UP504 • Final Project last updated: Wednesday, April 4, 2007 STUDENT PROJECTS: PROPOSALS AND RESULTS [links to be added later in the semester]

Assignment Five due in stages: Feb 21, Mar 21, Apr 11, Apr 20 Useful Assignment Advice

The object of this assignment is to give you the opportunity to combine several of the skills from this course to develop and answer a research question of your choice. You are to work in teams of two students. (Note: in group projects, you are to turn in a single, integrated write-up. All group members receive the same grade.)

The project consists of four steps:

STEP ONE: A one page outline of your proposed project (DRAFT VERSION) -- due Feb 21
 

Briefly outline your

• title
• context / overview
• research question (if you have several, do select a central question)
• hypothesis or hypotheses
• unit(s) of analysis
• data required and sources
• methodology
• anticipated results

Do emphasize methodology -- how you will actually do the project.

[start early so you can discover whether the data is available]

STEP TWO: A one page outline of your proposed project (FINAL VERSION) -- due Mar 21 (new date)

For guidelines and tutorials for web page creation, see this page of web page design advice and the linked resources.

In-Class Work Session: April 2

On Monday we have a "Work Session" for your final projects. This is an opportunity to articulate your project goals and challenges, get advice from others, and discuss common challenges and solutions.

For Monday, each project should come ready to answer these questions:
1. What is your research question (RQ)?
2. What you expect to find (i.e., a concise hypothesis linked to the RQ)?
3. What major methodological problem have you encountered?
4. What you have done so far to address these problems (change data set; alter unit of analysis; change method; etc.)
5. Is there a good fit between your RQ, your data and your methodology? (the 3 points of a good proposal).

Do read the proposals of your fellow students. Articulate a typology of different types of research questions and methodologies.

for some guidance on proposals, see:
Locke, Lawrence F. Waneen W. (Wyrick) Spirduso, Stephen J. Silverman "The Function of the Proposal," in Proposals that Work. 4th edition, Sage, 1999,2000, pp. 3-24. [electronic reserves]

STEP THREE: "Virtual poster": a web-based presentation of your initial results (due April 11)

We will present preliminary results in class on April 11 and 16.  This will be a chance to get feedback about your project's methodology, data, and interpretations -- both during the presentation and outside class time. This web page can be short, including a modest amount of text (e.g., a few key findings in bullet-point format), and one or more visuals (table, graph, and/or map). Be creative, brief, visual -- you might view this project as a "virtual poster." We will provide an example of a web page soon.

STEP Four: Final Project -- due Monday, April 23 (9:00 am) [new date]
 

Required Elements of Project (in full-sentence narrative where appropriate)

• research question and hypothesis
• brief explanation of context and relevance for planning
• source and nature of data; unit(s) of analysis; measures and concepts
• short statement of methods used
• results of data analysis: tables, graphs, and/or statistical output (a good place to use your data graphics skills!)
• interpretation and conclusion (that is, what is the answer to your initial research question)

An Example:

Develop a research question: "Do carpool lane programs significantly reduce traffic congestion in cities that use them?" Set this question in its context. Describe your methodology. Explain your measures and how they relate to your larger concepts. Gather data. Input into Excel and/or SPSS. Run some basic charts and statistical analysis (e.g., regression). Do any necessary tests of significance. Write up results.

A few other questions: What is the relationship between housing prices and K-12 school performance? Do enterprise zones raise the level of local economic development? Do higher gas prices lead to less automobile use? Are we, in fact, a more globalized economy than we were 20 years ago? What are the determinants of whether a person will buy or rent a home? What explains the larger increase in a metropolitan area's built land coverage in the 1990s than in its population growth? Do cities with high percentages of immigrants have higher or lower levels of unemployment? Do World Bank investments favor democratic or non-democratic countries? What are the key determinants of housing costs in Ann Arbor? Is there a gender or racial pay gap among urban planners? etc.
 

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