RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY AMERICAN INDIAN STUDIES 548 – SPRING 2010 COMMUNICATIONS 214 WEDNESDAY 3:00 – 5:30 instructor · Dr. Benedict J. Colombi email · [email protected] phone · 621-2269 office · harvill 237B hours · mondays and wednesdays 1:30 – 2:30 pm and by appointment ta · Joan M. Kauppi email · [email protected] phone · 626-3405 office · Harvill 340 class web site · http://d2l.arizona.edu/ required texts 1. Ridley, Diana. 2008. The Literature Review: A Step-by-Step Guide for Students. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. 2. Trimble, Charles, Barbara W. Sommer, Mary Kay Quinlan. 2008. The American Indian Oral History Manuel: Making Many Voices Heard. Walnut Creek, CA: Left Coast Press. 3. White, Patrick. 2009. Developing Research Questions: A Guide for Social Scientists. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan. statement This course is about research design and methodology in American Indian Studies and related cognate fields. No one person is an expert in all methods of research, but by the end of this course you will know about a range of methods used in American Indian Studies, and you will know which kinds of research problems are best addressed by which methods. course goals This course is designed to help you become a professional and ethical researcher who produces the highest quality scholarship, and will provide you with information about and experience in: 1. identifying issues of importance in American Indian Studies and related fields of inquiry. 2. establishing appropriate ways of knowing, and recognizing assumptions and biases in research and how to control for them. 3. understanding the difference between qualitative and quantitative research, and learning to recognize the values of both interpretative and empirical frameworks.Colombi AIS 548 Spring 2010 Page 2 4. developing appropriate research methods and techniques and formulating them into a research design that can be used for a thesis or dissertation prospectus. 5. developing a research design for a Master’s thesis or a Ph.D. dissertation. 6. formulating and designing a research question that is of value to American Indian communities and Indigenous peoples. course outline This course will be held in combined lecture, seminar and interactive workshop formats as well as individual tutorials. It will meet once a week and requires extensive student participation. The following topics will be covered: 1. Brief Review of Research and Theoretical Goals of American Indian Studies. A review of particular research needs of American Indian communities and the research and theoretical goals of American Indian Studies. The goal will be to obtain an understanding of how American Indian Studies is a distinctive discipline that uses theories and methodologies of other social science and humanities disciplines yet, has its own unique goals and agendas designed to address the needs of American Indian communities and increase understanding about Indigenous peoples and their lives. 2. Recognizing Assumptions, Research Goals, and Research Questions. We will learn to recognize how clearly and poorly scholar’s write or talk about their research and the information they provide to allow you to assess it. This skill will be needed for writing a literature review, and conducting related analyses. We will focus on internet and library research to help in the formation of a pertinent research question. 3. Developing A Realistic and Relevant Research Question. 4. Constructing a Literature Review and Compiling a Bibliography for a Research Project. 5. Identifying Interdisciplinary Research Methods and Practicing Selected Methodologies through Class and Individual Exercises. The distinctions between theory, methodology, and techniques will be discussed. Students will learn how to choose appropriate methods to answer AIS research questions, to identify and operationalize variables, to choose appropriate research techniques based on research problems. We will focus on those techniques that will be most useful for the class based on student’s identified research interests and basic methodological tools. 6. Practical Experience in Interviewing and Documentary Research. a. Focus groups and interviews b. Statistical analysis: census and demographic tribal community profiles c. Finding and reading important historical and contemporary documents 7. Thesis/Dissertation Prospectus. How to convince your committee that you know what you want to do. How to introduce your proposed research project to the appropriate American Indian and Indigenous community and acquire their input and approval. The course requires students to produce a quality thesis or dissertation prospectus to submit to their MA or PhD committees. 8. Ethics, Ethical Research, Human Subjects Test and Human Subjects Forms. We will talk extensively about ethical research in AIS, and with American Indian and Indigenous communities.Colombi AIS 548 Spring 2010 Page 3 course requirements Initial Statement of Research Problem. (not graded) one to two page, single-spaced background statement that broadly outlines your proposed research topic for your Master’s thesis or Ph.D. Dissertation. This will identify the anticipated theoretical framework and area of American Indian Studies that encompasses the proposed project (i.e., such as culture and society, law and policy, literature, and American Indian education), and a tentative research question(s) to be addressed. This should be as specific as possible. This will be reviewed by the instructor and then revised into the two page, single-spaced statement of research purpose and significance. Curriculum Vitae. (not graded) Theory and Method Article Summaries. (not graded) Statement of Research Problem and Statement of Significance. (10 points each) A well-focused one page, single-spaced statement of research problem that delineates the specific topic of research including a research question(s). The statement will also include specific objectives and goals of the project, why your proposed research is significant to American Indian Studies, scholarship in general, and the people with whom you propose to work. Include the anticipated benefits to knowledge in your statement as well as any practical offshoots (such as policy implications). Literature Review and Proposed Thesis or Dissertation