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Chapters 1 and 3. Your Mid-Term. Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION (all thesis types). Chapter 1 is your introduction and must be a minimum of 2 pages. Experimental Thesis: Introduction. Your first section is the Research Question(s)
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Chapters 1 and 3 Your Mid-Term
Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION (all thesis types) Chapter 1 is your introduction and must be a minimum of 2 pages.
Experimental Thesis: Introduction Your first section is the Research Question(s) Pose a question(s) around what you plan on researching. This section will only contain the research question(s). Make sure that the question(s) is clear (reader easily understands the purpose of the research), focused (topic is narrow and can be answered within the parameters of the thesis but cannot be answered with a yes or no), concise, and arguable.
Product and Systematic Thesis: Introduction Your first section is the Problem Statement/Research Question(s) Identify the problem. What is wrong or needs to be addressed? You are not discussing why it is a problem here or how you plan on addressing the issue. It is what the category says: a statement/question.
Introduction (all thesis types) Your next section is Background Information Discuss briefly the background details of your topic. Remember your intended audience for this paper may not necessarily be an expert in this particular subject. Discuss briefly previous research done on your specific topic. You may wish to discuss existing treatments or solutions to your problem. You will more thoroughly discuss existing research in both Chapters 2 and 4. This discussion serves an introduction to why you are seeking to answer your research problem/question. Include citations as needed.
Introduction (all thesis types) Your third section is Purpose of the Study Introduce the importance/relevancy of your topic. Consider how you are placing the problem you have identified within a particular context. Approach this from a “so-what” framework. Convey to the reader the importance of your study. How will it add to the already existing conversation? Why is this significant? By doing this, you are creating the parameters of your investigation and justifying the purpose of your study. Hypothesis: construct a statement which offers a solution based on the research question(s) you have posed. The hypothesis must be a testable prediction on what you plan to research.
Chapter 3 Past tense discussion/justification of methods used to perform your research. Explains what research you did/how you did it; lets readers evaluate reliability/validity of your work ALL thesis work will have a Chapter 3 because all thesis papers conduct some form of problem-solving (which requires a method in order to solve that problem). All thesis students will select one type of methodology: Quantitative (e.g., surveys, experiments, design). More objective Qualitative (e.g., interviews). More subjective and interpretive. Requires reflection on your position as researcher (i.e., how you might have influenced results) Mixed methodology: combination of both
In Completing Chapter 3, Follow These Four Steps Step 1: Introduce Your Overall Research Approach The goal here is to identify the question or problem you investigated, and the type of data you needed to answer or solve it In Step 1, you’ll state what type of methodology you conducted, discuss the rationale behind that methodology, and identify any assumptions any underpinning your methodology
Step 1 Questions to Answer Was your aim to address a practical or a theoretical problem? Why is this methodology the most suitable approach to answering your research question? Is this a standard methodology in your field or does it require justification? Were there any ethical or philosophical considerations? What are the criteria for validity and reliability in this type of methodology? Ex: Experimental methodology-- samples and controlled variables. Qualitative methodology-- contextual, real-world knowledge about the behaviors or shared beliefs of a specific group of people
Step 2: Describe Your Methods of Data Collection Once you have introduced your overall methodological approach, you should give full details of the methods you used to conduct the research Outline the tools, procedures and materials you used to gather data, and the criteria you used to select participants or sources
Data Collection: Quantitative Surveys: when, where, and how conducted; objectivity; form (e.g. multiple choice, rating scale); sampling method for selecting participants; length of time for response; sample size; response rate Experiments: give enough detail that someone can reproduce your results. How did you design your testable prototype or your experiment? How did you recruit participants or collect materials? What tools, tests, or technologies did you use in the experiment? Existing data: Explain how you selected sources for inclusion in your analysis. Where did you get those materials? How was the data originally produced? What criteria did you use to select your source materials (e.g. date range)?
Data Collection: Qualitative Interviews or focus groups: Describe where, when and how interviews were conducted. How did you find and select participants? How many people took part? What form did the interviews take (structured, semi-structured, unstructured)? How long were the interviews and how were they recorded? Participant observation: Describe where, when and how you conducted the observation. What group or community did you observe and how did you gain access to them? How long did you spend conducting the research and where was it located? How did you record your data (e.g. audiovisual recordings, note-taking)? Existing data: Explain how and why you selected case study materials (e.g., texts or images) for your analysis. What type of materials did you analyze?
Step 3: Describe Your Methods of Analysis Next, you should indicate how you processed and analyzed the data Avoid going into too much detail—you should not start presenting or discussing any of your results at this stage For Quantitative Methodology, your analysis is based on numbers. Discuss: How you prepared the data before analyzing it (e.g. checking for missing data, removing outliers, transforming variables). Which software you used to analyze the data (if any). Which statistical methods you used to analyze it
Step 3 For Qualitative Methodology, your analysis is based on language, images and observations. Your “methods” might include: • Content analysis: categorizing/discussing meaning of words, phrases and sentences • Thematic analysis: coding/closely examining data to identify broad themes and patterns • Narrative analysis: looking at storytelling structures/tropes and interpreting their meaning • Discourse analysis: studying communication, conversation, meaning in relation to their social contexts (looking at arguments!)
Step 4: Evaluate and Justify Your Methodological Choices Chapter 3 should make the case for why you chose particular methods. Discuss why other methods were not suitable for your objectives, and show how your chosen approach contributes new knowledge or understanding You can acknowledge limitations or weaknesses in the approach you chose, but justify why these were outweighed by the strengths. Ex: Lab-based experiments can’t always accurately simulate real-life situations and behaviors, but they are effective for testing causal relationships between variables Ex: Unstructured interviews usually produce results that cannot be generalized beyond a sample group, but they provide a more in-depth understanding of participants’ perceptions, motivations and emotions
Tips for Writing a Strong Methodology Show why your methods suit your objectives. Convince reader you chose best possible approach to answering your problem statement and research question. Throughout Chapter 3, relate your choices back to the central purpose of your thesis Cite relevant sources: to confirm you followed established practices; discuss how you evaluated different methodologies and decided on your approach; show that you took a novel methodological approach to address a gap in the literature Write for your audience (“educated professional”): Find balance between too much and not enough info. Accepted standards don’t need much discussion, but do not assume your audience is an expert on your topic Discuss obstacles: difficulties in collecting or analyzing data? How did you deal with them, minimize the impact of obstacles? Show me your research was rigorous
Self-Check Before submitting Chapter 3, make sure you answered ALL of the following Big Picture questions: 1. How did you collect or select your data? 2. How did you analyze your data? 3. What tools and materials did you use in your research? 4. What was your rationale for choosing the methods you chose (you’ll cite reference literature about that method) 5. Did you detail every step of the data gathering and analysis process?
Look! Exemplars! Whoohooo! https://central.rcschools.net/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=764538&type=u&pREC_ID=1396150
Surveys If you are conducting a survey, you must do the following prior to submitting: • Have an objective source(s) validating your survey • Have two thesis-involved adults read your survey (FOSA, Mentor, English Teacher) • Go to the writing lab All surveys must be submitted to Mr. Nichols by October 24. Copy your English Teacher and FOSA on the email.
