Project Description and Final Participatory Action Research Proposal

Task:  Develop a detailed research design that is acceptable for a final research proposal.

Purpose: The purpose of this assignment is to (1) learn how the parts of a proposal fit together; (2) explain your proposed research study in detail; (3) learn how to integrate anti-racist principles into research and consider groups who have traditionally been left out of research 

Learning Objectives

1. Students will demonstrate an understanding of the range of insider/outsider positions a researcher can take. In addition, will demonstrate an understanding of related issues of a study’s trustworthiness, transferability, and ethics.

2. Students will be able to apply these concepts to specific research studies and propose a research study of their own, grounded in Participatory Action Research (PAR) principles.

Format: Use headings to differentiate the sections of your paper as they are listed in the assignments.  

You will complete this assignment in parts as described below, over the course of the semester. The work that you do in your journaling assignments will help to form the foundation for this more formal writing. 

You will also create a Google folder that includes your proposal and all related materials (consent forms, screening tool, surveys, articles you have reviewed, etc). You will share the google folder with your instructor. They will provide you with the email to use for this purpose. 

Recommended Methods: Students will choose to propose a quantitative survey project or a qualitative interview project. Students will be able to edit and alter consent forms provided by the instructor to match their study protocols. 

Requirements: In this assignment, your writing should be formal, as if your audience consists of reviewers who would be evaluating your proposal for IRB approval or funding. You can write in the first person, describing what you might do and be sure to proofread for writing and punctuation errors. Written mechanics will be 2 points of the grade. Strong peer-reviewed articles that you have read for the literature review can be models for acceptable professional writing about research. A reference page must be included using APA style. This is especially relevant to item II described below. 

Part I of the assignment should be 6-7 double-spaced pages.   

Part III should be approximately 3-5 double-spaced pages. 

In addition, each part should have a cover sheet, reference page, and Appendix in electronic folder form with either your consent forms, survey questions/items for a quantitative PAR study or interview/focus group questions for a qualitative PAR study, and your elevator pitch. 

Citations and Reference pages: References pages must be included for both parts in APA style. All information that comes from another source MUST be cited using correct APA citation style within the text of your document and that source must be included in the reference page. 

The following outline provides a guide for writing this assignment. All of the following should be included in your final proposal.