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Course Planning by Program

2024-25

Essential Objectives

Course Syllabus


Revision Date: 23-Aug-24
 

Fall 2024 | ENG-1020-VT01 - Introduction to Research Methods


In Person Class

Standard courses meet in person at CCV centers, typically once each week for the duration of the semester.

Location: Brattleboro
Credits: 3 (45 hours)
Day/Times: Monday, 06:00P - 08:45P
Semester Dates: 09-09-2024 to 12-16-2024
Last day to drop without a grade: 09-16-2024 - Refund Policy
Last day to withdraw (W grade): 11-04-2024 - Refund Policy
This course has started, please contact the offering academic center about registration

Faculty

Katie Beth Ryan
View Faculty Credentials
View Faculty Statement
Hiring Coordinator for this course: Collin Lee

General Education Requirements


This section meets the following CCV General Education Requirement(s) for the current catalog year:
CCV Writing and Research
    Note
  1. 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.
  2. 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 style 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 APA citation style 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


*** This is a no cost textbook or resource class. ***

This course uses one or more textbooks/books/simulations, along with free Open Educational Resources (OER) and/or library materials.

Fall 2024 textbook/book details will be available on 2024-05-20. On that date a link will be available below that will take you to eCampus, CCV's bookstore. The information provided there will be specific to this class. Please see this page for more information regarding the purchase of textbooks/books.

ENG-1020-VT01 Link to Textbooks for this course in eCampus.

For Open Educational Resources (OER) and/or library materials details, see the Canvas Site for this class.

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.


Artificial Intelligence(AI) Policy Statement

CCV recognizes that artificial intelligence (AI) and generative AI tools are widely available and becoming embedded in many online writing and creative applications.

Allowed: This course's generative AI policy acknowledges technology, including generative AI, plays a supportive role in learning and feedback. During our class, we may use AI writing tools such as ChatGPT in certain specific cases. You will be informed as to when, where, and how these tools are permitted to be used, along with guidance for attribution. Any use outside of these specific cases constitutes a violation of CCV's Academic Integrity Policy.


Evaluation Criteria

Below are the assignments for this class, and the percentage of your final grade they constitute:

Final Research Paper, 10-14 pages, plus presentation: 40%

Open Book Quizzes: 20%

In-Class Participation and Weekly Discussion Posts: 20%

Research Journals and Other Assignments: 20%


Grading Criteria

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

 HighLow
A+10098
A Less than 9893
A-Less than 9390
B+Less than 9088
B Less than 8883
B-Less than 8380
C+Less than 8078
C Less than 7873
C-Less than 7370
D+Less than 7068
D Less than 6863
D-Less than 6360
FLess than 60 
P10060
NPLess than 600


Weekly Schedule


Week/ModuleTopic  Readings  Assignments
 

1

Welcome, Class Norms and Expectations, Why Do We Research? Why Do We Cite?

    

Discussion post (initial + two responses), two quizzes

 

2

What’s a Scholarly Conversation? and Types and Methods of Research

    

Discussion post (initial + two responses), quiz

 

3

Research Questions and Proposals

    

Assignments: Research Proposal due September 29, Discussion post (initial + two responses), quiz

 

4

Research Refresher: Types of Sources, How to Find the Sources You Need (And What To Do if You Can’t Find Anything)

    

Discussion post/Research Journal #1 (initial + two responses), quiz

 

5

Literature Reviews: What Have Others Said on This Topic?

    

Discussion post and Research Journal #2, quiz

 

6

The Ethics of Research, Evaluating Your Sources

    

Discussion post and Research Journal #2, quiz

 

7

What’s an Annotated Bibliography, Avoiding Plagiarism Refresher

    

Annotated bibliography due October 28, quiz

 

8

Let’s Write! Planning Your Paper, Introductions, Integrating Your Sources Into Your Paper

    

Discussion (initial + two responses), Research Journal # 3, quiz

 

9

Reaching Conclusions + Discussion of Findings

    

Discussion (initial + two responses), quiz

 

10

Your Burning Questions About Your Research Paper and Presentation, Answered!

    

First draft of your paper due November 17, quiz

 

11

Visual Representation of Data

    

Discussion (initial + two responses), Research Journal #4, quiz

 

12

Feedback on Drafts

    

Revise your draft

 

13

Last Call for Questions About Revisions

    

Final draft due December 8, Presentation on your paper to the class on December 9, Discussion, quiz

 

14

Presentations to the Class, and Where To Take Your Research From Here

    

Final Research Journal (reflection), discussion, and a quiz

 

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.


Missing & Late Work Policy

Fourteen weeks of class sounds like a long time, but it will go by in a flash (hopefully because we’re enjoying what we’re learning!). To get the most out of the class, you will need to commit to completing your assignments on time. Assignments that are turned in after the due date will receive a reduction of five percentage points for each day they arelate.

I also understand that life happens. For this reason, I allow a no-grade-deduction grace period of three days late for exactly one assignment (excluding discussion posts and quizzes). After the grace period ends, assignments will receive a 10 percent grade deduction for each day they are late. If you anticipate taking advantage of this grace period, please tell me before the due date; otherwise, I will deduct the daily 5 percentage points as I previously described.

A tip for staying on top of your assignments: Use the "Coming Up" list on the right side of our Canvas class. This will show you what assignments are due next.

*PLEASE NOTE: Due to the timely nature of making discussion posts and turning in quizzes, these assignments must be completed on time, and are exempt from the grace period described above.


Accessibility Services for Students with Disabilities:


CCV strives to mitigate barriers to course access for students with documented disabilities. To request accommodations, please
  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


CCV has a commitment to honesty and excellence in academic work and expects the same from all students. Academic dishonesty, or cheating, can occur whenever you present -as your own work- something that you did not do. You can also be guilty of cheating if you help someone else cheat. Being unaware of what constitutes academic dishonesty (such as knowing what plagiarism is) does not absolve a student of the responsibility to be honest in his/her academic work. Academic dishonesty is taken very seriously and may lead to dismissal from the College.