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English · Grade 12

Research Design and Source Synthesis

Learners design research the way careful investigators do. They match questions to methods (secondary research, surveys, interviews, observation) and set a workable scope; evaluate study designs for sample size and representativeness, correlation versus causation, peer review and conflicts of interest; write annotated bibliography entries and a short literature review organized by theme; and plan ethical research with consent, privacy and honest attribution. An optional honors-style lesson critiques and redesigns a flawed invented study.

  • 5 lessons
  • About 145 minutes
  • Research design and synthesis check: 10 questions
  • Ways to answer: fill in the blanks, choose an answer, highlight a text, match pairs, put in order and sort into groups
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What learners will discover

  • Design a research question with a workable scope and choose suitable methods, including secondary research, surveys, interviews and observation.
  • Evaluate study designs for sample size and representativeness, correlation versus causation, peer review and conflicts of interest.
  • Write annotated bibliography entries that summarize, evaluate and explain use, and synthesize sources by theme in a short literature review.
  • Plan ethical research with informed consent, privacy protections and honest reporting and attribution.

Lessons

  1. Questions, methods and scope 5 steps3 practiceabout 33 min
  2. Evaluate a study's design 6 steps3 practiceabout 36 min
  3. Annotate and synthesize 6 steps4 practiceabout 38 min
  4. Research ethics 5 steps3 practiceabout 33 min
  5. Going further: critique and redesign a study 5 steps2 practiceabout 25 min
  6. Research design and synthesis check 10 questions at the end

Keep exploring

More 12th grade reading

Guide for grown-ups