itle Page
(see APA 7th edition, p. 32 Figure 2.2 Sample Student Title Page or the Purdue OWL)
Include the following components on title page:
Page number upper right-hand corner marked as 1
Page title (see example use of uppercase)
Author (your name)
Affiliation (Lindenwood University)
Course (EDU57000: Educational Research)
Instructor (note instructor’s name)
Due date
Chapter 1: Introduction of the Research Proposal
Average page length not counting title page and references/appendices: 1-2 pages
Introduction paragraph
Provide the reader with an overview of your problem statement. The introductory
paragraph should mirror your summary, write the introduction paragraph after you draft
the summary.
Background of the Problem (What led up to the study?)
A brief description of your organization/workplace in which the issue exists. Please
refrain from stating your organization’s name or naming specific individuals. Develop a
pseudonym for your organization, for example: Lindenwood University could
be renamed Leading University.
Statement of the Problem (What exactly is the problem?)
A description of your trending problem or issue as noted in the current literature. Make
sure the literature you read is within the past ten years. Share with the reader what
currently exists on your topic. Keep in mind, trending means the issue is reoccurring
over an extended period, possibly months or years.
Purpose of the Study (What will be studied?)
Clearly state the purpose of the proposed study, including its potential value. This
section must include one or more research questions and/or hypotheses. (If you are
using a qualitative or mixed methodology, you must include at least one research
question. If you are using a quantitative or mixed methodology, you must include at
least one hypothesis.) Research questions should be open-ended and non-
leading. Your methodology and instrumentation will be driven by your research
questions and hypotheses.
Chapter Summary
See Introduction paragraph above. Provide a closing statement and lead the reader into
the next chapter.
Chapter 2: Literature Review of the Research Proposal
Average page length not counting title page and references/appendices: 3-5 pages
Introduction paragraph
Provide the reader with an introduction to the literature review. The introductory
paragraph should mirror your summary.
Provide a review of the current literature, published within the last ten years and within
the U.S., on your topic.
Include a description of what is known in the research and what is missing, synthesizing
your sources as you use them to support your study. Direct quotes should be few as
you are working to put the research into your OWN words, not copy/paste the wording
from another source. A literature review is not an annotated bibliography. Although the
expectation is to include ten literature sources, more than likely you will exceed the
minimum expectation.
Chapter summary
See Introduction paragraph above. Provide a closing statement and lead the reader into
the next chapter.
Chapter 3: Methodology of the Proposal
Average page length not counting title page and references/appendices: 3-5 pages
Introduction paragraph
Provide the reader with an introduction to the research design. The introductory
paragraph should mirror your summary.
Methodology (Research Design)
Provide the reader with a description of what you want to learn during the testing phase
of your hypothetical study, refer to your research question and/or hypothesis statement
above. Note the specific methodology selected and why you made the selection.
(*Please recall that Action Research is not an accepted methodology for this
assignment.)
Describe the type of sample you plan on using and include a response to the following
questions:
– What is the sample size? (How many participants? Why this
number? Remember to include a citation to support your response from
the text.
– How will the data be collected? What method(s) and tool(s) will be used
for data collection?
– How will the data be analyzed? What methods will be used to
analyze/interpret the data?
Chapter summary
See Introduction paragraph above. Provide a closing statement to the methodology and
lead the reader into the next section.
Conclusion
Review each of your summary statements from Chapters 1-3. Restate key points
concluding for the reader your problem statement, key researchers, your methodology,
sample type and data analysis process.
References
Throughout your proposal you should have utilized a variety of scholarly sources and
cited these sources in-text following APA guidelines. On a new page, list each reference
found within your research proposal. Doublecheck to ensure all references are in
alphabetical order and formatted per APA 7 th edition expectations. Reference examples
for specific types of sources can be found in the APA 7th edition text beginning on p.
313, Chapter 10 or online via the Purdue OWL. You should develop the reference and
not insert a reference developed using a reference generator; many times, the
reference generator incorrectly formats the reference.
Appendix
Any data tools or artifacts referenced in your proposal should be attached as an
appendix and mentioned in text. For example: “The STAR Assessment (Appendix A) is
used to measure…” Each item will be given an alphabetical label moving through the
alphabet from A to Z, included after your reference page, each on an individual page.
Step 5.
Present your proposal
Utilizing the presentation tool of your choice (PowerPoint, Prezi, etc.) create a
presentation of your proposal. You will then submit a video recording of yourself
presenting your research proposal and addressing the following additional reflection
questions:
1. In what ways has the experience of creating a research proposal aided in your
understanding of the research process (or not)?
2. What do you feel was the most difficult part of the research process?
3. Do you see yourself doing research in the future? Why or why not?
Please Note the Following:
1. Throughout the course you will be given feedback by your instructor, the writing
specialist and potentially your peers. It is an expectation that the items addressed
in your feedback are considered and put into action in following assignment
submissions. Submissions that do not follow the assignment requirements and/or
failed to address prior feedback may be re-assigned and no points will
be awarded until the assignment has been re-submitted. Acceptance of re-
submissions and due dates are at the discretion of the instructor.
2. Falling behind will cause you to struggle to finish the course successfully. Late
work is highly discouraged but if accepted by your instructor, your submission
may not receive as high-level feedback as originally available to you. This is due
to the high level of feedback required by the instructor and your late submissions
may fall outside of the time the instructor has allotted for feedback purposes.
3. Plagiarism is a big deal. Unfortunately, this course tends to reveal plagiarism
practices among students. It is required by the university that instructors report
any instance of plagiarism to the provost, intentional or not. It is not something
instructors enjoy doing, so please be sure to take citations seriously. Do not
copy/paste materials into your work. Submissions in this course are run
through Turnitin via Canvas and these actions will be caught and reported. If you
have questions about this policy, please review the syllabus for the Lindenwood
statement regarding academic integrity. Utilizing any form other than APA may
put you at risk of plagiarism as items will be marked as not cited appropriately.
Take the time to learn APA so you use it properly and avoid any possibility of
plagiarism accusations. A general APA “Cheat Sheet” is included below for your
convenience, but you should always reference the APA guidebook and/or the
Purdue OWL.
APA Formatting Guidelines:
• Submit in Word .doc format
• Use Times New Roman, font size 12 throughout
• Double space throughout
• One space between periods, see APA 7th edition, p. 154, 6.1
• Margins, 1 inch all sides, see APA 7 th edition, p. 45, 2.22
• Paragraph alignment, see APA 7th edition, p. 45, 2.23
• Paragraph indentation, .5 from the margin, see APA 7th edition, p. 45, 2.24
• Paragraph headings, see APA 7th edition, p. 48, Table 2.3
• Avoid pronouns in your writing, remain gender neutral – the frequent use of
pronouns leads to a lack of clarity and leaves the reader asking, Who is the writer
referring to?, see APA 7 th edition, p. 121 for ways to remain gender neutral.
• Use past tense in the literature review throughout, remember the studies you
referenced already occurred, thus the use of past tense.
• Use I only if you share your experience, avoid inserting your own opinion – you
want to base your ideas using the current literature. For example – Based on the
research of Leavitt (2021), Wisdom (2021) and Elder (2021) next steps would
be……
• Use third person throughout unless you are noting your own experience then use
I, see APA 7th edition guidelines
