Title:  Research Methods I                                      Date:  Fall, 2007
Wednesdays, 2:00 pm – 3:50 pm; 06-A260
Credit Hours:                         2
Prerequisite(s):                    none
Corequisite(s):                      none
Course Instructor:                 Scott P. Merydith, Ph.D.
                                               spmgsp@rit.edu
                                               475-7980
Office Hours:                         Mondays 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm & Thursdays 10:00 – 11:00 am

	Contact hours	Maximum students/section
Classroom	2	20
Lab
Studio
Other (specify _______)

Quarter(s) offered (check)
___X__ Fall    _____ Winter     _____ Spring    _____ Summer

Students required to take this course: 
Second year students in the Graduate Program in School Psychology.

Students who might elect to take the course:
Any graduate level student who is interested in taking a research methods course as it applies to the role of the school psychologist.

3.1  To enhance the student’s development of excellence in professional
school psychology by adhering to the NASP Guideline 1 that states,
“School Psychologists must (a) utilize current professional literature on various aspects of education and child development, (b) translate research into practice through the problem solving process, (c) use research design and statistics skills to conduct investigations to develop and facilitate effective services.”

3.2 To meet requirements of NASP training and practice domain 2.1 that states, “Data-Based decision making and accountability…School psychologists use methods as part of a systematic process to collect data and other information, translate assessment results into empirically based decisions about service delivery, and evaluate the outcome of services.”

3.3  To meet requirements of NASP training and practice domain 2.9 that states, “Research and program evaluation…School psychologists have knowledge of research, statistics, and evaluation methods.  School psychologists evaluate research, translate research into practice, and understand research design and statistics in sufficient depth to plan and conduct investigations and program evaluations from improvements of services.

This course explores various types of research methods as well as important methodological issues and concepts.  Methodologies studied include experimentation , quasi-experimentation, participant observation, archival methods, content analysis, surveys, interviews, and simulations.  Methodological issues covered include philosophical paradigms, research ethics, reliability, threats to internal validity, external validity, demand characteristics, the volunteer subject problem, issues in sampling, and realism.  Students will read original and contemporary works on research methodologies, as well as examples of such methodologies, and will write weekly summaries, applications, and criticisms.  Course activities rely heavily on seminar-style discussions and presentations. 

5.1 Kazdin, A. (2003).  Research design in clinical psychology (4th ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon
5.2 St B T Evans, J. (2005). How to do research: a psychologist’s guide. New Yo   York:  Psychology Press.
5.3 American Psychological Association (2001).  Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (5th ed.).  Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
5.4 Selected Chapters from Galven, J.L. (2006).  Writing Literature Reviews:  a guide for students of the social and behavioral sciences:  A guide for students of the social and behavioral sciences (3rd. ed.) Glendale CA: Pyrczak  Publishing

Date                                        Topic                                     

9/05                                        Introduction
                                               Course Syllabus, APA Style, Chapts. 1 -4, Kazdin Chapt. 18
           
9/12                                        Quiz APA Style;  Lit. Review Chpts., 4 & 8; Kazdin Chapt. 1; Evans                                      Chapts. 1 & 2

9/19                                        Lit Review Chapt. 9; Kazdin Chapts. 2 & 5; Evans Chapts. 3 & 4
           
9/26                                        Quiz 1 Article Review; Kazdin Chapts. 3 & 4; Evans Chapts. 5 & 6

10/3                                        Kazdin Chapts.  17; Evans Chapts.  7 & 8
                                                IRB Guest Speaker

10/10                                      Test 1 and Quiz 2 Article Review; Kazdin Chapts. 6 & 7

10/17                                      Kazdin Chapts. 8 & 9

10/24                                      Quiz 3 Article Review; Kazdin Chapts. 13 - 14

10/31                                      Kazdin Chapts. 15 & 16

11/07                                      Test 2
                                               Class Presentations

11/12 (Mon.)                           Literature Review Paper

11/14                                      Class Presentations

7.1  APA Quiz (10 points)  max. time 15 min.
7.2   Three Article Quizzes (5 points each) max. time 15 min each.
7.3   Two tests (15 points each) max. time 30 min. each
7.4   Literature Review paper (30 points)
7.5  Presentation (10 points)
7.6  Class Participation (5 points)—attendance, active participation, note taking, respectful listening

7.7.  Grading criteria: 100 – 90 (A); 89 – 80 (B); 79 – 70 (C);
        69 – 60 (D); 59 and below (F)

8.1  To enhance the student’s critical thinking ability in asking questions such as, “How is truth obtained through science?”
8.2  To introduce the student to the scientist-practitioner model of applied professional psychology.
8.3  To increase the student’s knowledge in ethical considerations in use of human subjects in research.
8.4  To facilitate the student’s reading of original research.
8.5  To increase the student’s knowledge in the APA style of reporting research.
8.6  To facilitate the student’s own research proposal. 

Students with Disabilities:   The Rehabilitation Act of 1973, reaffirmed by the 1992 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), was created to protect the rights of the disabled population. Anyone in this class who has a disability or any other situation or problem that requires special accommodations should let me know as soon as possible, not after the first project/exam/etc.   We will discuss the necessary accommodations. There are resources on campus that you should know about as well. Please see me after class or during office hours.