (how you propose to analyze the data)

Anticipated Ethical Issues

Significance of the Study (the “So what?” part of your study. Why is this study important? How will it inform education today?)

The final significance of study section will be brief especially in Qualitative formats because the data is expected to emerge, the researcher goes into the study with no apparent “hypothesis”.

This research proposal must follow the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (5th edition) conventions for citations. There are copies of this manual in the Arlington Public Library and UTA library. You should consider purchasing a copy.

Because your final project for the literacy program (LIST 5317) is about a professional development seminar or workshop that you would implement in your school, then it would be wise to be thinking along those lines when deciding on a topic. What kind of research project would interest you and your fellow teachers? Have you thought about how some of these methodologies would play out in your classroom and thus further inform other teacher’s practices? For instance, if you wanted to find out teachers’ perceptions of a literacy technique or you are introducing a new one to them, you might use a survey but also incorporate observations, interviewing of students and perhaps from this study you can utilize a different kind of reading program to enhance their reading skills and interest. So this research proposal would be a Qualitative study using teacher action research methods along with the use of those other data collection techniques. We will have a forum on the discussion board where you can discuss your ideas for your research proposal throughout the course. The proposal should be at least 9-10 pages, Times New Roman, 12 pt. font, double-spaced. Use Creswell’s proposal subheadings to separate sections and make a cohesive, flowing paper. DO NOT use a lot of direct quotes from authors. Only use a direct quote when it is significantly poignant and eloquent.

Some advice:

Make sure to substantiate your claims with research from your readings. Anytime you make an assertion about the state of mind of someone else or the state of a program, you need to provide evidence from your review of literature. Assertions or claims like “ALL students do this” or “Parents don’t know much about after school programs or multicultural literature ….” then you need to substantiate that claim with research. Who says this and in what study did they find that students do this….  Support this with research.

Be careful of words like “ALL”, or that a program or strategy helps students in this way. Not all strategies or programs work for all students so use words like, “After school programs intend or aim to raise academic achievement among students.” Be careful of blanket or broad sweeping statements.

Be specific with the words you use. Every single word has an intention. For instance, the other night I heard someone say, “I don’t believe in welfare”. I stated, “Welfare exists so you might want to say I don’t believe the welfare system currently in place is working”. The words you use have meaning and intent. You have to be careful how you use words in a research study because one word can change the whole study. Use exploratory words like “What effects do after school programs have on student achievement?” Your second question is usually more specific. “How do these programs affect students.. (grades, motivation, promotion rate etc)”. Be as specific as possible.  Your review of literature should substantiate these claims. You should also support your claims in the Statement, Purpose and any other sections that you make such statements not just the review of literature.

Many times your introduction, purpose and statement of the problem also needs to have some research supporting your claims about your topic. It's not just reserved for the review of literature. Look at how your articles are structured. Really model after them.

Please read your work out loud. It's very important that your writing make sense and has a flow to it. This is a new kind of writing for you and is probably harder to write, but it still needs to read well. Paragraph breaks, proper subheadings for your review of literature (ROL) etc. Points will be deducted in the final paper. If you need help, contact the writing center.  I still have colleagues help me revise and edit my work. It's part of the collegiality and usually your work needs a fresh pair of eyes. Ask your group mates, too. 

Special Note on plagiarism: This is your writing, your paper, so use your words. You can use quotes sparingly and paraphrase what authors say if you cite them correctly (that is where correct use of APA is important). Otherwise, this is considered plagiarism. I expect you to read the tutorial on plagiarism and understand the consequences if you don’t meet the expectations of a scholarly paper.



If you are unsure of how to properly write a research paper, make sure to look at the examples I have provided of not only my work but other examples as well. This is your responsibility to know and understand what a good, clear, well-written (by you) paper should look like. I expect Master’s level work here. No exceptions or excuses.

You can also check your assignment through Safe Assignment on Blackboard. It’s located in the Assignments tab where you post your final paper. Here is the manual to see how to check your paper for plagiarism.



Resources: You should use APA style but also get peer-reviewed/refereed journal articles rather than just googling something on the Internet. Anyone can put anything on the Internet. You need to make sure that it’s been peer-reviewed. It will say that at the beginning of the journal under its description. You can certainly use online journals but just make sure they follow these guidelines. You can also use books and I would suggest looking at the references authors have used from your textbook. These are usually valid sources.

Here is a website you can look at to figure out APA style.

In evaluating the quality of your research proposal, I will use the following questions/guidelines:

|Criteria for Research |Expert |Acceptable |Unacceptable |Total |

|Proposal | | | | |

|Introduction |The introduction is clear, focused and |The introduction is clear, focused and |The introduction is somewhat focused but | |

| |specific. Each section is briefly explained. |specific. Each section is briefly |not clear and the sections are not | |

| |The author clearly and concisely guides the |explained. The author guides the reader |explained well enough for the reader to | |

| |reader through the paper. Publishable |through the paper. |understand what the proposal will be | |

| |section. (16-20 points) |(10-15 points) |about. | |

| | | |(0-9 points) | |

|Statement of the |The topic/problem is very significant and |The topic/problem is significant and |The topic/problem is somewhat significant | |

|Problem |shows great depth and relevance to the field.|relevant to the field, and it provides a |but the relevancy to the field is not | |

| |It provides a new perspective or insight on |new perspective or insight on the proposed |clearly stated. | |

| |the proposed study. |study. |(0-19 points) | |

| |(26-30 points) |(20-25 points) | | |

|Purpose of the Study |The writer takes seriously the task of |The writer takes seriously the task of |The writer takes seriously the task of | |

| |writing a proposal that has a clear purpose |writing a proposal that has a clear purpose|writing a proposal but the purpose and | |

| |or focus and also provides some insights into|or focus that is relevant to the field. |focus is not clear. | |

| |the problem or issue. |(20-25 points) |(0-19 points) | |

| |(26-30 points) | | | |

|Research Questions |The questions are very clear and could be |The questions are clear and could be easily|The questions are somewhat vague and might| |

| |easily understood by a variety of scholars in|understood by a variety of scholars in the |not be readily understood by a variety of | |

| |the field and correctly portray the purpose |field and correctly portray the purpose and|scholars. | |

| |and nature of the study. The questions show a|nature of the study. |(0-5 points) | |

| |range of depth and expertise required to |(6-10 points) | | |

| |perform this research study. | | | |

| |(11-15 points) | | | |

|Definition of Terms |The author lists certain vocabulary/terms |The author lists certain vocabulary/terms |The author lists limited to no definition | |

| |that might need clarifying in order for the |that might need clarifying in order for the|of terms. | |

| |reader to understand the study? The terms are|reader to understand the study. The terms |(0-9 points) | |

| |clearly defined and provide in-depth coverage|are clearly defined and delineate | | |

| |of their significance to the study. (16-20 |significance to the study. | | |

| |points) |(10-15 points) | | |

|Review of literature |The review of literature uses a citation base|The review of literature uses a citation |The review of literature uses a limited | |

| |that meets high standards for scholarship. |base that meets acceptable standards for |citation base and the foundation for the | |

| |The research cited provides an in-depth |scholarship. The research cited provides |research study is shaky. | |

| |foundation for supporting the argument for |sufficient grounds for supporting the |(0-14 points) | |

| |the research study. |argument for the research study. | | |

| |(26-30 points) |(15-25 points) | | |

|Methods |A clear and fully delineated methodological |A clear methodological framework is present|The methodological framework is present | |

| |framework is present for citing what kind of |citing what kind of study it is |but does not clearly delineate what kind | |

| |study it is (Quantitative, Qualitative, or |(Quantitative, Qualitative, or Mixed |of study it is and/or what | |

| |Mixed Methods) and what methods/procedures |Methods) and what methods/procedures will |methods/procedures will be used. | |

| |will be used (experimental design, |be used (experimental design, interviewing,|(0-14 points) | |

| |interviewing, survey, observation, documents,|survey, observation, documents, etc) and | | |

| |etc) and what kind of instruments you will |what kind of instruments will be needed in | | |

| |need in order to carry out the study |order to carry out the study (transcriber | | |

| |(transcriber for interviews, computing |for interviews, computing equipment etc). | | |

| |equipment etc). |(15-20 points) | | |

| |(21-25 points) | | | |

|Data Collection |The data collection procedures are clearly |The data collection procedures are clearly |The data collection procedures are limited| |

| |delineated and justified. For instance, what |delineated and justified. For instance, |and not clearly justified. Examples of | |

| |kind of data will the author collect? |what kind of data will the author collect? |data collection instruments are either not| |

| |(journals, survey responses, interview |(journals, survey responses, interview |displayed or show lack of serious | |

| |transcripts, experiments?) The author has |transcripts, experiments?) The author has |consideration for how it will be used in | |

| |shown great depth and provides examples of |provided an appendices with the data |the research study. | |

| |the collection instruments that will be used.|collection instruments. |(0-9 points) | |

| | |(10-15 points) | | |

| |(16-20 points) | | | |

|Data Analysis |The author has fully explicated how the data |The author has explicated how the data will|The author has explained the data analysis| |

| |will be analyzed providing a sound argument |be analyzed providing a sound argument for |procedures but with limited depth or | |

| |for certain procedures and kind of study. The|certain procedures and kind of study. This|thoughtful insight into how the data might| |

| |author has shown great research depth and |depends on the kind of research study you |be interpreted. Creswell’s chapters were | |

| |thought into how they will analyze the data |are doing. (Ch. 9 for Quantitative and Ch. |not touched upon. | |

| |obtained. This depends on the kind of |10 for Qualitative). |(0-9 points) | |

| |research study you are doing. (Ch. 9 for |(10-15 points) | | |

| |Quantitative and Ch. 10 for Qualitative). | | | |

| |(16-20 points) | | | |

|Anticipated Ethical |The author has listed and fully explained the|The author has listed and explained the |The author has listed a limited | |

|Issues |possible ethical issues that might arise with|possible ethical issues that might arise |explanation of possible ethical issues but| |

| |this research study. Resources from other |with this research study. Examples of how |mentioned a limited understanding of how | |

| |studies and articles were used to justify how|the author might deal with these ethical |these might be dealt with. | |

| |they might deal with these ethical issues. |issues were explained. |(0-9 points) | |

| |(16-20 points) |(10-15 points) | | |

|Conclusion/Significanc|Will the research study provide grounds for |Will the research study provide grounds for|The proposal seems to provide more | |

|e of Study |other researchers to understand and advance |other researchers to understand and advance|information regarding the problem or issue| |

| |the field with greater insight? Will the |the field with greater insight? Will the |but the problems with the direction and | |

| |author use the research study in order to |author use the research study in order to |coherence of the writing make it difficult| |

| |extend the field of study under consideration|extend the field of study under |to judge how it may contribute to the | |

| |and if so, how? |consideration and if so, how? |field. | |

| |The author provides salient and both specific|The author provides both specific and broad|Limited use of examples are provided. | |

| |and broad examples for future incorporation |examples for future incorporation of the |(0-14 points) | |

| |of the study. |study. | | |

| |(21-25 points) |(15-20 points) | | |

|Citations |The citation base (references and how they |The citation base (references and how they |The citation base (references and how they| |

| |are used to develop the authority and |are used to develop the authority and |are used to develop the authority and | |

| |credibility of the proposal) meets high |credibility of the proposal) meets |credibility of the proposal) is limited | |

| |standards for scholarship and supports the |acceptable standards for scholarship and |and lacks clear foundation. (0-4 points) | |

| |arguments and ideas of the research study. |supports the arguments and ideas of the | | |

| |Every single citation is correct. (11-20 |research study. (5-10 points) | | |

| |points) | | | |

|Overall Quality |This draft of the proposal proves relatively |This draft of the review may require some |The draft of the review requires | |

| |little to no content, grammar and usage and |editing or revising before sending it out |significant editing or revising, and the | |

| |would be ready to implement a pilot study. |for a pilot study but the quality of the |quality of the paper is compromised by | |

| |(31-35 points) |proposal is not compromised by problems |problems with grammar and usage. The paper| |

| | |with content, grammar and usage. The paper |ignores most APA conventions for | |

| | |follows APA guidelines and conventions for |formatting and for references. (0-24 | |

| | |formatting and references. (25-30 points) |points) | |

|Total |310 points (please note this would be a |240 points |158 points | |

| |publishable piece of work and something to | | | |

| |strive for if you decide to continue this | | | |

| |particular research study) | | | |

Examples of Published Review Essays on Research Methods

Baker, C.D. (1997). Transcription and representation in literacy research. In L. Flood et al. (Eds.) Handbook of research on teaching literacy through the communicative and visual arts. New York: Simon & Schuster Macmillan.

Smagorinsky, P. (1995). The social construction of data: Methodological problems in investigating the zone of proximal development. Review of educational research, 65 (3), 191-212.

Florio-Ruane, S. (2002). More light: An argument for complexity in studies of teaching and teacher education. Journal of teacher education, 53, (3), 205-215.

See Table of Contents of Kamil, M. et al. (Eds.) (2002). Methods of literacy research. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Overview of Modules

Introduction Module- Overview of course and research in general

Module 1- What is Quantitative and Qualitative Research?

Module 2- Review of Literature

Module 3- Writing a Proposal and Considering Ethics

Module 4- Design of Research

Module 5- Data Collection and Analysis

Overview of Course Assignments

|Assignment |Points each |Total |

|Electronic Postings |20 required, 18 points each |360 total points |

| |72 points for each module | |

|Module Exercises |5 required, 40 points each |200 total points |

|Research Proposal |240 points |240 points |

|Total points: | |800 maximum points |

Grading Scale:

800-743 points = A

742-678 points = B

677-612 points = C

611-555 points = D

Below 554 = F

Course Calendar

(Assignments are due on days listed.)

|Module One – What is Quantitative and Qualitative Research |Monday, September 7, 2009 |

|Module Two – Review of Literature |Monday, September 28, 2009 |

|Module Three – Writing a Proposal and Considering Ethics |Monday, October 12, 2009 |

|Module Four – Design of Research |Monday, November 2 , 2009 |

|Module Five – Data Collection and Analysis |Monday, November 16, 2009 |

|Research Proposal Due |Monday November 30, 2009 |

Each module should have:

• 1 Module Exercise

• 4 electronic postings to the Group Discussion Board. Two of the four original threads should be posted the Monday before the Module deadline.

• Any other activity listed in the modules- read carefully. The activity will tell you where to post it.

LIST 5385

LITERACY RESEARCH

OUTLINE OF COURSE

University of Texas at Arlington

Dr. Joy L. Wiggins

APA Citations listed below for course packet

Textbook citations

Creswell, J. W. (2009). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed method approaches. (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.

Glesne, C. (2006). Becoming qualitative researchers: An introduction. (3rd ed.). Boston: Pearson.

Packet citations are listed under the packet reading

Introduction Module

Module 1-

What is Qualitative and Quantitative Research?

Textbook:

• Read Ch. 1 Creswell “The Selection of a Research Design”

• Read Ch. 1 Glesne “Meeting Qualitative Inquiry”

• Do Exercise #2 pg. 20

Packet

• Read Tedlock, B. – Ethnography and Ethnographic Representation

Tedlock, B. (2003) Ethnography and ethnographic representation. In N.K. Denzin and Y.S. Lincoln (Eds.). Strategies of qualitative inquiry. (2nd ed.) (pps. 165-213). Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.

• Post four times to each thread on the Group Discussion Board

Module 2-

Review of Literature

Textbook

• Read Ch. 2 Creswell “Review of the Literature”

• Read Ch. 2 Glesne, “Prestudy Tasks: Doing what is good for you”

• Ch. 3 Glesne, “Being there: Developing understanding through Participant Observation”

• Do Exercise #2 pg. 46

Packet

• Read Alvermann- Narrative Approaches

Alvermann, D. E. (2002). Narrative approaches. In M.L. Kamil, P.B. Mosenthal, P.D. Pearson, and R. Barr (Eds.) Methods of literacy research: The methodology chapters from the Handbook of reading research Volume III. (pps. 47-63). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

• Read Sipe and Constable’s “A chart of four contemporary research paradigms: Metaphors for the modes of inquiry”

Sipe, L. and Constable, S. (1996). A chart of four contemporary research paradigms: Metaphors for the modes of inquiry. Taboo: Journal of culture and education. Vol. 1, Spring.

• Post four times to each thread on the Group Discussion Board

Module 3-

Writing a Proposal

Textbook

• Ch. 4 Creswell- “Writing Strategies and ethical considerations”

• Ch. 6 Glesne, “But is it ethical? Learning to do right”

• Do Exercise #1 pg. 93

Packet

• Read Siegel and Fernandez Ch. 5- Critical Approaches

Siegel, M. and Fernandez, S.L. (2002). Critical approaches. In M.L. Kamil, P.B. Mosenthal, P.D. Pearson, and R. Barr (Eds.) Methods of literacy research: The methodology chapters from the Handbook of reading research Volume III. (pps. 65-75). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

• Read Stake Ch. 5 - Case Studies

Stake, R.E. (2003). Case studies. In N.K. Denzin and Y.S. Lincoln (Eds.). Strategies of qualitative inquiry. (2nd ed.) (pps. 134-164). Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications

• Post four times to each thread on the Group Discussion Board

Module 4-

Design of Research

Textbook

• Read Ch. 5,6,7 Creswell

• Do Exercise #2 for Ch. 5 on pg. 109

• Do one of the exercises for Ch. 6 on pg. 126

• Do one of the exercises for Ch. 7 on pg. 142

• Post four times to each thread on the Group Discussion Board

Module 5-

Data Collection and Analysis

Textbook

• Read whichever Chapter from Creswell pertains to your kind of study (either Ch. 8,9 OR 10) Make sure to list which chapter and exercise # you did in your exercise.

• Read Ch. 7 Glesne

• Post four times to each thread on the Group Discussion Board

I have also included research articles and other references for your perusal in the packet.

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