UNIT 1 DISCUSSION: Introduction & Initial Proposal Comments

 Required:

Discussion is an important part of the learning experience. In traditional classroom settings, there are multiple opportunities for student interaction.

In this on-line course, we will use discussion threads in Blackboard as one method of student interaction. A total of 5 discussion threads are scheduled throughout the course.

Refer to the Course Assignment Schedule for due dates of the threads. Deadlines for when discussions are due are firm; initial discussions posted after the deadline will be accepted (up until the final due date of the follow-up posts) but points are deducted for initial posts that are submitted late (as reflected in the grading rubric – up to 5 points).

Discussions will not be accepted after the final due date. Please note that you must first post your discussion before you have access to see the posts of your peers and make responses.

To receive full credit, you must complete all components of the discussion assignment:

• Read the instructions and then initiate discussion by posting substantive comments regarding the discussion question. For the initial post, a word count of 200-300 is expected. This is to be completed by Thursday at 11:59pm.
• For follow-up posts, respond to a minimum of two posts made by peers. Each response should be a minimum of 100 words. The expectation is that your response be substantive.
• Again, this must be submitted by the deadline posted on the Course Assignment Schedule. This is to be completed by 11:59pm Sunday.
• Proper grammar and sentence structure are expected.
• Be sure to include references when requested.

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Important: In this course, each discussion post is designed to help you make progress toward the proposal assignment you will be writing and submitting later in this course.

Before attempting to post this discussion thread, carefully read the instructions to Assignment 2: Initial Research Proposal for Hypothetical Community Nutrition Intervention found in Module 1 Unit 1.

Next, participate in, or view the recording of, the instructional webinar paying particular attention to the About Unit 1 Discussion of the webinar. Also, view the unit videos.

Finally, select one nutrition topic/problem of investigation from this list: obesity, hypertension, diabetes (in the context of healthy eating), or hydration.

This broad nutrition topic will be narrowed down and will be your area of focus for the initial research proposal you write for a hypothetical community nutrition intervention.

• Initial prompt (200-300 words): 
• In the first paragraph, introduce yourself including where you grew up, educational history, expected graduation date, and what you hope to gain from this class.
• Discuss any previous experience(s) you have in research at the undergraduate and/or graduate levels, as well as occupationally.
• Do you have any plans of working in the area of community nutrition research in the future? If so, what area? Also, address if you have ever written a proposal for a research project.
• If so, provide a statement or two about this experience. If not, what are your initial thoughts about learning how to write a proposal in this course?
• In the second paragraph, introduce your nutrition topic of investigation from the list above. The nutrition intervention you develop must be designed to increase knowledge of a specific community/target group.
• Begin to describe your target population (this group is the subsection of the community who will receive the intervention. There are many target groups, and you must select only one.
• Will your intervention target pregnant women? athletes? senior adults? worksite wellness employees? etc. Once you decide upon the general target group, get very specific so that you narrowly define the group.
• (For example, if my first thought was “adults”, after more thought and research, I might narrow the target group to “African American women in Beaumont, Texas”.
• Likewise, if my first thought was “athletes”, I may get more specific and state “collegiate athletes in Division 1 schools in Texas” or “female collegiate athletes at Lamar University”.
• In the third paragraph, discuss your initial thoughts of your community nutrition education intervention.
• It is helpful to think about the intervention as the tool that helps brings about the solution to the nutrition problem.
• So, how will I increase knowledge of my target audience in regard to the nutrition topic/problem of investigation? Will my intervention be a health fair? An educational session?
• A workshop (which generally includes more than one educational session over a day or a part of a day)? A cooking school or learning kitchen? Again, select only one form of intervention (a health fair OR an educational session, etc.).