The object of this assignment is to give you the opportunity to combine several of the skills from this course to develop and answer a research question of your choice. You are to work in teams of two students. (Note: in group projects, you are to turn in a single, integrated write-up. All group members receive the same grade.)

The project consists of three steps: a one-page outline (March 12); a web-based version of your initial results (April 14); and the final project (April 21).

STEP ONE: A one page outline of your proposed project (due Friday, March 14, 5:00 p.m.)
 

Format:   both paper and web.  web address to use:  www.umich.edu/~youruniquename/up504hm6.htm see example of a prototypical research proposal outline

Briefly outline your

• title
• context / overview
• research question (if you have several, do select a central question)
• hypothesis or hypotheses
• unit(s) of analysis
• data required and sources
• methodology
• anticipated results

[start early so you can discover whether the data is available]
 

For guidelines and tutorials for web page creation, see this short summary, plus the U-M Library's Knowledge Navigation Center and their resources on web page development.

STEP TWO: "Virtual poster": a web-based presentation of your initial results (due Monday, April 14) [10 points]
We will present preliminary results in class on April 14 & 16.  This will be a chance to get feedback about your project's methodology, data, and interpretations -- both during the presentation and outside class time. This web page can be short, including a modest amount of text (e.g., a few key findings in bullet-point format), and one or more visuals (table, graph, and/or map). Be creative, brief, visual -- you might view this project as a "virtual poster." We will provide an example of a web page soon.

>>> see a few examples from Past Years:

Though not required, Sanyogita Chavan & David Doezema also put their entire paper online.

Required Elements of Project (in full-sentence narrative where appropriate)
research question and hypothesis

brief explanation of context and relevance for planning

source and nature of data; unit(s) of analysis; measures and concepts

short statement of methods used

results of data analysis: tables, graphs, and/or statistical output (a good place to use your data graphics skills!)

interpretation and conclusion (that is, what is the answer to your initial research question)

A few other questions: What is the relationship between housing prices and K-12 school performance? Do enterprise zones raise the level of local economic development? Do higher gas prices lead to less automobile use? Are we, in fact, a more globalized economy than we were 20 years ago? What are the determinants of whether a person will buy or rent a home? What explains the larger increase in a metropolitan area's built land coverage in the 1990s than in its population growth? Do cities with high percentages of immigrants have higher or lower levels of unemployment? Do World Bank investments favor democratic or non-democratic countries? What are the key determinants of housing costs in Ann Arbor? Is there a gender or racial pay gap among urban planners? etc.
 

Assignment Advice