February 23: Quantitative Research Part 2

Tonight you spent the first part of class workshopping your ideas for your concept papers (the workshop prompts are posted to the right). The concept paper is a short, exploratory document that can serve as your basis for talking to your (possible) research advisor.  The purpose of the workshop was for you to use talk with classmates as a way to focus ideas and to some more or less coherent brainstormy possibilities that you and your advisor can use to develop your proposal.  Your concept paper should include any questions you need to resolve.

The remainder of class focused on the three readings as discussed by the Nic, Kena, and Angela.  The plan to spend some time taking ethnographic fieldnotes was not realized - we simply did not have time. Although I had ambitions plans for providing you with experiences in the different approaches to data collection and analysis, I am realizing that the broad "overview" demanded by this course will not leave time for this.  I am hoping that as you decide on methods for your study, you will come back to the references suggested by the book and in our discussions.

For next week:
Read: Mertens, Chapte 4 - Experimental and Quasiexperimental design: read this material with a focus on how issues surrounding validity, generalizability, and establising causality affect ALL research.  The discussion here is on work where researchers manipulate variables - but I want our discussion to consider how the issues Mertens raise bear upon YOUR research projects - which may or may not be "experimental".  The section on experimental design is probably less relevant to your work than the discussion at the beginning of the chapter,.

Also read:  Chapter 12 through page 379.  We will discuss standards for reliability in class - you can skim this but I think we can cover it in discussion.

Also read:  Emotions of Professional Writers (posted to the right)

In class we will discuss (quasi)experimental research and data collection, and examine an instance of how experimental research plays out in writing studies.  I will also post a copy of the exam question and we can talk through the process for the March 9 in-class exam on research methods up through readings assigned up to Chapter 4& 12.