The Research Journey

Designed to foster “inquiry-mindedness,” this book prepares graduate students to develop a conceptual framework and conduct inquiry projects that are linked to ongoing conversations in a field. The authors examine different ways of knowing and show how to identify a research question; build arguments and support them with evidence; make informed design decisions; engage in reflective, ethical practices; and produce a written proposal or report. Each chapter opens with a set of critical questions, followed by a dialogue among five fictional graduate students exploring questions and concerns about their own inquiry projects; these issues are revisited throughout the chapter. Other useful features include end-of-chapter learning activities for individual or group use.

Useful pedagogical features include:

• Framing questions for exploration and reflection.
• Chapter-opening dialogues that bring in perspectives from multiple disciplines.
• Example boxes with detailed cases and questions for the reader.
• End-of-chapter activities and experiential exercises that guide readers to develop their own inquiry projects.
• Suggestions for further reading.