The draft of the research prospectus is due by Thursday, Nov. 21. While the academic literature search was a group project, the draft and final version of your research prospectus is your own individual work.

Remember, your research question should explore how (variable of your choice) relating to race/ethnicity (with the option of including gender or class) facilitates or impedes academic achievement in high school? You are to write this RESEARCH PROSPECTUS as if you were to engage in a year-long, ethnographic research project in Oakland Technical High School.

We understand that your drafts are works in progress, not completed papers. You will receive comments, but no grades, on your draft. You are getting credit for STARTING your draft, therefore there will be no extensions for the Credit/No Credit assignment.

Your draft should include:

a) a statement of your research question

b) any statistical data (if relevant) that would help you document your problem

c) a preliminary literature review. The preliminary lit review can be in outline form, or short summaries of relevant readings gathered to date. (This should be the longest section.)

d) a preliminary methodology outlining what you hope to observe at Oakland Tech. Think about practices that you might see in the classroom that will help you better understand your research problem.

Your final research prospectus should be between 1900 and 2200 words (6-7 pages) typed and double-spaced. Stay within 100 words of these limits, as points will be deducted from longer or shorter essays. The final version of this project is due Tuesday, Dec. 17 and should be electronically submitted the Assignments section on B-course.

Supporting materials are available in the B-course module entitled “Research Prospectus.”