(| INNOVATION ABSTRACTS i2:"

6 Published by the National institute for Staff and Organizational Development
With support from the WK. Kellogg Foundation and Sid Wo Richardson Foundation

ve
One

2
A

We

y

 

 

 

THE COMMUNITY COLLEGE SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH PROJECT

How can the community college instructor generate student interest in research assignments? Term
papers, book reports, reading lists, and other similar projects generally lead to a last minute student effort
and many hours of agonizing reading for the instructor. In an effort to overcome some of the difficulties
associated with student research, | have developed an instructional approach for my general sociology course
that exposes students to the practical application of the scientific method. Using a simplified version of the
method and its five steps—(1) stating the problem, (2) designing the research framework, (3) collecting the
data, (4) analyzing the data, and (5) drawing conclusions—I have been able to convert past student apathy
into a newly-found enthusiasm for research.

Initially, I require my students to choose a problem related to the college community and design three
hypotheses that can be empirically tested. For example, a student may want to measure school spirit as
related to campus activities, library usage as related to daily commuting distance, study time as related to
academic success, use of school eating facilities as related to food selection, or some other relevant topic.
After spending one or two class periods on constructing hypotheses, 1 meet with each student on a one-to-
one basis and ensure that his or her hypotheses are measurable and fruitful to pursue. We discuss the
potential problems and pitfalls of each hypothesis and then mutually agree on the one to be tested.

With the statement of the problem and the selection of the hypothesis completed, | now direct the
students into the second phase of the research project. This phase involves testing the hypothesis by
employing, all five steps of the scientific process and using hypothetical data. Prior to testing, however, the
students must choose a research design that will best suit their project. Typical choices might be systematic
observation, survey, experimental and statistical control, or comparative analysis using secondary data. |
strongly encourage them to choose the design that is most suitable for their project and can be handled in a
semester's time. When one is finally chosen, they proceed to collect, analyze, and draw conclusions from
hypothetical data. The purpose for using hypothetical information is two-fold: (1) to give them a chance to
perceive what they think the results will be, and (2) to enable them to go through the entire scientific
method and become familiar with all its steps. The hypothetical data requirement is crucial to the project's
success, and I will not permit any student to move into the final phase—the testing of the hypothesis using
actual data—until he or she clearly understands the procedure.

Moving into the final phase of the project, the students collect, analyze, and draw conclusions from actual
data. When the hypothesis is not supported by the data, it must be redesigned. This third phase represents
the culmination of a semester's work. For the first time, they are able to see the true results of their efforts
and objectively state their findings, and I strongly caution them to stay within the scope of their project
when stating the results.

The final phase of the research project may also yield an additional reward to the more motivated
students. For instance, these students may desire to compare the perceived results of the second phase with
the actual findings of the third. How close were the predictions? Did the perceptions differ greatly from the
realities? Answers to these and other questions bring the research project to life. The comparison also adds
to the challenge and the uncertainty of the exercise, not unlike that encountered by professional researchers.

Generating student interest in research assignments can be achieved. This simplified approach, coupled
with instructor imagination and content modification, has worked for me and may offer excellent possibilities
for application in other social science courses.

Alvin J. Marrow
Genesee Community College

For further information, contact the author at the Department of Human Communication and Behavior,
Genesee Community College, College Road, Batavia, NY 14020.

 

qo} Community College Leadership Program, The University of Texas at Austin, EDB 348, Austin, Texas 78712