CHST 4200 Applied Research in Children’s Studies: Assignments

Assignment 2 Research Articles Guidelines and Rubric

Assignment 2 is the second step in starting your research proposal (the first step is choosing a topic). For this assignment you are required to find 2 peer reviewed articles related to your research topic.  These need to be scholarly sources of some sort from which you can identify the research that others have done on the same, or a related subject. 

We will go over how to find scholarly articles in class.

The literature review should be aimed at identifying research related to your topic of interest. Try to link the articles to your topic (issue/problem), independent or dependent variables, or intervention.

 Submit a Reference List (APA format) of your 2 sources answering the questions below.

*Be sure to include a title page with your Full Name, Course Number, Semester, and your research topic/title.

**Summarize – use your own words to answer the questions. You can use bullet points for this assignment.

• Full APA reference for the source
• Why is this topic important?
• Who were the participants?
• Where was the research conducted? Lab/Field
• What were the researchers interested in?
  • Research Questions
  • Hypotheses
  • State the Independent Variables and the levels
  • State the Dependent Variables and provide the operational definitions
• How the researchers conducted their research (methods)
  • What methods did they use (survey, observation, interview, etc.)?
• What the researchers found?
• What were the limitations to the study/methods? 
• How is the study related to your proposed research topic?

NOTE:

• An example of what the assignment should look like is posted on Blackboard under Assignments.
• Assignment must be submitted via Blackboard.

Assignment 3: Literature Review Guidelines and Rubric

Assignment 3 is a draft of the first part (introduction/literature review section) of your final research proposal. Use Assignment 2 (Research Articles) to help you summarize (in your own words) your research articles in essay format.

NOTE: For this assignment you must use 4 articles, 3 of which must be peer-reviewed.

Assignment Requirements: Use the APA template on Blackboard

• In APA format: Cite your sources using intext citations; Include a reference list on the last page in APA style!
• Typed: 1-inch margins; 12pt. Times New Roman font; Double spaced
• Minimum of 5 pages (including title page and reference list)
• Ensure that your paper has all of the parts listed below.
• Minimum of 4 peer reviewed articles

1. Title Page (1 page)
   • Title of research proposal, student’s name, and affiliation (Brooklyn College, CUNY).

2. Introduction (3+ pages)

   • 1st Paragraph: Introduce your topic. Give a General introduction. Why is it important? You can cite relevant information to support the topic (from the journal articles you found). Feel free to use data to support your points (from peer reviewed articles, government or non-profit websites – must be from reputable sources and you must cite them using both in-text citations and in your reference list).

   • Body of the Introduction: Literature review Consists of reviews (summary’s) of the peer reviewed articles you found relevant to your research proposal. Including the two articles, you selected for Assignment 2. Be sure that the information/articles flow well.

Each review should be approximately half a page (2 - 3 paragraphs depending on the length and complexity of the research study/article).

• Second to last Paragraph – Importance/significance of your research topic.
  • Why is your topic important?
  • How does it build on and add to the current state of knowledge in the field?
  • What problem does it solve? Or How does it help solve a problem?
• Last Paragraph: Your study and hypothesis Give a description of your applied research study.
  • What does your study aim to do? What it's objective?  What problem(s) do you aim to address?
  • Why it is important?
  • What are the research questions that you aim to address?What is your hypothesis? State both the null and the alternative.

3. Reference List (1 page) APA style – listing the 4 research/journal articles you found to support your study.

Assignment 4: Methods and Appendix Guidelines and Rubric

Assignment 4 is a draft of the second part (method and appendix section) of your final research proposal.

Assignment Requirements: USE THE APA TEMPLATE ON BLACKBOARD

• In APA format: Cite your sources using intext citations and reference list on last page in APA style!
• Typed: 1-inch margins; 12pt. Times New Roman font; Double spaced
• Minimum of 4 pages (including title page, reference list, and appendix)
  • Methods Section: Participants, Design, Materials, Procedure
  • Appendix Section: Consent Form, Assent Form/dialogue requesting for consent from minor to participate, any stimuli or materials that you would use for your experiment (i.e. examples of the intervention materials).

For the Methods Section, be sure to include the following parts.

• Title Page (1 page) Title of research proposal, student’s name, and affiliation (Brooklyn College, CUNY)
• Methods Section (2+ pages)
  • Participants: (where will you get the data from and how will you collect it)
    • Describe who will participate in your study (only one group of participants)
    • Who is your population of interest? (unit of analysis)
    • State how you will get consent and from whom
    • What demographic information will be collected?
    • Sampling techniques
      • What sampling frame will you use to select your sample?
        • How many people will you select from the population as your sample?
      • What sampling technique will you use? (simple random sample, cluster sample, stratified sample, etc.)?
    • Where will your experiment be conducted? Lab/Field (be specific (example: classroom)
  • Design
    • What are your variables? How will they be manipulated and measured?
    • How do you plan to operationalize your concepts?
      • What is your independent variable?
        • Indicate the levels of the independent variable
      • What is your dependent variable?
        • How will it be measured? Give the operational definition.
      • What research design are you using (within- or between- subjects)?
  • Materials
    • What materials will you use?
      • Describe the materials you will use for your intervention – how will you test that it worked?
      • If using materials from a previous research study – cite the research study (in text and in the reference section).
      • Provide samples of the materials in your appendix (e.g. sample survey, images, etc.).
  • Procedures
    • How will your study be conducted (step by step order)?
      • Summarize the instructions that will be given to participants.
      • If different participants will be exposed to different conditions explain the conditions.
      • Think about:
        • How the participants/sample will be divided into control and experimental groups
        • How you will implement your independent variable(s) and the levels
        • How you will record the effect of the independent variable on the response variable (dependent variable)?
• Appendix (2+ pages)
  • For the Appendix section, be sure to include one example of a consent form and an example of your materials (e.g. survey questions, images of materials that will be used, etc.).

Final Research Proposal Guidelines and Rubric

The final research proposal consists of Assignment 3 and Assignment 4 –you are to revise both based on the feedback provided and combine the two assignments – this will constitute your final research proposal.

Requirements: USE THE APA TEMPLATE ON BLACKBOARD

• In APA format: Cite your sources using intext citations and reference list on last page in APA style!
• Typed: 1-inch margins; 12pt. Times New Roman font; Double spaced
• Minimum of 8 pages (including title page, introduction, methods section, reference list, and appendix)
• Minimum of 4 peer reviewed articles

The proposal should consist of 5 sections:

1. Title Page (1 Page) Title of research proposal, student’s name, and affiliation (Brooklyn College, CUNY).
2. Introduction (3+ Pages) – Assignment 2 - Use the feedback provided to refine your introduction.
3. Method Section (2+ Page) – Assignment 3 - Use the feedback provided to refine your Methods Section>
4. Reference (1 Page) Consist of a proper list (in APA format) of all the research that you cited in your proposal and any additional sources that you used in your project.

5. Appendix (2+ Page) Consist of materials discussed in your methods section (sample of consent form, survey, intervention used, etc.).

Presentation Guidelines and Rubric

The presentation will be a 5 – minute PowerPoint Presentation on your Research Proposal

• Presentations will be timed.
• The last 2 classes (prior to the final exam) will be student presentations.
• Everyone is expected to attend class and participate.
• Students will be assigned their presentation date randomly.
• There are no make-ups.

Presentation Tips:

• Your slides should be visually appealing, but “clean.”
• Keep it simple - Do not overburden slides with text.
• Slides should complement your oral presentation, not repeat or replace it.
• Use visuals - picture/cartoon—to grab the audience’s attention; Visuals are always nice and help make points or break up text.
• Consider putting key terms on the slides, not full sentences (less is more).
• Short video (1-minute max) is acceptable

Presentation Outline:

• Title of research proposal and your name - Introduce yourself and your research area.
• Brief context of the problem/issue being addressed to inform the audience what made you curious or what motivated the research.  This should naturally lead to your research question(s). State your research question and goal.
• Provide background information about your topic; what have previous researchers uncovered about the topic? How does it relate? Why is it significant? Etc.
• Research aims: Variables, definitions, and hypothesis – these should flow logically. State how this will help answer you research question.
• Your intervention and research design – explain/discuss
• Methods: Participants, Materials – provide examples (visuals) if possible, Methods: Procedure

Final Slide: Conclusion/Implications -Explain the significance or implications of your research/intervention. Think big picture: “here’s what I learned about this topic.”

Grading will be based on the student’s ability to present the information listed on the presentation outline.

Final Exam and Infographic

You are to create an infographic poster on your research proposal topic to be presented in class.

• See Blackboard for an example of an infographic created by a prior student.
• Your infographic should be an original piece of work that is based on findings from previous research.
• ***The information must be summarized (in your own words) and cited using APA format.

Grading

Grading will be based on how it looks (simple, clean, coordinating colors, appropriate graphics etc.) and how informative it is to the issue at hand.

Guidelines

• What is your applied research topic/issue/problem? Think about what you have learned about it– this will be the theme of your infographic.
• What is the significance of the topic?
• What is it that you want the audience to learn/do after they read your infographic? Think about what you want to happen – what is your dream goal? How is it supported by previous research?
• What does the research say about the topic/your goal?
• Are there any statistics that convey the current status of the issue or the problem? This information might come from the research articles you reviewed, government websites, or other trustworthy sources (don’t forget to cite).
• What is the best way to visually represent your findings? Graphs? Pictures? Arrows? What images, colors, shapes, and icons go best with your topic? Keep your audience (e.g. parents, children, teachers) in mind.
• Don’t forget to take credit for your work. Include:
  • Title
  • Your Name
  • CHST 4200 – ER6
  • Spring 2020
  • Instructor Parbatie Chitolie

• Poster

  • I suggest using Microsoft PowerPoint to create your infographic (this is essential for printing and formatting).  The infographic should be printed in color on either Letter/Legal sized paper.
    • For tips on accessibility view this NCRTM videocast on creating accessible PowerPoint presentations.