Course Syllabus

Spring 2024 | ENG-1020-VO01 - Introduction to Research Methods

Online Class

Online courses take place 100% online via Canvas, without required in-person or Zoom meetings.

Faculty

Telly Halkias
View Faculty Credentials
View Faculty Statement
Hiring Coordinator for this course: Collin Lee

General Education Requirements

CCV Writing and Research

Note

Many degree programs have specific general education recommendations. In order to avoid taking unnecessary classes, please consult with additional resources like your program evaluation, your academic program catalog year page, and your academic advisor.

Courses may only be used to meet one General Education Requirement.

Course Description

This writing course introduces students to research methods across social science disciplines. Topics include various methodologies (e.g., interviewing, questionnaires, observation, literature search, data collection), presentation formats (e.g., written vs. oral), and APA documentation procedures. It also examines library and web-based research techniques. This course fulfills the research and writing intensive requirement. Students must complete a final research paper with a grade of C- or better in order to pass this course. Prerequisite: English Composition

Essential Objectives

1. Demonstrate research methodologies commonly used in the social sciences, including formulating and narrowing research questions, observation, survey design, interviewing, and presentation skills (oral & written).
2. Compare and contrast quantitative and qualitative research methods used to study human behavior.
3. Demonstrate information literacy skills: distinguish between and utilize both primary and secondary sources; perform library and web-based literature searches; and evaluate data and resources for credibility, reliability, and validity.
4. Demonstrate the ability to apply either APA or MLA citation styles in academic writing by parenthetically citing sources in the text and correctly compiling them in the relevant end sources page.
5. Compose, revise, and edit a final paper that includes a thesis statement, integrates five or more scholarly and professional sources--including primary and secondary evidence as needed--to address an academic research question, and demonstrates writing proficiency by achieving a grade of C- or better.

Required Technology

More information on general computer and internet recommendations is available on the CCV IT Support page. https://support.ccv.edu/general/computer-recommendations/

Please see CCV's Digital Equity Statement (pg. 45) to learn more about CCV's commitment to supporting all students access the technology they need to successfully finish their courses.

Required Textbooks and Resources

ENG-1020-VO01 Link to Textbooks/Resources Information for this course in eCampus.

The last day to use a Financial Aid Advance to purchase textbooks/books is the 3rd Tuesday of the semester. See your financial aid counselor at your academic center if you have any questions.

Methods

THERE ARE NO QUIZZES/TESTS/EXAMS IN THIS CLASS OF RESEARCH METHODS

TELLY HALKIAS is the recipient of the 2013 and 2022 Annual VSC/CCV Excellence in Teaching Award, and has been nominated by his students every year since 2011.

CCV Faculty Receive Teaching Excellence Awards - Community College of Vermont

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Enrolling in this section is a rare opportunity for CCV students to hone their research and writing skills, with a professional writer/editor as instructor

http://vtdigger.org/2013/07/09/vtdigger-contributor-wins-national-writing-award/

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FROM ENG-1020 EVALUATIONS w/ Prof. Halkias:

---"This was an absolutely fantastic course that truly helped me become a better writer and researcher. Professor Halkias went above and beyond to help us learn, and I plan to take another course of his in the future."

---"I found the most effective part of the course is how, in each week, we broke down every step of creting a well-written college-level argumentative essay. I think that this way of developing an essay step-by-step prepares us for future research endeavors. [T]his process truly helped me improve my writing and research skills."

---"The Professor ... clearly cares about each and every student."

---"[W]riting the [final] essay was broken up into small parts so it wasn't so overwhelming."

Evaluation Criteria

15 Discussion Forums (includes final essay building blocks) @ 4% each (Weeks 1-15) = 60%

Reflection= 6%

Essay draft = 5%

Presentation = 9%

Final Essay = 20%

Total =100%

SYLLABUS:

Details for all assignments will be provided in the weekly course page. Please always feel free to ask questions if an assignment is unclear or if you are having technical difficulties accessing course materials. Past student examples of "A" quality work of every key assignment will also be provided weekly.

WEEKLY SCHEDULE:

WEEK 1: Introductions, Research, and the Project/Essay. SYLLABUS: READ: pp. 1-39, RM

WEEK 2: Formulating a Research Problem, and Initial Questions. SYLLABUS: READ: pp. 39-52, 77-100, RM

WEEK 3: Variables, Hypotheses, and Developing the Thesis Statement ! SYLLABUS: READ: pp. 101-148, RM

WEEK 4: The Literature Review! SYLLABUS: READ: pp. 54-74, RM

WEEK 5: The Library Consult! SYLLABUS: READ: Library Orientation (Course Resources)

WEEK 6:The Research Proposal SYLLABUS: READ: pp. 321-350, RM

WEEK 7: The Annotated Bibliography and Outline! SYLLABUS: READ pp. 415-466, RM

WEEK 8: Draft Protocols, Do's and Don'ts, and The Thesis Paragraph/Essay Template!

WEEK 9: Submitting/Reviewing the Draft!

WEEK 10: The Data Collection Method part 1, and Editing, Part 1! SYLLABUS: READ: 209-248, RM

WEEK 11: The Data Collection Method part 2, and Editing, Part 2! SYLLABUS: REVIEW: 209-248, RM

WEEK 12: The Edited Second Draft, and Peer Comments!

WEEK 13: Ethical Considerations in Research! SYLLABUS: READ, pp. 351-370, RM

WEEK 14: Presenting the research!

WEEK 15: The Final Essay!

Grading Criteria

CCV Letter Grades as outlined in the Evaluation System Policy are assigned according to the following chart:

	High	Low
A+	100	98
A	Less than 98	93
A-	Less than 93	90
B+	Less than 90	88
B	Less than 88	83
B-	Less than 83	80
C+	Less than 80	78
C	Less than 78	73
C-	Less than 73	70
D+	Less than 70	68
D	Less than 68	63
D-	Less than 63	60
F	Less than 60
P	100	60
NP	Less than 60	0

Attendance Policy

Regular attendance and participation in classes are essential for success in and are completion requirements for courses at CCV. A student's failure to meet attendance requirements as specified in course descriptions will normally result in a non-satisfactory grade.

• In general, missing more than 20% of a course due to absences, lateness or early departures may jeopardize a student's ability to earn a satisfactory final grade.
• Attending an on-ground or synchronous course means a student appeared in the live classroom for at least a meaningful portion of a given class meeting. Attending an online course means a student posted a discussion forum response, completed a quiz or attempted some other academically required activity. Simply viewing a course item or module does not count as attendance.
• Meeting the minimum attendance requirement for a course does not mean a student has satisfied the academic requirements for participation, which require students to go above and beyond simply attending a portion of the class. Faculty members will individually determine what constitutes participation in each course they teach and explain in their course descriptions how participation factors into a student's final grade.

Accessibility Services for Students with Disabilities:

1. Provide disability documentation to the Accessibility Coordinator at your academic center. https://ccv.edu/discover-resources/students-with-disabilities/
2. Request an appointment to meet with accessibility coordinator to discuss your request and create an accommodation plan.
3. Once created, students will share the accommodation plan with faculty. Please note, faculty cannot make disability accommodations outside of this process.

Academic Integrity