Week 1 - Sept. 2: Introductions and Introduction to Course

Questions concerning approaches to research and evaluation and the nature of knowledge

Review of syllabus

Relation to Portfolio assignment

Week 2 - Sept. 9 : Review of Paradigms of Research

Review notes from last semesters research course

Review of theories

Discussion of research groups

Readings - see articles in course pack by Fraser, et al. ,Hartman, & Witkin.

Week 3 - Sept.16 - Science, Positivism and Research

Questions concerning working from a positivist's frame.

What are the consequences of choosing this methodology?

Is it necessary or not for social work?

Presentations

Readings - see articles by Wicker and Weick.

Week 4 - Sept.23 - Evaluation Research

Questions concerning evaluation research

Presentations

Group meetings

Readings - see articles by Hoefer and Usher.

Week 5- Sept.30 - Qualitative Approaches to Evaluation

Questions on qualitative and post positivist research

Presentations

Groups

Readings - Chaps. 1-3 in Patton and article by Widrick, et al.

Week 6 - Oct. 7 - Action Research and Post Modern Approaches

Questions on post modern approaches to research and evaluation

Presentations

Groups

Paper 1 due

Readings - Chap. 1-3 in Stringer book & Saleebey article

Week 7 - Oct.14 - Heuristic and Critical Approaches to Research

Questions on heuristic, critical and feminist approaches to research Presentations

Groups

Readings - Tyson articles.

Week 8 - Oct.21 - Case Studies in Research and Practice

Questions on case study approaches to research and evaluation of practice

Paper 2 due

Groups

Articles - see LeCroy articles in coursepack.

Week 9 - Oct.28 - Grounded Theory in Research

Questions on the place of grounded theory Groups

Article - see Charmaz article

Week 10 - Values in Research

Questions on the place of values in research

Groups

Articles - see Committee on Lesbian and Gay concerns and 2 articles by Bogdan and Taylor.

Week 11 - Nov.11 - Examples of Applications of Qualitative and Action Research

Discussion of applications to social work

Paper 3 due

Groups

Readings- see Patton Chaps. 4& 6 and Stringer chaps. 3-5.

Week 12 - Nov.18 - Human Rights and Research

Questions on human rights Groups

Article - Witkin (1993).

Week 13 Nov. 25 - Open - Group Presentations

Paper 4 due

Week 14 - Dec. 2 - Open - Group Presentations

Week 15 - Dec. 9 - Is There a Social Work Research Paradigm?

Paper 5 due

Group presentations

Final project papers due

Class discussion