C.A.R. Part #5 - The Research Process
Description
The
entire C.A.R. project revolves around the research question discussed back in
your Introduction and throughout your Literature Review. It sets up your
inquiry and drives your study. All attempts to address or fix the problem are
recorded and discussed in the Research Process, including: the setting, the
participants, when everything took place, any surveys used, any tests used, any
observations or experiments conducted, and any other means of gathering data. (NOTE: The results of the Research Process
are NOT revealed until the next section!)
Dr. Hartnell's Helpful Hints
1. Put
YOUR last name and the page number in the upper-right corner.
2. The words Research Process (in bold) appear at the top of this page. They are centered on the page. Your paper should already be set to "double-spaced", which means all you need to do is hit the "Enter" key ONCE to ensure the proper spacing between the words Research Process and the start of your text.
3.
Hit
"Enter" again to begin the text of your Research Process.
4.
DO
indent the first sentence of your Research Process and all paragraphs
throughout.
5. The
Research Process is double-spaced, left-justified, and begins on its own page,
regardless of how long the Literature Review runs. (In other words, even if the
Literature Review runs five full page and two lines of a sixth, the Research Process
begins on a new page. This is true for all the major sections of your
C.A.R. written report.)
6. The
Research Process contains two subsections: Setting & Sample and Instrumentation & Materials. After your opening paragraph to introduce the Research Process section, you will need to insert the header Setting & Sample. To do this, simply hit "Enter" and type the words Setting & Sample (keep them flushed left and put them in italics). Then hit "Enter" again, (be sure to switch out of italics!), indent, and explain where your study took place. If it took place at a school, you will need to provide how many grades attend that building, how many students per grade (and overall), and the gender and ethnic makeup of the school. The next subsection is Instrumentation & Materials. To insert this subsection, follow the same procedures as you did when you inserted the Setting & Sample header. Here you explain any surveys or experiments you conducted, what sort of questions you asked (and why), and the "stuff" needed for any experimentations. (Do NOT just list out every question you asked on a survey or in an interview. Rather, explain why you ask three questions on a particular issue, why you chose to omit certain follow-up questions, etc.)
7. Do NOT reveal any of your actual survey or experimental findings. You save this information for the next section, the Data Analysis.
8. A blank copy of any surveys that are used in your C.A.R. need to appear in their entirety in the Appendix, which is the section located after the Annotated Bibliography.
9. Don't
forget that the margins throughout must be the default setting that appear when
you open a new Word Processing Document. DON'T try to cheat and alter them.
10. LENGTH: The
Research Process should be no fewer than 3 pages in length. You may exceed this limit.
Sample C.A.R. - The Research Process
[Click the button above to download a copy of this sample Research Process]
Sample C.A.R. - The Surveys
[Click the button above to download a copy of a sample Student Survey]
[Click the button above to download a copy of a sample Teacher Survey]
