Course Syllabus

Jump to Today

Instructor: Laura Harris
E-mail: lharris@iliff.edu; phone: 303-765-3179
Office Hours: Tuesday-Thursday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Friday 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Office: Ira J. Taylor Library, Room 118


Course Synopsis: 

Through pre-class assignments, discussion, and in-class activities, this course offers students opportunities to enhance their reading and research skills in ways that are relevant to both academic and ministerial/service contexts. They will also learn what it means to think, read and write as a scholar. Areas of focus include advanced search strategies for electronic databases and internet search engines; principles for analyzing content and structure of scholarly writing; evaluating resources; and strategies for note-taking and managing heavy reading loads. The course also explores free or low-cost software designed for writing, note-taking, and citation/bibliographic management. Some experience using Boolean operators in searching databases helpful.

 

Books for the Course: Required

Badke, William. Research Strategies: Finding Your Way Through the Information Fog, ***4th ed.*** (iUniverse: 2011) OR 5th ed. (2014). Chapters 6-9. (ISBN 978-1-4620-1017-2) Available in several e-formats at http://www.acts.twu.ca/Library/textbook.htm Amazon.com, and Barnes & Noble. as well as in print. Copy available in the Reference Collection of Taylor Library if you do not want to purchase the book.

See Taylor Library's list of online book sellers for purchasing options.


Books for the Course (Recommended but not required - * highly recommended

Adler, Mortimer J. & Charles Van Doren. How to Read a Book: The Art of Getting a Liberal Education. Rev. ed. Simon & Schuster: 1972. PN83.A43 This book has been a classic for decades but is very tedious and difficult to get through. It's probably best read by sections that seem most relevant to the reader.

Ballenger, Bruce. The Curious Researcher: A Guide to Writing Research Papers. 4th ed. Pearson Education. 2004.

*Bergmann, Linda S. Academic Research and Writing: Inquiry and Argument in College. Pearson Education, Inc.: 2010. PE1431.B468

Bishop, Wendy, and Pavel Zemliansky. The Subject is Research: Processes and Practices. Boynton/Cook Publishers: 2001. ZA3075.S835

Bruffee, Kenneth A. A Short Course in Writing: Composition, Collaborative Learning, and Constructive Reading, 4th ed. Pearson Education, Inc.: 2007.

*Wallace, Mike & Alison Wray. Critical Reading & Writing for Postgraduates. 2nd ed. Sage: 2011. LB2395.3.W355

 

Overview and Objectives

As a result of this course, students will be able to

*        Conduct more targeted searches in electronic databases and internet search engines

*        Analyze scholarly writing for thesis, major propositions, evidence, internal structure,                   logic, consistency, assumptions, and bias

*        Evaluate print, database, and internet information resources for credibility and reliability

*        Develop personal strategies for handling a heavy reading load

*        Develop personal strategies and tools for note-taking

*        Explore software designed for writing, note-taking, and citation/bibliographic
         management

 

Policies And Services

I.        Academic integrity: All students are expected to abide by the Iliff statement on Academic Integrity published in the Masters Student Handbook.

II.       Accommodations: Iliff engages in a collaborative effort with students with disabilities to make reasonable accommodations for student needs. Students are encouraged to contact their academic advisor to initiate the process of requesting accommodations.

III.        Inclusive language: It is expected that all course participants will use inclusive language in speaking and writing, and will use terms that do not create barriers to classroom community.

IV.        Community covenant: All participants in this class are expected to be familiar with Iliff’s Community Covenant, as posted on www.iliff.edu.       

V.         Academic integrity: All students are expected to abide by Iliff’s statement on Academic Integrity, as published in the Masters Student Handbook and posted on my.iliff.edu.  

VI.        Grading: This course is Pass/Fail only. However students who are in a conditional or probationary academic status are not permitted to take courses pass/fail, so let me know if you are in this category.

VII.        Technology in the classroom: Since technology will play a part in this class, students are allowed to use laptops or tablets in the classroom. There will be several group activities for which having a computer will be helpful.

Please be respectful of the instructor and other students by only using your technology for class-related work. Recent research has shown that the ability to multitask is severely limited at all ages: an individual actually just shifts their attention back and forth between activities, inevitably missing portions of each.

Using phones to SMS text (or for voice calls) is strictly prohibited.

Thank you for your cooperation.

 

Degree Learning Goals

The skills developed in this course will support all of the other coursework that a student takes. They will also be invaluable for life-long learning.

  1. What it means to think, read, and write as a scholar and to contribute to scholarly conversations.
  2. How to deal with heavy reading loads.
  3. Analyzing scholarly writing to improve reading efficiency and more in-depth understanding.
  4. Learning to find high-quality, relevant resources more efficiently, thus leaving more time for writing.
  5. Integrating the reading and writing processes to increase quality of writing and save time.

Course Summary:

Date Details Due