Public Policy and Administration Practice Translation Memo: The practice translation memo project is designed to instill in students the competency to translate public policy and administration research into practice. In doing so, students will demonstrate the ability to access, identify, evaluate, and use effectively the extant research on substantive topics.
Translation memorandums should be addressed to either a supervisor or elected official(s). The paper must be formatted and include citations utilizing the APA format (including APA’s margins but no abstract required). Each page of the paper (except cover) should be numbered and include the author’s name. The citation page(s) do not count toward this page limit.
The following eleven points should help you in the completion of your analysis. Note that depending on the type of research your paper presents (quantitative, qualitative, mixed methods, synthetic review, etc.) one or more of these 11 points may not be appropriate—so adjust as required by the parameters of your selected article.
1. Research Question – (i) What question/s is the article trying to answer? (ii) To what extent is it stated clearly and explicitly? (iii) If it is not stated explicitly, are you able to draw inferences from the article to identify the research question/s?
2. Contributions to the Literature – (i) How does the article contribute to the scientific literature? To identify the contributions you might ask: Have the authors identified a gap in the literature that needs to be filled, or a need to test competing theories/hypotheses, or explore a theory in a new context? (ii) To what extent is the contribution stated clearly and explicitly?
3. Main Argument(s) or Findings – (i) What basic arguments are the author(s) trying to make or what are their key findings/conclusions? (ii) To what extent are the arguments or findings stated clearly and explicitly?
4. Research Design/Data Sources – (i) What is the research design/data sources (e.g. documents, surveys, interviews)? (ii) To what extent is the information gathered and analyzed in a manner that is intersubjectively reliable (replicable)? (iii) How are data limitations addressed and threats to validity controlled for (e.g., control groups)?
5. Tables and Figures – (i) How clear and informative are the tables and figures? (ii) Is there a detailed caption so the table and figure can be understood without searching the text? (iii) Do the variables names make sense? (iv) Are significant impacts clearly marked? (v) To what extent are the tables and figures effective in expressing the basic argument?
6. Explanatory/Descriptive Approach – (i) Is the basic argument descriptive or explanatory? (ii) What variables are critical for making the basic argument? (iii) If applicable, what are the independent and dependent variables? (iii) What causal process does the article make with the variables? (i.e., how are the variables related?) (iv) What is the theory and hypotheses for the causal process? Are the hypotheses supported or refuted? (v) Is there internal validity?
7. Operationalization – (i) To what extent are variables operationalized (measured) in a valid manner? (ii) To what extent does variable operationalization adequately represent the variable concept (construct validity)? (iii) Are important variables not operationalized? Which ones?
8. Statistical Techniques – (i) How appropriate are the statistical techniques in the paper? (ii) Does the author test for assumptions/limitations? (iii) Do the data show what the author says they show? Does the author discuss dissonant findings?
9. Generalizability – i) To what extent does the author seek to generalize his/her basic argument? (ii) How valid are the generalizations?
10. Implications – (i) What are the policy implications from the article? (ii) In what ways are the implications drawn from the arguments/data in the article?
11. Clarity of Writing – (i) Is the article well-written? (ii) Is the writing clear? (iii) Could the article be written more succinctly?
Lastly, students must finish with a set of recommendations on either how to implement or how to apply the article’s recommendations/findings, and/or the student’s own recommendations based on their reading of the article.
?
Grading Rubric:
80% of the paper grade will be based on content and original analysis.
20% percent of the final paper grade will be based on the correct usage of APA citation and formatting throughout and correct grammar and syntax throughout.
“B-Level” Papers Will: Demonstrate that the student read the course materials, exhibits that the student understands key concepts, and indicates some original thought. Writing will be mostly smooth but may suffer from occasional rough patches. Information will mostly be presented clearly, but may lack either clarity or completeness in one or more sections. The paper’s organization likely could be improved. The conclusions are either not fully clear or not fully successfully tied to the literature and/or the data driving the recommendations.
“A-Level” Papers Will: Demonstrate that the student read the course materials, read beyond the required course materials, demonstrates a mastery of the key concepts, and demonstrates a high level of original thought and critical analysis. Writing will be smooth. Information will be presented clearly and completely. The paper’s organization will be clear. The conclusions will smoothly bring together and summarizes the main argument clearly and state the author’s data-driven recommendations clearly and concisely.
