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last.updated 3.16.08

 

Designing Research

Purpose

The first step to ensuring a study's validity is to design the study to answer your research questions. But as the readings we have done indicate, there is never a single way to design a study. The choices we make for the study's design are often determined by the questions we pose, our philosophies about the creation of knowledge, what we plan to do with our research, the audience of research, and the parameters and limitations of one's situation. We will discuss these issues as we think about how to design our research projects.

Before Class

  • Read Atkinson "Situated qualitative research and second language writing" [L2WR]
  • Read Sasaki "Hypothesis generation and hypothesis testing" [L2WR]
  • Read Weissberg "Talking about writing" [L2WR]
  • Read Haswell "Researching teacher evaluation..." [L2WR]
  • Send an email to the instructor with your tentative research questions

Activity I: Understanding the Methodological

In seven groups, you will have ten minutes to answer the following questions about the following readings (Silva, Casanave, Polio, Atkinson, Sasaki, Weissberg, Haswell):

  • What is the author's argument? (What philosophical stance does the author take on the production of knowledge?)
  • Based upon the context of the article, what paradigm is the author responding to?
  • Is this argument useful outside L2 writing contexts? Why is particularly useful to the study of L2 writers? Explain.

Discussion: Designing a Study

We will discuss the following:

  • What questions do you have about the readings for this week and last week? What anxieties do you have about the Methodology Proposal?
  • What did you learn by examining the studies that we read earlier in the semester?
  • the "research process" with particular attention paid to developing research questions and designing the study

Activity II: Getting Started

In groups of three...

  • present your current research questions to your peers
  • use Hyland's chapter and your notes to discuss whether these are good research questions; also talk about possible revisions
  • discuss your tentative plans for your research design; critique each other's work and provide each other with feedback for revisions

Based upon this group discussion, start filling out the graphic organizer.