“Expanding Minds, Engaging Hearts, Enhancing Communities”

California State University, BakersfieldSchool of Social Sciences and Education

EDSP 688 Research in Special Education Winter, 2014

Instructor: Yeunjoo Lee, Ph.D.Email: ylee@csub.eduPhone: 661-654-6478Office: EDUC 219Office Hours: M: 3-4:30

Tu: 2-4W: 2-3:30 Or by appointments

School of Social Science and Education Mission

In support of the university’s mission of excellence, the mission of the School of Social Sciences and Education (SSE) is to address local, regional and state needs by providing high quality undergraduate and graduate programs in the social sciences and education. The SSE is committed to advancing human development and knowledge, encouraging healthy and productive lifestyles, and enhancing the quality of life for all people, particularly those with intellectual, emotional, learning and physical exceptionalities. The school pledges to prepare future leaders, professionals and community advocates. Together, we will work toward increasing the community’s understanding and acceptance of complex social, political, racial and gender issues toward creating positive social change. We will provide students with excellent classroom instruction, faculty –guided research experiences and experiential learning opportunities to prepare them for career success and for life-long learning to meet the changing demands of society.

The faculty and staff of the SSE are committed to supporting quality measures identified in the CSUB mission statement featuring faculty/staff excellence and diversity, student experiences, community engagement, and organizational “best practices.”

Candidate Dispositions

Candidates preparing to work in schools as teachers or other professional school personnel know and demonstrate the content, pedagogical, and professional knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to help all students learn.

Professional Collaboration: Candidates will participate in action-oriented collaboration that will enable them to learn from others and provide leadership in partnerships with all stakeholders.

Reflective Practitioner: Candidates are reflective, life long learners who apply problem solving and critical thinking strategies and the respectful appreciation of differing points of view.

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Ethical Professional: Candidates’ actions are based on accepted professional standards of conduct and reflect insight and awareness with respect to diverse perspectives, opinions, obligations and ethical responsibilities of the profession.

Student/Client Centered: Candidates, throughout their programs, will prioritize the needs of the students/clients they serve by maintaining trusting relationships built upon caring, nurturing (respective) and meaningful interactions.

Professional Leader: Candidates, throughout their programs, will be strong, determined, professional leaders with a clear instructional focus using effective communication skills and a willingness to take risks to ensure the advancement, safety, and welfare of all students in our communities.

Professional Competence: Candidates will maintain high programmatic outcomes that reflect research-based practices, principles of learning differentiation, and standards based instruction.

Required readings:

Johnson, A. (2012). A Short Guide to Action Research (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

*Banda, D., & Therrien, W. (2008). A teacher’s guide to meta-analysis. Teaching Exceptional Children, 41(2), 66-71.

Babki, A., Provost, M. (2004). Teachers as Researchers. Intervention in School and Clinic, 39(5), 260-268.

*Cook, B., Tankersley, M., Cook, L., & Landrum, T. (2008). Evidence based practices in special education: some practical considerations. Intervention in School and Clinic, 44, 69-75.

Parker, B. (2006). Instructional Adaptations for Students with Learning Disabilities. Intervention in School and Clinic, 42, 56-58.

Week 3 APA writing style http://www.apastyle.org/learn/index.aspx APA Format Citations-Sixth (6th) Edition (a Youtube video): http://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=9pbUoNa5tyY&annotation_id=annotation_320539&feature=iv

Week 6 Plagiarism http://www.plagiarism.org (read articles in the website). Rutgers library video modules:

http://library.camden.rutgers.edu/EducationalModule/Plagiarism/whatisplagiarism.html

Recommended Readings:

American Psychological Association. (2009). Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

The Special Education MA Program Handbook: (http://www.csub.edu/sse/specialed/documents/Prelim%20MA%20handbook.Oct.2012.pdf)

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The School of Social Sciences and Education Graduate Studies Policies and Thesis, Project, Examination Guide Handbook. ( http://www.csub.edu/SSE/graduate_studies/documents/graduate_handbook.pdf )

Required Membership www.Livetext.com www.Turnitin.com

Course Description:

The seminar course will review, analyze, interpret, and apply specific topical research in special education. Students will select a research topic, formulate a research question, develop a research proposal, analyze the literature, and propose appropriate research methodology to fill a gap in the research or contribute to the literature in the area of special education. This course prepares teachers to be scholars who know how to identify quality educational research and to summarize the contents.

COURSE OBJECTIVES/COMPETENCIES (Matching CTC Standards)

References to CCTC Clear Education Specialist program standards are noted in the set of parentheses. 1. The student will select a specific area(s) of interest to be addressed in their university and

non-university activities to include, but not limited to, transition, inclusive education, early childhood, multicultural studies, sex education, behavioral intervention, deaf-blind, serious emotional disturbance, technology, augmentative communication, assessment (1, 3, 6, 7).

2. The student will gain knowledge and skills of validated practices that maximize academic learning time, teacher-directed instruction, student success, and content coverage (5, 6).

3. The student will demonstrate knowledge of and ability to interpret, apply, and disseminate current and emerging research, theory, legislation, policy and practice (1, 5, 6)

4. The student will demonstrate knowledge and application of current and emerging theories and research related to the education of students with and without disabilities and/or students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds (1, 4, 5, 6).

5. The student will demonstrate knowledge of research, issues, law, policies, and procedures related to non-biased and non-discriminatory screenings and referral assessment for students (2, 3, 4, 6).

GENERAL INFORMATION: 

a. Request for modifications: If you require instructional modifications due to a DOCUMENTED disability (by Student Disability Services), please make an appointment to see me after the first class or before the second class meeting.

b. Assignments are due at 4 pm on the assigned due date. Late assignments will automatically lose 20% of its assigned credit. No assignments will be accepted one week after assigned due dates.

c. Blackboard: This course is accompanied by Blackboard, a course management tool (http://bb.csub.edu/). You will be able to check and/or download lecture notes, course related forms, study guides, and class announcements on Blackboard. You can also send

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and receive e-mails with the instructor and other classmates through the Blackboard. If you have technical difficulties, please contact the CSUB Web services at 661-654-2307 (Do not call the instructor).

d. If you do not have an access to the Blackboard, you can self-enroll to the BB course. Go to the following link to get the instruction: http://www.csub.edu/els/BB9/files/course_access/how_to_enroll.pdf (Option 3)

e. All assignments should be written in APA format (6th edition). For example, 12 fonts, one-inch margins, and double space.

“All culminating activities must adhere to the most recent edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. The latest edition is available to purchase from the bookstore (School of Social Sciences and Education Graduate Studies Policies and Thesis, Project, Examination Guide Handbook)”

APA writing style guideo http://www.apastyle.org/learn/

Students are expected to do all work assignments without unauthorized assistance and not to give unauthorized assistance. Cheating is not limited to examination situations alone, but arises whenever students attempt to gain an unearned academic advantage, i.e. submission of the same, or essentially the same paper or assignment for credit in two different courses without receiving approval. Plagiarism consists of the misuse of published or unpublished works of another by claiming them as one’s own. It may consist of handing in someone else’s work, copying or purchasing a composition, using ideas, paragraphs, sentences, or phrases written by another, or using data and/or statistics compiled by another without giving citation. Students who choose to violate the standards of ethical conduct will be dealt with as outlined in CSUB 2013-2015 (p. 85) catalogue. See the instructor if you need a copy of this information.

f. All students are required to register to www.turnitin.com. a. Turnitin.com is “a proprietary system that instantly identifies papers containing

unoriginal material and acts as a powerful deterrent to stop student plagiarism before it starts (www.turnitin.com , 2014).”

b. Go to www.turnitin.com and click on the “New Users Click Here button.” Under the “New Students start here” section click on the “Create a user profile” link.

c. Turnitin.com Class ID is 7362792, and the course enrollment password is “edsp688” (case sensitive).

g. CSUB library information

Check the CSUB library webpage (http://www.csub.edu/library/). The database at CSUB library has several full text journals.

When you choose database, use ERIC or Ebsco database. They contain many education related journals.

If you live out of Bakersfield and want to access to the CSUB library, check the webpage ( http://www.csub.edu/library/distance/distance.shtml ).

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I will keep your paper until the end of the spring quarter, 2013. If you want your paper back, please pick it up before the end of the spring quarter.

TENTATIVE COURSE ASSIGNMENTS:

All assignments must be typed or word-processed and double-spaced. Students should submit hard copy assignments at the beginning of the class. A penalty for late submission is 20% of total points for the assignment. Assignments which are submitted 7 days after a due date will not be accepted.

1. Attendance You are required to attend all class sessions. Each unexcused absence results in a penalty of 5% deduction from your total score.

2. Weekly assignments/class activities. There will be announced and unannounced weekly assignment or class activities. Each

student is required to complete activities.

3. Blackboard/Turnitin.com Register to both websites by Jan. 14

4. Passage of the Human Subjects Protection Training and Exam. See Appendix A to access the HSPT Blackboard course. Review the training manual and take the Human Subjects Protection Exam. Submit the test result to Instructor. If you have already passed the test, please bring the verification to the instructor. You will not be able to complete this course without passing the HSP test.

****Select #5 (Literature Review Track) OR #6 (Action Research Track)***

Requirements for a Literature Review Track

5-a. The first 4 pages of the literature review.

Submit the title page, the first 4 pages of your literature review, and the list of the references to http://www.turnitin.com

Submit a hard copy of your assignments to the instructor including a title page, the first 4 pages of your literature review, and a list of references.

The first 4 pages of your literature review is not the summary of your final paper. It should include an introduction, a purpose statement, and a beginning part of your literature review. The draft should be as written as a final draft. That means it should not contain any mechanical errors and no first-person statement. Please check the Literature Review CHECKLIST (in the Appendix) before submitting the first 4 pages.

The list of references should include at least SEVEN data based and empirical studies selected from peer reviewed journals.

Your draft and the list of references should follow the APA writing guidelines (6th edition). For example, it should have a title page with running head, headings in a correct format, etc.

A grading rubric for this assignment is located on the Blackboard main page. 5

5-b. Final Project (Signature Assignment)

Requirements for Literature Review Each student will need to select a topic, review related literature, and submit a final paper In a literature review, you will include at least 10 articles, including at least 9 original

research studies in your interest area(s). The selected articles studies should be current, data-based, and empirical studies. You should select the studies from referred journals.

The literature review should be 9-10 pages, not including your reference list and appendices. It will be helpful if a student identifies his/her chair of the M.A. Committee prior to or at the

beginning of this course. Each student can discuss potential exam questions with his/her M.A. committee, and select a topic for a literature review.

When you have difficulty locating research articles, consult with Instructor. It is strongly suggested to meet with a librarian at least once during your research. The

librarians know wonderful tools to search the best articles for your research. They will also show you how to find the original peer-reviewed research articles.

You should submit the CHECKLIST in the Appendix with your literature review.

Requirements for Action Research Track

6-a. Action Research Proposal (See Appendix B)

Select a research question and conduct action research. Research topics could include conducting a survey, examining the effects of a teaching

procedure or a behavior management strategy, studying the effects of support strategies for English Learners with disabilities.

Review the Action Research guideline (Appendix B) and complete an action research proposal using the format.

6-b. Final Action Research written report.

Review Appendix B at the end of the syllabus and complete the final action research report. Sample: http://www.csuchico.edu/teacher-grants/documents/Example_1_Poster.pdf

7. Presentations Prepare a one-page handout and distribute to students in this class. A handout should include the summary of your literature review and important

references. Your presentation will be the maximum of 15 minutes.

GRADING SCALESAssignment Due dates Points My points

Weekly assignments/class activities 15 X #Turnitin/Blackboard Registration 1/14 10HSP test 1/21 20

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The first 4-pages of the literature review/Action Research Proposal

2/11 30

Literature Review/Action Research 3/4 100Final Project Presentation 3/4, 3/11 20Total

GRADING POLICYA = 94% and higher A- = 90% -93% B+ = 87% -89%B = 83% -86% B- = 80% -82% C+ = 77% -79%C = 73% -76% C- = 70%-72% D = 60% - 69%F = 59% and below

TENTATIVE CLASS SCHEDULE

The schedule, readings, and assignments are subject to change.

Topics Readings AssignmentsWeek 11/7

Overview of the course and software (BlackBoard, Turnitin.com, and LiveText).

What is research/action research? Introduction to Action Research

Purpose and Process of Literature Review Considerations in writing reviews. HSP Test

Ch 1 and 2

Week 21/14

Library Orientation Session Human Subject Protection Test Selecting a topic of literature review/action

research. General guidelines of analyzing literature. What is Meta-Analysis? Using action research for solving problems.

Banda & Therrien.(2008)Ch 3 and 4Parker, B. (2006).

Register to Blackboard/ Turnitin.com

Week 31/21

APA writing styles Analyzing and synthesizing literature. Writing literature review

Ch. 5 Take HSPT test – send the results to instructor.

Week 41/28

Valuable approaches for editing. APA writing guides. MA degree overview Research methods Methods of collecting and analyzing data

Ch. 6 and 7Babki, A., Provost, M. (2004).

Week 52/4

Guidelines of writing a first draft. Guidelines for developing a coherent essay. APA writing guidelines (the 6th edition) Research method: Measurements

Ch. 7 and 8http://www.apastyle.org/learn/index.aspx

Individual or a small group meeting

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Incorporating feedback and refining the first draft.

Qualitative design in action research.

APA Format Citations-Sixth (6th) Edition (a Youtube video):http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pbUoNa5tyY&annotation_id=annotation_320539&feature=iv

Week 62/11

Critical interpretation and analysis of Research Studies

Plagiarism Understanding Statistics Evaluating, describing, and proposing

research Reporting findings in action research.

Ch. 9, 10.Rutgers library video modules: http://library.camden.rutgers.edu/EducationalModule/Plagiarism/whatisplagiarism.html

A 4-pages of LR or Action Research Proposal (submit it to Turnitin).

Week 72/18

Guidelines for writing a first draft. Guidelines for developing a coherent essay. Evidence Based Practices Planning for action research. Writing an action research report

Ch. 11 and 12 Individual or small group meeting

Week 82/25

Self-Editing Guidelines for style, mechanics, and

language usage. Incorporating feedback and refining the

first draft. Understanding Meta-analysis Writing titles and abstracts Presenting action research.

Ch. 13 Bring your paper to class for a peer review.

Week 93/4

Writing literature review. APA writing guidelines. Peer-Editing of a professional paper. Preparing a reference list. Evidence based practices Action research as Master’s project

Ch. 14 and 15.Cook et al. (2008)

Literature Review and Checklist Due to Turnitin.com and Livetext

Project presentation

Week 103/11

Final Project Presentation Putting it all together.

Project presentations

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Accommodations for Students with Disabilities (for Bakersfield campus)

To request academic accommodations due to a disability, please contact the Office of Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) as soon as possible. Their office is located in SA 140, and they may be reached at 661-654-3360 (voice), or 661-654-6288 (TDD). If you have an accommodations letter from the SSD Office documenting that you have a disability, please present the letter to me during my office hours as soon as possible so we can discuss the specific accommodations that you might need in this class.

Accommodations for Students with Disabilities (for AV campus)

To request academic accommodations due to a disability, please contact the Office of Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) as soon as possible. Their office is located in Bldg. 200, and they may be reached at 661-952-5061 (voice) or 661-952-5120 (tdd). If you have an accommodation letter from the SSD Office documenting that you have a disability, please present the letter to me during my office hours so we can discuss the specific accommodations that you might need in this class.

Academic Honesty There are certain forms of conduct that violate the university’s policy of academic integrity. Academic dishonesty (cheating) is a broad category of actions that involve fraud and deception to improve a grade or obtain course credit. Academic dishonesty (cheating) is notlimited to examination situations alone, but arises whenever students attempt to gain an unearnedacademic advantage. Plagiarism is a specific form of academic dishonesty (cheating) which consists of the misuse of published or unpublished works of another by claiming them as one’s own. Plagiarism may consist of handing in someone else’s work as one’s own, copying or purchasing a pre-written composition and claiming it as one’s own, using paragraphs, sentences, phrases, words or ideas written by another without giving appropriate citation, or using data and/or statistics compiled by another without giving appropriate citation. Another example of academic dishonesty (cheating) is the submission of the same, or essentially the same paper or other assignment for credit in two different courses without receiving prior approval from theinstructors of the affected courses. Source: 2011-2013 CSUB Catalog, p.78

PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY INSURANCEAs of August 1, 2006, the CSU Chancellor’s Office of Risk Management is requiring all students in various fields, including the Credential Program to purchase Professional Liability Insurance. This fee may be paid at the Cashier’s window or online.

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Appendix A

How to Enroll in the HSPT Tutorial Course

The HSPT Exam is available via Blackboard at bb.csub.edu. Your Blackboard username is the same as your myCSUB Net ID and the password is the last five digits of your CSUB ID number. For assistance in using Blackboard, contact E-Learning Services at 661-654-2315 or lmssupport@csub.edu

To access the course:

1. Log in to Blackboard (bb.csub.edu)2. Click the Courses tab3. Below Course Search, type in HSPT Tutorial4. Click Go5. Next to the Course ID (SSuter_HSPT_Tutorial)

use the Action link and select Enroll.

6. Verify that this is the correct course (HSPT Tutorial), click Submit. On the next page click OK to proceed. You are now enrolled in the HSPT Tutorial Blackboard course.

IMPORTANT: Make sure each answer is saved on the exam before submitting or it will count as not completed.

Appendix B

PLEASE NOTE: Once you are finished with the test a screen will come up indicating if your score is high enough for certification. If you need evidence of your certification

print the screen that shows your score.

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ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT GUIDELINES

Most school districts have regulations regarding research in their district, it is the student’s responsibility to secure necessary approvals from the principal of the school where they intend to conduct their research and to secure the necessary consent from parents and staff.

Overview

Description of what you plan to study:

What is your topic? What are the research questions that will guide your study?

Sample: I plan to study the impact of more frequent contact with at-risk students and their parents. My sub questions will include:

Research question one: Does increased contact lead to improved academic performance?Sub-questions:

Does it improve student motivation? Does it promote parent involvement in the students’ school life? Is it perceived to be beneficial by both students and parents?

Description of your “treatment” or plan of action:What is the plan, when will it take place, and how will it be designed?

Sample: I will identify ten at-risk students in my 3rd and 4th period classes. The students will be selected based upon observed poor academic performance and/or attitude during the first quarter, as well as responses to a researcher-designed survey administered at the end of the first quarter. At the beginning of the 2nd semester, I will explain to the students and their parents that I will be working closely with them in an effort to improve the student’s grade and interest in class. I will meet with the students during the first week of the semester to help them set their goals and create a plan of action. The treatment will include weekly conferences with the students regarding their grade and behavior, tutoring sessions, attending their extra-curricular activities, talking to their other teachers and counselor (if this is deemed necessary(, and weekly contact with parents via email, notes home, or phone calls to five them and update and get their input. This will last during the 3rd quarter (although I may continue it through the 4th quarter even after the research project is completed).

Data collection:What kind of data will you collect? When and how will you collect it?

Sample: - I will keep track of their grades during the 2nd and 3rd quarter (homework, labs, quizzes, tests, participation points).- I will keep track of homework completion rates during the 2nd and 3rd quarter. I will track attendance at the tutoring and review sessions that I implement in the 3rd quarter. I will design a student survey which delves into their motivation levels, and administer that survey to all of the students at the end of the 1st quarter as well as to the sample students

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at the end of the 3rd quarter. During the second and third quarter, I will also collect anecdotal data regarding their motivation levels.- The researcher-designed pre and post student survey will also delve into students perceptions of parent involvement During my contact with parents during the 3rd quarter, I will also collect anecdotal data regarding parent involvement. The researcher-designed student post-survey will delve into sample students’ perceptions

regarding the benefit of the treatment. I will also design and administer a parent post-survey to gauge the sample parents’ perceptions of treatment benefit.

Action Research Proposal Format

General Guidelines:Do not identify a specific student, teacher, school district or city by name.Do not refer to yourself in the first person (I, my, etc).For this paper, you may use the term “data” as a singular or plural termThe rough draft must be resubmitted when turning in the final draftMust be in APA 6th edition format

Format:

1. Statement of Purpose:Write a brief statement about the purpose of your research study.

2. Description of the Problem:Identify and describe the problem that you have observed in practice. Be specific and thorough in your description. Add data to support your assertions (i.e.: number who are failing, tardy, etc.)

3. Literature Review:Summarize a minimum of four peer reviewed sources that pertain to the problem that you will study. For each resource, you must describe how the research is relevant to your study (including specific ideas you might be taking from that research and incorporating into your own research design).

5. Methods/Procedures

This section is longer and should be typed with the following subsection headings:

Participants and Settings: Describe the participants targeted for the study (sample size, demographics, how chosen); this includes information regarding any comparison group if that is part of the study. Remember, do not identify the site or any individuals by name.

Instruments: Describe the measures used to collect your data. Specify if each instrument was designed by you (the researcher) or by another person/company. If it was researcher-designed, describe the process by which it was developed. Copies of the actual instrument(s) must be included in the appendix.

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Treatment/Intervention: Some of you will be doing studies involving the implementation of a treatment. This independent variable needs to be described in detail.

5. Data Collection Procedures: Organize this section by research question. For each research question, you must describe the following: What qualitative and/or

quantitative data will you collect to determine your project’s impact? How will you collect it?

Describe any instruments you will use to collect the data such as surveys, interview questions, etc.

Draft copies of the researcher-designed instruments must be attached to this proposal as appendices.

In the body of the paper, refer to where these items can be found in the appendix.

6. Data Analysis Procedures: Organize this section by research question . How will you analyze the data?

7. References:Cite all literature in the body of the paper (with parentheticals) and on the reference page using APA (American Psychological Association) format.

Final 1 Action Research Final Report and Presentation

General Guidelines:

Never identify a specific student, teacher, school, district or city by name.Do not refer to yourself in the first person (I, my, etc.), except in the last sectionThe paper should be written in the past tense, except the last sectionFor this paper, you may use the term “data” as a singular or plural term.Do not use the term “significant” when referring to your data results unless you did a

test for statistical significanceProofread your paper carefully for spelling and grammatical errors, use APA 6 th edition

formatting

1. Title Page: Title of study, name, affiliation:

2. Introduction and Literature Review (from the proposal)

Provide introduction and research questions. Identify and describe the problem that you have observed in practice. Provide a literature review with at least 4 peer reviewed sources that pertain to the

problem. In your literature review, describe how the research is relevant to your study.

3. Data Collection and Analysis Procedures (from the proposal)

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4. Findings

This is where you lay out the data. This section must be organized according to your research questions. (Restate research question #1 and then discuss/present the data for that question. Then do the same for each subsequent research question in your study.)

When presenting your data for each research question, begin with a narrative which describes the data table that is to follow. This narrative should be an objective description of the data — what it is, how it was obtained, how it is organized for display, etc. You do not state any subjective conclusions about the data in this section. The conclusions should be presented in section seven of the paper.

Each data table must be numbered and titled. Tables should not be carried over to another page; begin the table on the top of the next page if it will not fit in its entirety at the bottom of an existing page. Sample data tables will be made available for you to review prior to the due date.

3. Discussion

In this section, you need to discuss what the findings. In other words, what do you make of this data? As with the previous section, this section must be organized according to the research questions. (Restate research question #1, make a concluding statement and then describe why you came to this conclusion. Then, restate question #2, and so on.)

Since this is action research, there were likely numerous variables that may have impacted your data — we will call these confounding factors. For each research question, you will be expected to discuss possible confounding factors and how they may have influenced the data.

Just a note, the data is what it is. Sometimes it is not what we wanted it to be. You need not have found that your treatment led to noticeable student improvement for the study to be successful. We are looking only at your ability to analyze the findings honestly, thoroughly, and appropriately.

6. References (Updated):

7. Appendix

The appendix should include copies of your data collection instruments.

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