SOCIALISING UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS INTO RESEARCH METHODS AND ETHICS

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cabangile Ncengeni Ngwane
Keyword(s):  
Research Methods ◽  
Undergraduate Students

scholarly journals Writing Like a (Psychological) Scientist: A Student Guide to Scientific Writing

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Carpenter
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Research Methods ◽  
Nature Of Science ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Scientific Evidence ◽  
Scientific Writing ◽  
Methods Course ◽  
Writing Style ◽  
Writing Students ◽  
Attention To Detail

This tutorial paper reviews the scientific writing style used in psychology, with a focus on undergraduate students taking a Research Methods course. I outline for broad principles of scientific writing: (1) clarity, (2) conciseness, (3) literally true, and (4) a focus on scientific evidence. Each principle is analyzed into several components, where writing norms in psychology are also emphasized. I also outline three broad skills needed to achieve this style: (1) revision, (2) attention to detail, (3) and teamwork. Revision is emphasized most heavily—students are encouraged to write naturally and edit with a focus on these principles. In addition to learning about scientific writing, students will learn about the nature of science and scientific thinking as well as learn to be clearer, more effective communicators and to develop habits that will help them both in their writing and more broadly in their professional development. Preprint date: 12/24/2020. This document is a work in progress and may not reflect the final draft. Feel free to link to this document for use in teaching (with attribution); please do not modify this document without permission. Please check back periodically for updates. The most up-to-date edition can be found at https://psyarxiv.com/r4sfz/

An Intervention Designed to Reduce Plagiarism in a Research Methods Classroom

2017 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 155-159 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rita Obeid ◽  
Darryl B. Hill
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Research Methods ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Easy Access ◽  
Specific Training ◽  
Poor Knowledge ◽  
Psychology Class

Research has shown that plagiarism is on the increase in higher education. Some state that this is due to poor knowledge rather than intentional cheating. Other researchers explain that plagiarism is on the rise due to increased competitiveness in college and easy access to work that has already been completed. In this study, we show how a 2-hr intervention in a research methods classes, available free online, successfully reduced plagiarism in a sample of undergraduate students registered in a research methods in psychology class across three semesters. The implications of this study are that students need specific training and knowledge, not simply the threat of being caught, before their plagiarism is reduced.

scholarly journals Using Focus Groups to Explore the Underrepresentation of Female-Identified Undergraduate Students in Philosophy

2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire A Lockard ◽  
Helen Meskhidze ◽  
Sean Wilson ◽  
Nim Batchelor ◽  
Stephen Bloch-Schulman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Statistical Analysis ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Research Methods ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Growth Mindset ◽  
Distribution Data ◽  
Research Focus ◽  
Philosophy Department ◽  
Grade Distribution

This paper is part of a larger project designed to examine and ameliorate the underrepresentation of female-identified students in the philosophy department at Elon University. The larger project involved a variety of research methods, including statistical analysis of extant registration and grade distribution data from our department as well as the administration of multiple surveys. Here, we provide a description and analysis of one aspect of our research: focus groups. We ran three focus groups of female-identified undergraduate students: one group consisted of students who had taken more than one philosophy class, one consisted of students who had taken only one philosophy class, and one consisted of students who had taken no philosophy classes. After analyzing the results of the focus groups, we find evidence that: (1) one philosophy class alone did not cultivate a growth mindset among female-identified students of philosophy, (2) professors have the potential to ameliorate (or reinforce) students’ (mis)perceptions of philosophy; and (3) students who have not taken philosophy are likely to see their manner of thinking as being at odds with that required by philosophy. We conclude by articulating a series of questions worthy of further study.

Gaining Confidence, Experience, and Knowledge as Researchers among Undergraduate Sociology Students

2021 ◽  
pp. 0092055X2110336
Author(s):  
Stephanie Medley-Rath ◽  
Rebekah Morgan
Keyword(s):  
Research Methods ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
American Sociological Association ◽  
Undergraduate Research ◽  
Assessment Model ◽  
Full Sample ◽  
Data Collection And Analysis ◽  
Upper Level ◽  
High Impact Practice ◽  
Post Assessment

Advanced undergraduate students struggle with executing complete research projects that involve data collection and analysis. Research indicates that engaging in undergraduate research is a high-impact practice. The American Sociological Association recommends that sociology majors engage in research beyond their research methods and statistics courses. We used a pre-/post-assessment model across three semesters in all upper-level undergraduate sociology courses at our institution. The assessment measured confidence, knowledge, and experience with research methods. Fifty-eight students completed at least one pre-/post-assessment pair. Of those, 27 students completed two pre-/post-assessments. No students completed three pre-/post-assessments. We find that experience and confidence had statistically significant increases at each survey point. Knowledge increased but was statistically significant for only two groups: the full sample on the first post-assessment (N = 58) and the students with two assessment pairs on their second post-assessment (N = 27) who participated across two semesters.

The Importance of Indigenous Scholarship, Indigenous Knowledge, and Education in Micronesia

2022 ◽  
pp. 61-75
Author(s):  
Angeline Ames ◽  
Todd T. Ames ◽  
Mylast E. Bilimon ◽  
Debra T. Cabrera
Keyword(s):  
Indigenous Knowledge ◽  
Research Methods ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Cultural Preservation ◽  
Indigenous Research ◽  
Two Year Colleges ◽  
Indigenous Research Methods ◽  
Yap State ◽  
The University ◽  
University Of Guam

This chapter examines the importance of indigenous scholarship in the Micronesian region. The authors assess education, in particular graduate students' Master's theses in the Micronesian Studies Program at the University of Guam. The University of Guam is the only four-year university in the region, offering undergraduate and graduate programs. One of the main objectives of the university is research contribution to other two-year colleges in the region, such as the College of the Marshall Islands and the College of Micronesia, Yap State Campus. The importance of indigenous knowledge, the art of researching, cultural preservation, indigenous research methods, educational responsibilities, and imposter syndrome among UOG undergraduate students are discussed throughout the chapter, noting that education should be seen as an agent of social change by promoting indigenous scholarship, indigenous research methods, indigenous languages, sense of identity, and putting forth significant contributions to the academic literature of Micronesia.

scholarly journals Working and Learning in a Field Excursion

2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. ar24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Torstein Nielsen Hole
Keyword(s):  
Science Education ◽  
Research Methods ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Specific Field ◽  
Guided Participation ◽  
Biological Phenomena ◽  
Sociocultural Processes ◽  
Field Excursion ◽  
Level Analysis

This study aimed to discern sociocultural processes through which students learn in field excursions. To achieve this aim, short-term ethnographic techniques were employed to examine how undergraduate students work and enact knowledge (or knowing) during a specific field excursion in biology. The students participated in a working practice that employed research methods and came to engage with various biological phenomena over the course of their work. A three-level analysis of the students’ experiences focused on three processes that emerged: participatory appropriation, guided participation, and apprenticeship. These processes derive from advances in practice-oriented theories of knowing. Through their work in the field, the students were able to enact science autonomously; they engaged with peers and teachers in specific ways and developed new understandings about research and epistemology founded on their experiences in the field. Further discussion about the use of “practice” and “work” as analytical concepts in science education is also included.

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