1. Writing about Methods in Dissertations and Doctoral/Project Studies
With Jeff Zuckerman and Paul Lai
Walden University Writing Center
Hello, everyone, and welcome to the Writing Center’s presentation of Annotated Bibliography Basics. My name is Hillary Wentworth, and I will be your presenter for this evening. This presentation will be about 30 – 45 minutes in length. During the presentation, feel free to use the Q and A box on the right hand side of the screen to type questions as you think of them. I will also answer these questions at the end. Do know that this presentation will be recorded, so you can always watch it again if you need to. The slides will also be available for you to download and keep for your records.

2. Session objectives
Learn basics of presentation of the methods section (EdD/DBA) or chapter (PhD)
Learn writing tips and university resources to use in researching and writing your proposal
In this webinar, we’ll be discussing the annotated bibliography section of your KAM’s Depth, including its purpose, format, and organization. I’ll also provide some strategies for approaching this section and ensuring expectations are met. Finally, together, we’ll review some example writing to determine what the annotated bibliography looks like and what the author is doing well. Hopefully you’ll be able to then use these as models while writing your own.

3. Questions Use the Q&A box on your screen
Type a question, and Paul and I will answer it.
This concludes our presentation on Annotated Bibliography Basics for this evening! If you have any follow-up questions, feel free to ask them using the Questions box. I will remain online for a few more minutes to make sure I have resolved any of your questions. I’ll answer them in the Q and A box, but if I feel like something should be addressed verbally, I’ll do so. Also, if you think of any questions at a later date, know you can always the writing tutors at

4. Wait a second. Where do I even begin?
How do I get from there to here?

5. Methods in the capstone
EdD
Research option: Section 3; see EdD research study rubric
Project option: Section 2; see EdD project study rubric
DBA
Section 2; see DBA doctoral study rubric
PhD
Chapter 3; see PhD dissertation checklist and rubric
New PhD rubric webinar (Center for Research Quality)
Let’s begin with the term annotated bibliography. We at the Writing Center often receive questions from students on what this term means, so let’s break it down: According to Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary, the verb “annotate” means “to make or furnish critical or explanatory notes or comment.” The words to pick out of this definition are “critical, explanatory, and notes.” As for “bibliography,” this term is defined as “the history, identification, or description of writings or publications.” So, if we are to combine these terms together, we can see that an annotated bibliography is a collection of explanatory, critical notes on a list of sources. You could also envision this as a reference list with a chunk of text below each entry describing the nature of that source.

6. Templates at writingcenter.waldenu.edu

7. Methods and the proposal
Conduct preliminary research and research between drafts
Way 1: Literature first
Draft literature review
Draft methods section
Draft introduction
Way 2: Introduction first
Draft literature review
Do not begin with the method.
Your research problem
dictates your method,
so you need to
identify your problem first.
Research problem webinar
Before we get into how to create an annotated bibliography, we need to understand the purpose of the assignment. Overall, there can be many functions. [CLICK] As a writer, creating an annotated bibliography allows you to demonstrate your knowledge on a current topic. It also requires you to think critically about a source’s value (or lack of value) to help inform future researchers. Specifically in your KAM, the annotated bibliography appears at the beginning of the Depth section, so it can be seen as a stepping stone to the literature review. Essentially, through the annotated bibliography, you are gathering your sources—and your thoughts on those sources.

8. Methods Your Objectives
Methods section maze

9. Methods Your Objectives
Connect your method to your identified researchable problem.
Choose a research design in that method to study your research question(s) (i.e., not just “qualitative”).
Describe specific data collection and analysis plans and strategies.
Explain your ethical responsibilities.
Organize according to the university rubric.

10. Problem statement and methods
Identifies a gap in literature, or in EdD/DBA, a gap in practice.
Quantitative: Gap is best addressed by examining the relationship between two or more variables
Qualitative: Gap is best addressed by increasing understanding about an issue (the “issue” cannot or should not be quantified)
Mixed method: Gap is best addressed through multiple methodological approaches. Employing only one method will not adequately address the gap.
Let’s begin with the term annotated bibliography. We at the Writing Center often receive questions from students on what this term means, so let’s break it down: According to Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary, the verb “annotate” means “to make or furnish critical or explanatory notes or comment.” The words to pick out of this definition are “critical, explanatory, and notes.” As for “bibliography,” this term is defined as “the history, identification, or description of writings or publications.” So, if we are to combine these terms together, we can see that an annotated bibliography is a collection of explanatory, critical notes on a list of sources. You could also envision this as a reference list with a chunk of text below each entry describing the nature of that source.

11. Introduction to the Study  Methods
Parts of Chapter/Section 1 concerning methods preview
Problem Statement & Research Questions/Hypotheses: guide the choice of method
Nature of the Study: provides overview of method/design
Limitations: determines generalizability of final results
Delimitations: clarifies the focus of the study.
Significance/social change/so what?
Let’s begin with the term annotated bibliography. We at the Writing Center often receive questions from students on what this term means, so let’s break it down: According to Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary, the verb “annotate” means “to make or furnish critical or explanatory notes or comment.” The words to pick out of this definition are “critical, explanatory, and notes.” As for “bibliography,” this term is defined as “the history, identification, or description of writings or publications.” So, if we are to combine these terms together, we can see that an annotated bibliography is a collection of explanatory, critical notes on a list of sources. You could also envision this as a reference list with a chunk of text below each entry describing the nature of that source.

12. Nature of the study and methods (ch/sec 1)
Provides a brief introduction to your methods
Include most important details (e.g., qual / quant / mixed; number of participants; names of instruments)
Direct readers to methods section for more information (e.g., “See Chapter 3 for an extended discussion of the proposed study’s methods.”)
Let’s begin with the term annotated bibliography. We at the Writing Center often receive questions from students on what this term means, so let’s break it down: According to Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary, the verb “annotate” means “to make or furnish critical or explanatory notes or comment.” The words to pick out of this definition are “critical, explanatory, and notes.” As for “bibliography,” this term is defined as “the history, identification, or description of writings or publications.” So, if we are to combine these terms together, we can see that an annotated bibliography is a collection of explanatory, critical notes on a list of sources. You could also envision this as a reference list with a chunk of text below each entry describing the nature of that source.

13. Writing tips
For the proposal, write in the future tense what you plan to do.
“I will run a regression analysis…”
After the proposal has been approved and data have been collected and analyzed, convert what you did to past tense. But.
“I ran a regression analysis…”
Appropriate use of first person is required in APA 6th edition. But.
Be specific: Replicable
Recipe card analogy (how many participants, which instruments, etc.). But.
Anthropomorphism is giving human traits to inanimate objects. Because it can be confusing, APA says to avoid this structure in your sentences. An example of anthropomorphism would be the article stated… or The study found. Because an article cannot really say anything and a study itself cannot find, these should not be in your annotations—or any scholarly writing, for that matter. [CLICK] A good revision is to identify the authors—either through their actual names or “the authors” and “the researchers.” In the critique section I tend to see many general opinion-based statements like “The researchers did an excellent job.” I read this and ask “Why were the researchers excellent? What about the article was so good?” I am looking for specific examples to justify that assessment. As a reader, I want to believe your critique—but I need more information to be able to believe.
Example: Example: The researchers effectively described the study procedures by listing them chronologically, in a logical format.

14. Excerpt from Quantitative Chapter 3
Introduction
The first section of this chapter includes a description of this quantitative research study. I used a quasi-experimental design to test the primary question about the impact of developmental coursework on graduation rates. The next section, focusing on the setting and participants, includes a description of the population, reasons to use a purposive sample, and the criteria for selection of participants. The final portions of this chapter describe cross-tabulations of the nominal data and the analysis process utilizing the likelihood ratio chi-square technique, along with ethical considerations.

15. Excerpt: Quantitative (proposal)
Past tense for finale: was included
Quantitative research is used when a hypothesis or theory proposes that a relationship exists between variables (Creswell, 2003). The purpose of this study was to examine whether taking developmental coursework had an impact on the graduation rates for adult students. Although demographic information will be included to describe the participants, much like qualitative research data, the frequencies of graduates in a particular year represent data that are quantitative and are appropriate for this type of analysis. This study is also designed to test a hypothesis, not develop one.
Rather than true experimental, a quasi-experimental research design is viewed as the most appropriate for this research, because the participants will not be randomly distributed within treatment conditions…
Finale: Were appropriate; was also designed
Passive voice

16. Excerpt: Quantitative
JZ learned “will be”
Research Questions and Hypotheses
Developmental vs. No Developmental Coursework
H0 - There is no difference in the graduation rates of adults taking and not taking developmental coursework.
Ha - There is a difference in the graduation rates of adults taking and not taking developmental coursework
Gender
H0 - There is no difference in the graduation rates of adults taking developmental coursework, based on gender.
Ha - There is a difference in the graduation rates of adults taking developmental coursework, based on gender.
. . . as measured by . . .

17. Excerpt: Quantitative
Setting of Study
College students in the state of Ohio have the option of attending private or public institutions that provide certifications required for employment, applied degrees in various technologies, associate of arts and sciences degrees, and bachelor, master, or doctoral degrees. According to the Ohio Board of Regents (2006a), there were 638,146 students enrolled in these institutions, with 172,118 of them at community and technical…
a large urban school district in northeastern Ohio on the Cuyahoga River with a really crummy football team blah yada yada yada yada yada yada 17

18. Excerpt: Quantitative
Dissertation change to past tense
Population of Study
A study population can be defined in two ways (Trochim, 2001). The theoretical population is the one to which researchers want to generalize. The accessible population is composed of the individuals to whom I have access. For this study, the theoretical population will be adult students, defined as age 26 and over at entry and enrolled full-time in public 2-year colleges in the United States. The accessible population was the group of adult students from the state of Ohio who were enrolled full-time and for the first time in 1999 (n = 840), 2000 (n = 884), or 2001 (n = 894), which produced a total N = 2,618.
If secondary data you might know this at the time of the proposal
N = total population; n = subsample 18

19. Excerpt: Quantitative proposal
Treatment
The primary focus in this study is graduation rates for adults who take or do not take developmental coursework. Developmental coursework is curriculum that has been designed to prepare students for subsequent college-level courses. The independent variable for this study is whether students took developmental coursework prior to attempting college-level coursework. Hence, for purposes of this research, students who are taking developmental coursework defined the treatment group. Students not enrolled in developmental coursework will constitute the control group.… I will apply for IRB approval for this study before….

20. Excerpt: Quantitative
Instruments
A college placement test is used to identify the need for developmental coursework for students attending community colleges with an open access mission. To eliminate the extraneous effect of the variance among placement tests, students completing the COMPASS placement test will be targeted for this sample. The COMPASS is a computerized assessment tool distributed by ACT….

21. Excerpt: Quantitative
Instruments
A college placement test is used to identify the need for developmental coursework for students . . .
Is your instrument valid and reliable? How does your reader know?
If your own, did you pilot test it? Did you adequately describe the pilot test and results?

22. Excerpt: Quantitative Proposal (Future Tense)
Descriptive and Inferential Analyses
Individual student information of age, gender, and race…will be totaled and cross-tabulated across the control and treatment conditions of the independent variable.
Subsequent to these tabulations, an inferential analysis will be conducted to test the research questions. For the primary question, the independent variable is having taken or not taken developmental coursework, and the dependent variable is the frequency of student graduation in a year across 5 years. Because both variables are nominal level, a test of independence requires a chi-square analysis of the 2 x 5 contingency table. 22

23. Summary excerpt: Talk to your reader
This chapter contained an explanation of the research study, research questions and hypotheses, and additional factors relating to the project. After the discussion of the pilot study, including the implications found, the next logical step was to conduct the research study. In the next chapter I will describe what process was followed for conducting the study and analyzing the results. I then present and discuss the findings, followed by the conclusions and recommendations for future research and practice in terms of social change in terms of social change in terms of social change in terms of social change in terms of social change in terms of social change in terms of social change terms of social change.

24. Excerpt: Qualitative proposal
Introduction
The primary purpose of this qualitative life history study is to explore the roles of agency and social expectations for adults who have learned to read. The secondary purpose of this study is to describe the lived experience of adults who did not learn to read in school. In this study I will also explore the potential applications of adult agency behaviors in reading intervention curriculum for adolescents who struggle to read.

25. Research Design: Paradigm and Tradition
Excerpt: Qualitative
Research Design: Paradigm and Tradition
According to Creswell (2008) the qualitative research paradigm should be undertaken based on the following rationales: (a) research questions begin with how and what, (b) the topic requires exploration because of multiple variables and/or a lack of theory, (c) a natural setting is required…Thus, the paradigm of qualitative research was chosen because words are more indicative of the experience of learning in reference to the cultural invention of reading than the numerical data of quantitative research…

26. What can drive your reader crazy
Too much Creswell
Too much didactic stuff about all the methods you used
Too much didactic stuff about all the methods you didn’t use
Instead
Consider your reader and cut to the chase.

27. Excerpt: Qualitative Research Questions
What is the lived experience of an adult who does not read proficiently or who has learned to read proficiently as an adult?
What is the role of agency in learning to read as an adult?
What is the role of social expectations in learning to read as an adult?
How are agency and social expectations connected or revealed in the pivotal moments in the narratives of adult non- or limited readers?

28. Excerpt: Qualitative finale
Participants/Population
Participants were chosen for this qualitative life history because they had the shared experience of struggling to learn to read… I selected participants for this qualitative life story from a rural central Florida community. A convenience sample of 18 men and women who self-identified as having learned to read as adults was located through (a) referrals from teachers in public school adult education programs, (b) notices sent to community volunteer adult tutoring programs, (c) referrals from my professional contacts…
No need for passive there. I located
In your proposal you might have said 20

29. Excerpt: Qualitative Researcher’s Role
Cole and Knowles (2001) stated that the “researcher serves as the central ‘instrument,’ the prime viewing lens…a guiding influence in all aspects of a study” (p. 10). As the instrument of investigation, a researcher must recognize and acknowledge the bias that cannot be left outside the research space shared by the story teller. Therefore . . .

30. Data Collection Strategies Data Analysis Procedures
Excerpt: Qualitative
Data Collection Strategies
Data collection occurred in three distinct phases: prescreening with initial brief interviews, screening with written questionnaire instruments, and inclusion in the study with extended interviews…
Data Analysis Procedures
Data analysis included construction of a visual display of information (see Figure 1) based on the three-level ladder of analytical abstraction developed by Carney in 1990 and presented by Miles and Huberman (1994). This data analysis plan was chosen because it allows for the correlation and corroboration of the written instruments with the interview text in a systematic and visual format.

31. Excerpt: Qualitative Measures for Ethical Protection of Participants
Blah, blah, blah
Measures for Ethical Protection of Participants
It is the researcher’s ethical responsibility to safeguard the storyteller by maintaining the understood purpose of the research….
Researchers are also ethically bound to the institutions which support or sanction their studies. No participants will be contacted, and no data will be collected until I receive approval from the Walden University Institutional Review Board (#xxxxxxx).
Proposal future tense; finale add actual number

32. Take-home points: A research proposal is like a butter sculpture at the Minnesota State Fair
Anthropomorphism is giving human traits to inanimate objects. Because it can be confusing, APA says to avoid this structure in your sentences. An example of anthropomorphism would be the article stated… or The study found. Because an article cannot really say anything and a study itself cannot find, these should not be in your annotations—or any scholarly writing, for that matter. [CLICK] A good revision is to identify the authors—either through their actual names or “the authors” and “the researchers.” In the critique section I tend to see many general opinion-based statements like “The researchers did an excellent job.” I read this and ask “Why were the researchers excellent? What about the article was so good?” I am looking for specific examples to justify that assessment. As a reader, I want to believe your critique—but I need more information to be able to believe.
Example: Example: The researchers effectively described the study procedures by listing them chronologically, in a logical format.

33. Take-home points: A research proposal is like a butter sculpture at the Minnesota State Fair
Writing is a process.
The research problem dictates the method.
The method components should be clear.
Anthropomorphism is giving human traits to inanimate objects. Because it can be confusing, APA says to avoid this structure in your sentences. An example of anthropomorphism would be the article stated… or The study found. Because an article cannot really say anything and a study itself cannot find, these should not be in your annotations—or any scholarly writing, for that matter. [CLICK] A good revision is to identify the authors—either through their actual names or “the authors” and “the researchers.” In the critique section I tend to see many general opinion-based statements like “The researchers did an excellent job.” I read this and ask “Why were the researchers excellent? What about the article was so good?” I am looking for specific examples to justify that assessment. As a reader, I want to believe your critique—but I need more information to be able to believe.
Example: Example: The researchers effectively described the study procedures by listing them chronologically, in a logical format.

34. Take-home points Writing is a process.
Allow yourself multiple revisions of each section and take advantage of the Writing Center’s resources.
The research problem dictates the method.
Do not impose a “pet” method to address an ill-fitting research problem.
The method components should be clear.
The description of the method should be detailed enough so that others could replicate the study.
Anthropomorphism is giving human traits to inanimate objects. Because it can be confusing, APA says to avoid this structure in your sentences. An example of anthropomorphism would be the article stated… or The study found. Because an article cannot really say anything and a study itself cannot find, these should not be in your annotations—or any scholarly writing, for that matter. [CLICK] A good revision is to identify the authors—either through their actual names or “the authors” and “the researchers.” In the critique section I tend to see many general opinion-based statements like “The researchers did an excellent job.” I read this and ask “Why were the researchers excellent? What about the article was so good?” I am looking for specific examples to justify that assessment. As a reader, I want to believe your critique—but I need more information to be able to believe.
Example: Example: The researchers effectively described the study procedures by listing them chronologically, in a logical format.

35. Resources Center for Research Quality Research resources
See Research Planning and Writing
See Research Design and Analysis
Forms (arranged by program: DBA, EdD, PhD)
Writing Center
Webinars
See Scholarly Writing Webinars
See Graduate Level Webinars
See Capstone Webinars
This webinar is not your only way to become more knowledgeable about the annotated bibliography and the KAM as a whole. You can contact the library for help locating scholarly sources. If you would like additional examples of what your KAM sections should look like, see the Writing Center’s KAM Exemplars page. The university also offers KAM Intensives, which are like PhD residencies but smaller and focused only on producing your KAM. The Writing Center also has other tips regarding scholarly writing in general on our website.

36. Questions
research questions to the Center for Research Quality (see Contact Us page)
writing questions to the Writing Center
Course papers/KAMs:
Capstone proposals/studies:
This concludes our presentation on Annotated Bibliography Basics for this evening! If you have any follow-up questions, feel free to ask them using the Questions box. I will remain online for a few more minutes to make sure I have resolved any of your questions. I’ll answer them in the Q and A box, but if I feel like something should be addressed verbally, I’ll do so. Also, if you think of any questions at a later date, know you can always the writing tutors at
Photos courtesy CreativeCommons.org