ILLINOIS STATE UNIVERSITY

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EAF 508: APPLIED EDUCATION RESEARCH

SUMMER 2007

Instructor:                                                  Office Hours:     

John K. Rugutt                                                After class as needed and by appointment

323 DeGarmo Building

          Phone: (309) 438-2051

            Fax:     (309) 438-8683

            Email:  jkrugut@ilstu.edu

            Web page: http://people.coe.ilstu.edu/jkrugut/

            Class meets: Tuesday & Thursday 5:30 p.m. - 9:20 p.m., Room: DEG 204

Required Texts:

(GF) Gravetter, F. J. & Forzano, Lori-Ann, B. (2006). Research Methods for the Behavioral Sciences. Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth. (ISBN: 0-534-55811-9)

(Vogt) Vogt, W. P. (2007):  Quantitative Research Methods for Professionals. Allyn & Bacon. ISBN: 0-205-35913-2

Additional required readings and assignments will be available through WebCT.  Please click here for a word version of the course syllabus. 

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Course Objectives:

The purpose of this course is to prepare educational practitioners to use key concepts and methods of quantitative (main focus) and qualitative educational research to carry out strategic data-driven inquiry for school improvement.  Specifically, the purpose is to present technical and analytical tools needed to assess school district and unit performance and to conduct research on educational problems and issues.  Using recent texts focused on data use and data-driven decision making in schools, web/internet resources, and the instructor’s resources, participants will learn about different ways of measuring educational and school processes, as well as strategies for conducting data-based inquiries within their own institutions.  Specifically, as a result of participating in this course, students will learn how to:

1.                  Use quantitative (main focus) and qualitative data to assess how well their schools are meeting goals and standards;

2.                  Use statistics and graphic data displays to describe student achievement levels and other variables;

3.                  Use statistics to examine differences between and among groups;

4.                  Use statistics to examine relationships between variables;

5.                  Report and display data in ways that are understandable to parents, teachers, and students;

6.                  Perform basic statistical analyses and data displays using SPSS (a statistical analysis program).

Students will develop these skills through reading assignments, lectures, class discussions, in-class activities, and assigned projects.

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Course Requirements:

1.                  Participate in all class activities, complete all assigned readings, and be prepared to discuss them in class;

2.                  Complete the assignments by the due dates;

3.                  Complete a final paper and deliver presentation of the paper (may be in-class or through WebCT).

1.  Class Participation.  Attendance and active participation in class is very important and will be part of your grade.  Note that work on data analysis using computers will be primarily an in-class activity, so attendance on days we will work in the computer lab is particularly crucial. 

2.  Assignments.  Each student will complete a series of five assignments that together describe a process for using data and appropriate research methods to address a major problem their school is trying to solve or a major goal their school is attempting to achieve. 

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(1)                          Assignment 1 (due 6/26):  Identify at least 3 problems that administrators and teachers in your school want to solve or at least 3 goals that administrators and teachers in your school want to achieve.  Describe the problems/goals in detail.  Say how staff came to believe that these problems/goals were worth pursuing.  What steps is your school taking to address the problems/achieve the goals?  To identify these problems/goals you should consult with your school’s improvement plan, mission statement, and/or district and state standards documents.  Choose 1 key problem or goal that is either considered to be the most important by your school, or is simply the problem or goal in which you are most interested.  This problem or goal will be the focus of the remaining assignments, including the final project.  (Minimum of 2 pages single spaced, 4 pages double spaced).

(2)                          Assignment 2 (due 7/03):  Describe in detail the data you would need to collect in order to inquire about solving the key problem or goal you chose in Assignment 1.  What variables are being measured?  What kinds of data (for example, quantitative, qualitative, or both) would you need?  How would you collect the data?  Do you anticipate any difficulties in collecting the data?  Why are these the appropriate variables for shedding light on your problem/goal?  Be sure to propose sufficient data to take a broad approach to your problem/goal, using multiple variables to address your problem/goal using two or more different analysis strategies.  Do a literature review on each of the chosen variables.  (Minimum of 3 pages single spaced, 6 pages double spaced).

(3)                          Assignment 3 (due 7/10): Describe in detail the methods (at least two) you would use to analyze the data you proposed to collect in Assignment 3.  Be specific, discussing which technique would be used to analyze each variable.  Explain why each analysis method is appropriate for the data you’ve chosen and explain why each method will help you shed light on your problem/goal.  Also explain the purpose of the analyses.  For example, is the analysis intended to identify the magnitude of a problem or to assess whether the problem has been solved?   Or, you could propose a series of analyses that has multiple purposes.  (Minimum 2 pages single space, 2 pages double spaced).

(4)                          Assignment 4 (due 7/17):   For assignment 4 you have two options.  You can either: 1) conduct and report on an analysis of data from your school, or 2) conduct and report on an analysis of data for a “school” provided by the instructor.  Data provided by the instructor will allow students to explore either: 1) student achievement, and/or 2) various classroom and school processes.  If you elect to use data provided by the instructor, you should still attempt to relate your analyses to a goal or problem that is important for your school. Your analysis should include: 1) at least one statistical test for group differences (t-test or ANOVA), 2) at least one correlational analysis, 3) at least three types of descriptive statistics, and 4) at least one graphical display of a variable.  In addition to presenting these statistical results, you will also provide a write up of your interpretation of the results.  This write up should describe in detail how you would use the data analyses from this assignment to make judgments about whether a particular problem was being solved or a goal was being met.  What evidence from the analyses would indicate the problem was solved or goal was met?  When completing this assignment you should rely on readings from weeks 1 to 6 and any other resources you think relevant.  (Minimum 2 pages single spaced, 4 pages double spaced).

(5)                          Class Presentation (due 7/24): Prepare and deliver a 15 minute in-class or WebCT (TBA) presentation of your Final Project.  Since the final project is not due until 7/26, class presentations should simply reflect the state of your progress on the final project as of 7/24. 

(6)                          Final Project (due 7/26):   In the final assignment, you will assume the role as the principal of your school.  The final project will be a report to your district superintendent of a set of data-driven inquiries that will address the major problem or goal you wrote about in Assignments 1-4.  Drawing upon those assignments, your report will outline the problem or goal you chose to address, the literature review of the key variables, the data that were collected and analyzed, the analysis techniques that were used, and the kinds of judgments and decisions that can be made from those analyses.  Link your findings to prior research synthesized in the literature review of your variables.  Don’t just copy and paste Assignments 1-4 together.  The assignments need to tie together the four assignments in a coherent fashion and go further to reflect a “big picture” view of the issues.  Students will present a summary of their proposals in class or through WebCT (TBA).  (Minimum 13 pages single spaced, 26 pages double spaced).

Note: The completion of the above assignments and the final research report can also be used to meet the requirement for your superintendent certification.  You will

         need to upload your final report to the appropriate WebCT certification site. 

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Grading:

The following point allocation will be used to determine final grades for the class:

            1.         Class participation/attendance                                    20 points

            2.         Assignments 1-4                                                          20 points

            3.         Midterm                                                                       10 points        

            3.         Final Project                                                                20 points

            4.         Presentation of Final Project                                       10 points

            5.         Final Exam                                                                  20 points

Attendance.  You will receive 1 point for each class you attend and participate in for a maximum total of 20 points.  Everyone will automatically receive 4 points for attendance – 3 points for the classes that fall on Tuesday and 1 point for one class absence to be used at your discretion (for example, to attend parent/teacher conferences).  Being sick will not count as an absence.   

Assignments.  Assignments 1-4 are worth 5 points a piece for a maximum of 20 points.  Handing in a well thought out and well written assignment on the due date is worth 5 points.  Assignments turned in late will receive half-credit of 2.5 points if well done.  A high-quality final paper submitted on time will receive 20 points.  Final papers turned in one day late will receive a maximum of 15 points and final papers turned in more than one day late will receive half-credit, or a maximum of 10 points.  A well-done final presentation of your results will receive 10 points.  Students who do not present their results in class or through WebCT will not receive credit for the presentation. 

Letter grades will be assigned in accordance with the following scheme:

            Points                 Letter Grade
            90-100                         A (Exceptional Performance)

            80-89                           B (Above Average Performance)
            70-79                           C (Average Performance)
            60-69                           D (Below Average Performance)
            0-59                             F (Failing)

ISU Policies and Full Inclusion:

"Written or other work a student submits in a course must be the product of his/her own efforts:  plagiarism, cheating, or other forms of academic dishonesty are prohibited."  Cases of suspected copying, cheating, or plagiarism are referred to Student Dispute Office for a University hearing.

Any student needing to arrange a reasonable accommodation for a documented disability should contact Disability Concerns, 350 Fell Hall, (309) 438-5853 (voice), (309) 438-8620 (TDD)

Required Texts:

(GF) Gravetter, F. J. & Forzano, Lori-Ann, B. (2006). Research Methods for the Behavioral Sciences. Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth. (ISBN: 0-534-55811-9)

(Vogt) Vogt, W. P. (2007):  Quantitative Research Methods for Professionals. Allyn & Bacon. ISBN: 0-205-35913-2

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                                        Topical/Content Outline...Subject to Change

The instructor reserves the right to make changes to the course syllabus as necessary. 

It is the student's responsibility to keep up with changes to the syllabus

Note:    * Research Methods for the Behavioral Sciences (Gravetter, F. J. & Forzano, Lori-Ann B.)

              ** Quantitative Research Methods for Professionals (W. Paul, Vogt)

            *** Notes from the instructor

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