As part of the fall semester Educ 400 Senior Research Seminar, all Educational Studies majors design, conduct, and present an independent research project on a topic of interest, using qualitative, quantitative, and/or historical methods.

During the public research presentations, a guest evaluator is selected by the student and the instructor to assess the quality of the work, based on these criteria:

1. Does the author pose a thought-provoking, researchable question (or hypothesis) and explain its significance to educational studies?

2. Does the author connect the question to the existing research literature (secondary sources) and move beyond into new territory?

3. Does the author identify the most appropriate primary sources and research methods for this study?

4. Does the author present a clear and insightful thesis that directly addresses the research question (or hypothesis)?

5. Is the author’s thesis persuasive? Is it supported with convincing evidence and analysis?

6. Is the author’s paper/presentation well-organized, and does it include sufficient background for audiences unfamiliar with the topic?

7. Does the author cite sources in an acceptable format so that future readers may easily locate them?

8. Does the author follow ethical guidelines for research?

Educational Studies Senior Research Projects, Class of 2009

Kathy Chang, "Why the School for Young Children? An inside look into the institutional and parental motivations and expectations" and PowerPoint presentation

Samantha Moorin, "Increasing the Arts in Public Schools: The Arkansas Success Story" and PowerPoint presentation

Sunny Park, Trinity’s Second-Language Requirement: Focusing on students’ perspectives  and PowerPoint presentation

Cintli Sanchez, Helpful or Harmful? Teach For America in a Hartford Elementary School  and PowerPoint presentation

Bianca Sims, Understanding the Misunderstood: Working towards Developing a Recognized Diagnostic Criteria for the Non Verbal Learning Disorder and PowerPoint presentation

Meg Smith, The Process and Product of Research in Hartford Public Schools and PowerPoint presentation

Mari Zigas, Hartford’s Southeast Asian Refugee Population: Servicing the Needs of a Growing Community and PowerPoint presentation

To read the papers from previous classes, please visit the Student Research Projects, 2000-2008 page.