U RESEARCH - MC's QUALITY ENHANCEMENT PLAN (QEP): Learning Outcomes

U RESEARCH OBJECTIVES AND STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES:

 To establish a common language across the curriculum for faculty and students, the student learning objectives are simplified into five research questions.

THE FIVE RESEARCH QUESTIONS:

1. What information do I need and want to know?
2. How do I find that information efficiently and effectively?
3. What authorities should I trust?
4. How do I synthesize the information into my own thinking and writing?
5. How do I acknowledge my sources ethically?

The goal of U Research in the upper-level disciplinary courses is to reinforce and reiterate information literacy and research competencies in a disciplinary context, and to make them relevant and applicable to the problems that the student might encounter in the workplace or in postgraduate education.

U Research Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs):

SLO 1a. Identify and develop a topic.  Defining and focusing the topic can be the most difficult part of research, and it is often an ignored part of the research process. Undergraduates may not possess the experience or knowledge to frame a topic within the larger context of the discipline. A well-focused topic or research question serves as a GPS for the rest of the research process; without it, students often end up submitting paper that is an unrelated compilation of paraphrased information from various sources.

• Students should be required select an appropriately focused topic at an early stage in the assignment. This step will prevent them from tackling the assignment at the last minute with an overly broad topic (such as global warming, domestic violence, Medieval England, World War II, nutrition, etc.).  It will also help avoid topics that are so narrowly focused that the student cannot find information that is readily available.
• Developing a good research question requires preliminary exploration of the subject before beginning the paper. Background sources such as subject encyclopedias can give ideas on how to narrow the topic into a manageable focus. An article from a subject encyclopedia may also provide terminology that might be used in a database search for information. The library can provide you with suggestions for subject encyclopedias.

SLO 1b. Clarify expectations regarding types and formats of sources that are needed. 

• Give examples and suggestions for types of sources or database.  Include library databases by name, if appropriate.
• Students are still confused about terminology and need reminders about what is meant by primary vs. secondary sources or scholarly sources.
• An assignment handout might include a minimum of types of sources, but should avoid being overly prescriptive. Internet web sites are not always inferior, and students can be allowed to use them responsibly and with a caveat:  they are responsible for applying evaluative criteria to the source and justifying the inclusion of the web site as a credible source. 

SLO 2a & 2b. Access information.  Students should be familiar with general library databases by the time they take the first U Research course in the major. Now is the time to introduce them to the professional journals, the disciplinary databases, and the professional terminology of the discipline. 

• Once the students have a general idea of their topic, schedule a library instruction session or a research work day in the library.  The instructor can help students frame their information in the disciplinary context while the librarian can help with the nuances of the disciplinary databases and offer suggestions for finding other information.
• Ask the library to create a customized research guide for your class, so information is available to your students 24/7.

SLO 3a. Evaluate information for credibility.  With information being readily available over the web, it is crucial that students understand how to evaluate the credibility of a resource. This is arguably the skill that will be the most transferrable to other problem solving situations in academia, the workplace, and in lifelong learning.

• Students must evaluate all information objectively (refer to Research 101 – Evaluating Information) and subjectively (does the information add relevance to the research question?)
• This outcome can be met by having the students do an annotated bibliography, either as a separate assignment, or in conjunction with a research paper.  If done in conjunction with a research paper, students could be required to submit annotations of the most relevant (3-5) sources, with a critical analysis of both objective evaluative criteria (timeliness, relevance, authority, accuracy, purpose) and subjective criteria (a critical evaluation of the usefulness, relevance, and contribution of the source to the research project).

SLO 3b. Summarize/synthesize main ideas from sources of information. This outcome is often difficult to differentiate from outcome 4a - "Applying new and prior information to the creation of a product." Students frequently employ “patchwriting” techniques because they do not take enough time to analyze and synthesize their source material.  They skim the sources and attempt to paraphrase the source’s meaning without understanding main ideas or determining relevance (Jamieson & Howard, 2011).

SLO 4a. Apply new and prior information to the creation of a new product.  This SLO encompasses the traditional criteria that are usually graded in a paper or product – the content.  Example:  Did the student include a comprehensive coverage of the topic?  Did the student integrate compelling examples and ideas from sources to fully support the research position/topic? Did the student effectively handle any questions after the presentation? 

• Often students just report what others say about the topic without adding their voice (reminiscent of the high school “report” assignment). This results in a paper that is an unrelated compilation of paraphrased information from various sources - an exercise in “patchwriting”, with no critical thinking on the part of the students. Often this type of report is organized as a source-by-source essay rather than organized by subtopic. 
• Research is more than just reporting information that is found.  Research involves making sense of it all; research is building evidence-based arguments for who is most to be believed.  Students should do more than summarize and paraphrase sources.  They should identify trends or contradictions and provide an analysis of the information.

SLO 4b. Communicate effectively and clearly. This outcome also encompasses the traditional criteria that are usually graded in a paper or product – the delivery mechanisms and the effectiveness of the communication.  If the assignment is a presentation, did the student engage the audience with body language, eye contact, elocution, and delivery?  Was the technology appropriately used to effectively communicate the message?  If the assignment is a paper, this SLO includes writing mechanics such as style, grammar, punctuation, and spelling; length, and organization. 

SLO 5a & 5b). Ethical and legal use of information. This U Research competency involves more than citing sources and avoiding plagiarism. When applied in a disciplinary context, it could include patient privacy, ethical use of images for graphic design, ethical use of musical performances, ethical human research, appropriate social media use, and proper use of university networks and resources.

• Students need instruction regarding publishing conventions in the discipline.
• Censorship, equal access to information, file-sharing, and copyright are all issues that need to be situated in a disciplinary context.

What are your expectations for student research in your discipline?  What research skills do students need to successfully complete your assignment? What problems have previous students had when completing this assignment?  Identify the critical thinking elements and steps in the research process that students need to complete a good research product.  Correlate them to the U Research Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs) and decide which ones you will teach and assess.