Writing las dissertations,part one: the rationale for an experimential research project

This article describes the impetus for a research project conducted during 2002–2003 into our law students' experiences of undertaking a dissertation module. It also discusses the rationale for the particular methodology and approach we have used to conduct this research, and presents the results. A driving force behind this research project was not only the desire to obtain knowledge for its own sake but also the need to identify and enhance positive aspects of students' experience of this module. We decided to adopt a student led and experiential method of carrying out our research that focuses directly upon the students' lived-experience of engaging in dissertation writing. The rationale for this decision was our acknowledgement that, within the last decade, students are increasingly defining themselves as consumers of educational services and have a legitimate and indeed pivotal role in quality assurance strategies. We also recognised that adopting an experiential method of inquiry, informed by a phenomenological approach, should, in principle, help to empower students by acknowledging their autonomy and encouraging them to engage in critical reflection. Finally, applying this methodology would provide us with precisely the subjectively rich type of research data derived from the students' lived-experience that we sought. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Does sex education affect adolescent sexual behaviors and health?

This study examines whether offering sex education to young teenagers affects several measures of adolescent sexual behavior and health: virginity status, contraceptive use, frequency of intercourse, likelihood of pregnancy, and probability of contracting a sexually transmitted disease. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, I find that while sex education is associated with adverse health outcomes, there is little evidence of a causal link after controlling for unobserved heterogeneity via fixed effects and instrumental variables. These findings suggest that those on each side of the ideological debate over sex education are, in a sense, both correct and mistaken. Opponents are correct in observing that sex education is associated with adverse health outcomes, but are generally incorrect in interpreting this relationship causally. Proponents are generally correct in claiming that sex education does not encourage risky sexual activity, but are incorrect in asserting that investments in typical school-based sex education programs produce measurable health benefits.