Transcript Slide 1

Writing the KAM
with
Amy Kubista, MALS
Writing Specialist
Objectives
• Overview KAM process (and I do mean
overview)
• Learn Writing Center resources for
writing your KAM
• Find strategies for organizing your
information and avoiding common
problems
Objectives
• Master KAM formatting
• Know common mistakes to avoid
• Questions and Answers
As always, remember to ask
your professors if you have
questions about content.
Your Job as a Scholar
First things first: Remember that your job is
to show that you know what you’re talking
about and that it’s true and that it matters
with doctoral-level research that will pass
the critical read of this audience.
KAMs are your assignment for doing that.
Defining an LA and KAM
LA:
Contract where you indicate the
subject area objectives, resources,
and demonstration of mastery for
your KAM.
KAM: Comprehensive, independent unit
of study in a social science area.
So What Is a KAM and
What Is Its Purpose?
Technically, you write a KAM
demonstration. So what are you
demonstrating?
A KAM is an opportunity for you to
demonstrate your knowledge about a
topic that interests you and other
scholar/ practitioners. . .
. . . a chance to demonstrate you know what
you’re talking about and that it’s true and
that it matters to this audience.
Haiku Version
A KAM is a chance
To demonstrate your knowledge
About a topic.
One last definition
It is a paper about 90 pages long, and
you write what you know about theory
and about recent scholarly research
(ideally), which you apply to a real-life
situation.
What is the purpose?
• To develop your independent research
skills and confidence so that you can
meet your personal and professional
interests and goals.
• To help you understand how you can
contribute to social change at some level
in your profession.
• To allow you to demonstrate your ability
to connect theory, research, and
practice.
How Do You Organize a KAM Breadth?
Once you’ve selected the texts you’re
going to read, browse for themes
that interest you. You need NOT
read entire books, just sections that
interest you.
Organization, continued
Purpose and Overview of a Specific Aspect of This KAM’s
Breadth
Critical Discussion of Several Theories of Blah Blah
- Theorist B
- Theorist C
- Theorist D
- Theorist E
Critiques of Theorists (Synthesize/Interpret)
What It All Adds Up To (Evaluate)
Preview to Depth: How Theory Might Inform Current
Research
How do you organize a KAM depth?
First, find 15 articles on a more narrow
topic that emerged from the breadth and
that interests you.
Your task is NOT to just summarize each
one--but to do a critical analysis.
Depth Organization
Annotated Bibliography
Alexander, G., & Bonaparte, N. (2008). My way or the highway that I built.
Ancient Dictators, 25(7), 14-31. doi:10.8220/CTCE.52.1.23-91
First paragraph: This paragraph should contain a summary of the
research method and its findings.
Second paragraph: This paragraph should be a critical assessment of the
article.
Third paragraph: This paragraph should be a statement about the value of
this article for your research agenda or your profession generally.
Each annotation should be a page or page and a half long.
Questions to ask
• Was the research question well framed and significant?
• How well was the research related to the existing body of knowledge?
• Did the article make an original contribution to the existing body of
knowledge?
• Was the theoretical framework for the study appropriate?
• Has the researcher communicated clearly and fully?
• Was the research method appropriate?
• How else might answer the research question?
• Was the sample size sufficient?
• Were there adequate controls for researcher bias?
• Is the research replicable?
• What were the limitations in this study?
• How generalizable are the findings?
• Are the conclusions justified by the results?
Then write a critical review essay
• Try to organize chronologically or thematically
or maybe methodologically
• Compare and contrast purpose statements.
• Strengths and limitations in research designs.
• Construct trends or recurring issues.
• Speak to the relationships among studies.
• State the relationship of the articles to your
interests or area of inquiry.
• All of this can build up to holes in the
research, which could be a dissertation topic.
How do you organize an
application?
In the Application, you will be designing
or examining a particular project that
connects with the theories and research
of the earlier components of the KAM.
Your project will determine what kind of
literature and other resources you might
need as references.
Application, continued
Here your exploration for resources might take
you into different kinds of resources--manuals,
documents, policy documents, curricula,
databases, research tools and instruments,
multimedia, assessment tools, and so on. It is
often helpful to include a text or two that also
speaks somewhat to your project. It is
assumed that the reference lists you have
developed for the Breadth and Depth
components may also be helpful, so you do not
need to list them again.
Example: Human Dvlpt. Bilingual Ed
in the USA
Breadth: Theorists of bilingual education,
perhaps pro and con, or history (brief,
and avoid a textbook rehash), or
learning theories, and controversies.
Why should U.S. schools teach bilingual
ed? Why shouldn’t they?
Depth: Fifteen articles on some specific
aspect of bilingual ed. Adult/immigrant
ed? Public policy? Social policy?
Workforce training and preparedness?
Title I? Scores on standardized tests?
Voters’ rights?
Unless approved in your LA, stick to the
scholarly research articles and not
pundits.
Application: Project in your school district
or agency or workplace or city or one
that someone else has done and you can
critique based on the research you’ve
read. You can ask if you can submit a
video or such and write that up—lots
more leeway.
Learning Agreement
Title Page-Identification-KAM
number, title, your name)
Develop a practical Application that is reflective
of your theory and research
Overview
Create a project that shows you can translate
theory and research into practice
•Explains how the project connects with the
theory and/or research analyzed in the earlier
parts of the KAM
Application
BreadthObjectives
References
Demonstration of Mastery
Depth
Objectives
References
Demonstration of Mastery
Select a topic that grows out of the theories
or theorists of the Breadth section.
Explore current research around that topic
Depth
Journals should be peer reviewed or
referred.
ApplicationObjectives
References
Demonstration of Mastery
Books may supplement and aren’t
annotated.
Research from last 3 - 5 years.
Write Literature Review Project on Findings
of Research
Breadth
Classical or Contemporary Theorists
•Select theorists around a particular
theme
•Write an essay to develop the theme
•Demonstrate higher-order thinking
throughout
Three Tiered KAM Model1
1Shepard, M. (2007, May). Mentoring the KAM process. (Available to Walden
Faculty from Walden University). Adapted from slide originally created by Joe
Ann Hinrichs.
KAM Formatting
Check the KAM Guide and
Templates Often
Formatting guidelines may change slightly to
make KAMs easier to compile, so use the online
versions of the Guidebook and Template as your
sources for information!
Common Things to Check for in
Your KAM
Make sure you’re using:
• 12 point, serif font
• 1-inch margins
• No bold or underlined text
• American English language
KAM Formatting Specifics
Great Insight From
the KAM Guidebook:
While scholarly writing has style conventions, it does not
have to be wordy, stuffy, or dispassionate. You
should avoid colloquialisms and slang, but do not strive
to sound academic. Sentences should not be long
and complex. Your convictions about what you are
writing, dynamic evidence, and honest voice should not be
lost in tedium. Crispness, curiosity, honesty, and
enthusiasm are ingredients of impassioned scholarship (p.
36).
Most common things we see
that students should avoid
• Students format at the end of the
process
• Students don’t keep track of or use
Walden resources as they go along
• Students don’t use information in their
LAs in compiling their KAMs
• Students become overwhelmed by not
focusing on one task at a time
Use Your Resources
•
•
•
•
Writing Center: [email protected]
Library: [email protected]
Student Support Team: [email protected]
Assessors, mentors, and academic community
Use Format Help!
• LA Template:
http://inside.waldenu.edu/c/LATemplate.
doc
• KAM Template:
http://inside.waldenu.edu/c/Files/DocsWr
itingCenter/KAM_Template1.doc
• MS Word Formatting:
http://inside.waldenu.edu/c/Student_Fac
ulty/StudentFaculty_12745.htm
Helpful Web Sites
• Defining a KAM:
http://inside.waldenu.edu/c/Files/DocsKAMGui
des/KAM_Guide.pdf
• Specific Curriculum Guides:
http://inside.waldenu.edu/c/Student_Faculty/S
tudentFaculty_941.htm
• KAM Development:
http://inside.waldenu.edu/c/Student_Faculty/S
tudentFaculty_2491.htm
Writing/Research Resources
• Ask the consultants! E-mail
[email protected]
• Walden Writing Center:
http://writingcenter.waldenu.edu
• Library Resources: http://library.waldenu.edu
• Residency Information http://residencies.waldenu.edu/
Questions