General Studies (GNST) 313 - Lecture 01
Interdisciplinary Research Methodology
Fall 2007
Tuesday 14:00 - 16:50

Instructor:	Dr. Fiona Nelson
Office Location:	SS 342
Office Phone:	210-9432
E-Mail:	nelsonf@ucalgary.ca
Office Hours:	Tuesday and Thursday 10:30 - 12:00 Or by appointment

Additional Information

Course materials, grades, and a discussion board will be available on Blackboard. Go to: http://blackboard.ucalgary.ca/webapps/login

Course Description

This course will introduce you to interdisciplinary research and the many ways in which such research gets done. We will overview, critique and practice some of the major research methods used by social and cultural researchers. We will also examine ethical considerations in research and explore the question of how research is situated within broader cultural contexts.

It is essential that you come to class with the required readings completed. For the most part, lectures will not duplicate the readings although the readings will often be the focus of class discussions. In addition, successful completion of assignments and exams will require you to have done the readings.

Objectives of the Course

The primary objectives are to help you develop your skills both in conducting research and in becoming a critical, and informed, consumer of research. To these ends, you will conduct, and write up, research of your own, while critically reflecting on your process. We will also critically examine the research of others, exploring ways of interpreting research findings and assessing their soundness. 

Textbooks and Readings:

Neuman, W. Lawrence. 2007.Basics of Social Research: Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches (second edition). Boston: Pearson Allyn and Bacon.

*this book comes packaged with a student workbook and disk

Assignments and Evaluation:

GRADE COMPONENTS:

In-class Assignment #1 - September 25^th - 8%

In-class Assignment #2 - October 2^nd -5%

In-class Assignment #3 - October 16^th - 8%

In-class Assignment #4 - October 30^th - 5%

Midterm Exam - November 6^th - 25%

Literature Review - due November 20^th - 14%

Final Research Paper - due December 7th - 35%

ABOUT THE IN-CLASS ASSIGNMENTS:

Assignment #1 - This is a group assignment that will be completed in class on September 25^th. In preparation for the assignment, students are asked to bring one short piece of research they have found reported in the popular press. 90 minutes of the class time will be provided for this assignment. The 8% grade for this will be a common grade shared with the group. More details will be provided in class.

Assignment #2 - This assignment will be completed in class on October 2^nd. Students will work with the groups they have formed for their final research projects and will start thinking through either an interview guide or a questionnaire that they could use for their research. The group should devise and defend some preliminary questions and give some thought as to who might be an appropriate sample (and how to gather them). Again, much more detail about this will be given in class. The 5% grade for this will also be a common grade shared with the group.

Assignment #3 - This assignment will be completed in class on October 16^th. Students will work in groups, but not necessarily the same groups as you will be in for your final projects. Each student is asked to bring one children's book to class. Choose a short picture book, aimed for children under 6 years old. You will be conducting a content analysis on the books you bring. The 8% grade for this is a shared group grade.

Assignment #4 - This assignment will be completed in class on October 30^th. Students will work with their final project groups to think through some of the ethical issues associated with their final project research. The 5% is a shared group grade.

As you can see, it is imperative that you be in attendance on the days of the in-class group work.  If you must be absent for the first or third assignment, and you have supporting documentation, you will be allowed to write a paper in lieu of the assignment. If you miss the second or fourth assignment, and you have supporting documentation, you will need to make arrangements to meet with your group later and find out what they discussed and wrote about. You will then need to write a paper that expands on the work your group did without you - I will provide more information about this if the need arises.

ABOUT THE MIDTERM EXAM:

Tuesday, November 6^th

Worth: 25%

The exam will contain multiple choice questions along with short and long answer questions. You will be given an hour and a half to complete the exam. More details will be provided in class as the date approaches. All class material, including readings, films, lectures, assignments and class discussions are fair game for the exam.

If you have a documented reason for missing the exam, it is imperative that you notify me BEFORE the exam. You will be allowed to write a (different) make-up exam.

ABOUT THE LITERATURE REVIEW:

Due - November 20^th

Worth - 14%

Length - 5-8 pages (approximately)

For this paper you will be asked to find four to six references (scholarly articles or books) that pertain to your final research project, and write a brief literature review. Much more detail about this process will be given in class. Each person's sources should differ, as much as possible, from sources chosen by the other members of his/her final project group. Later, these individual literature reviews will be combined by each group for their final paper.

ABOUT THE FINAL RESEARCH PAPER:

Due - December 7^th

Worth - 35% (10% group and 25% individual)

Length - 16-22 pages (6-10 pages group and 10-12 pages individual)

You will have worked with your group to design and conduct either interview or questionnaire research on campus. For the group portion of this paper, you will co-write (or cooperatively write) a description of your research, your methods and participants, as well as a literature review. The individual portion will include your interpretations of your findings, your ideas for future directions for research in this area, an analysis of the strengths and weaknesses in this research design, and your critical analysis of the research process.

Each group will also be asked to present their research to the class on November 20^th, November 27^th, or December 4^th.  Group presentations should be 20 - 30 minutes in length and will be taken into consideration when calculating the group grade for this project. The purpose of these presentations is to workshop your research-in-progress with your classmates. These are not expected to be presentations of finished research.

****Note: the final paper is due on Friday, December 7^th, three days after class ends. Papers should be submitted to me, in my office (SS 342) between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. that day.

****Additional Note: You will see that there is a fair amount of group work in the course. If you prefer to work alone, some of the assignments might be able to accommodate this. You should speak with the professor very early in the term if you want to explore this option. The teaching assistant and the professor will be available throughout the semester to help mediate any conflicts that might arise within groups. Final project group members will also be asked to submit confidential assessments of how the group work was shared and completed. These assessments will be taken into consideration in the assignment of the final project grades.

It is the student's responsibility to keep a copy of each submitted assignment.
Note: Please hand in your essays directly to your tutor or instructor if possible. If it is not possible to do so, a daytime drop box is available in SS110; a date stamp is provided for your use. A night drop box is also available for after-hours submission. Assignments will be removed the following morning, stamped with the previous day's date, and placed in the instructor's mailbox.

Registrar-scheduled Final Examination:   No

Policy for Late Assignments

Assignments submitted after the deadline, with no documentation supporting or excusing the delay, will be penalized with the loss of a grade (e.g.: A- to B+) for each day late.

Writing Skills Statement

Faculty policy directs that all written assignments (including, although to a lesser extent, written exam responses) will be assessed at least partly on writing skills. For details see www.comcul.ucalgary.ca/info. Writing skills include not only surface correctness (grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, etc) but also general clarity and organization. Research papers must be properly documented. If you need help with your writing, you may use the Writing Centre.  Visit the website for more details: www.efwr.ucalgary.ca

Grading System

The following grading system is used in the Faculty of Communication and Culture:

A+ (96-100); A (92-95); A- (86-91); B+ (81-85); B (77-80); B- (71-76);
C+ (65-70); C (62-64); C- (59-61); D+ (55-58); D (50-54); F (0-49)

Plagiarism

Using any source whatsoever without clearly documenting it is a serious academic offense. Consequences include failure on the assignment, failure in the course and possibly suspension or expulsion from the university.

You must document not only direct quotations but also paraphrases and ideas where they appear in your text. A reference list at the end is insufficient by itself. Readers must be able to tell exactly where your words and ideas end and other people's words and ideas begin. This includes assignments submitted in non-traditional formats such as Web pages or visual media, and material taken from such sources.

Please consult your instructor or the Writing Centre (SS 106, efwr.ucalgary.ca) if you have any questions regarding how to document sources.

Students with Disabilities

If you are a student with a disability who may require academic accommodation, it is your responsibility to register with the Disability Resource Centre (220-8237) and discuss your needs with your instructor no later than fourteen (14) days after the start of the course.

Students' Union

For details about the current Students' Union contacts for the Faculty of Communication and Culture see www.comcul.ucalgary.ca/su

"SAFEWALK" Program -- 220-5333

Campus Security will escort individuals day or night -- call 220-5333 for assistance. Use any campus phone, emergency phone or the yellow phone located at most parking lot booths.

Ethics

Whenever you perform research with human participants (i.e. surveys, interviews, observation) as part of your university studies, you are responsible for following university research ethics guidelines.  Your instructor must review and approve of your research plans and supervise your research.  For more information about your research ethics responsibilities, see the U of C Research Ethics "Information for Applicants," sections 3.0 to 9.0, inclusive: http://www.ucalgary.ca/UofC/research/html/ethics/info_undergrad.html

Schedule of Lectures and Readings

The following are the dates by which the indicated readings should be completed:

September 11^th:        FIRST WEEK OF CLASS - NO ASSIGNED READING

September 18^th:        Chapters 1, 2, & 4

September 25^th:        Chapters 5 & 6

October 2^nd:               Chapters 7, 10, & 13

October 9^th:                Chapters 8, 11, & 12

October 16^th:             Chapter 9

October 23^rd:             Chapters 3 & 14 plus ethics reading (to be handed out in class)

October 30^th:             No Readings

November 6^th:            Midterm Exam - No Readings

November 13^th:         READING DAY - NO CLASS

November 20^th:         Group Presentations - No Readings

November 27^th:         Group Presentations - No Readings

December 4^th:           Group Presentations - No Readings