Goals:

• be aware of the types of questions that can be answered with scholarly research methods
• compose research questions that can be addressed with  research methods (avoid yes-no questions and match questions to research methods when possible)

Activity Guide:

1. Based on your Fall Tech Implementation, construct 2 or 3 NEW (or revised) researchable questions. Post your questions in the discussion forum. Here’s an example:
   1. RQ1 How does teacher pay impact learning?
   2. Hypothesis1: Teacher pay improves teacher performance by improving their attitude toward teaching, which indirectly impacts student achievement.
      1. if we increase teacher pay, teacher attitudes should improve
      2. if we decrease teacher pay teacher attitudes should decrease
      3. when teacher attitudes are high, student achievement will be higher than average
      4. when teach attitudes are low, student achievement will be lower than average
      5. increases in teacher pay are positively correlated with student achievement.
   3. Null Hypothesis: There is no impact of teacher pay on teacher attitudes.
      • if we change teacher pay, any changes in teacher attitudes should be explainable by chance

Note, that by DISproving the null, we show evidence for our H1… this is the logic of science. Also note that ultimately your hypothesis must be narrowed down to 1 cause (independent variable) and 1 effect (outcome or dependent variable). And finally, please note that item 2.5 is a weaker claim (only related, and testable with pre-existing data); whereas, item 2.1 to 2.4 are causal hypotheses, requiring an actual intervention by increasing or decreasing teacher pay to see what happens.

1. To help, consider filling out a Claim, Evidence, Reasoning (CER) chart. This could help you narrow down your question to something that can be looked at with qualitative or quantitative methods.