ERAM 581

Credit: 4 hours.

The initial course in a three-part course sequence that introduces the theories, methods, and applications of surveys for educational and social programs through student projects. The survey is an essential tool for researchers in the social sciences and in many applied professional fields, such as education, public health, and marketing. In the context of student projects, we will examine the major planning tasks necessary for conducting surveys, including problem formulation, study design, questionnaire and interview design, pretesting, sampling, interviewer training and field management, and code development. We will focus throughout on issues of design, refinement, and ethics in research that crosses boundaries of nationality, class, gender, language, and ethnicity.