Conducting research and writing a capstone is the true challenge of a doctoral program and hence, we are going to get you thinking about it early. The capstone has several distinct phases but for now, just remember these

Part 1

Conducting research and writing a capstone is the true challenge of a doctoral program and hence, we are going to get you thinking about it early. The capstone has several distinct phases but for now, just remember these four:

• The coursework: Which you are currently in.
• The prospectus: The research idea and research plan.
• The proposal: A detailed description of your research plan and study.
• The final document: Your study actually conducted, your data, your data analysis, and the results discussed.

In this course, we are going to start with the problem statement of a prospectus. To ensure you have all the necessary components of a prospectus, we developed the prospectus form which scaffolds the process. Make sure to download the correct EdD form and to bookmark this page: https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/research-center/program-documents/eddLinks to an external site.. Click on "Students Working on Prospectus Form".

The form itself contains explanations, resources, and examples and therefore, we suggest you print the appendix.

The feedback from your instructor will be very concise and constructive, meaning that the instructor might also say “no, this is not a good idea”. Writing a capstone requires a thick skin which you will probably notice very soon. Keep in mind that only this direct and constructive feedback will move you forward with your capstone. Trust your instructor’s experience in research. S/he has conducted and guided many research projects. For example, if you have in mind to evaluate a program at your workplace with a mixed method study, it will require you to become an expert in both methodologies – quantitative and qualitative – and also learn to triangulate these results. Your instructor might suggest that you pick either the quantitative or the qualitative part, become an expert in one methodology, complete your capstone, graduate, and then embark on the other part after graduation. Your instructor has your best interest in mind, always.

To prepare:

Review the following examples of problem statements:

Problem for EDD Dissertation

The problem that will be addressed through this study is that approximately 50% of education doctoral students at U.S. online institutions do not graduate, despite free additional research courses made available online by the Department of Education.

Problem for EDD Project Study

The problem that will be addressed through this study is that approximately 60% of freshmen do not score proficient on the reading comprehension subscale of the Georgia Milestone Assessment System (GMAS) at Georgia High School (GHS, a pseudonym), despite the implementation of a new tutoring program.

Post a one-sentence problem statement that you can see yourself investigating.

• A research problem is something not working in education. 
• A research problem is not a pet peeve or something you like to see personally to happen in education.
• All Discussion board postings should be done in a scholarly voice, impeccable APA style, and faultless spelling and grammar.
• Your post must be original; all materials are subject to review for originality, plagiarism, and use of generative artificial intelligence

Common mistakes in the first draft of a problem statement are:

• Some wild and unrealistic dream of what a study can accomplish: The problem is that the study will increase graduation rates for students who are in online graduate programs.  
• A summary of an issue: There are many doctoral students in the U.S who attend online institutions and programs that have free research courses.  
• A purpose statement instead of a problem statement: The problem is the study will explore why students are not graduating despite free additional research courses made available online by the Department of Education. 
• A reason/educational solution: The problem is the low graduation rate of doctoral students because students are using generative artificial intelligence and hence, make no progress with their own study.

• Walden University Office of Research and Doctoral Services. (n.d.-d). EdD doctoral studyLinks to an external site.. https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/research-center/program-documents/edd
  • Click on "Students Working on Prospectus Form"
    • Appendix of the EdD Prospectus Form
    • Examples of Aligned Studies
• Walden University Library. (n.d.-a). Choosing your topic: Your topicLinks to an external site.. https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/library/topic
• If you have fully mastered APA7 already, you can ignore this link: https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/writingcenter/modules/apaLinks to an external site.
  • Otherwise, please complete this interactive tutorial.
• Deaton, D. (2019, April 30). 3 things I needed to successfully complete my doctoral capstoneLinks to an external site.. Walden Academic Skills Center. https://waldenacademicskills.wordpress.com/2019/04/30/3-things-i-needed-to-successfully-complete-my-doctoral-capstone/
  
  
• Walden University Office of Research and Doctoral Services. (n.d.-e). Identify a research problemLinks to an external site.. https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/research-center/student-research/identify-problem