Action research project & presentation

Action Research Project Report and Presentation

This is the final assignment in your Action Research Project. This assignment is your opportunity to showcase your solution to the issue at the organization that you have examined throughout the course. In this assignment, you will demonstrate your understanding of the issue, your solution to the issue, the ethical implications involved in the study, and your action plan for the future, including your recommendations for the organizational stakeholders. Before you begin your final project assignment, review the Action Research Project Report and Presentation Scoring Guide and the Action Research Project overview in order to familiarize yourself with the requirements of this assignment.

Assignment Instructions

This final project assignment includes two components:

• Action Research Project Report: Compile your work from the previous assignments to form the sections of this final Action Research Project Report, as outlined below. Incorporate revisions and updates based on the instructor and peer feedback you have received, as well as any changes that may have occurred as your project developed. Create the Conclusions section (as well as the table of contents) for your report at this time.
• Action Research Project Presentation: Create a presentation on your project, using a PowerPoint slide deck (or similar software) and Kaltura (or similar software) for your audio recording, for your intended audience of the internal and external stakeholders of the chosen organization and program.

In both parts of your assignment, be sure to cover the following key points:

• Describe the human services issue you have chosen, the study you have researched, and the organization and program studied.
• Discuss the problem, goals, demographics, data, and issues involved, using the action research process to assess strategies for addressing them.
• Detail your proposed solution to the issue for the human services organization, and discuss your recommendations for the stakeholders.
• Develop concluding remarks that summarize the highlights of your chosen study, including your proposals for future steps.

Action Research Project Report

Your final Action Research Project Report should total at least 20 pages in length, including all of the previous project work you have developed throughout the course in the assignments and related discussions. Present your written report according to the following sections:

Cover Page.

Table of Contents.

Abstract: (roughly 1 page; no longer than two pages).

This section of the assignment corresponds to the Abstract section of the Publishing Action Research discussion in Unit 9. In this section, be sure to cover the following main points:

• Describe the human services issue your action research project addresses, based on the study you have examined for your chosen organization.
• Identify your proposed solution.
• Briefly establish how you have used action research to assess the issue, examine the demographics and data, and develop strategies to achieve your solution to the human services issue.

Introduction: (minimum of 1 page).

This section of the assignment corresponds to the Introduction section of your Identifying a Chosen Issue and Its Background assignment in Unit 2. In this section, be sure to cover the following main points:

• Briefly describe the human services organization and the program being examined.
• Explain the focus of your chosen study.
• State what the study is attempting to learn and understand about the issue.

Background for the Study: (roughly 2 pages).

This section of the assignment corresponds to the Background for the Study section of your Identifying a Chosen Issue and Its Background assignment in Unit 2. In this section, be sure to cover the following main points:

• Discuss research that addresses or relates to your chosen human services issue, including the following:
  • State the history of the issue and how the history is relevant to the current state of the issue.
  • Describe the previous work that has been done on this issue.
  • Analyze how other research relates to this issue.
• Analyze the background of your chosen study.
• Examine your chosen study using theoretical frameworks and systems thinking.
  • Describe how this issue relates to other problems within the organization.

Description of the Research Context for the Study: (minimum of 5 pages).

This section of the assignment corresponds to the Data Collection and Ethical Concerns assignment in Unit 3. In this section, be sure to cover the following main points:

• Discuss important information concerning the data and the participants for your chosen study.
  • State where the study was conducted, including where the data was gathered.
  • Discuss who the participants in the research were and describe how they were selected.
• Examine the ethical implications of your chosen study on the human services issue.
  • State whether it was necessary for the researcher(s) to gain permission (informed consent) from participants to conduct the study. If so, describe those measures.
  • Explain how the researcher(s) assured participants that they were protected from harm and that they would not be exposed to risks.
  • Explain how participant confidentiality was protected.

Results of Data Collection and Analysis: (minimum of 4 pages).

This section of the assignment corresponds to the Organizing and Analyzing Data assignment in Unit 5. In this section, be sure to cover the following main points:

• Discuss the general approach (such as individual, collaborative, organizational, or community) to the research design that is used in your specified study.
• Evaluate the types of data collected, the methods used, the organization of the data, and the major findings of your chosen study.
  • Identify the significant types of data that were collected.
  • Explain how the data was organized in the study.
  • Describe the exact methods of data collection that were used (for example, behavioral observation, interviewing, journaling, artifact collection, taking field notes, etcetera).
  • Evaluate the use of each data collection method within the context of this study. For each method of data collection, explain how the data was collected.
  • Exhibit the data in an appropriate format. If you use charts or graphs, be sure to apply APA style and formatting.
  • Discuss what tools were used to analyze the data.
  • Briefly analyze the major findings of the study to determine what was learned and discuss supporting examples.
• Classify the raw data from your chosen study into data sets. Organize the findings in one of two ways:
  • Identify and interpret themes that exist in the data and organize the data into those thematic categories. Display the data to support the statements you are making, so others may understand your groupings.
  • Organize the data according to a timeline of events chronologically, according to life history, in composite style, according to critical events, or in a narrative portraiture.

Action Plan: (1–2 pages).

This section of the assignment corresponds to the Project Action Plan discussion in Unit 7. In this section, be sure to cover the following main points:

• Formulate a solution to your chosen issue, based on your findings.
• Present your action plan for getting to your solution.
• Explain how your plan will continue past its initial implementation and be reassessed as part of the action research cycle.
• Evaluate your planned activities, including an assessment of how you will implement your plan.
• Distinguish the strengths and weaknesses of your action plan.

Discussion of Implications: (minimum of 4 pages).

This section of the assignment corresponds to the Study Evaluation assignment in Unit 7. In this section, be sure to cover the following main points:

• Evaluate the implications of your findings from the study and the potential significance for your organization and for society as a whole.
  • Analyze who might care about this study, and why.
• Distinguish who benefits from this research.
  • Explain what is important to you and to others concerning this research.
  • Describe whose interests are served by this research.
• Propose future research steps regarding your human services issue, using systems thinking.
  • Explain what new questions emerged in your analysis of your chosen study.
  • Explain how you will continue this inquiry.
  • Present a timeline plan that includes when to reassess this issue.

Conclusions: (roughly 2 pages).

Create this section of the report with this assignment. Address the following:

• Create a brief summary of the study.
• Develop concluding remarks that summarize the major insights from your chosen study, including proposing future steps.
  • Briefly identify the new questions that emerged in your analysis of your chosen study.
  • Summarize the key points of how you will continue this inquiry.
  • Briefly address the action plan you developed in the Unit 7 discussion.
  • Briefly reiterate your future steps, including your timeline plan.

Action Research Project Presentation

Create a 5–8 minute Action Research Project Presentation for a prospective audience of the internal and external stakeholders of the program and the organization, highlighting the action research process you have followed and effectively communicating methods and practices that explain your solution to the organizational issue you have examined. This presentation should summarize the content of your Action Research Project Report for the stakeholders, demonstrating your understanding of the issue; analyzing how it was addressed in the study, including the ethical implications; interpreting what the study data suggests; and presenting your solution to the issue and plan for the future. Your presentation should also demonstrate how you used action research methods and practices to get to your solution.

Your goal for the presentation is to get the stakeholders invested in your solution and to convince them of why they should provide funding. Utilize clear charts or graphs to explain the research, as this adds value to your presentation. Use PowerPoint (or a similar software program) to develop your slides, as outlined below. Use Kaltura (or a similar program) to record your audio narration of the slides and upload the presentation.

The format of your Action Research Project Presentation should closely follow the structure of your Action Research Project Report. Include the following sections in 15–19 slides:

• Title (1 slide).
• Introduction (1 slide).
• Background for the Study (2–3 slides).
• Description of the Research Context for the Study (2–4 slides).
• Results of Data Collection and Analysis (4 slides).
• Action Plan (1–2 slides).
• Discussion of Implications (3 slides).
• Conclusions (1 slide).
• References (1–2 slides).

Review the Riverbend City: Action Research Reflection and Stakeholder Presentation multimedia presentation (linked in the Resources) for guidance on what your presentation should entail.

Presentation Submission Requirements

Your presentation must meet the following requirements:

• Written communication: Communicate in a manner that is scholarly, professional, and respectful of the diversity, dignity, and integrity of others, consistent with the expectations for members of the human services field.
• APA guidelines: Follow current APA guidelines for style and formatting, using a title slide and references slide, and citing your sources properly in the body of your slides with corresponding references on the references slide.
  • ​If you use graphs and charts, follow APA formatting guidelines.
• Audio recording: Record a brief (5–8 minute) audiovisual presentation that highlights your more extensive action research report.
• PowerPoint slides: Include 15–19 slides.
• References: Present at least 12 references to support this presentation, corresponding with the references you use in your report.

Report Submission Requirements

Your report must meet the following requirements:

• Written communication: Communicate in a manner that is scholarly, professional, and respectful of the diversity, dignity, and integrity of others, consistent with the expectations for members of the human services field. Write comprehensibly to support fundamental ideas, in APA format, using correct grammar and mechanics.
• APA guidelines: Follow current APA guidelines for style and formatting, using a title page and references page, and citing your sources properly in the body of your paper with corresponding references on the references page.
  • ​If you use graphs and charts, follow APA formatting guidelines.
• Length of report: Write a minimum of 2 new pages for this assignment and create a table of contents page, for a comprehensive total of at least 20 pages (including the content from your previous project activities). This page total is not including the title page and references page. The content should be typed and double-spaced.
• References: At least 12 references in total must be used to support this report. Include peer-reviewed journals or other scholarly resources, assigned unit readings, and the like. In the total number of references, be sure to include your references for the 2 similar organizational reports you cited in the Unit 5 assignment.
• Font and font size: Times New Roman, 12-point.
• Title page: The title page can be creatively designed to reflect the personality of the organization and the dynamic data and information the report contains.

Submit the following document for the assignment:

• Your assignment using the following file naming format: Your_Name_AssignmentNumber_Assignment_Title (for example: Ima_Learner_u09a1_Assignment_Title).

Refer to the Using Kaltura tutorial (linked in the Resources) for directions on using Kaltura to upload your presentation.

Submit this assignment to your instructor, including the link to your presentation in the body of the assignment and attaching your final report to the assignment, no later than 11:59 p.m. CST, Sunday.

Note: If you require the use of assistive technology or alternative communication methods to participate in this activity, please contact Disability Services (linked in the Resources) to request accommodations.