EDLD 610
Research Seminar:
The Literature Review
Summer, 2009
May 20 - August 5
Wednesday, 5:00 - 7:30 p.m.
SBET 140
4 Semester Credits
Instructor: Thomas R. McCambridge, Ph.D.
Office: SBET 213
Phone: (805) 493-3818
E-mail:
mccamb@clunet.edu
Office Hours:
by appointment
California Lutheran University is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to students with various documented disabilities (physical, learning, or psychological). If you are a student requesting accommodations for this course, please contact me at the beginning of the semester and register with the Coordinator for Students With Disabilities (Pearson Library, Center for Academic Resources, Ext 3260) for the facilitation and verification of need. Faculty will work closely with you and your coordinator to provide necessary accommodations.
Register on
ProfPort for 2009
EDLD 610 1 SU1 Research Seminar: Literature Review
Our Vision of Educator
Preparation
The mission of California Lutheran University is to educate leaders for a global society who are strong in character and judgment, confident in their identity and vocation, and committed to service and justice.
In accordance with the mission of CLU, the School of Education seeks to develop reflective, principled educators who strive to
Course Description
This course is an introduction to the process of writing a literature
review. Students will learn the basic guidelines to use in evaluating
quantitative and qualitative literature, will define a research problem and a
research question, will read and critically evaluate a significant number of
appropriate articles and other sources, and will produce a 10-page critical
essay that will synthesize their findings.
(This essay
will be the first step toward developing the Review of the Literature chapter of
the dissertation. The second step will be a longer and more elaborate version of
this essay for the Proposal Defense in Fall of the 3rd year. The last step will
be the writing of the Review of the Literature chapter of the dissertation, to
be defended in Spring of the 4th year.)
Course Objectives
Students in EDLD 610 will be able to
define the key terms in the literature review process
effectively use a variety of sources of research materials
define a research problem that will be the basis of the dissertation
write a critical essay synthesizing their research findings
use proper APA format for all references, notes, and bibliographies
Required Reading
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (5th ed., 2006)
Galvan, Jose L., Writing Literature Reviews: A Guide for Students of the
Social and
Behavioral Sciences: Pyrczak (3rd ed., 2006)
Creswell, John W., Educational Research: Planning, Conducting, and Evaluation
of
Quantitative and Qualitative Research: Pearson Merrill Prentice Hall
(3rd ed., 2008)
The Electronic Portfolio
All written assignments for this class will be uploaded to the Electronic Portfolio. (Register on ProfPort for 2009 EDLD 610 1 SU1 Research Seminar: Literature Review)
Graded Assignments:
1. Notes on the Reading: For most sessions of the
course, you will be asked to perform specific exercises from one or both of the
textbooks and post your responses in ProfPort. Responses may be brief but must
be specific and precise. Assignments will be found at the bottom of the Study
Questions for each of the six meetings.
1. Paper #1: This paper includes a statement of your research question and a description of how you plan to do research into it. It should be 3-5 pages (approximately 700 - 1200 words). In addition, you should append a list of at least 20 sources (in proper APA format). Due June 3.
2. Paper #2: This paper is an annotated bibliography (in proper APA format) of at least 30 sources you are using in your research into your question. Due June 17
3. Paper #3: This paper is the final product for the class. The essay should be approximately 10 pages and refer to 50 to 60 sources. A bibliography (in proper APA format) must be appended. Each student will describe his or her findings to the class in a brief but formal presentation. Due August 3
Individual and Thematic
Research:
1. Individual Dissertation:
a. Analytic Dissertation: quantitative or qualitative social
science research
b. Normative Dissertation: a positive
argument for philosophy, policy, or practice
2. Thematic Dissertation (same general area of interest; different points of view):
a. Analytic Dissertation: quantitative or qualitative social
science research
b. Normative Dissertation: a positive
argument for philosophy, policy, or practice
3. Thematic Dissertation (same question; different sources of data):
a. Analytic Dissertation: quantitative or qualitative social
science research
b. Normative Dissertation: a positive
argument for philosophy, policy, or practice
Writing for EDLD 610:
There are two equally important elements in the writing for this course.
The first is that your writing should begin to look like good writing about research. The best --- probably the only --- way to learn to do this is by reading a lot of such writing and consciously working at imitating it.
The second is that your writing should be good writing: clear, coherent, well-organized, grammatically correct, etc. The key to this is to have a good thesis statement for whatever you write: a single simple sentence in specific, concrete terms. Once you have such a thesis, you can work on doing nothing else in the paper but developing it.
Class Meetings:
We will meet a total of 7 times over the space of 12 weeks: May 20, May 27, June 3, June 10, June 17, June 24, and August 5.
Between July 13 and July 30, I expect to meet with each student at least once in person. Other meetings can be scheduled as needed.
Throughout most the summer, I will be available by e-mail.
Presentation on Research Methods:
Henri Mondschein of the Pearson Library will present an overview of CLU online databases for conducting the literature review and will demonstrate advanced searching techniques for ferreting out seminal research and peer-reviewed sources to support Chapter 2 and other sections of the dissertation. The focus will be on translating the research question into search queries to retrieve scholarly articles. Specific databases reviewed will be ERIC, Wilson Education Full-Text, and SCOPUS as well as interdisciplinary databases in psychology, social sciences and related fields. The session will include discussions on distinguishing peer-reviewed literature from non-scholarly information (such as trade journal articles). The session will be hands-on and offer opportunities to use several databases in a supportive environment.
Student Presentations:
Students will make a formal presentation to the class on Wednesday, August 5: a brief, oral version of their final paper, describing what they found in their reviews of the literature pertaining to their questions and describing the state of their research into their questions.
This presentation is to be formal; that is, it is to be completely prepared and presented in a clear, orderly, effective way. There must be either handouts or a PowerPoint presentation or both.
This is an opportunity for to sharpen your thinking about what you're doing and an opportunity to learn from the research and the research processes of other students.
Class Participation:
This accounts for 20% of your semester grade and will depend on the following factors:
1. attendance
2. punctuality
3. contribution to the discussion
4. quality of formal class presentations
5. quality of discussion of formal class presentations
6. quality of individual or thematic groups meeting(s) with me
Grading:
| Reading Notes #1 | May 20 | 5% |
| Reading Notes #2 | May 27 | 5% |
| Paper #1 | June 3 | 10% |
| Reading Notes #3 | June 3 | 5% |
| Reading Notes #4 | June 10 | 5% |
| Paper #2 | June 17 | 10% |
| Reading Notes #5 | June 17 | 5% |
| Reading Notes #6 | June 24 | 5% |
| Paper #3 | August 5 | 30 % |
| Class participation | 20% |
Grading Policy
N.B.: EDLD 610 is a Pass/NC course. "Passing" in this program means a grade no lower than "B".
Grades are assigned on the basis of the following scale:
100-94 A
93-90 A-
89-99 B+
87-84 B
An "A" is given to a paper
where the content is accurate and complete, the organization is logical and
coherent, and the writing (syntax, grammar, spelling, etc.) is perfect.
An "A-" is given when the content is accurate but
not complete, the organization is logical and coherent, and the writing is close
to perfect.
A "B+" is given when the content is close to being
accurate and complete, the organization is logical and coherent, and the writing
is close to perfect.
A "B" is given when the content is generally
accurate but not complete, the organization is close to logical and coherent,
and the writing is not marred by too many usage errors.
A "B-" is given when the content is partially
accurate and incomplete, the organization is haphazard, and the writing is
marred by several usage errors.
I will be happy to discuss any of my evaluations of your work with you at a
time of mutual convenience. It is possible that either errors of fact or errors
of judgment can be made, and I would be happy to correct such errors. In
preparation for such discussions, I would ask you to write down the reasons you
believe an error has been made and explain the reasons why the evaluation should
have been different.
MISCELLANEOUS
There will be a
"distribution list" for this class
and you will be responsible for all information sent on it. It will also be a
way for us to communicate with one another outside of class time regarding
assignments, questions of interest, research opportunities, etc.
Ten-percent of your grade depends on class participation. You
cannot participate if you are not here, so any tardiness, leaving early, or
absence will lower your grade. Roll will be taken at the beginning of each
class meeting.
There are no late papers. The assignment is
either in on time or it receives a failing grade. Assume that there will be a catastrophe just as you have to turn in an
assignment, and plan for it now. Seek assistance prior to due dates: Assignments may not be
redone.
Turn off all electronic
communication devices before entering the classroom.
Academic Integrity
California Lutheran University has as a basic premise the ideal of academic integrity. California Lutheran University students live and work in a collegiate community which emphasizes their responsibility for helping to determine and enforce appropriately high standards of academic conduct. The faculty of California Lutheran University expects all students to adhere to the highest standards of academic honesty, and to refrain from any action which infringes upon academic freedom of other members of the academic community. Please refer to the section on Academic Policies in the California Lutheran University Undergraduate or Graduate Catalogs.
Course Calendar
Wednesday, May 20 Introduction to the course; review of the syllabus
Topic: Research Topics and Research Problems
Reading: Galvan, Chapters 1 and 2 (pp. 1 - 15); Creswell, Chapter 3
(pp. 68 - 87)
Study Questions on Reading
DUE: Reading Notes #1
Wednesday, May 27
Topic: The nature of literature reviews
Reading: Galvan, Chapter 3 (pp. 17 - 29);
Creswell, Chapter 4 (pp. 88 - 119)
Study Questions on Reading
DUE: Reading Notes #2
Wednesday, June 3 Topic:
The elements of research
Reading: Galvan, Chapters 4, 5, and 6 (pp.31 - 61)
Study Questions on Reading
DUE: Reading Notes #3
Due: Paper #1
Wednesday, June 10 Topic:: Purpose Statements, Research Questions, and Hypotheses
Reading: Creswell, Chapter 5 (pp. 120 - 149)
Study Questions on Reading
DUE: Reading Notes #4
Wednesday, June 17 Topic:
Using tables
Reading: Galvan, Chapter 7 (pp. 63 - 69)
Study Questions on Reading
DUE: Reading Notes #5
Wednesday, June 24 Topic: Writing a Synthesizing Essay
Reading: Galvan, Chapters 8, 9, and 10 (pp. 71 - 97)
Study Questions on Reading
DUE: Reading Notes #6
Due: Paper #2
Wednesday, July 1 Topic: Review
of literature review
Wednesday, August 5 Class Activity: Presentations of final research findings
Due: Paper #3