3.2 Identifying and Deploying a Methodology for the Work

The nuts and bolts of getting your work done and prepared for your community partner and instructor has many stages. All of these are informed by the framework– or methodology– you are using to accomplish the tasks at hand. When working with community partners, a slapdash approach is usually apparent when you submit materials or have last minute questions that cannot be answered in time for project completion. The level of professionalism you embody during the project is part of the project itself. Therefore, having a strategic plan for doing the work can be helpful. Here, the “methodology” for doing the work entails you (and your team, if applicable) reflect on a number of components involved in the work:

• Project management, e.g.:
  • Working backward from the final project submission, what is a reasonable timeline for each deliverable? (Sometimes your instructor may build in these benchmarks for you; if so, work with those requirements.)
  • If you’ve worked on academic writing projects before, reflect on how long it took for your research, drafting, and revision processes. Now, budget accordingly, recognizing the external stakeholders for your final project.
  • Determine a strategy for when, how and where to draft, revise, and edit your materials. Do you write best in the morning hours? Is your brain happiest after a cup of coffee?
  • What sort of project management style do you have? Reflect on larger scale/longer term projects you’ve worked on before. What went well, and what was a struggle? How can you implement successful practices in this project?
  • Consider tools like Gantt charts, Trello, or other productivity tools.

• Materials needed to complete the project:
  • What data do you need?
  • Are you familiar with your campus library research options and capacities? If not, do you know how to connect with your subject librarian?
  • Are there paywalls to any of the materials or information you need? (if you answered yes, reach out to your instructor, as there may be funds available for you to access these materials).
  • What tools or resources do you have (access to software, hardware, etc that are necessary to produce the best project)?
  • What tools or resources do you need (in certain courses, your instructor may be able to use a course budget to purchase required materials).

• Reflection on goals:
  • What are your goals for this project? Are they grade based? Output based?
  • Do you want to add these materials to a professional portfolio?
  • Do you want to contribute something immediately usable by the community partner?

• Collaboration and communication
  • What tools/strategies are effective for you when you are communicating during collaboration (e.g. Slack, Discord, Trello, Teams)?
  • What tools/strategies are effective for you when you are writing as a team (e.g. Google Workspace, OneDrive, Dropbox, email, etc)?
  • Be sure to establish a framework for when to anticipate replies to team communications. (If your team decides on a 24-hour response time, even in urgent situations, this will be the go-to standard to which your instructor will appeal if there are issues).

If you and/or your community partner/instructor subscribe to design thinking models, you’ll want to plan multiple opportunities to work with your partner and/or instructor on versions of the project. Sometimes, your instructor will implement specific strategies (e.g. drafts of deliverables, meetings with community partners mid-project, peer review).