Education Graduate Student Research Resources

Written by Poh Tan

Welcome to the Research Hub’s Graduate Research Resource Page!  Whether you're a new graduate student or a continuing one, there are resources that you’ll find useful to help with your research journey.  We invite you to explore this page and visit the resources to help you manage and gain skills as you embark on your research project.  Check out the The Grad Writers’ Corner, participate in our popular Writing Retreat Wednesdays, and our newest addition, IDEAS  (Innovative Dialogues on Educational Approaches and Scholarship).  A series of Graduate Research Dialogues that will become the first anchor point towards building a more diverse set of research resources for grads.

The Grad Writers’ Corner

The Grad Writers’ Corner provides resources for Masters and PhD students in the Faculty of Education on writing for research.  Whether you are working on your thesis, a class paper, a conference proposal, or a paper for publication, for some us, writing can be a challenging task.  As a new graduate student in the faculty, you may feel that you need a brush-up on writing an academic paper, or if you’re a continuing grad, you may feel a frustration towards finding time to write.  Many students, if not all graduate students face some form of challenge in the writing process.  The  Grad Writers’ Corner is a place where you can find resources to help you in your research writing journey and is created by a graduate student, in collaboration with fellow graduate students, with the support of the Research Hub to bring you effective strategies to develop into a more productive and effective writer. 

Research Hub based resources:

  • Virtual Writing Retreat Wednesdays (VWRW): Biweekly dedicated space for writing and learning for graduate students at different stages of their research journey. The Research Hub’s Signature Writing Retreat Wednesdays are back to help you  get back on track with your writing in a virtual format- be it a paper for class, a journal article or your thesis! We are offering virtual writing retreats where you will be able to connect with your peers and will not have to write alone! At each retreat, you'll learn a variety of writing strategies, acquire a clear understanding of academic writing conventions and expectations, and an opportunity to practice key writing and learning elements on your own work. Registration typically opens ten days prior to the event.  Registher here and Register early!

Other Writing Resources:

  • 14-Day Writing Challenge: The 14-Day Writing Challenge is an opportunity for you to experiment with daily writing in a supportive environment with a little daily dose of electronic love from the NCFDD. Sign up here: https://www.facultydiversity.org/14-day-challenge
  • The Dissertation Success Program: The NCFDD Dissertation Success Curriculum is designed to provide the skills, strategies, and support that advanced graduate students need to overcome the three biggest obstacles to finishing their dissertation: perfectionism, procrastination, and isolation. The program is built on the premise that there is only one way to complete a dissertation: WRITE IT!  Sign up here: https://www.facultydiversity.org/dissertation-success-public
  • Graduate Writing Online Community on Canvas:  SFU’s Graduate Writing Online (Canvas) Community provides helpful writing resources, connects you with other graduate writers, and asks your questions on their discussion posts. Graduate writers are encouraged to ask questions -- big or small -- on our Q&A forum, and to share resources of their own!  Sign up here: https://www.lib.sfu.ca/about/branches-depts/rc/writing-theses/writing/writing-services#graduate-writing-online-community-gwoc-on-canvas
  • Pomodoro Technique for writing: The Pomodoro Technique is a time management method developed by Francesco Cirillo in the late 1980s. The technique uses a timer to break down work into intervals, traditionally 25 minutes in length, separated by short breaks. Learn more here: https://writingcenter.unc.edu/2020/04/pomodoros/
  • Publishing for Graduate Students: Oregon State University:  A guide that supports graduate students on approaches to publishing their work. Link: https://guides.library.oregonstate.edu/gradstudentpublishing

The Grad Researchers’ Corner

The Grad Researcher’s Corner provides research related resources for Masters and Doctoral students in the Faculty of Education to support each student’s research process. For many graduate students, this may be the first time you are embarking on a process called research.  What is research? How is it done? What are some of the different approaches?  Is there a right way and wrong way to do research? Research from each of us can be as unique as our fingerprints despite having some similarities in approaches. Most grad students will agree, that when it comes to research, most of the time, it feels like you’re lost in a forest without your phone, and having only to rely on your honed skills of observations, hypothesizing, and questioning to find your way out.  The Grad Researcher’s Corner is a place with specially curated and collected resources to help you practice and develop your research skills to become comfortable with doing research. 

Research Hub based resources:

  • IDEAS:  Innovative Dialogue in Educational Approaches and Scholarship is a series of podcasts created by and for graduate students as a platform for sharing, disseminating, and collaborating on the practice of research.  This podcast series has been created by Poh Tan and Shaila Shams, two doctoral students in the Faculty of Education.  This series features graduate students from diverse disciplines who are at different points in their research.  They share challenges and accoplishments through their experiences and encounters.   Sneak a listen from Poh and Shaila about IDEAS.  Mark your calendars, the first podcast is set to air on January 15, 2021!

IDEAS: An introduction. Dr. Poh Tan and Ms. Shaila Shams  Click to Listen

Other Research Resources: