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Research proposals help us define what we are going to research and are used in a variety of contexts.

You write a proposal for your Masters thesis or for your dissertation. You also write a proposal for
grants and funding agencies. This genre could very likely be a part of your writing life in the years to
come.

This proposal assignment is designed to help you articulate your project and it will be a public
document on your ePortfolio. Its components are based on what most research proposals require.

Proposals are intended to inform and persuade because you are trying to convince the reader that this
project is important. Readers ask themselves: is this research important and original enough to give
someone an advanced degree? Or, is this research important and original enough to give someone
funding?

Research proposals are a distinct genre and are usually organized with the following subsections: 1)
Introduction, 2) Background (and/or a literature review for extensive doctoral proposals), 3) Research
Question(s), 4) Methodology, 5) Researcher Stance, and 6) Conclusion. In your final draft of your
proposal, you will name each section with these six categories (you can have subheadings behind a
colon if you like, i.e., Introduction: Student Debt as a Systemic Crisis.) You have a 600-750 word
LIMIT so each subsection will be 2-4 paragraphs long.

You should not assume that your audience is specialized and knows any of the details of your topic.
Remember, you are trying to convince readers of the importance of your topic.

The Six Components of Your Study
In the first draft of this proposal, you will have the most to say about #1. However, as you dive
deeper into your project, we will also be developing #2-#6 as you go along. As you do your
reading on your topic, keep coming back to this proposal and develop it further.

1) Introduction
The introduction is like a movie trailer. Remember, the movie trailer is NOT the movie. You need
to tell us about the central issues you are looking at in this project and why we should care about it.
You also need to convince the readers that YOU actually care and CAN do this work.

Here is a good way to start your proposal:
The purpose of this study is to ____________ (understand, describe, represent) _____________.
2) Background
This is where you offer a kind of general overview of and basic information about your project. This
section does not tell every detail; you just focus on one or two of the most relevant issues. You
should reference outside sources in this part. USE APA or weblinks.

Please also list your search terms (these are the words/phrases that you will use for your search on
the library databases, youtube/vimeo, google, etc).

3) Research Questions
This is where you explain what your project helps you learn. This will be a qualitative research
project so you will design qualitative research questions. Such questions always begin with words
such as how or what. They cannot be YES or NO questions. You are asking what happens? or
what is the meaning to people who are experiencing this thing? Avoid words such as: relate,
influence, impact, effect, or cause. You are not proving a phenomenon, you are examining it. Here
are two ways these questions look: What does it mean to _________________ (the central issue of
your topic)? OR, How do ______________ (participants) describe (the central issue of your
topic)?

4) Methodology
This section explains how are you going to answer your research question. You must explain
exactly what you plan to do. You MUST have primary source material.
Will you use a focus group (there must be at least 4 people in the conversation)? What is the
demographic background of this group (it cannot be BROAD)? Where will the group meet and
when? Why there? Why then? Will you record the conversation or take notes? What will you
ask? List the questions. WHATS THE CREATIVE TWIST IN YOUR METHODOLOGY?
Will you do one-on-one interviews? How many (you must do at least 3)? What is the
demographic background of this group (it cannot be BROAD)? Where will you meet each
interviewee and when? Why there? Why then? Will you record the conversation or take notes?
What will you ask? List the questions. WHATS THE CREATIVE TWIST IN YOUR
METHODOLOGY?
Will you do a case study centered on one person? What is this persons background and
relationship to your topic? Why this one person? Where and when will you meet him/her?
Why there? Why then? Will you record the conversation or take notes? What will you ask?
List the questions. WHATS THE CREATIVE TWIST IN YOUR METHODOLOGY?
Your research question and methodology must match. PLEASE NOTE: your interview questions
and your research question ARE not the same.

5) Researcher Stance
This is the part where you talk about why you! In more traditional research proposals, this is where
you discuss your qualifications to do this research: what are the skills and experiences that you have
that qualify you to do this research? In more politically charged work, you talk about why you
should be trusted: what are the experiences in your life that make your reliable, for instance, in
understanding/relating to the people you are representing?

6) Conclusion
This is where you will look forward. What do you hope will happen with your research once it is
complete? What do you see yourself doing with this research/topic after this class? How, if at all,
does the project fit into your larger academic or career goals?


Research proposals really work like formulas but they have to be written with a great deal of
passion and persuasion. You need to be clear about your project while also sounding/being
deeply committed. Thats not an easy balance to maintain. You are showing knowledge WITH
enthusiasm, so much so that readers will be so dazzled that they cant wait to see how your
research turns out and give you money to get started!






Here is a General Guide to Qualitative Research:
http://www.bcps.org/offices/lis/researchcourse/images/overview1.pdf

10 POINT- SPREAD
Introduction 1)You introduce the topic and central issues. You convince readers of
the importance of the topic.

Background 2) You offer an overview of the project and include at least 1-2 sources.
You use in-text citations correctly with APA bibliographic list OR you
use weblinks.

Research
Questions
3)Your research question is introduced and written in qualitative
format.

Methodology 4)Your methodology is described with detail, almost like a cooking
recipe. Your research question and methodology match.

Stance 5)Your stance and connection to this project are well described. Your
choice of traditional or political approach matches your study.

Conclusion 6)Your conclusion communicates your seriousness and vision for the
future of this topic.

7)You have no surface errors in the document and meet the length
requirements.

8)You use visuals to more fully communicate the topic of study (either
an image or a video) on your webpage.

9) Your subsections are organized and specified consistently. You use
consistent headings (centered) and paragraphs are double-returned
w/ no indentations.






General
10) You added something new to your ePort such that now you have:
a landing page with an ORIGINAL image AND a banner with
your name or the title of your ePort
CORRECT spelling and capitalization of every main page title and
every subpage title
A short introduction (3-4 sentences) on your BELOVED WORLD
PROJECT that introduces what your video and three vignettes are
about and how they all connect.

Total Points
9-10 points: A
8 points: B
7 points: C
6 points and below: FAILING

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