Steps toward writing up your project Toward a Paper Steps toward writing up your project

First Step: A Topic Something interesting Something that looks like community Something related to community Something that will sustain your interest for fifteen weeks Something that other people (experts, notably, community scholars) might find interesting

Step Two: A Question What do want to know? What is the purpose of your research? How will know when you are finished? You need to move from topic to question before you can take advantage of theory or data Because theory and data are only useful in explanation or interpretation

Step Three: A Literature What do the experts have to say About my topic? About my question? Do the required reading help? Can I find any scholarly analysis? Are there organizational records or persons I can interview? Maps and photos?

Step Five: Organizing Knowing when to stop looking for new material Knowing how to focus This is where questions help This is where it helps to limit attention to Time and Place Actors and Actions Specific problems or lessons to be learned

Step Six: Looking for Models Readings are good model for community studies: use multiple methods Demographic/archival (DuBois, Lynds, and Walton) Participant Observation: (DuBois, Lynds, and Whyte) Survey/interview (Lynds and Morris) Critical reading of competing narratives (DuBois, Morris, Walton)