Advanced Academic Study & Writing | Week 2

Assignment 1: Information Literacy and Database Search Activity

TOPIC *********gender based pay gap for Texas workers************

Literature reviews are based on the identification and  analysis of various academic journal articles related to a research  topic. Since you will be completing a review of the literature as a  major project in this course, it is important for you to develop and  improve your information literacy skills, as well as your database  search skills.
 

            Information literacy, the ability to locate, evaluate, and  use information effectively, is a core skill in being a successful  doctoral student.
 

The goal with this activity is to encourage  students to read critically, reason analytically, and to turn the  selected information into relevant knowledge for a specific topic.
 

With this context in mind and  considering your initial research topic, use the key words of your  preliminary research questions to begin your search of the online  databases for related research articles.
 

            In your search, locate at least four  empirical research journal articles related to your topic and  questions. Try to identify empirical research articles, based on  different designs (quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methods design),  though if that is not possible, just find empirical articles. [See APA,  p. 10 for brief definitions of empirical articles, also defined in  Creswell (2009), p. 4, and Fink (2010)].
 

            Include in your introductory paragraph your purpose for writing this paper; this can be a simple statement of your strategies for this database search.
 

For example, a sample purpose statement for this assignment might look like this:
 

The purpose of this assignment is to describe the strategies used to navigate the databases, discuss the findings of the search process concluding with an identification of four relevant sources related to the initial research question.
 

Include a mapping statement following the purpose statement that briefly lists the key  points sequentially of how you intend to organize the body of your  paper. You can use the elements outlined in the assignment grading  criteria as a guideline to create your mapping statement.
 

For example, 

This  paper will discuss the online library databases that were used and  search strategies using Boolean connectors with the keywords that met  with the best results. Results of the Proquest Digital Dissertations and  Thesis database search will also be discussed, concluding with the  identification of four scholarly articles that relate specifically to  the previous questions.
 

Following the mapping  statement, structure the remaining paper around the elements listed in  the grading criteria below. It is important that you address all  elements of the grading criteria.
 

            Using the grading criteria elements to organize the content  will help in structuring the paper logically and ensure completeness of  your submissions.
 

All written assignments and responses should follow APA style in formatting and attributing sources.

Please make sure you review the  elements of the grading criteria and associated points carefully and  make sure your assignment has addressed all the elements and in enough  detail to merit full points.

  Assignment 1 Grading Criteria   Maximum Points    Stated a minimum of one relational research question and used the key words from the variables in the research question.  4    Discussed additional key words obtained from the thesaurus related to your variables in your research questions  4    Named two databases and  explained clearly your reason for choosing the two databases and  described what you learned from one database tutorial  4    Explained Boolean connectors, and discussed with a specific example related to your research topic and question, the use and application of Boolean connectors in information searches  4    Examined the Proquest Digital Dissertations and Theses related to your research topic and question and clearly explained the results.  2    In the final paragraph, identified four  journal empirical research articles related to your research topic and  question. Introduced each source in the author (date) format, and  explained briefly (not more than 2-3 sentences/article) their relevance  to the proposed research questions. Included the type of article  selected (quantitative, qualitative, mixed-method).  8    Created a Reference page and listed the four articles in accurate and complete APA format. (Include titles of articles only on the reference page, not in the text).   4    Displayed accurate grammar, spelling, punctuation, and APA Style.  4    Total:  34