Part 1 Performance Task (aka Summative)

This Performance Task activity contains threeparts. Components are submitted in individual parts during each activity. In this activity, you will choose a topic related to the course and prepare the following documents:  Due today, Wednesday, are # 1, 2 & 3 below.

1. A reference page, written in APA format, containing seven references relating to the student's research topic.
2. Five sentences relating to the key issues surrounding the research topic.
3. A hypothesis to be tested by the research project.

If you choose a topic that is not on the list below please let me know what it is first - I'll need to approve your topic idea.  

Topics must be related to the course content. Keep your expectations for this research paper realistic. With unlimited resources and unlimited time anything can be researched. Deadlines require research be completed in an accurate and timely manner. Keep your expectations in line with your available resources. For example, if you want to research senior transitioning to second stage housing and you have a relative who works at one of these facilities; it is realistic to collect information on this topic. Studying mental illness, but not having access to this population may make it a difficult topic to research. In the case of an inaccessible population, you will need to focus on modifying the study so an accessible population can be researched. The research topic may need to be changed to focus on attitudes and/or the understanding of the mentally ill by a population that the researcher can access; for example, the attitudes of students to the mentally ill. 

Research topic choices

Wellness and health choices Lifespan development Factors that promote/ inhibit change Issues affecting Canadian birth choices Birth patterns and the choices that influence these patterns Personal, social, and cultural implications of the human life cycle Implication of an ageing Canadian population Impediments to accessing health care from a personal, or social, or cultural perspective Ethical issues relating to healthcare (blood supply, organ donation, alternative health care, access and use, mental health, etc.) Practices leading to health impairing activities Demographic and social trends in Canadian society Impact of specific communities on economic, legal, political and social institutions Impact of technology on the lives of Canadians Hate and intolerance in Canadian society Gender issues of equality in Canadian society

After choosing a topic of interest, you will research the topic idea and provide a reference page consisting of a minimum of two book sources and a five other sources of another media type. Write the reference following the American Psychological Association format for written and electronic material.

Check out the APA home page where you will find citation information about referencing and citing other work.

After reading the information on your topic, write a set of five sentences discussing key arguments related to your topic Later the sentences will be developed into different topic areas within the research paper. For example, a study looking at emergency-room wait-times in Ontario hospitals may use the following statements to address key arguments for this topic (5 sentence example): What are the current government promises related to healthcare and what, if any, plans are being initiated to change wait-times? What is the current availability of qualified medical personnel to meet the needs of the current population? What are the current hospital admittance organizations and procedures? These practices require evaluation to determine if further efficiencies can be realized. Which past disease outbreaks required an increased use of medical facilities and personnel? What changes to the system were made to accommodate the increased influx of patients? Can these procedures be adapted to meet the daily needs of emergency-room service demands? What are the current plans to allow nursing staff to perform activities previously only performed by doctors? What other activities can be downloaded to other personnel to reduce the individual workload of staff members?

The above is not an exhaustive list of key points relating to emergency waiting room times, but it shows different sides to this complex issue.

Finally, writing a hypothesis is necessary to focus a research project. The final project must have a hypothesis to guide its research. After reading information on a topic, a researcher is able to make an educated guess about a specific situation related to the research topic. It is important to remember that a hypothesis must make a stand and test conditions, and must not simply make a statement of fact.

Part One - Final Research Project  Due Wednesday, Jan. 16.

This final culminating activity is comprised of multiple parts. Components are submitted in individual parts during each activity. In this first activity you will choose a topic related to the course, prepare and submit the following documents:

1. A reference page, written in APA format and The Owl Purdue Writing Lab, containing seven references relating to your research topic.
2. Five sentences relating to the key issues surrounding the research topic.
3. A hypothesis to be tested by the research project.

Before submitting activities, please consult the rubric outlining the assessment for these activities.



Rubric

APA Resources, Hypothesis, and Key Issues

Categories	Level 1 (50 - 59%)	Level 2 (60 - 69%)	Level 3 (70 - 79%)	Level 4 (80 - 100%)
Knowledge and Understanding -evidence of APA format use IS2.02, IS3.03	-evidence of APA format use demonstrated with a limited degree of effectiveness	-evidence of APA format use demonstrated with some degree of effectiveness	-evidence of APA format use demonstrated with a considerable degree of effectiveness	-evidence of APA format use demonstrated with a high degree of effectiveness
Thinking/Inquiry -shows evidence that research topic sentences represent topic arguments CH1.01, CH2.04, IS1.03	-shows evidence that research topic sentences represent topic arguments with a limited degree of effectiveness	-shows evidence that research topic sentences represent topic arguments with some degree of effectiveness	-shows evidence that research topic sentences represent topic arguments with considerable degree of effectiveness	-shows evidence that research topic sentences represent topic arguments with a high degree of effectiveness
Application -ability to create a hypothesis that relates to the research topic CH2.01, IS1.03	-ability to create a hypothesis that relates to the research topic with a limited degree of effectiveness	-ability to create a hypothesis that relates to the research topic with some degree of effectiveness	-ability to create a hypothesis that relates to the research topic with a considerable degree of effectiveness	-ability to create a hypothesis that relates to the research topic with a high degree of effectiveness

Note: A student whose achievement is below Level 1 (50%) has not met the expectations for this assignment or activity.