INTRODUCTION TO CAPSTONE/ RESEARCH PROJECT

Also called a capstone experience, culminating project, or senior exhibition, among many other terms,
a capstone project is a multifaceted assignment that serves as a culminating academic and intellectual
experience for students, typically during their final year of high school or middle school, or at the end of an
academic program or learning-pathway experience. While similar in some ways to a college thesis, capstone
projects may take a wide variety of forms, but most are long-term investigative projects that culminate in a final
product, presentation, or performance. 

 to encourage students to think critically, solve challenging problems, and develop skills such as
oral communication, public speaking, research skills, media literacy, teamwork, planning, self-
sufficiency, or goal setting—i.e.,
 skills that will help prepare them for college, modern careers, and adult life. In most cases, the projects
are also interdisciplinary, in the sense that they require students to apply skills or investigate issues
across many different subject areas or domains of knowledge.
 to encourage students to connect their projects to community issues or problems, and to integrate
outside-of-school learning experiences, including activities such as interviews, scientific observations,
or internships.

Capstone Project: Educational Goals

 Increasing the academic rigor of the senior year

- It can reduce senior-year learning loss, keep students in school longer (or otherwise engaged in
learning), and increase preparation for college and work.
 Increasing student motivation and engagement
- It can strengthen student motivation to learn, particularly during a time (twelfth grade) when academic motivation
and engagement tend to wane.
 Increasing educational and career aspirations
- It can help students with future planning, goal setting, post secondary decisions, and career exploration
—particularly for those students who may be unfocused, uncertain, or indecisive about their post-
graduation plans and aspirations.
 Improving student confidence and self-perceptions
- It can boost self-esteem, build confidence, and teach students about the value of accomplishment and can
cultivate leadership abilities and have positive cultural effects within a school.
 Demonstrating learning and proficiency
- It can be used to determine student proficiency (in the acquisition of knowledge and skills) or readiness (for
college and work) by requiring them to demonstrate what they have learned over the course of their project

What Is the Difference Between a Capstone and a Thesis?

The main difference between a capstone project and a thesis is that a capstone project addresses a specific
problem, issue or concern in your field of study, and a thesis attempts to create new knowledge. A  capstone
project focuses on a narrow, specific topic, whereas a thesis addresses a broader, generalized issue.

Capstone Project: Coursework Application

 A capstone project tests your understanding of core concepts in your field of study and requires you to
apply them to current situations. Capstone projects don't require original research, but you must perform
background analysis, conduct library research, examine similar projects and review best practices. Capstone
projects may be completed individually or in small groups.

Capstone Project: Select a Narrow Topic

Choose a narrow topic for a capstone project, for which you can provide expertise and a comprehensive
analysis.. In some cases, a capstone project deals with a specific company that's trying to improve productivity
or solve a workplace concern. Most capstone projects require a written paper of approximately 15 to 25
pages.

- A thesis paper can be completed over several semesters, but a capstone project is generally a single-
semester requirement. 
- A thesis paper differs from a capstone project because you must create new knowledge by developing a
hypothesis, conducting data analysis, assessing your results, drawing conclusions from your research
and comparing your results to others.

Steps in doing a capstone paper or project

Step 1: Select a topic area. 

See the "Selecting and focusing your research topic" tab above for suggestions on choosing a topic, narrowing
your focus, and developing a thesis statement or research question.

Step 2: Do a literature review. 

The "Literature Review" tab will link you to helpful resources for planning a search and organizing your results.
The "Start Searching" tab gives some examples for using article databases effectively

Step 3: Conduct your research.

Check the "Conducting research" tab for resources on creating surveys, finding tests, designing studies, etc.

Step4: Present your results. 

The "Writing & Citing" tab brings together resources for writing the paper, citing your sources, and avoiding
plagiarism. The "Presentation skills" tab will help you create effective visual aids and deliver a professional
presentation.

GUIDELINES IN CHOOSING A TOPIC

▪ Issues that are relevant to your workplace, classroom experience, or career goals.

▪ A topic that has caught your eye in your textbook, a journal article, or an issue that you explored for
previous classwork or projects and would like to pursue further.

▪ A topic should be manageable in scale. If a topic is too broad, you will have difficulty covering all of the
necessary material. If the topic is too narrow, you may have difficulty finding material published on
your topic and struggle to stretch the material to meet your project length requirement.

▪ If your assignment requires you to do primary research (surveys, interviews, empirical research study),
allow time to complete the process.

▪ Be flexible. If your topic is too narrow or broad, you may still be able to incorporate the aspects of it that
interest you. 

▪ Try to have a few options in mind, in case you find out that your first choice is not feasible after
exploring available literature. 

▪ Always check to make sure that your topic meets your instructor's assignment guidelines. If in doubt, it
is best to ask early in the process.

Developing your thesis statement/research question

▪ Many students start with a general topic and then narrow the focus. You could be even more specific,
limiting your scope to a particular geographical location, a specific type of company, an age group, etc.

▪ For most standalone papers, you will want to write a thesis statement expressing the argument you want
to make. The statement will guide you as you search for information. In this case, we will want to find
research on the pros and cons of social media use in the workplace. Ideally, it would be great to find
some studies which support the argument that the benefits outweigh the negatives

▪ If you plan to conduct actual research, you need to establish the research question or questions that your
study will attempt to answer. For example, we may ask whether the size of the company makes a
difference as regards social media benefits. We could do a survey of various companies and compare the
responses of large, medium and small companies. Ideally this study would cover new ground and not
exactly replicate previous studies.