Assignment: Develop Your Conceptual Model
This assignment asks students to graphically present the conceptual model for their proposed study and to provide a brief narrative description of the relationship among the variables. I have found that for many students taking this grantsmanship this may be the first time that they have been asked to visually represent the ideas that underpin their study. Students may find that they revise their model or study as the act of narratively describing their model points out logical inconsistencies or missing but necessary concepts or variables. It is sequenced so that they complete this assignment prior to writing their specific aims page with the intent of helping students strengthen the rationale for their study design.
HSCI 6265 Grantsmanship in translational research
Assignment 2: Develop Your Conceptual Model
Introduction
For this assignment, you will develop a clear, diagrammatic representation of the key components of the conceptual model that is guiding your research. You will also develop a brief VoiceThread presentation to describe this model to the rest of the class.
Directions
1) Develop a graphic representation of the key variables that are guiding your research proposal. This should NOT be a replica of a more generic model from your field although such models may certainly inform yours. The model you present should clearly be the basis for, and inform, the translational research you propose to conduct.
2) Develop a 600-800-word written description of the model, justifying the inclusion of key components and clearly stating the relationship between variables. Be clear how the dependent variables influence the outcome variable. Include appropriate references for your discussion.
3) Develop a brief PowerPoint presentation in which you describe your model to other students in the class. Using the VoiceThread link provided on this page, upload your presentation and add narration to each slide. Your narration should highlight what is on the slide, not simple read the slide text.
Goals of this assignment:
- Develop, describe, and explain the key variables that are informing your research and the relationships among them
- Prepare a clear, visually appealing PowerPoint presentation
- Verbally deliver a succinct, on-point presentation to other scholars, recognizing that they may not be familiar with your area of study
Voice Thread Instructions
Use the link below to create your VoiceThread for this assignment. The document attached, will show you how to create a VoiceThread. Basically you choose to upload a document (such as a PowerPoint Presentation). Once that is uploaded, add a descriptive title. Now you can add voice narration over the top. Click "comment" at the top of the screen and choose voice recording (the little microphone). When you are done narrating, be sure to click "Share" so that everyone can see it. I have found in the past that this doesn't always work first time out of the box for everyone so let me know if you have any issues and we'll figure it out.
*The link provided connects to a 2 page pdf developed by the GW Academic Instructional Technologies Lab.