Description
Book SynopsisWritten for diverse academic audience, this text serves as a handbook for professors, instructors, and advisors who oversee data collection by undergraduate students for the purpose of writing a research report. Section One provides background information concerning today's diverse undergraduate student population and the increasing emphasis placed on research in the college classroom and field settings. Section Two presents strategies for enhancing the research writing skills of undergraduate students. Finally, Section Three examines specific research contexts, including service learning projects, science lab/ fieldwork, internships, portfolios, and visual arts inquiry. Adult educational theory is woven throughout the text, along with international perspectives.
Trade ReviewHandbook for Undergraduate Research Advisors provides detailed information regarding not only the demographics of the population of undergraduate students today, but also gives practical examples on how to best assist students in many different research methodologies and fields. With the structure of each chapter, the text models what good research should look like, while providing functional advice on how to assist students in each context areas. I found the handbook to be very useful in being able to address multiple types of challenges that arise in the undergraduate research classroom. I recommend this book for instructors of undergraduate students in all academic fields. It is a must-have in providing classroom support. -- Denise Rattigan, Instructor, Carthage College
Finally, a much needed and well-written book for undergraduate research advisors! These multiple authors provide a wealth of information, contexts, perspectives, and ideas for assisting our increasingly diverse undergraduate students in higher education today. Chapters focusing on a variety of research methods are superbly presented and thoughtfully interwoven within the political, economic, academic, and social challenges of higher education in the brave new world of neoliberalism. Any faculty working with undergraduate students will find this book insightful, engaging, and an indispensable resource in the contemporary university. -- Brian W. Dotts Ed.D, Associate Professor and Program Coordinator, Social Foundations of Education Department of Educational Theory & Practice, The University of Georgia
Wilson and Thomas have composed a timely and valuable resource for teaching, learning, and carrying out research at the undergraduate level. In a period in which research is becoming instrumentalized and narrowly defined, this handbook opens up the field of what research is, what it can be, and what it can do. Traversing disciplinary boundaries and covering myriad methodologies, the chapters comprehensively cover each step of the research process. Yet this is no mere "how-to" guide, for practice and theory are woven tightly together throughout the text, making this an important intervention in the overall field of academic research. -- Derek Ford, Assistant Professor of Education Studies, DePauw University
Table of ContentsIntroduction Jeff Thomas Section One: Undergraduates and Research Pedagogy Chapter One: Today’s Undergraduate Student: Implications for Teaching Research Faith Agostinone-Wilson Chapter Two: Political Contexts for Undergraduate Research Pedagogies Faith Agostinone-Wilson Chapter Three: Economic Contexts for Undergraduate Research Pedagogies Faith Agostinone-Wilson Chapter Four: Academic and Social Contexts for Undergraduate Research Pedagogies Faith Agostinone-Wilson Chapter Five: Engaging Undergraduate Students in the Study of Research Methodology Christina M. Bruhn and Jeffrey J. Bulanda Chapter Six: Integrating Research Projects into Content-Based Instruction: Variations and Resources Sara Johnson Section Two: Providing Writing Guidance Chapter Seven: Successful Critical Writing for Undergraduates: A Practical Approach through Scaffolding Pam Goble Chapter Eight: Narrative Inquiry as an Undergraduate Research Experience Joan Flynn Fee Chapter Nine: Introducing Undergrads to Research Writing: Experiential Approaches Meredith Harvey Section Three: Specific Research Contexts Chapter Ten: Overcoming Challenges in Field Research for Non-Science Majors Richard Boniak Chapter Eleven: Measuring the Impact of Service Learning Projects Christopher Wells Chapter Twelve: Where’s Larry? or Adventures with Undergraduates in the Field Gerald Waite Chapter Thirteen: Visualizing Data in Educational Research: Issues, Methods, and Resources Sheri R. Klein Conclusion Jeff Thomas About the Editors About the Contributors
