Mixed Methods Research in Environmental Planning
Kim Coleman
SUNY College at Plattsburgh
Summary
This is a course in mixed methods research for environmental planning majors. It builds on basic statistics and introduces qualitative research, with the ultimate goal of writing a mixed methods paper.
Course Size:
less than 15
Course Format:
Lecture only
Institution Type:
University with graduate programs, primarily masters programs
Course Context:
This is an upper level course for students majoring in environmental planning. All students have had an introduction to statistics.
Course Content:
This course covers the following concepts: ontology, epistemology, and methods, as well as the difference between each; reasons for conducting mixed methods studies; types of mixed methods studies; qualitative analysis in NVIVO; quantitative analysis in excel; and research article writing.
Course Goals:
Students should be able to evaluate the methods section of mixed methods research papers and determine the approach used and the appropriateness of that approach.1
Course Features:
This course has final assessment where students analyze existing data and draft a manuscript for a peer reviewed journal.
Course Philosophy:
My design is project-based (actually writing a paper) because I believe the best way to teach about mix methods research is to conduct mixed methods research. This works well with my small class size and upper level students.
Assessment:
I haven't implemented assessment; this is my first semester teaching the course.
Syllabus:
[file Mixed Methods Research in Environmental Planning (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 21kB May2 19) 'Syllabus']
References and Notes:
Various research papers as examples!
