Module 6: Outlining Your Content

Now that you have begun your research, it is time to envision how it will all fit together to present your review to your readers.   

The most efficient way to organize your thoughts is usually through an outline. (It could also be done through a graphic representation of this but you would have to base it upon the linear outline format that is being presented here.) This outline is designed to organize your formative information in a structure that will easily transfer into the UNI Instructional Technology Masters Literature Review template.

The template is self-explanatory, but here are a few hints that you should consider before you begin outlining your review:

1. This outline is NOT the final document on your review's structure.  It is a snapshot of how you envision it based upon your present level of research and discovery.  It will evolve as you continue to research.
2. The title is a working title.  It will probably change as you move along.
3. You are asked to identify 3 research themes. These themes are meant to provide direction.  Remember that you are organizing existing research in the field so it may turn out that your questions are not being studied by researchers in the field. THEREFORE you will have to change your research questions so that they can be used as organizers for the research that you DO find.
4. You only have to write about a single theme in your 10-page lit review this semester.  You will find information about the other themes, but they will not be included in this review.
5. The Analysis and Discussion section of your outline is DIFFERENT than the other parts of your outline. This is where you will be identifying the content of the research you have found. It will not include ALL of the research you will find for this review, but it will provide a framework for your future research.
6. REVIEW Dr. Z's Dos and Don'ts for Writing Literature Reviews.  I strongly suggest reading it through twice before writing your Lit Review.  Some of these points will stick in the back of your mind and will be helpful sometime in the future.

Here are a couple resources that you will find useful in completing this outline:

• Literature Review outline template  (Simplified Version)  Here is a Google Doc template that you can copy and use.  It is significantly simplified from the original outline that was provided. It provides the structure along with some suggestions for how to complete it.
• There is no Student Sample for the revised outline available.

Module 5: Researching Your Research Question

You have begun the writing process using assigned journal articles.  Now it is time for you to find research on your own and analyze it.

You have been researching all of your life. Some of it has been turning over the rock in the back yard and some has involved extensive time spent on your computer Googling information about new ideas and concepts. But researching involves more than typing nouns and phrases into the Google box.

The DaVinci Code author, Dan Brown, once pointed out that 'Google' is not a synonym for 'research'.  Google is a tool that can be used for research but it needs to be accomplished in an organized and strategic manner. This module will be the first of a series of modules that will provide information about researching.

Any craftsperson is only as good as her tools. The search tools that we will be addressing in this course will include UNI's OneSearch and Google Scholar.

OneSearch provides access to articles from journals, magazines, and newspapers; books; government publications; and other resources such as DVDs. These resources are customized to fit those available through UNI.
Visit this OneSearch Video Tutorial page. You should watch all 8 videos, but at least the Overview, Scholarly Article, Full Text, and eBook. (You may run into some problems running these videos in Google Chrome on a Mac.  It has something to do with the Microsoft SilverLight extension. Running them through Firefox seemed to work better but I had to reinstall Silverlight again before it ran.)


Google Scholar is a tool that you can use to research resources. It's easily accessible and has ever-expanding capacities for finding articles and organizing them. Google Scholar should be used more deliberately than your typical Google search. It isn't difficult but there are multiple levels of complexity. Tutorials for Scholar were not available through Lyndia.com or Atomic Learning so spend some time reviewing the tutorials that are on the Rod Library website about Google Scholar.  There are multiple videos and links.  Please review them all.  The most important part that you need to get from the videos is that you need to change the settings so that Scholar knows that you have access to the Rod Library resources.  The beauty of this is that it will take you directly to all of the databases to which we subscribe.  You probably won't have to pay for any of your articles.

Using UNI Rod Library from a Distance

Let me begin by directing you to the Distance Learners link from the Library. I believe that this has been mentioned in previous classes, but perhaps it hasn't been explained deeply enough for your use.

Go proceed to the Rod Library opening page. Down the left column of the page, you will find Distance Learners in the Information For: section. Click on the Distance Learners option. This will take you to the Distance Learners page adorned by Ellen Neuhaus. Click on her YouTube video to enjoy her introduction.

KNOW YOUR REFERENCE LIBRARIAN. Ellen and her team of reference librarians are a researcher's best friend. Call them up and they will help you find or direct you towards finding the resources you need to use for your research. Remember that you are not bothering them when you call. They are employed to help you with your searches. Their phone number is 319-273-2838 or 800-207-9410.

This week you will only be looking for good and not-so-good articles to compare, but this is the beginning of the research journey that you will experience for the rest of your cohort life and hopefully for the rest of your professional life.

Remember to read Galvan's Chapter 5.

Module 4: Taking Notes Using an Idea-Based Strategy

Photo by rawpixel on Unsplash

How are you doing on your research?  Although identifying your topic, searching databases for relevant articles, and finally selecting your articles can be a grueling process, the toughest part can be taking notes in a way that will facilitate simplify that actual act of writing.

Note taking is often organized by articles.  This means that all of the information from a single document is written on the same piece of paper or in the same document or in a notetaking table.  This is an Article-Based Strategy towards taking notes.

A more effective strategy is to organize your notetaking document by content area.  Open a document, create headings that are relevant to your research, and, as you find new information in your reading, enter specific facts under the appropriate headings.  This is an Idea-Based Strategy. 

I have created a 6-minute video to teach you about using the Idea-Based Strategy.  

Caveat: I realize that I am talking about emphasizing writing Literature Reviews and am using a subject-based research topic.  I plan to redo that part of the video using a more literature review-ish topic.  I am interested in your opinion of how I created this video.

I hope that this is useful in your harvesting important ideas and research from your selected articles.

Z

Module 4: Selecting Your Topic

Now it's time to select a topic for your paper and then identify the questions you want to answer.

True, the paper for this class is only 10 pages so you might not think that it is very important. BUT, if you take time and select a topic that truly interests you, you might save yourself a great deal of time later in the program because you can continue with this topic into your final masters paper (if you decide to do a literature review.)

Selecting your topic is not necessarily easy.  You need to find something that is broad enough to have meaning but not so narrow that there is no research on the topic.

Too Broad: Using Technology in Education
Too Narrow: The Effects of Using QR Codes with 3rd Grade Girls with Red Hair.
Just Right: Effective Methods for Making Learning More Student-Centric Using QR Codes in Elementary Grades.

Read Chapter 2 in Pan's book. She provides 11 steps in Selecting a Topic for Review.

Here is a short clip on selecting a topic:




What Do You Know?
Once you have an overall topic (and these change frequently), it is time for you to WRITE DOWN WHAT YOU KNOW.   This is opposite to what we usually do, but this is similar to the writing tool teachers and students use.  It is called the KWL Chart.

This is where you begin by writing about what you know and then listing what you want to know.
I don't know that the third column is relevant to you right now, but maybe in the future.


I look forward to meeting with you on Zoom in the near future so that we can discuss your decisions.