Journal Synthesis Assignment

Assignment Requirements

Research Topic Selection Choose ONE research topic from the following options:

• Differentiation for Students with Significant Learning Needs
• Differentiation at the Secondary Level
• Assessments and Differentiation
• Cultural and Racial Issues Affecting Differentiation
• Leadership and the Role it Plays in Differentiated Curriculum
• Promising Practices for Student Differences and Academic Achievement
• Differentiating Content, Process, Product, and Learning Environment

Core Components

1. Scholarly Source Integration (2-3 Articles) Locate and analyze 2-3 peer-reviewed articles from professional education journals published within the last 10 years. Focus on rigorous research that directly addresses your chosen topic. Acceptable sources include journals such as Teaching Exceptional Children, Journal of Special Education, Remedial and Special Education, Learning Disabilities Research & Practice, Educational Leadership, and Contemporary Educational Psychology.

2. Thematic Analysis and Synthesis Identify common themes across your selected articles and analyze where researchers agree or diverge in their findings. Demonstrate how different studies build upon, challenge, or complement each other. Your role is to synthesize research findings rather than summarize individual articles or present personal opinions.

3. Disability Identity Lens Application Examine your research findings through six disability identity themes:

• Communal Attachment: How do practices support connections with peers and community?
• Affirmation of Disability: Do approaches promote full citizenship and inclusion?
• Self-Worth: How do strategies affirm student value and capability?
• Pride: Do methods encourage students to embrace their identity?
• Discrimination Awareness: How do researchers address bias and systemic barriers?
• Personal Meaning: Do approaches help students find purpose in their experiences?

4. Professional Writing Standards Use flawless APA formatting for citations and references, maintain clear scholarly writing that synthesizes rather than summarizes, and ensure error-free grammar and mechanics throughout your paper.

Research Strategy Guidelines

Database Recommendations: Begin your search using education databases such as ERIC, PsycINFO, or Education Source. Look for recent meta-analyses or systematic reviews that provide comprehensive overviews of your topic.

Source Evaluation: Ensure sources represent peer-reviewed research from recognized professional organizations. Exclude popular magazines, non-peer-reviewed websites, undergraduate papers, and opinion pieces without research foundations.

Writing Approach: Focus on letting the research findings guide your synthesis. Look for patterns, contradictions, and gaps in the literature while using transition sentences to demonstrate relationships between studies. Maintain a scholarly tone throughout and reserve personal opinions for brief introduction or conclusion sections only.

Quality Indicators

Your synthesis should demonstrate deep understanding of research findings, sophisticated analysis of researcher agreements and disagreements, thoughtful and specific application of the disability identity lens, and consistent scholarly tone. The goal is to illuminate important insights about differentiation practices through rigorous analysis of current literature.