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History 369A - America in the Sixties
January 30, 2007
Prof. Molly Michelmore
Students - 23
Students write a 12-15 page research paper using primary and secondary sources.
Course web site: http://library.wlu.edu/research/guides/history/History369A-AmericaintheSixties.html
Professor Jasiewicz requires students to "write research reports (approximately 20 pages) based on secondary analysis of existing data sets." Includes annotated bibliography.
Two sessions (two sections of the class, but only 6 of the 13 students attended).
Here is the research guide.
Course: ECON 203 Quantitative Models for Economics
Presentation date: 1/31/07
Faculty: Blunch
Number of students: 30 (two sections)
Librarian: Tombarge
Research guide URL: http://info.wlu.edu (currently under redesign)
Assignment: Students will work in groups to develop a research question, prepare a literature review, collect data and analyze the data through a statistical model that they develop. Students are now working on their research questions and will start their literature review soon.
Course: ECON 360 Money and Banking
Presentation date: 1/29/07
Faculty: Hooks
Number of students: 38 (two sections)
Librarian: Tombarge
Research guide URL: http://library.wlu.edu/research/guides/business/econ360.asp
Assignment: Students will be working on two projects this term. The first is a research paper on a single bank. The second will be to prepare a review of the economy in preparation for a mock meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee (in March). Currently students are only conducting the corporate research on a bank of their own selection. Material for the FOMC paper will be added in a couple weeks.
Professor Novack asked that I prepare a SOC 280 research guide, in anticipation of student term paper assignments.
A faculty member e-mailed the question "Could you tell me what films we have in the library on Jewish themes?"
My response:
Not an easy thing to do, because of possible terminology.
Here is a list from Annie (the library catalog) of DVD's or VHS videos which are described as concerning of some form of the words "jew*" (jew, jews, jewish, etc.) or "judai*(judaic OR judaism, etc.) or "holocaust":
Certainly, there other possible "Jewish" terms (Zionism, Israel, etc.) we could incorporate into another search, but I am not sure what to include or when to stop.
A journalism student and a faculty member need "a couple of numbers from education statistics that would help anchor a story she's doing on dual enrollment at Rockbridge High...
We have numbers of students in dual enrollment statewide in 2004-05, and for RCHS for that same year. But we need denominators for both, to compare apples and apples, as it were.
Can you find a source for number of high school students in Va public schools for that year, and the number at RCHS. I imagine some number cruncher at Va. Dept of Ed would have this.
I've gone through our library databases, and best I could find was Va for 2003-04."
Specific data on RCHS should be here:
(under "School Census" or "Fall Membership").
I think the cooperative data-gathering of the U.S. Government (National Center for Education Statistics) and the various states grinds slowly enough that this is the most recent convenient count of "high school enrollment" by state.
That is, without you doing the math on "high schools" in Virginia more-or-less manually from the first link, above.
FWIW, have you seen this U.S. Dept. of Education publication on dual enrollment?
Presentation date: 1/22/06
Faculty: Straughan
Number of students: 15
Librarian: Tombarge
Research guide URL: http://library.wlu.edu/wiki/index.php/BusinessAndEconomics/BUS211
Assignment: Students will be working in groups on a marketing term paper that will either focus on an issue in marketing or on the marketing program of a particular company.
Course: BUS 340 Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management
Presentation date: 1/18/06
Faculty: Pirkle
Number of students: 20 (two sections)
Librarian: Tombarge
Research guide URL: http://library.wlu.edu/wiki/index.php/BusinessAndEconomics/BUS340
Assignment: Students will be preparing a business plan for a start up company.
This is the art department's attempt to get everyone in an art history class this semester to get a quick introduction to research and resources in this field.
Organized by Morse and O'Mara
52 students
Merrill
Here is the research guide.
History 366 - Slavery in the Americas
January 12, 2007
Professor Ted Delaney
15 students
Librarian Vaughan Stanley
Students create research proposals and write longer paper.
Class web site: http://library.wlu.edu/research/guides/history/HISTORY366-SLAVERYINTHEAMERICAS.html
Each of the 24 students in Professor Strong's class on The Presidency is to choose one U.S. president from 1945 to 1991 (Truman-through-Bush I) and focus on one of the following areas:
* life and selection as president;
* domestic policy;
* foreign policy;
* key event or decision;
* general assessment of legacy.
Each student will write a 10-12 page paper on the specific topic, and then each "Presidential group" will present an oral report.
Here is the research guide.
Martinez
4 Students (all seniors/majors)
Merrill
Students need to find the answers to the questions on the research guide regarding their playwright and one-act they are directing.
Biochemistry 2
Professor Fred LaRiviere
10 students
1-15-2007
This was a small class of very advanced, med school bound students. They'd already used databases extensively, so Fred wanted me to show them some of the more advanced features of SciFinder and PubMed. A huge question among the students (and Fred) was how to get full text access from the databases, which is tricky with both SciFinder and PubMed.
I also showed them Scopus, since they weren't as familiar with it. They all seemed very impressed by it, and when I asked them to compare the interface with Web of Science, they favored Scopus dramatically. We looked up one of Fred's articles and showed the citation history of it, and I think that really impressed the students and made the exercise stick.
Each of about 25 students (one section) in Professor Connelly's POL 100 class will be writing 3 papers on topics related to the modern Congress and political polarization. Additional research on the Federalist papers.
Here is the research guide.
LIT 218: Premodern Chinese Literature in Translation: Evolution of Chinese Fiction
1/10/07
Hongchong FU
25 students
Merrill
in-class presentation and online research guide
Students will write two short papers for this class.
Course: ECON 399 Senior Capstone - Economics Seminar
Presentation date: 1/9/07
Faculty: Anderson, Casey, Diette, and Smythe
Number of students: 45
Librarian: Tombarge
Research guide URL: http://library.wlu.edu/research/guides/business/399/
Assignment: Students will be working on a term paper on a topic of their choice that investigates the issue from an economic perspective. Quantitative analysis is strongly encouraged in this project.