WALDEN UNIVERSITY • PHI DELTA KAPPA • CYBERSPACE CHAPTER
Newsletter • January 2001

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NEW YEARS GREETINGS FROM YOUR PDK CHAPTER OFFICERS

OFFICERS President: Charles J. Smith, Sr., Ph.D. (csmith2@waldenu.edu) VP Membership: Dr. Sandi B. Gardner (SBGARDNER@aol.com) VP Programs: Gay Wiseman (gwiseman@mindspring.com) Treasurer: Dr. Arthur Ogden (aogden@ussa.edu) Secretary: Dr. Dorothy L. Hicks (dlhicks@feist.com) Foundation Rep. & Delegate: Joyce Griffith Butler (Griffbutler@concordnc.com) VP Research & Listserv Manager: Philip J. Rossomando (rossomandop@acm.org) News Letter Editor: Dr. Theran Mugleston (tmuglest@waldenu.edu) Advisor: Dr. Marilyn Simon (msimon@waldenu.edu) Advisor: Andre Elliott (aelliott@waldenu.edu) Advisor: Marion Carpenter (flwrldy@ipa.net) To reach officers email: offpdk@waldenu.edu

RECENT EVENTS
An Officers Meeting was held November 15-19, 2000.
A Business Meeting was held December November 20-26, 2000. Budgets, officers reports, progress, website development, delegates reports, and interaction with other PDK Chapters such as the Tokyo Chapter were all discussed. A very eventful meeting, with congratulations from the PDK International and recognition of our chapter's shining lights-award winners.

OTHER EVENTS/TOPICS
As a follow up to the last News Letter, the chapter continued looking at the Scholarship Program, and received applications in this regard.
Representatives from the Chapter attended the PDK Conference in Savannah, Georgia, November 3-5, 2000, and turned in their report. The interaction was great, and our chapter won these 3 awards: "Outstanding New Chapter"; "20/20 Club Membership"; and the "Shining Star" award received by Andre Elliott, for 3 years hard work building this chapter (nominated by M. Carpenter). If you missed it you can still read the report on the conference prepared by our delegates here.

NEWS FOR WALDEN ALUMNI
2000-01 C-4 RESIDENCY SCHEDULE ANNOUNCED C-4 residencies will be held in the following cities for the 2000-01 academic year. Scheduled alumni events will be announced prior to each C-4.

Denver, CO January 17-21, 2001
Orlando, FL March 21-25, 2001
Alexandria, VA April 25-29, 2001
Phoenix, AZ June 13-17, 2001

CHAPTER WEBSITE UPDATE...
...is coming soon. Our VP of Programs, Gay Wiseman, is expanding and revising our website which will be launched for our January business meeting. In addition to providing background information about our chapter, it will also include a section for posting and sharing documents of all kinds during our business meetings. A discussion board and "polling place" will be included, as well as links to chapter program material.

REMINDERS...
...about posting messages to our chapter mailing list:
Our mailing list messages used to have sporadic gibberish characters and unreadable program code sections which burdened and bothered many members. Because of that, officers have been screening all messages sent to the list for the last several months, to remove any of that unreadable material, and take care of any misdirected subscribe/unsubscribe requests so they don't go out to everyone. This has helped, but it causes another problem. There is a delay between the time you send a message, and the time an officer checks in (usually twice a day) to pass queued messages through to the membership. Please be patient--allow 24 hours before worrying that your message did not go through. If you need to get a message out quickly, send an alert about your message to Gay Wiseman (gwiseman@mindspring.com) and Phil Rossomando (rossomandop@acm.org) so one of them can hop to pass it through to the membership ASAP.

This mailing list screening is temporary and will be stopped when it is no longer needed. Most of the problems can be prevented if all members are careful about the content and format of messages sent to "pdk@waldenu.edu". Here are guidelines:

• Do not include any attachments. (Make sure your email program is not sending any part of your signature as an attachment.)
• Do not send messages in HTML code format. Those will appear OK to any recipients who use an HTML-reading email program (such as a web browser), but members who use text-based email programs will see more "code" than actual message, and may have to dig to find the content. (HTML code can be recognized by the <brackets> that enclose coded instructions that tell a web browser program how to display the material.) If your email program has an option to "Send messages as HTML", you should turn that OFF for any mail that you send to the PDK list--or to ANY mailing list, really. As a general rule, any time you are not certain that your recipient(s) use HTML mail readers, you should not send HTML mail. Some email programs will automatically revert to coding messages in HTML if you do any formatting to your message (like boldface, italics, centering...). Don't do that when sending to our mailing list. Just type. Use extra lines to separate paragraphs. Use CAPS for occassional emphasis, or for section headings.
• If you have a document that needs special formatting in order to be easily understood, there are other options. It can be done in Word format and a link can be put on our website where members can download it--or it can be converted to HTML and put on the website where it can be viewed directly. I will be glad to help with either.

  --Gay Wiseman
  

FEATURED TOPIC
The following is input received in response to the News Letter Editors question about whether we members of PDK should be involved in continuing research:

"Yes, we should continue; few people get into it, and it really does help the future of mankind. I'm still in the process and am researching those things that would help to stop violence in the schools and also a plan of what to do if it does happen; have also researched learning styles affect on learning. I look forward to answers to this question!" (Marion)

FAQs [FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS] ABOUT RESEARCH
Submitted by our Chapter Advisor, Dr. Simon

1. WHAT IS RESEARCH?
   Research is a careful study of a given subject, field, or problem in a scholarly and often scientific manner. A researcher, like an architect, finds that planning is the essence of his/her art. Structure, conceptualization, practical methodology, and up-front planning are basic requirements to secure an excellent outcome in both fields. According to Kerlinger (1986,11): "Scientific research is systematic, controlled, empirical, and critical investigation of hypothetical propositions about the presumed relations among natural phenomena."
2. WHAT ACTIONS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH RESEARCH?
   Investigating, analyzing, scrutinizing, observing, exploring, examining, probing, testing and inquiring.
3. WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PURE AND APPLIED RESEARCH?
   Pure research - research for its own sake. Applied research - pragmatic and usually involves: * Formulating a problem * Developing a hypothesis * Constructing a model to help test the hypothesis * Performing that test or experiment * Coming to a conclusion * Recommendations for application
4. WHAT IS A RESEARCH DESIGN?
   According to L.DeBakey (1978) It is the strategy, plan, and the structure of conducting a research plan. According to Verhonic (1978) It is the overall framework for collecting data once the problem has concretely been formulated in order to provide a format for the detailed steps in the study. The type of design depends upon the statement of the problem.
5. WHAT TOOLS DOES ONE NEED TO DO RESEARCH?
   There are 5 general tools of research: The library and its resources, measurement techniques (including instruments to obtain data), statistics (for quantitative studies), the computer and its software, facility with language and communication.
6. HOW IS STATISTICS RELATED TO RESEARCH?
   Statistics is often interwoven in many stages of research after the problem is formulated. Statistics involves data: Collection, Organization, Analysis, Interpretation, and Prediction. Descriptive statistics summarizes data, Inferential statistics attempts to make generalizations for a sample to a population.
7. WHAT ARE THE MAJOR ONTOLOGICAL VIEWS OF RESEARCH?
• The Jigsaw Puzzle Approach - [includes: Analytical Sciences, Rational, Positivist, Truth-seeking, Conventional, Objective]. Here the Researcher hopes to discover another small piece of the (or a) puzzle or theory that explains some phenomenon. The information is then presented in a way that is can be placed somewhere in the uncompleted puzzle. The ultimate goal is to see what the whole picture looks like. Most quantitative methodologies fit this framework. There is a tendency to: isolate variables; attempt to control for outside influences; seek reliability and validity through statistical probabilities; and try to present an explanation of why something is the way it is. Intuitive data is often discounted but is seen as the precursor to "doing the research." According to Kuhn (1970,18), the first pieces of any puzzle are the most difficult, and that as the pieces are added, the paces of discovery quicken, because there exist more area of opportunity for solutions, and the number of voids is simultaneously diminished. If a new piece arises that is valid but does not fit the existing puzzle, then the existing puzzle may have to be abandoned.
• The Riddle to be solved - [includes: Phenomenology, Hermeneutic, Natural, Qualitative, Social Construct, Case Study]. Here the Researcher poses a question and considers a multitude of ways to answer it. Underlying belief is that there can be many different answers to a problem. [e.g. Q: Why did the chicken cross the road? A's: To get to the other side, to get to the shell station, to get away from the sniper.] The researcher examines, in context, several possible answers to the research question from multiple perspectives. Reality is socially constructed through individual or collective definitions of the situation. More concerned with understanding, theory development, and consistency; than with explaining how a phenomenon works. Based on context sensitivity - rejects universal, context-free generalizations. Researcher attempts to describe lived experiences and generate hypothetical propositions through logical abstractions. Most qualitative methodologies fit this framework. See: Lowenberg, J.S. (1985) Comparative Aims of Qualitative and Quantitative Research Design Facts for further comparisons.
8. WHAT ARE SOME RESEARCH METHODOLOGIES?
   There is no single form of methodology without flaw and that can provide us with all the answers; that is there are no universals in searching for universals. The challenge of the researcher is to construct that methodology (or methodologies) which will enable him/her to advance or reinforce theory in a sufficiently sound way as to advance the discipline. Some common types of research methodologies include:
   • Historical Research- concerned with the meaning of events
   • Descriptive Research- concerned with observed data
   • Experimental Research - concerned with data control
   • Quasi-experimental Research - randomness cannot be attained in sampling
   • Correlational Research - nonexperimental, seeking a relationship between variables
   • Case Study
   • Action Research
   • Delphi Research
   • Phenomenological Research
   • Evaluative Research

Each type of research has its own epistemology (tools and theoretical constructs used to derive, elicit, and analyze data).

SUGGESTED READING LIST (* A primer on research )

• Borg,Walter M and Gall, Meredith D. Educational Research (5th Ed.) New York: Longman, 1989.
• Goldstein , Martin, and I. Goldstein, How We Know. New York: De Capo Press, 1985.
• Kuhn, Thomas, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, 2n d ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1970.
• Leedy, Paul D: Practical Research: Planning and Design., 7th ed. New York: MacMillan Publishing Co., 1999. *
• Merriam, Sharan B., and Simpson, Edwin L, A guide to Research for Educators and Trainers of Adults. Malabar, FL: Krieger Publishing Co., 1984.
• McMillan, Hames, H: Educational Research-Fundamentals for the Consumer. New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 1992.
• Prigogine, Ilya and Stengers, Isabelle. Order Our of Chaos- Man's New Dialogue with Nature. New York: Bantam Books, 1984.
• Reason, Peter and J. Rowan, Human Inquiry: A Sourcebook of New Paradigm Research. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1987.
• Schwartz, Joseph. The Creative Moment- How Science Made Itself Alien to Modern Culture. New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 1992.
• Triola, Mario F, Elementary Statistics, 4th ed. Menlo Park, CA: Benjamin Cummings , 1989.
  

The News Letter Editor received another message regarding the questions asked for this paper. Specifically, that this member would like to have more input about topics that most of us as educators face on a routine if not daily basis; namely, cheating, plagiarism, and standardized testing. So the question being put forward for the next letter will address the last of these three topics, standardized testing. A recent Kappan carried a significant number of articles touching or addressing this topic, so, what is your position regarding standardized testing, and how is the school or higher learning establishment you are teaching for handling this issue? Please remit your feedback to educ_serv@jobe.net (T. Mugleston) for inclusion in the next news letter.

HAPPY NEW YEAR, AND ALL WISHES FOR SUCCESS TOWARD MEETING YOUR GOALS IN THE YEAR 2001!!!

Anyone interested in submitting an article for publication in the News Letter should send it to: tmuglest@waldenu.edu.

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