Self-Guided Workshop: Building a Problem Statement

AEGR618 Research Methodology

Amanda Newman-Godfrey, Assistant Professor Art Education

This weeks self-guided workshop will focus on helping you build your problem statement.
As you read in Booth, your problem statement is at the heart of your Thesis Introduction (a
key part of your proposal).
In this weeks module, I have included two videos that provide some background on what is
a Problem Statement. Review them to provide further context on what this part of your
thesis is designed to do.
Think about your problem statement as the contract that you make with your reader it is
a promise you make about what your thesis will investigate, and why this issue needs to be
investigated. The response to these questions will be strung together into your problem
statement.
You should complete these questions in your Researcher Reflective Journal.
***Jointing down my ideas this is a rough draft of my reflective journal***
Ask yourself the following questions, and answer them in sentence form:
1. What are the topic areas of your research?
The topic areas of my research are; visual journaling, self-reflection and self-efficacy
and how art plays an integrate part in finding out who we are as artists and as
humans. Making connections through art that embodies our true self is important. This
will cater to our growth within the classroom and in our communities.

Self-Guided Workshop: Building a Problem Statement

AEGR618 Research Methodology
Amanda Newman-Godfrey, Assistant Professor Art Education

Is there something wrong, unclear, uninvestigated, or disputed in art education that

warrants investigation?
There is not a lot of research on how visual journaling is used in the classroom-if so it
is fairly new
a. Describe in detail from start to finish what that issue is and within what context
you would like to investigate it (the what and where of your research).
The issue is that visual journaling is not used as a primary tool in the art
classroom. Literacy is not a priority in the high school art classroom
2. Review what you have read does it accurately frame your primary and secondary
research questions? I believe it will I think I need to add the facts of literacy in the art
classroom and maybe some information about adolescents self esteem and the need
for self-reflection in this stage in life. I believe that it is important to get pre teens
reflecting on themselves especially at this point in life because they are bombarded
with so many new responsibilities such as SATs , keystones, career choice and post
high school decisions. Knowing who they are and how they can succeed within their
education can help their performance in the school and outside of the classroom.
Through prior research about visual journaling may have a lasting effect on their lives

Self-Guided Workshop: Building a Problem Statement

AEGR618 Research Methodology
Amanda Newman-Godfrey, Assistant Professor Art Education

a. In other words, when a reader reads your problem statement, will it naturally
lead into your research questions? Yes
i. Discuss literacy in the art room
ii. How visual journaling lead to self-esteem in adolescence
iii. Talk about the need to add visual journaling in the classroom
b. The next part of your Introduction will be the research questions, so the problem
statement MUST flow naturally into the questions, and not jar the reader.
c. Imagine the reader must be saying Wow, so this is a REAL problem and I
understand fully the what and where and why.
d. So the reason they are asking this research question(s) makes total sense
because they relate to the problem I just read about.
3. Why do you want to study this topic (a.k.a. look to your identity memo)?
a. Tell the story of how and why you came to this problem (hint: rework your
identity memo now that you have had more literature review under your belt).
My identity memo-reread it and add info onto it