This is a “state of the science paper”. It has to address my research question which is “In high school students, does a low income background compared to a wealthier background impact a students chance at graduating high school? Here is the instructions from the rubric.
“This paper will include a written summary and integration of the eight research articles used to answer your research question. There is a 12-page limit, and the paper must be submitted to Turnitin (via OCS) in APA format. The paper should include the following sections and they should be labeled as such in your paper (use the headings below):
• Background and Significance of the problem (20 points): Describe the importance and relevance of this problem in relation to nursing and healthcare. (2 pages)
o You can use articles with information that was not research based that may have relevant morbidity, mortality, incidence or policy information
o You need to orient the reader (who is an educated health care provider) to any particular information necessary to appreciate the scope of the problem
o This section should end with your PICOT question. If you had to alter your PICOT question or add a second question, describe it here.
• Methods (20 points): Be very specific regarding how you conducted your search, what databases were used and how you narrowed your final selection to 8 articles (1-2 pages)
o What key words did you use? Did you alter and/or add key words based on the results you obtained from the initial key words?
o What databases did you look in? Did you also hand select references from other pertinent literature?
o What inclusion criteria did you use for selecting the journal articles you read (population age? Date of publication? US or did you allow foreign articles, specific methodology?) You may not use full text as a limiter as it will limit your results such that your search may be biased.
o What exclusion criteria did you use for discarding some articles for consideration? (Date of publication or data collection? Population? Gender? Methodology? Place of data collection?)
• Results (20 points): Describe the results of your search using synthesis. Do not just individually describe the studies. (2-3 pages)
o Compare and contrast the studies.
o What studies were alike? (Same population? Same setting? Same methodology? Same results?)
o What studies were different? (Different populations – age, gender, other variables). If their results were markedly similar or markedly different…do you have an idea of why that is?
o What were the results of the groupings of studies?
• Discussion (30 points): This is the most important section of the paper. You can express your opinion (based on the evidence you present) but do not write in the first person. (3 pages)
o What are the level and the quality (level + quality = strength) of the evidence you reviewed?
o Are there gaps in the literature? If so, what are the gaps in the literature? (Gaps in the literature are topics that have not yet been studied. Before stating that there is a gap in the literature, consider whether you searched for what you are describing as a gap.)
o What are the overall limitations of this body of literature? (Limitations are areas where the literature that you collected is not thorough, is not of a quality level, or could have been done differently to enhance the rigor and/or quality of the body of evidence). How do your findings relate back to your PICOT question?
o Do your findings address your initial PICOT question?
o If you were in a position to make decisions regarding your topic, what would your decision(s) be based on the literature you presented? What should nursing do as a result of your lit review – implement an evidence-based initiative or conduct additional research? How confident are you with your recommendations?
• APA format, spelling, grammar, scientific writing style (10 points)