Unit 2: Module 2 – M2 Assignment 1

Assignment 1: Information Literacy and Database Search ActivityLiterature reviews are based on the identification and analysis of various academic journal articles related to a research topic. Since you will be completing a review of the literature as a major project in this course, it is important for you to develop and improve your information literacy skills, as well as your database search skills.Information literacy, the ability to locate, evaluate, and use information effectively, is a core skill in being a successful doctoral student.The goal with this activity is toencourage students to read critically, reason analytically, and to turn the selected information into relevant knowledge for a specific topic.With this context in mind and considering your initial research topic, use the key words of your preliminary research questions to begin your search of the online databases for related research articles.In your search, locate at leastfourempirical research journal articles related to your topic and questions. Try to identify empirical research articles, based on different designs (quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methods design), though if that is not possible, just find empirical articles. [See APA, p. 10 for brief definitions of empirical articles, also defined in Creswell (2009), p. 4, and Fink (2010)].Include in your introductory paragraphyour purposefor writing this paper; this can be a simple statement of your strategies for this database search.For example, a sample purpose statement for this assignment might look like this:The purpose of this assignment is to describe the strategies used to navigate the databases,discuss the findings of the search processconcluding with an identification of four relevant sources related to the initial research question.Include a mapping statement following the purpose statement that briefly lists thekey points sequentially of how you intend to organize the body of your paper. You can use the elements outlined in the assignment grading criteria as a guideline to create your mapping statement.For example,This paper will discuss the online library databases that were used and search strategies using Boolean connectors with the keywords that met with the best results. Results of the Proquest Digital Dissertations and Thesis database search will also be discussed, concluding with the identification of four scholarly articles that relate specifically to the previous questions.Following the mapping statement, structure the remaining paper around the elements listed in the grading criteria below. It is important that you address all elements of the grading criteria.Using the grading criteria elements to organize the content will help in structuring the paper logically and ensure completeness of your submissions.Bythe assigned due date, complete this part of the assignment and post your responses in a 1-2 page Word document as an attachment to theM2: Assignment 1 Drop Box.Name your file W7000_M2_A1_lastname_firstinitial.doc.All written assignments and responses should follow APA style in formatting and attributing sources.Please make sure you review the elements of the grading criteria and associated points carefully and make sure your assignment has addressed all the elements and in enough detail to merit full points.Assignment 1 Grading CriteriaMaximum PointsStated a minimum of one relational research question and used the key words from the variables in the research question.4Discussed additional key words obtained from the thesaurus related to your variables in your research questions4Named two databases and explained clearly your reason for choosing the two databases and described what you learned from one database tutorial4Explained Boolean connectors, anddiscussed with a specific examplerelated to your research topic and question, the use and application of Boolean connectors in information searches4Examined theProquestDigital Dissertations and Thesesrelated to your research topic and question and clearly explained the results.2In the final paragraph, identifiedfourjournal empirical research articles related to your research topic and question. Introduced each source in the author (date) format, and explained briefly (not more than 2-3 sentences/article) their relevance to the proposed research questions. Included the type of article selected (quantitative, qualitative, mixed-method).8Created a Reference page and listed the four articles in accurate and complete APA format.(Include titles of articles only on the reference page, not in the text).4Displayed accurate grammar, spelling, punctuation, and APA Style.4Total:34