Develop research skills appropriate for addressing a specific problem
Parking Permits
Research in the workplace solves a problem. Tasked with a problem in the workplace, you may be asked to gather the information necessary to fully understand the issue at hand, solve that problem (or offer potential solutions), prove that your solutions are viable, and/or test your solution(s). Doing this work requires different types of research that go beyond simply querying a library database or using Google. You often will need to speak directly to target populations and audiences, and directly contact resources and experts in different professions and in the community. You also may need information in addition to or instead of scholarly resources. Local and national journalism may add context and perspective. Professional experts, government agencies, state and local authorities all may be relevant sources, as are individuals in target populations. Essentially, research in the workplace requires you to think critically and creatively about
The type of information you need; and
The best way to get that information.
Your job as a researcher is to address, explain, and/or solve a problem using the most relevant and applicable methods and resources. If a resource can supply information you need, then it is the right resource for the job.
It’s also important when thinking about a problem your researching to keep in mind that you probably aren’t the first person or organization to deal with this issue. Look at other organizations, groups, or communities negotiating the same or similar issue. Research how those groups describe and deal with the problem. The perspective of experience is invaluable to your work.
Assignment
This project asks you to do workplace research into a local problem impacting USF or the surrounding community. Your goal for this project is to describe the problem in detail using as much information as you can gather from as many different sources as are useful. That means you are looking at research gathered by others (e.g., government agencies, non-profit organizations, professional and academic experts), but also you will gather your own data by contacting experts and asking impacted population for their perspective. You will produce a memo that reports your findings, giving readers a robust understanding of the problem you have researched.
Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this module, you will be able to:
Engage with a problem-based scenario similar to those found in the workplace
Develop research skills appropriate for addressing a specific problem
Integrate research into a project deliverable
Develop professional and technical writing and editing skills
Practice writing for a specific purpose and audience
Produce a specific genre of professional discourse (informational report)
To complete this project, you will choose a local problem occurring at USF or in the community. You can select a problem from the list below, or pick your own problem of a similar nature.
Sample Problems:
Assessment and use of USF student fees
Availability of employment and/or financial services (e.g., job application, college application, financial aid, home budget programs) at local libraries
Sustainable plastic waste management (e.g., water bottles)
Electric car charging stations at USF campuses
USF Parking
Once you have selected a problem, you will research the problem, to include the following topics:
Background information: Put the problem in context. What does the audience need to know to understand why the problem is a problem?
Explanation of the problem: Describe the problem in detail. What is happening?
Causes of the problem: Describe the factors contributing to the problem’s occurrence. Why is the problem happening?
Impacted Population: Describe the people most directly impacted by the problem. Who is the problem happening to?
To conduct your research you may wish to use any of the following methods and resources, or anything else that helps you explain the scope of your problem:
Newspapers (local, university, national)
Reports from government agencies, universities, and/or NGOs
Scholarly research
Facts and statistics compiled by government agencies and/or NGOs
Interviews with experts and/or impacted individuals
Surveys (social media makes doing surveys easy)
Deliverables
Major Deliverable:
A report in memo format that describes your problem in detail using all the research you have conducted. The memo should have the following section headings:
Background Information
Explanation of the Problem
Causes of the Problem
Impacted Population
Works Cited
Answer preview to develop research skills appropriate for addressing a specific problem
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