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Removing The Mysteries Of Research Proposals: A Review Of Steven. R. Terrell’S Writing A Proposal For Your Dissertation: Guidelines And Examples, Richard H. Rogers

The Qualitative Report

Close your eyes and reflect on that first moment you entered a research or content-based course and discovered that you would be writing and presenting a research proposal to a researcher to ask for assistance on conducting a study that would solve a current curriculum issue or increase student achievement. Terrell’s (2016) book provides the knowledge and skills students need in an introductory research course, a research proposal course, or a content course that embeds research. Terrell guides students through their proposal and provides samples for students to review and apply to their work.

Epistemological Ruptures: Flashback On Fieldwork Dilemmas While Doing Research On Friends At Home, Israel Aguilar

The Qualitative Report

While doing fieldwork at home and/or with people who are familiar can yield new knowledge, researchers using ethnographic techniques ought to first assume the role of apprentice and enact vulnerability before they can represent findings that represent what really happened. Doing otherwise can tarnish relationships or jeopardize a study. The history of narrative within ethnographic research is discussed as an introduction to the author’s own personal narrative, which is in the form of a flashback that illustrates the journey he embarked on in 2010 when he initiated dissertation research in his hometown of south Texas. It is here where he …

My Dissertation Healed Me: A Retrospective Analysis Through Heuristic Inquiry, Smita Kumar

The Qualitative Report

It was my personal experience of intimate partner violence (IPV) that motivated me to undertake my dissertation, but during the process I was haunted by my “IPV survivor” identity. Little did I know that my intellectual pursuit was an invitation into personal healing through heuristic inquiry. During the data collection phase of my dissertation, I unconsciously embarked on the initial engagement phase of heuristic inquiry, but only 2 years after completing my dissertation did I realize I experienced six phases of Moustakas’s (1990) heuristic inquiry. In this article, I share how my dissertation healed me through a retrospective analysis using …

Using Lenses To Make Sense Of Research: A Review Of Sharon M. Ravitch And Matthew Riggan’S Reason & Rigor: How Conceptual Frameworks Guide Research, Richard Rogers

The Qualitative Report

Have you or your students ever had questions about conceptual frameworks or found that you used different verbiage when discussing conceptual frameworks? This book succinctly explains conceptual frameworks and how they inform all parts of the research process. Ravitch and Riggan include exemplar empirical studies as models to help readers see the new knowledge in action. They also challenge your thinking and verbiage with conceptual frameworks. If you are a current doctoral student or if you are a researcher about to begin an empirical study, this book will help you create a more rigorous study that links all parts of …

A Grounded Theory Of Persistence In A Limited-Residency Doctoral Program, Donna H. Kennedy, Steven R. Terrell, Michael Lohle

The Qualitative Report

Approximately 50% of doctoral students in social science, humanities, and educational doctoral programs fail to earn their Ph.D. This number is 10% to 15% higher for students enrolled in online or limited-residency programs. Using in-depth interviews and qualitative data analysis techniques, this grounded-theory study examined participants’ recollections of their experience as students in a limited-residency doctoral program and their reasons for withdrawal while working on their dissertation. The study was guided by the central question “What is the nature of the participants’ experiences of doctoral attrition in a limited-residency doctoral program?” The resultant theory clarified relationships between attrition and a …

Detecting Well-Being In Digital Communities: An Interdisciplinary Engineering Approach For Its Indicators, Margeret A. Hall

Interdisciplinary Informatics Faculty Publications

In this thesis, the challenges of defining, refining, and applying well-being as a progressive management indicator are addressed. This work's implications and contributions are highly relevant for service research as it advances the integration of consumer well-being and the service value chain. It also provides a substantial contribution to policy and strategic management by integrating constituents' values and experiences with recommendations for progressive community management.

An Ethnographic Study: Becoming A Physics Expert In A Biophysics Research Group, Idaykis Rodriguez

Idaykis Rodriguez

Expertise in physics has been traditionally studied in cognitive science, where physics expertise is understood through the difference between novice and expert problem solving skills. The cognitive perspective of physics experts only create a partial model of physics expertise and does not take into account the development of physics experts in the natural context of research. This dissertation takes a social and cultural perspective of learning through apprenticeship to model the development of physics expertise of physics graduate students in a research group. I use a qualitative methodological approach of an ethnographic case study to observe and video record the …

A Grounded Theory Of Connectivity And Persistence In A Limited Residency Doctoral Program, Steven R. Terrell, Martha M. Snyder, Laurie P. Dringus, Elizabeth Maddrey

The Qualitative Report

Limited-residency and online doctoral programs have an attrition rate significantly higher than traditional programs. This grounded-theory study focused on issues pertaining to communication between students, their peers and faculty and how interpersonal communication may affect persistence. Data were collected from 17 students actively working on their dissertation in a limited-residency educational technology program. The resultant theory indicated that students felt communication between themselves and peers is possible but not common. Students also indicated that dissertation supervisors are readily accessible but longer than expected response times may contribute to a lack of student success. The results suggest the development and effective …

From “Bitch” To “Mentor”: A Doctoral Student’S Story Of Self-Change And Mentoring, Brian T. Gearity, Norma Mertz

The Qualitative Report

For several reasons, the process of writing and completing the doctoral dissertation has been identified as the most frequent road block for many promising scholars. The goal of this study is to help improve doctoral student dissertation completion by focusing on the crucial, central concerns of effective student writing, faculty mentoring, and the student-advisor relationship. Using an experimental, evocative autoethnographic approach, the following study shows the struggles and successes of a doctoral student managing himself, the university, “life”, and most importantly, his doctoral dissertation chair. The findings weave together strategies from storytelling (e.g., plot, characters, and scene) with the personal …

Participatory And Action-Oriented Dissertations: The Challenges And Importance Of Community-Engaged Graduate Research, Emily Van Der Meulen

The Qualitative Report

Graduate students commonly experience isolation and estrangement when conducting their final research projects, which can contribute to difficulties in completion. A creative and socially beneficial way to offset academic isolation is for graduate students to engage in participatory and action-oriented research projects with local communities. Facilitating a research study with a local partner can be a richly rewarding experience. This article argues that students who enjoy working in collaborative environments and want their final research projects to lead to beneficial social change can find fulfillment in action research (AR) methodologies. Critiqued by some for its lack of tangible and practical …

Appraisal Learning Networks: How University Archivists Learn To Appraise Through Social Interaction, Kimberly D. Anderson

Kimberly D. Anderson

The appraisal of archival materials for ongoing value is one of the core responsibilities of the archivist, yet empirical research on how archivists learn to appraise is absent from the field. The purpose of this study is to understand how and when archivists learn to appraise and to devise a methodology for further studies in archival learning and knowledge transmission. It was hypothesized that the appraisal learning (continuing and formal) structures of university archivists can be understood as a network of relationships that demonstrates lineages of ideas and influences. The study employed an iterative process in which exploratory research and …

From Qualitative Dissertation To Quality Articles: Seven Lessons Learned, Glenn A. Bowen

The Qualitative Report

New scholars frequently face an immense challenge in writing papers for publication. Qualitative research novices, in particular, experience frustration in getting peer-reviewed papers published in top-tier journals. This article is a primer on converting a dissertation based on qualitative research into a journal article. It summarizes seven lessons, learned over a five-year period, about getting published. The lessons focus attention on manuscript content and style, the publication process, and working relationships.

Soup To Nuts In Doing Qualitative Research: A Comprehensive Guide By David Silverman And Amir Marvasti, Diana Riviera

The Qualitative Report

Doing Qualitative Research: A Comprehensive Guide by David Silverman and Amir Marvasti is a masterpiece for any graduate student looking for guidance in research and dissertation process. The authors provide extensive information on the entire research and dissertation procedure as well as offer tips to conquer the qualifying exam and the rewards and challenges to publishing post dissertation.

Effects Of Service-Learning On Student Attitudes Toward Academic Engagement And Civic Responsibility, Larry Joseph Moss

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

This empirical study explored the impact of service-learning participation on high school students' attitudes toward academic engagement and civic responsibility. This study focused whether a group of high school students who participated in a service-learning project had more positive attitudes toward academic engagement and civic responsibility than their high school peers who did not participate in a service learning project.

Bridging Politics And Science, Carl E. Marklund

Carl Marklund

Dissertation Summary In this dissertation I have tried to map how the concept of “social engineering” has been used from its inception in the early 1890s to the beginning of its decline in the late 1940s. The study concentrates upon the 1930s. In particular, I have asked who used this concept, in what contexts, and against which adversaries. I have taken most of my material from Sweden and the USA since both of these countries have been seen as examples of successful “organization of modernity.” And social engineering is indeed often taken to be exactly that—an attempt at organizing modernity.

Service-Learning: Motivations For K-12 Teachers, Marjori Maddox Krebs

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

The purpose of this dissertation is to describe the essence of the service-learning experience for K-12 teachers in central and northwest Ohio, specifically exploring teacher motivations for initiating service-learning in the classroom. Service-learning is defined as an educational methodology that incorporates student preparation, service to the community, and reflection, with links to the academic curriculum (Billig, 2002).

The Institutionalization Of Service-Learning As A Pedagogical Tool For Campus Engagement At Public Versus Private Higher Education Institutions, Gwenda R. Greene

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

Historically, higher education institutions have charged departments such as Academic Affairs with students' academic growth, and Student Affairs with their social and emotional development. Where and how these two come together to engage the holistic development of students will differ widely among institutions. This research premise was to investigate a method that could help bridge Academic Affairs and Student Affairs areas. A comprehensive review of the literature on educational reforms in higher education delineates service-learning as an innovative pedagogy for impacting the holistic development of students while enhancing the scholarship of engagement throughout the institutions. This research outlines theories, principles, …

The Legitimacy Of Experiential Learning In Research Universities, Angela E. Schmiede

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

The goal of this historical and exploratory study was to describe and analyze the spread and legitimacy of experiential learning to and within Cornell University and Stanford University. Using an institutional and political framework, this analysis focused on understanding how elements of legitimacy from the academy, the experiential learning field and the external environment intersected to shape the diffusion, forms and purposes of experiential learning within Cornell and Stanford. The constructions of legitimacy within these three different contexts shifted over time, influencing the extent to which experiential learning was adopted; and once adopted, the extent to which it was adapted, …

The Impact Of Service Learning On Perceptions Of Self-Efficacy, Monalisa Mccurry Mullins

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

In recent years, the role of higher education in promoting volunteerism and social responsibility through service learning has become an issue that may radically impact both faculty and student development programs on American college campuses. Despite the significant amount of data regarding the impact of student participation in service learning on students' attitudes toward volunteerism and social responsibility, there is still a tremendous gap in our understanding of how such participation impacts subsequent student perceptions of personal self-efficacy. The purpose of this qualitative case study is to further articulate and clarify the relationship between student involvement in service learning courses …

Best Practices In Service-Learning At Christian Private Liberal Arts Colleges And Universities, Regan Harwell Schaffer

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

The purpose of this study was to develop a working definition of service-Ieaming, identify the best practices of service-learning in the Christian college context and based upon that information develop a model that could be replicated at similar colleges and universities. To address the research questions, the researcher performed a descriptive study which incorporated the following: (a) examination of the findings of unpublished data from a survey on service-Iearning at 90 Christian colleges and universities and notes from a conference on service-learning at faith-based institutions; (b) conducting a thorough review of the literature on service-learning and the mission and purpose …

Teaching The "Heart And Soul" Of Citizenship: Service-Learning As Citizenship Education, Bernadette Sun Chi

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

Troubling trends in political disengagement among young people include decreasing knowledge of and interest in political issues as well as lower rates of voting compared to previous generations. To potentially address this CO~ service-learning has often been promoted in public schools as a means of educating active citizens, among other outcomes.

Despite the expansion of service-learning programs, the relationship between service-learning and citizenship outcomes deserves further study. This dissertation examines the following questions: Do teachers consider "citizenship" an explicit goal for service-learning experiences in K-12 schools? How do teachers and students define what it means to be a "good citizen"? …

Service In A Cultural Immersion Setting: Student Teachers Evaluate "A Sense Of Community", Susan E. Johnstad

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

Classroom demographics in K-12 schools in the U.S. show that students of color represent an increased percentage of those enrolled. and that the number of students whose families are in poverty is on the rise. Yet teaching is a profession long dominated by middle-class individuals of European ancestry. The recruitment of teachers from diverse backgrounds is paramount, but teacher education must also prepare new professionals to meet the needs of students whose backgrounds might be different from their own. Cultural immersion and community-based service learning are two strategies for enhancing multicultural education for preservice teachers.

This is a qualitative case …

Service Learning's Influence On Multicultural Goals: Among Elite High School Girls: An Interpretative Case Study, Gina Miller Blackburn

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

This qualitative study was designed to explore the experiences of high school girls in a service-learning class that I co-taught with my husband, Jeffrey Stephens. an economics and World Civilizations teacher at the Bayou School. I observed the participants during their three-week service class entitled The Economy's Impact Upon Its Citizenry when they served at a Salvation Anny community center and during their class discussions. I also interviewed all of the students before the class began, three times during the class. and twice after the class was over. The students kept journals throughout the class and wrote a case study …

Empowering Students Through Community Action, Natasha Diane Yanez

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

Service Learning is a pedagogy in which the student must participate directly in a service-oriented project, which addresses a real community need. This study focused on the effect of service learning in the curriculum. Research was conducted over service learning, its implementation, and its effects. In addition, the study looks at how one junior high school implemented service learning into their curriculum and the difficulties involved in creating a more intense program.

It was discovered that service learning was often not integrated into the curriculum as expected, teachers often did not require students to reflect on their experiences, and teachers …

Impacts And Effects Of Service-Learning On High School Students, Bryan Richard Rossi

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

In the ten years this researcher has spent preparing to complete the requirements for a Ph.D. in Education Policy and Administration, he has come to see some of the transformations society and education have gone through. This has been fascinating to examine in parallel the educational transformations and human development of work and research in various schools. On the one hand, there have been the developments of the "macro-education" world through the Department of Children, Families and Learning, the state legislature, the news media, and the role of the university in education policy. On the other hand, there have been …

Building Citizenship: Service-Learning And Student Learning, William D. Morgan

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

Even the most casual observer of the American news media could walk away with the impression that there are hosts of negative trends, ranging from a drop in the percentage of people who vote, to an increase in political alienation. Some of these are the result of marketing efforts conducted by groups who have a vested interest in making things look worse, and some of this may be the result of the type of news that is covered, with the guiding philosophical perspective being "if it bleeds it leads." Nonetheless, these problems are real. As Jim Wallis (1994) notes, '''Things …

Enhancing Student Development In Service-Learning With Performance-Based Assessment Rubrics, Paula M. Vaughn

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

This study examined issues regarding the educational development of students in service-learning programs using sets of performance-based assessment rubrics and other assessment techniques. In particular, this study employed the Service-Learning Assessment Toolkit (SLAT). a compilation of instruments, measures, and guidelines developed by the researcher. The SLAT captured students' educational development through a variety of data sources and measured development across six target constructs: career exploration, civic participation, and academic, ethical, personal and social growth.

The researcher used a naturalistic inquiry and data was collected and analyzed based on a two-group scenario, instructor and student. The research data identified whether the …

The Sustaining Factors Of Service-Learning At A National Leader School: A Case Study, Bruce J. Pontbriand

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

This case study examines the sustaining factors of a fully implemented and nationally recognized high school service-learning program. More specifically, it investigates why Community Service Learning has sustained itself for nine years at a New England high school recognized as a National Service-Learning Leader School by the Corporation for National Service. The study describes the process of adoption, design, implementation, and paths to institutionalization. It also considers the organizational conditions that promoted institutionalization at this site. The research approach was primarily qualitative. The study exposes the broad narrative of the case from the perspective off Our data sources: observations, documents …

Inducing Voluntary Community Service In Undergraduates: The Relative Contributions Of Prior Experience, Coursework, And The Dispositions Of Empathy And Moral Development, Susan M. Hudec

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

In the past twenty years, higher education has been criticized for what is perceived to be a failure to create better citizens. As a result of this criticism, a variety of pedagogical and curricula innovations have been attempted. One of these innovations is service learning, a form of experiential learning, which engages students in activities that combine fulfillment of community needs and opportunities for promotion of student learning and development (Kendall, 1990). This study hypothesized that moral development and empathy would increase over the course of the required service learning experience in the first semester of college and that required …

Writing Toward Democracy: Service-Learning And Composition, Glenn C. Hutchinson Jr.

Thesis, Dissertations, Student Creative Activity, and Scholarship

This study will show how encouraging students to write toward democracy could help them to become better writers and citizens. Service-learning can help students learn to write through active inquiry, collaboration with different discourse communities, and consideration of their roles as citizens. However, service-learning must meet three challenges in order to be successful.

First, I will argue that freshman composition's subordinate status as a service course to the university can inhibit a pedagogy of service-learning. Even though service-learning may be a useful term to name this pedagogy, I propose that we find a different name in order to emphasize student …