The Research Journal project serves two purposes: (1) to gather the details of your experiences with an object of study (OoS) that you select as the focus for your research and design work this semester; and (2) to provide a space for preliminary examination of and reflection upon those experiences. The RJ is challenging because it requires you to make regular (even daily) entries, and emphasizes both detailed reporting and careful reflection.
This project requires only one submission. All files are submitted to a Research Journal folder in your shared course space on Dropbox.com.
Document type: memo, journal
Document length: 150 words (memo), variable, see below (journal)
Project value: 200 points
Evaluation rubric: _RPW230_Eval_ResearchJournal.pdf
The Research Journal results in a collection of notes that detail your experience of and reflections upon the strategies and processes in which you engage while learning to use a new, professionally relevant tool or technology. Choose an object of study (OoS) that you have little or no experience with, but that seems like a professionally valuable investment of your energy and intellect. Record your journey through 3 key phases: research and discovery, familiarization and integration, reflection and evaluation (see below for more detail).
Create a space where you can record regular entries that gather details of your knowledge acquisition journey. Although I provide you with sample page layouts for recording your experiences, ideally you will devise your own way of capturing and organizing your journey to knowledge acquisition. Key to your design is that you connect the date of your journal entry, the details of the experience you seek to capture, and later reflection upon the significance of each moment to the journey.
Your journal should incorporate the following content elements and acquisition phases.
A memo of transmittal introduces the document it accompanies, providing context for its audience(s). Your memo should be addressed from you to me, and should incorporate the following content elements.
Recommended tool(s): Microsoft Word, Adobe InDesign, or Scribus Team Scribus), scanning device/digital camera
This section offers guidance for how to interpret the project, and for how to proceed with your work on it. Therefore, as you work, consider the following 4 strategies:
The theme of this project, and of the whole professional development arc we are exploring this semester, is technology acquisition. The process is rendered ineffective if you focus on knowledge that you have already acquired. Thus, I want you to select an object of study that you hope will be useful in your academic studies or professional development, but I want you to choose something that is at the outset promising, rather than proven.
Narrow your focus as soon as possible to a single tool. But you may want to begin with 3 or 4 possibilities. Choose an app for smartphones or tablets, a web-based app, a software package, or some other communication/design tool that is relevant to the work you need to do this semester. If necessary, refer to the file I posted to SVSU Canvas: "Apps For Professional Activities."
Keep a detailed account of your journey. You will appreciate later if you push yourself to record entries at least once a day. That means making use of the tool at least once a day. If it is truly a professional development tool worth using, I hope you find opportunities to use it multiple times a day.
In addition to recording notes frequently, record notes in detail. Explain what you were doing, how it went, what did and did not meet your expectations. These details are easy to forget later, so it is best to keep detailed notes as you go.
Record images throughout your acquisition journey. It is difficult to go back later to reproduce moments you wish you had captured images from. Learn at the beginning how to record images (e.g., screen shots) on the device(s) where you will use your OoS. For best results, record multiple images during every session with the tool.
Showcase the features, functions, and other relevant details of the OoS. Although you may not incorporate all of the images into your final Journey Map, you want to have access to as many quality representations as you can create.
This section is designed to help you anticipate and avoid problems as you work on this project. Therefore, as you work, consider the following 2 hints and tips:
The best research notes are organized well. Detail matters, but so does developing habits for organizing those details to make them easier to revisit when you need to.
I have provided supporting material to guide you during this project. Take the time to review it, and to consider how you might apply that knowledge to your work.
Read and attend carefully to these submission guidelines. Failure to do so may result in points lost on the evaluation of your submissions.
Create a project folder inside your shared class folder on Dropbox.com. Remember, I can only view files that you place inside that shared folder. Until you place files in that space, you have not submitted them.
Name the folder Research Journal.
Make sure the files listed below are available to me in the project folder by the submission deadline. Model your filenames on the listed examples:
Note. Remember, do not share the individual files with me. By placing them in your project folder (which is in your shared class space), you have already shared them by default.
This section describes the standards by which your submission will be evaluated.
There are 200 possible points for this project. You will earn points according to the standard described on the policies page (50% content development, 25% design execution, and 25% professionalism & attention to detail (see Policies). The specific areas of emphasis for this project are drawn from the description and discussion of the project, and are detailed in the evaluation rubric (_RPW230_Eval_ResearchJournal.pdf).
Remember that I will only post the point values for projects on the Grades page in SVSU Canvas. I will post the details relevant to that evaluation in your class folder in a project-specific file.
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