-Monday 11/7... after 3:00
-Tuesday 11/8... anytime between 12:00 - 6:00 but please call or email first as I may be on the other side of campus
Remaining Classes:
-Class #8 will meet on Wednesday, 11/30 in Innovation Hall 317.
-Class #9 will meet on Wednesday, 12/7 in Enterprise 174.
Reading Assignments:
-Craft of Research chapters 14-16.
-You may also find it helpful to review They Say I Say chapters 7, 8, and 10.
-Research Log #7 is the anonymous mid-term evaluation given in class this week. If you were absent from class, the survey is here.
-Research Log #8 is an "anything goes" blog entry that you should complete prior to your personal conference... I see it serving as an ice-breaker.
Big Writing Assignments:
-If you haven't completed the annotated bibliography (10 entries), the background literature review (1st draft), or the methodology (1st draft), those take priority.
-The deadline to expand your annotated bibliography to 25 sources is Saturday night 11/5. (15 for creative projects.) This assignment will be graded.
-The deadline for revising/expanding your background literature review is Wednesday night 11/9.
-We will then add two further pieces as we continue to work our way to a completed proposal. The deadline for both of these will be Sunday night 11/13 at 8pm.
-The first addition is a section that is officially known in the BIS program as the "evidence" section (for investigative projects) or the "technique" section (for creative projects). I prefer to think of it as a hypothesis and outline section, because I feel calling it anything else is really premature. The main function it serves is to help you create a mental plan for what is going to go in the main body of your essay next semester once you start carrying out your research methodology. So my requirement is a 2-4 sentence (hypo)thesis and then a 3-6 roman number or bullet point outline of potential ideas, sections, or arguments. Remember, this will be the content that follows your background literature review and methodology section, so no need to duplicate those. For creative projects, I would suggest this deadline as an opportunity to rewrite your separate technique section or the more technical elements of your methodology section.
-The second addition is a project timeline. The starting date should be "12/21 - proposal approved" and the ending date should be "5/9 - final presentation." All the dates in between are yours to determine according to the needs of your project. (Note that that approval date is very pessimistic and it will probably come much earlier. And that the presentation date is more of a ballpark estimate.)
Mark Your Calendar: BIS 490 fall capstone presentations will be held in the Johnson Center's 3rd Floor Meeting Rooms on Thursday, December 15, 2011, from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m., with refreshments to follow. Attendance is strongly recommended for 390 students.
For Those Who Missed It: Here is the methodology exercise from today's class.
Partner 1: Here is my methodology. Please read it.
Partner 2: I have read your methodology. I like your project, but I would have done it a different way. I would have used [ANOTHER METHOD] instead / in addition.
Partner 1: Good idea. I will use [THAT OTHER METHOD] in the following way...
Partner 1 [alt.]: Thanks but I don’t think [THAT OTHER METHOD] will be suitable, for the following reasons...
Jason Gard
ReplyDeleteResearch Log #8
I have a new found respect for anyone that is working full-time and taking other courses in addition to this one. I’ve been trying to close out projects that I have going with my own business over the past two weeks as well as try and keep up with the assignment for this course and I started my new full-time job today. I understand that in the grand scheme I’ll look back on this time and laugh, but for now I’m feeling a little overwhelmed with everything going on. I don’t feel as though the assignments for this course are that difficult, I just hate the fact that I procrastinate so much. I wish I had made better use of my time when things were moving a little slower about a month ago. But as for now I’m still playing catch up.
Maggie Reinhard
ReplyDeleteResearch Log #8
I thought I was struggling to keep things going in a timely manor in relation to the project process. Kathy complemented me on keeping on top of things when we were swapping Methodology statements even with the bump on my head that week.
With that said, I was feeling like I was being a procrastinator, but getting things done in a decent time before it needed to be turned in.
I feel I have a reasonable handle on my ideas and the project proposal, but I know that I need more work on the AB, because I have additional sources on there I would have put on it in addition to what's there. As to where I need to go from here, I feel pretty lost in thought because I feel like I am not sure how to search specifically without going too far, like I tend to do.
Holding a full time job and going to school has always been a hard thing for me, but it also keeps my mind able to better concentrate.
I like that I can slow down much more now because I was pushing myself and struggling more in the earlier part of the term.
I struggled for a while with conceptualizing the scope and structure of my project. I think I have a pretty good handle on it now. I'm grateful for the conversation I had with you, Aaron, last week when I was panicking after working on the timeline--I thought I would be unable to complete the project next semester. After thinking about what you said and doing some more investigation of the HSRB process, I'm feeling pretty optimistic about getting my research project done by May. Now I'm mostly concerned with finding or creating assessment tools. I took some of the "well-being" assessments online, and I don't think they're what I want to use with parents (even if they WERE available for my use, an unanswered question). I'm struggling to figure out exactly what it is I think I want to measure, and then I'll have to see if there are any existing assessments that I could use. You mentioned that I might have to create my own assessment tool, I'd like to talk with you about that. And analyzing the data is a big question mark. Maybe I should formulate some questions for my faculty mentor about assessment tools and analysis of the data... I'll try to think about that before my meeting with you.
ReplyDeleteResearch Log 8
ReplyDeleteAfter completing the required writing assignments to date, I’ve pretty much been at a standstill with regards to my research project -I haven’t done much else at all.
One area that I feel definitely needs improvement is identifying more relevant sources to support my argument. The AB and revised AB helped me identify 25 sources, but I’m not sure exactly how many of that 25 will be useful when I get to actually putting the paper together. Even though I have a good idea of what my sources contain, I’m a little nervous about the time it takes to find stuff that will actually be useful or if there is a method that makes this part of the research project a little easier. I feel that I need to continue to seek out sources over the next couple months as there are so many.
I will say that all of the writing assignments we’ve had have helped me understand what a true research paper is. It is not a small nor easy task, but requires a lot of research, time, planning, and effort. The step by step process in BIS 390 have been very helpful.
Research log #8
ReplyDeleteI have to admit I had lost a little steam after learning that I will not be taking BIS 490 till next Fall. I had finished all the writing assignments so basically put BIS 3990 on hold while I worked on a couple other papers I had write for other classes. I have now come to terms with the extra time that I will have and have decided to sue it to my full advantage and interview the people I need for my project, but at a more leisurely pace. My biggest fear is letting my paper get stale and losing my motivation. I guess wanting to graduate will provide all the motivation I need ;)
Research log #8
ReplyDeleteAfter doing some more reading and thinking I feel that my background is really solid however; my project just needs to be organized logically. This semester I have been thinking deeply about how to introduce my topic and what I would like to research. I had the philosophical and definitional arguments organized but they did not flow well reading them. Recently, I think I have figured out a way to introduce the reader to my investigative project in a more organized fashion. Only recently I have managed to get my hands on books pertaining to the geographical aspect of my project. Thumbing through those books, I believe that it will provide supplemental information to very specific aspects of my project. I find that organizing my own thoughts is the hardest problem. Often I chalk this up to me procrastination but that is not entirely the case. While I am guilty of procrastination it is not at the expense of thought but at the expense of writing.
Research Log #8: Kristin Ruiz:
ReplyDeletePulling everything together and performing the final proof reading. I am incorporating the feedback from my peer review and also provided feedback to my partner. I really enjoyed seeing everything come together into a single document and I feel really good abut the work that has gone into this proposal and I really like the way the class structured and broke up the work into small digestible packages.
Research Log #8: Robert R. Thomasson
ReplyDeleteCurrently, I have completed the rough draft for my final BIS 390 project, which includes a strong methodology statement. Initially, I was worried at the beginning of the semester because I couldn't figure out a resolution, where I was at the crossroads for solving my conflict. But with more research, I was to create a solid background literature review that inspired my ideas for a possible resolution to my topic.