| SOCY
371.001
Research Practicum
College of Charleston
Fall 2003
Dr.
Von Bakanic
Office: 88 Wentworth St., Rm. 202
Office Hours: MWF 10:30-11:00
and by appointment
Phone: 953-7105
E-mail:
bakanicv@cofc.edu
Mailbox: 19 St. Philip St.
Projected
Class Schedule
Course
Description and Objectives
This course completes the Department of Sociology’s research
methods sequence. The first course provided an overview of research
methods in the social sciences. Specifically, you learned about
the nature of social inquiry, the interplay of social theory and
research methods, the conceptualization and operationalization of
concepts and variables, and the various quantitative and qualitative
research methods.
In
this course, three tasks are emphasized:
•
the construction and analysis of quantitative data sets,
• the creation and implementation of a data collection strategy,
• analyses of qualitative data.
The objectives for students successfully completing the course are:
•
Students will be able to identify, understand and construct the
key components in a sociological explanation.
•
Students will understand the role of theory in constructing a research
question and a research hypothesis.
•
Students will understand strategies of data collection and the appropriate
methods of data analysis for different methods of data collection.
•
Students will learn and use SPSS for quantitative analyses.
•
Students will conduct research and write a brief research report
that includes a research question, a theoretically grounded hypothesis,
a description and justification of the research design, a description
of the method of analysis, a report of the results of the analysis
and a discussion of the theoretical implications of those results.
Texts
Baker,
Theresa. 1999. Doing Social Research 3rd Edition. New York: McGraw
Hill.
Sweet,
Stephen A. and Karen-Grace-Martin. 2003. Data Analysis with SPSS:
A First Course in Applied Statistics, 2nd Edition. Boston: Allyn
and Bacon.
Grading
Your course grade will be based on a combination of tests, and a
group project.
Tests
( 30 Percent)
You will have two tests covering information from lecture, texts,
articles and films.
Quizzes
(20 Percent)
You will have 4-5 quizzes covering information from lecture, texts,
articles and films.
Homework/Class
Assignments (5 Percent)
You will have an activity during nearly every class. There will
be periodic email and Internet assignments and announcements. Please
check our course home page frequently for these.
Research
Project (40 Percent)
Students will conduct original research which they will carry out
during this course. Data will be gathered, data sets constructed,
and those data analyzed. A Research report will be written in stages.
These stages (literature review 10%, analysis 10%, final report
20%) will be combined to created a full research report. All versions
of the project must be typed, double spaced, proofed and stapled.
Papers submitted late will be penalized five points for each day
they are late.
Attendance
(5 Percent)
Five percent of your grade will be determined by the percentage
of those session you attend. If you are absent on days that we engage
in exams, quizzes or other graded class activities you will be allowed
to make up the work only if you obtain an excused absence from the
Office of the Undergraduate Dean.
Grading
Scale
A = 100 90 B+ = 89 87 B = 86 80 C+ = 79 77 C = 76 70 D = 69 60 F
=59-0
Calculating
your grade
Use the following formula to calculate your grade:
Component |
Grade |
Multiply
By |
|
| Test
One |
_______ |
.15 |
= _______ |
| Test
Two |
_______ |
.15 |
= _______ |
| Quiz
Average |
_______ |
.20 |
= _______ |
| Homework
average |
_______ |
.05 |
= _______ |
| Attendance |
_______ |
.05 |
= _______ |
| Project |
_______ |
.40 |
= _______ |
Insert
the grade you earn on each assignment in the column on the left.
Multiply this number by the weight in the middle column. Add the
numbers in the column on the right to calculate your course grade.
Class
Policies
Attendance
Attendance is mandatory. There are 28 class sessions for this class.
Five percent of your grade will be determined by the percentage
of those session you attend. If you are absent on days that we engage
in exams, quizzes or other graded class activities you will be allowed
to make up the work only if you obtain an excused absence from the
Office of the Undergraduate Dean.
Make
up Work
All make up quizzes and exams will be given on December 9 at 1:00.
You MUST have your absence excused by the Dean of Undergraduate
Studies. Unexcused absence from an exam or quiz will result in a
zero.
Extra
Credit Work
There will be an opportunity to receive a small amount of extra
credit this semester.
Special
Needs
If you have special needs, please notify us within the first week
of classes.
Honor
Code
We take the College of Charleston Honor Code and Code of Conduct
quite seriously. The Honor Code specifically forbids lying, cheating,
attempted cheating, stealing, attempted stealing and plagiarism.
The Code of Conduct states that as members of the College community,
students are expected to evidence a high standard of personal conduct
and to respect the rights of other students, faculty, staff members,
community neighbors, and visitors on campus. Students are also expected
to adhere to all federal, state, and local laws. Faculty members
are required to report violations of the Honor Code or Code of Conduct
to the Office of Student Affairs. For more information , please
visit the College of Charleston Student web page: http://www.cofc.edu/studentaffairs/HonorBoard.htm
Dos
and Don’ts
Do stay for the entire class. This is the only
time the lab is available. Do not come to class
late. It is rude.
Do
remember to turn your cell phone/ beeper/ walkman off before class
starts.
Do
not eat or drink sticky things in the lab. I don’t
have to tell you how gross it is to put your hand on a sticky keyboard
and wonder what the heck the last person who used the computer was
doing.
Do
not say “ I can’t.” You can.
Do
label all work with your name. Do type all assignments.
Do staple your work.
Do
not skip group project meetings. You are going to have
to schedule time for this. Do not make other group
members do your work. You will get voted off the island and have
to do an entire group project by yourself.
Do
stop by during office hours if you are having difficulty.
Do
maintain a positive attitude. It will make the course more pleasant
for us all.
Do
not wait until the hour before class to start your homework, print
an assignment, or make a stab at your reading. This will only stress
you out.
Do
move to another computer if your computer shuts down. Do
not interrupt class to tell me that it has shut down. We
expect this to happen and have limited the class size in order to
make sure backups would be available.
Do
not check your email during class. Do not
surf the web during class. Do not check your bank
balance during class. Do not use instant messenger
during class.
Do not turn assignments in late. I will not accept
them.
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