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Dayo Abah has 25 students in this class, each of whom has multiple research assignments, including the formulation of a crisis communication plan for an organization and a group (2-3 students) research paper.
Here is the course research guide.
Students in Ayse Zarakol's two sections (35 students; 2 presentations) have to write an analytical research paper on "a security problem or a conflict." Possible topics included apartheid, the Gulf War, Iraq, nuclear weapons, Cuban missile crisis, terrorism, Vietnam, human trafficking, war crimes, Rwanda, Darfur, etc., etc.
Here is the research guide.
Due in week 12, these students are preparing for their first major paper as English students.
Research Guide
1/29/08
Pickett
8 students
Merrill
There are about 30 students in Rebecca Harris' section of POL 100.
Students are placed in subject-oriented groups, with individuals in each groups assigned to (1) find one scholarly journal article on that subject and (2) to find another article on that same subject cited in the first article. These assignment groups are staggered across the term.
The assignment and the two different ways to accomplish it are described in the brief (but effective) class research guide.
There was no in-class presentation, so students are likely to dribbling in here for weeks....
Jonathan Eastwood's class has 8 students, each of whom is tasked to write a research paper on a particular revolution in world history, with an emphasis on interpreting the event (revolution) as as a sociological/social science concept.
Here is the research guide.
This is the first-ever captstone course for students in the new Latin American and Caribbean Studies program.
The three students in this course (with Jeff Barnett) have challenging research topics: the economic and environmental issues associated with rag-picking; the use of financial pressure by the U.S. upon Latin American countries; pivotal events, especially revolutions, in Latin American literature.
I reviewed with them this still-developing LACS research guide and emphasized the necessity of delving into other databases in particular disciplines, such as economics, literature, and social sciences.
1/23/08
Prof. Dixon
12 students
Research Guide
Students have their first small research paper due on Friday. All, except for two, are freshmen.
Each of Cliff Kiracofe's 16 students is to write a research paper on the political situation and issues in one country "with respect to the Islamic resurgence, terrorism, and sectarian issues." They also are required to generally monitor international issues and events in the media, with an emphasis on Islam-related stories.
Here is the research guide.
The 18 students in Cliff Kiracofe's class have a term paper assignment, with international politics topics to be chosen in conjunction with the instructor, who also places a high priority on students monitoring international news coverage in foreign media.
Here is the research guide.
Tyler Dickovick's 27 students have two research assignments -- one paper which involves applying a theoretical concept to a given (non-U.S.) country and a term paper which requires a causal comparison between two or more countries or two or more events in international relations.
Here is the research guide.
(1/18/08)
Course: ECON 203 Quantitative Models for Economics
Presentation date: 1/16/08
Faculty: Blunch
Number of students: 37 (two sections)
Librarian: Tombarge
Research guide URL: http://info.wlu.edu/literature_review/library.html
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.
Ellen Mayock asked me to update the page for Spanish 314. I will not teach a session in this course.
Guide: Spanish 314
Doug Cumming's 4 students have a series of assignments, finding biographical information on people great and small -- from famous 19th-century journalists to residents of Stonewall Jackson Cemetery. They are REQUIRED to use microfilm of manuscript Census records, newspapers, Courthouse records, etc.
Here is the research guide.
Course: BUS 340 Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management
Presentation date: 1/15/08
Faculty: Pirkle
Number of students: 8
Librarian: Tombarge
Research guide URL: http://library.wlu.edu/research/guides/business/bus340.asp
Assignment: Students will be preparing a business plan for a start up company.
Course: ECON 399 Senior Capstone - Economics Seminar
Presentation date: 1/15/08
Faculty: Anderson, Blunch, Diette, and Hooks
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.
Bill Connelly's class (17 students) has several research assignments, including legislative simulations which require knowledge of issues and legislators' backgrounds.
He also wants them to be familiar with Mock Convention research tools
Here is the inevitable research guide.
Phylissa Mitchell's class (18 students, plus one prospective) will be writing research papers on various aspects of the relationship between race and/or religion and modern mass media.
Here is the research guide.
Krzysztof Jasiewicz's course (14 students) has two sections and, interestingly, each section has a very different research assignment. Both, of course, will focus on the study and use of survey data.
In one section, each student will select a topic within the social sciences and look particularly for research which involved the use of surveys and/or similiar methodologies.
The other section will be involved in a group project in support of Rockbridge Area Community Services and will look at job satisfaction surveys in the health sciences and relevant social science literature.
There is a one-size-fits-both research guide.
Not for the first time, a student has asked me about the possibilities of sending computing network print jobs to a public/student printer which can print on both sides of a sheet of paper.
Aside from whatever the printing center folks can do, I do not know of any such capability on campus.
I have asked John White to look into this question, but so far he can find no such location.
Anyone know?
We now have a positive answer to this question, from John White:
Yes, the color printers in the student labs can do two sided printing. Before printing the user should go into the properties of the printer (File>Print>Properties) and select "print on both sides".
Professor Connelly's class (20 students) actually will do rather little secondary literature research on Alexis de Tocqueville, but Bill wanted to have a research guide ready for student use.
David Novack asked that I update the SOC 280 course research guide, so....
He prefers to send students to me individually, so probably no classroom presentation.
Sascha Goluboff requested an updated research guide for her Conflicts in Eurasia course, so voila.
She prefers to go over this material herself with the (dozen-or-so) students, so I probably will not make a classroom appearance.