{"id":1823,"date":"2012-04-04T23:32:18","date_gmt":"2012-04-05T03:32:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/edreform\/?p=1823"},"modified":"2013-01-28T12:27:05","modified_gmt":"2013-01-28T17:27:05","slug":"research-proposal-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/commons.trincoll.edu\/edreform\/2012\/04\/research-proposal-3\/","title":{"rendered":"Addition of Departments\/Programs to Trinity throughout History"},"content":{"rendered":"

Danyelle Doldoorian<\/p>\n

April 4th, 2012<\/p>\n

EDUC 300 Research Proposal<\/p>\n

Research Question:<\/strong> When and why were new departments\/program created over time at Trinity College?<\/p>\n

Significance:<\/strong> Researching the connection between what and when departments\/programs are added and what was happening at the time of addition, it is very evident that Trinity\u2019s department\/program additions reflect student demand and events current at the time.\u00a0 Trinity has implemented women\u2019s studies, aerospace, gay and lesbian, and African studies programs amongst many others.\u00a0 Each of these programs was put into place for a reason.<\/p>\n

Over time, departments\/programs are added to schools.\u00a0 This happens for a variety of reasons such as student demand or current events.\u00a0 Throughout Trinity\u2019s history, many departments\/programs have been added, and for both of these reasons.\u00a0 For example, African studies was added to the school because of student activism in the form of the famous \u201clock in,\u201d and Aerospace studies was added during America\u2019s \u201cSpace Race\u201d with the Soviet Union.\u00a0 The addition of departments\/programs is relevant because it reflects the changing times.\u00a0 It reflects what students now find important and what is happening in history. \u00a0\u00a0Therefore, department\/program additions reflect the campus\u2019s as well as the state or country\u2019s political climate.<\/p>\n

Research Strategy:<\/strong> To research the answer to my research question, I had to research three things: what departments\/programs were created, when those departments\/programs were created, and what caused the creation of those departments\/programs.<\/p>\n

In order to find what and when departments were created, I looked through several editions of Trinity\u2019s bulletin.\u00a0 Searching through the bulletins chronologically, from oldest to newest, I searched through the \u201cCourse Offerings\u201d section of each bulletin and noted each department or program addition in comparison to the preceding bulletin.\u00a0 \u00a0I was then able to see in which year (roughly, as I did not have access to every bulletin) departments\/programs were added and what the departments\/programs were.\u00a0 For example, the 2000-2001 bulletin showed that Gay and Lesbian Studies was a part of the Trinity offerings, but this program was not shown in the 1990-1991 bulletin.\u00a0 This was noted.<\/p>\n

After looking through eight bulletins, noting each department\/program addition for each, I was able to research the third question: what caused the creation of those departments\/programs?\u00a0 To do this, I searched on Google a topic related to the department\/program and, if necessary, time period in which the department was added.\u00a0 For example, from 1960 to 1970, the \u201cAir Space\u201d department turned into the \u201cAerospace\u201d department.\u00a0 So I searched for \u201cspace exploration\u201d in Google.\u00a0\u00a0 After clicking on a Wikipedia page, I remembered the \u201cSpace Race\u201d between the USA and Russia.\u00a0 I then searched this topic and found a credible article from the History Channel\u2019s website.\u00a0 I now had a source which I could use to explain the reasoning behind the creation of the aerospace program at Trinity.\u00a0 I followed this process for each of the important department\/programs that were created and listed in Trinity\u2019s bulletins.<\/p>\n

In addition to this method, I used a database provided to us on the Ed Reform website in order to find articles of relevance for any extra information.\u00a0 On the Ed Reform website under \u201cResources & Guidelines\u201d I clicked \u201cTrinity Online Resources in Ed\u201d and then \u201cEducation full text.\u201d\u00a0 Then in the research bars I entered key words.\u00a0 I wanted to find more information about how the Cold War altered curriculum in schools.\u00a0 I searched \u201ccold war\u201d AND \u201ccurriculum\u201d which led me to a relevant article which I can use.\u00a0 My next steps to finding more relevant information is to search through Trinity\u2019s Tripod archives on http:\/\/library.trincoll.edu\/tripod.htm<\/a> to find if any student action led to the addition of departments\/programs and going to the Watkinson library to find more bulletins and more student-action information.<\/p>\n

Bibliography and Explanations:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Carlson, Dennis. \u201cThe Cold War in the Curriculum.\u201d Educational Leadership 42 (05 1985).<\/p>\n