Evaluating Use of Literature and Problem Statement

Researchers use scholarly literature for various purposes in their work, such as, but not limited to, establishing the need for and importance of their study or describing a theory. The problem statement is typically tied to the literature, and for this reason, these two components of research are presented together this week; this connection among research components will be a recurring theme throughout this course.

For this Discussion, you will evaluate the use of literature and problem statements in assigned journal articles in your discipline to understand what it means for a research study to be justified, grounded, and original.

With these thoughts in mind, refer to the Journal Articles handout for your assigned articles for this Discussion. If your last name starts with A through L, use Article A. If your last name starts with M through Z, use Article B. Follow the prompt below for your program.

Master’s and research doctorate (PhD) students

Post by Day 4 a critique of the research study in which you:

• Evaluate the authors’ use of literature using the Use of Literature Checklist as a guide
• Evaluate the research problem using the Problem Statement Checklist as a guide
• Explain what it means for a research study to be justified and grounded in the literature; then, explain what it means for a problem to be original

Article A:

Picard, D., Martin, P., & Tsao, R. (2014). iPads at school: A quantitative comparison of elementary schoolchildren’s pen-on-paper versus finger-on-screen drawing skills. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 50(2), 203–212. doi:10.2190/EC.50.2.c