Ashford 5: – Week 4 – Discussion 1

Your initial discussion thread is due on Day 3 (Thursday) and you have until Day 7 (Monday) to respond to your classmates. Your grade will reflect both the quality of your initial post and the depth of your responses. Reference the Discussion Forum Grading Rubric for guidance on how your discussion will be evaluated.

Action research is a form of inquiry in which a problem is identified and a series of actions are planned as a way of gaining deeper understanding of the range of possible solutions. The purpose of this discussion is to promote reciprocal sharing of your final action research report with others in your community of practice (your peers in this course) who would value the knowledge you have gained through the action research process. In this discussion, you will create a presentation using the software of your choice (e.g., PowerPoint, Google Docs, Present.me, YouTube, Prezi, Jing, SlideRocket, or another program) to present your findings to your school at an after school staff meeting. Include speaker notes if using PowerPoint. If using a program other than PowerPoint, submit a document with speaker notes included for each slide. 

There are two parts to this discussion.

Part 1: Share the process and results of the action research planned in EDU671 and conducted in EDU675. At a minimum:

• Describe the purpose of your study by writing a statement that completes the following sentence, “The purpose of this study is to…” (two to three sentences). 
• Post your research question(s) – Include definitions of key technical terms, if necessary. (one to three sentences)
• Outcomes/Results The “so what?” of your study—Answers to your research questions. (three to four sentences)
• Assuming you would conduct another cycle of this study, what specific modifications or adjustments would you make, and why? (three to four sentences)
• Explain why this study is important to the school and the students. ( two to three sentences)
• Explain why this study is important it is important for teachers and other educational practitioners to become researchers of their own practice. (two to three sentences)

Part 2: 

• Attach a link to your ePortfolio (Pathbrite).
• In one paragraph, reflect on your experience with the redesign of the Week Three Assignment in terms of challenges you encountered and how you overcame those challenges. Also include how your assessment promotes learning and innovation skills and how it could be used as a tool for ongoing evaluation of student progress.

Use the PowerPoint Template as a guide to help create a high quality presentation.

Alternate: If you do not have your own completed action research to utilize, you will take a slightly different approach to complete this discussion: Using the Ashford University Library, locate and analyze a peer-reviewed educational action research study. You will follow the same guidelines in Part 1 of the discussion to create a presentation to share in the discussion forum. An added part to your presentation is reference to the article. 

Guided Response: Respond to at least two peers. In your replies, take on the role of a teacher listening to the presentation. Ask questions about your peer’s  action research study and offer an additional resource for consideration that supports an alternative viewpoint. Though two replies is the basic expectation, for deeper engagement and learning, you are encouraged to provide responses to any comments or questions others have given to you, including the instructor. Responding to the replies given to you will further the conversation and provide additional opportunities for you to demonstrate your content expertise, critical thinking, and real-world experiences with this topic.

Ashford 5: – Week 4 – Assignment

Research and Educational Change

One aspect of professional development that educators can participate in is that of educational conferences. While you may at some point have participated in an educational conference as an attendee, you have the opportunity in this assignment to think as a presenter! This assignment will also provide you the opportunity to create a Curriculum Vitae (CV) and cover letter. 

In this assignment, you will take your discussion presentation you prepared for the staff meeting and convert it into a poster that you could use at an academic conference. As well, often when submitting a poster proposal you include a CV and cover letter that highlight your experience and research interests. 

Historically, a conference poster session involves use of a large poster-board style document as a reference when speaking with conference attendees about your research or practical experiences with a topic. Increasingly, the poster session involves handouts in digital format transferred through QR codes or another medium and may involve a television or other screen display to communicate your research at an academic conference. Always, your poster presentation contains a title, introduction to your question, overview of your approach, results from your study or experience, and your planned next steps in applying or expanding the study or experience. Additionally, the poster provides information about literature related to the poster topic, usually a selected listing of previously published articles that are important to your research, and a brief acknowledgement to those who helped you with the study. 

Your poster, in whatever format it is presented at the conference, is effective if it can be scanned and comprehended at a high level in around five minutes. Usually you will be present with your poster to explain points and answer questions in an authentic conference experience. 

Using the Poster Presentation Template, create your assignment to meet the content and written communication expectations below. Upload your assignment to the course for evaluation and to your ePortfolio (Pathbrite).

Note: Including your CV or Cover Letter in your ePortfolio is optional. 

Content Expectations – Two Parts

Part One: 

• Introduction (1 point): In 100-200 words, use this section to interest your audience in the issue or question of your study while using minimal background information and definitions.

•  Materials and Methods (1 point): In 50-100 words, describe the procedure you used to collect data.

• Study Results (1 point): In 50-100 words, state your research questions, describe how they were supported by your research, and then include visuals (e.g., graphic/charts/diagrams) to illustrate the parts or results of your study. 

• Conclusion (1 point): In no more than 200 words, provide the concluding remarks about your study while explaining your major result in such a way as to convince your audience why the outcome is interesting. Describe the relevance of your findings to the field of education and/or beyond, describe other directions this study could lead to, and summarize the changes you would make to the study in retrospect. 

• Relevant Literature Cited (.5 points): Use full citations in APA for all primary works you consulted from the literature to inform and support the purpose of your study. 

• Acknowledgement (.5 points): In 30-50 words, provide an acknowledgement to individuals or groups who supported or contributed to your study. 

Part Two:

• Create – Curriculum Vitae (.5 points): In three to four pages your CV should include your name, an overview of your education, your academic and related employment (especially teaching, editorial, or administrative experience), your research projects and/or research interests (including conference papers and publications), and your departmental and community service. 
• Create – Cover Letter  (1.5 points): In no more than one page your cover letter should include; heading, introduction, argument and closing.

Written Communication Expectations

• APA Formatting (.25 points): Use APA formatting consistently throughout the assignment.

• Syntax and Mechanics (.25 points): Display meticulous comprehension and organization of syntax and mechanics, such as spelling and grammar. 
• Page Requirement (.25 points): Includes a CV and Cover Letter that are no more than 4 to 5 pages in length.

• Source Requirement (.25 points): References three scholarly sources in addition to the course textbook. All sources on the references page need to be used and cited correctly within the body of the assignment.

For information related to APA style, including samples and tutorials, please visit the Ashford Writing Center. 

Next Steps: Review and Submit the Assignment