Alignment And Social Change

In this last week, you bring your skills in critically evaluating research to a final discussion of what it means for the components of a research study to be logically connected. As you recall from previous weeks, this connection refers to alignment.

You also consider the social change implications of research. Engendering positive social change is at the core of Walden University’s mission. As future researchers and scholar-practitioners in your fields, you have likely had, and will continue to have, opportunities to apply your Walden learning experiences to making a difference in the lives of others.

This week, you will revisit the interrelationship among research components to determine the criteria for evaluating alignment. You will also consider the relationship between research and social change as you reflect on your newly acquired research knowledge and skills.

In the context of research, alignment and social change will be important topics to return to as you prepare for the next courses in the research sequence and continue your development as a scholar-practitioner.

Consider, for example, what criteria are used in your discipline to evaluate alignment of research components. And in what way will your future research contribute to your identity as scholar-practitioner who is dedicated to positive social change?

For this Discussion, you will consider criteria for evaluating alignment among the various components of a research study. You will also reflect on your role as a positive social change agent through research.

With these thoughts in mind:

By Day 4

Post an explanation of the criteria you could use to evaluate alignment between data collection methods and other research components, such as the problem, purpose, research questions, and design. Then, reflecting on the course content, discuss the extent to which your newly acquired research knowledge and skills can support your role as an agent of positive social change. Be specific and provide an example(s).

Be sure to support your Main Issue Post and Response Post with reference to the week’s Learning Resources and other scholarly evidence in APA Style.

Vogt, W. P., Gardner, D. C., & Haeffele, L. M. (2012). When to use what research design. New York, NY: Guilford Press.

ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE CLASS

Discussion Questions (DQ)

Initial responses to the DQ should address all components of the questions asked, include a minimum of one scholarly source, and be at least 250 words.
Successful responses are substantive (i.e., add something new to the discussion, engage others in the discussion, well-developed idea) and include at least one scholarly source.
One or two sentence responses, simple statements of agreement or “good post,” and responses that are off-topic will not count as substantive. Substantive responses should be at least 150 words.
I encourage you to incorporate the readings from the week (as applicable) into your responses.

Weekly Participation

Your initial responses to the mandatory DQ do not count toward participation and are graded separately.
In addition to the DQ responses, you must post at least one reply to peers (or me) on three separate days, for a total of three replies.
Participation posts do not require a scholarly source/citation (unless you cite someone else’s work).
Part of your weekly participation includes viewing the weekly announcement and attesting to watching it in the comments. These announcements are made to ensure you understand everything that is due during the week.

APA Format and Writing Quality

Familiarize yourself with APA format and practice using it correctly. It is used for most writing assignments for your degree. Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for APA paper templates, citation examples, tips, etc. Points will be deducted for poor use of APA format or absence of APA format (if required).
Cite all sources of information! When in doubt, cite the source. Paraphrasing also requires a citation.
I highly recommend using the APA Publication Manual, 6th edition.

Use of Direct Quotes

I discourage overutilization of direct quotes in DQs and assignments at the Masters’ level and deduct points accordingly.
As Masters’ level students, it is important that you be able to critically analyze and interpret information from journal articles and other resources. Simply restating someone else’s words does not demonstrate an understanding of the content or critical analysis of the content.
It is best to paraphrase content and cite your source.

LopesWrite Policy

For assignments that need to be submitted to LopesWrite, please be sure you have received your report and Similarity Index (SI) percentage BEFORE you do a “final submit” to me.
Once you have received your report, please review it. This report will show you grammatical, punctuation, and spelling errors that can easily be fixed. Take the extra few minutes to review instead of getting counted off for these mistakes.
Review your similarities. Did you forget to cite something? Did you not paraphrase well enough? Is your paper made up of someone else’s thoughts more than your own?
Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for tips on improving your paper and SI score.

Late Policy

The university’s policy on late assignments is 10% penalty PER DAY LATE. This also applies to late DQ replies.
Please communicate with me if you anticipate having to submit an assignment late. I am happy to be flexible, with advance notice. We may be able to work out an extension based on extenuating circumstances.
If you do not communicate with me before submitting an assignment late, the GCU late policy will be in effect.
I do not accept assignments that are two or more weeks late unless we have worked out an extension.
As per policy, no assignments are accepted after the last day of class. Any assignment submitted after midnight on the last day of class will not be accepted for grading.

Communication

Communication is so very important. There are multiple ways to communicate with me:
Questions to Instructor Forum: This is a great place to ask course content or assignment questions. If you have a question, there is a good chance one of your peers does as well. This is a public forum for the class.
Individual Forum: This is a private forum to ask me questions or send me messages. This will be checked at least once every 24 hours.