Community-Based Research as Graduate Practicum: Preparing Students for Roles in Program Evaluation and Academia

ISBN-10
1473981034
ISBN-13
9781473981034
Category
Graduate students
Language
English
Published
2017
Author
Sperling

Description

In this case study, I explain how community-based research can be an effective means of engaging graduate students in an applied practicum that challenges them to apply their knowledge of statistics, psychometrics, and research design in addressing important social problems. Students in our industrial/organizational psychology masters program use the practicum to satisfy their internship requirement. However, unlike traditional internships, students in the community-based research practicum work alongside a faculty mentor rather than being supervised by staff at a placement site. The practicum also places more emphasis on research and formal methods of evaluation than most internships do, which means that students and faculty not only learn how to function as evaluators, they are more likely to produce publishable work as well. I illustrate the community-based research practicum by presenting a case study of a project my research team conducted for AVANCE, a national non-profit organization that delivers parenting classes and early childhood education in low-income and predominately Latina(o) communities nationwide. Through these programs, AVANCE aims to foster the types of parenting strategies that lead to kindergarten readiness and improved health outcomes, and to help parents to become more agentic users of appropriate social services.We were tasked with revising a test of parenting knowledgethe AVANCE Parent Questionnaire that is used to evaluate program effectiveness. In telling the story, I reflect on the pedagogical advantages that accrue to graduate students who work on projects like these, but I also call attention to the obstacles to building effective community-university partnerships. I conclude the case study with several "lessons learned" that can guide faculty and students who are at the beginning stages of implementing community-based research projects at their own college or university. Following these guidelines increases the likelihood that students and community organizations will experience the innumerable benefits these projects have to offer while avoiding many of the hardships along the way.

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