Transcript Intro to Course Structure - We

Beginning Social Research
Dr. Anna Feigenbaum
Spring 2010
Summary
1. What is Social Research?
2. How this course will work
3. Break for dinner
4. Fill out group allocation cards
Social Research
gathering and interpreting
information
about the
social world.
How this course will work
A very wise
woman once
said…
To learn social
research, one must
do social research.
“Active learning isn't a new idea. It goes
back at least as far as Socrates
Active learning puts the responsibility of
organizing what is to be learned
in the hands of the learners.”
How this course will work
Collaborative Work
(15%)
with
Individual Assessment
(85%)
Core
Collaborate
Connect
Core
Collaborate
Connect
‘We Think’
1 + 1 = 12
Charles Leadbeater on open source
software design
Core
Collaborate
Connect
Core
Core
Together we will work on a
social research project that I
provide the foundation for.
The core is
the research question
that guides our work.
Collaborate
Collaborate
You will then collaborate
in research groups of 5-6
during this course.
These groups will be
allocated based on your
interests & major.
Collaborate
Each research group
will generate smaller
research questions,
implement research
design and analyze
research findings.
Connect
Connect
Your individual
work will then
connect your
ideas with the
larger project.
We start with a
Core question
How does where
Richmond students
‘have been’ shape
their social behaviour
and attitudes?
Why this question?
"Travel is more than the
seeing of sights; it is a
change that goes on, deep
and permanent, in the ideas
of living."
- Miriam Beard
“I soon realized that no journey
carries one far unless, as it
extends into the world around us,
it goes an equal distance into the
world within.”
-Lillian Smith
“You must learn to use your life
experience in your intellectual
work: continually to examine
and interpret it.”
- Charles Wright Mills
Charles Wright Mills
Charles Wright Mills (1916-1962) was one
of the most influential radical social
theorists and critics in twentieth century
America. His work continues to have
considerable significance.
Collaborate
Smaller questions
within this broad
question can then
be developed
based on your
groups’ interests.
participation in
student politics?
uses of mobile
phones?
attitudes toward
environmental
politics?
For example:
How does
where
Richmond
students have
been shape
their…
Views on the
European Union?
readership of
newspapers?
perceptions of
Iranian politics?
Collaborate
Each research
group will come
up with its own
question.
Collaborate
Then each group
will generate a
research design to
gather data.
Collaborate
You will all
conduct social
research.
Collaborate
And later everyone
will analyze
findings and
present results.
Collaborate
Each week
you will
have an
assigned
task.
Week Two Mission
 Assign Group Roles
 Set up Group Schedule
 Name research Group
 Generate a research question
 Brainstorm your ‘tool kit’ of concepts
After you have completed your
mission you will submit your
completed work to me.
Week Two Mission: Completed
 Assign Group Roles
 Set up Group Schedule
 Name research Group
 Generate a research question
 Brainstorm your ‘tool kit’ of concepts
Make sure that you keep minutes
of all your group work and save
everything handed back to you.
Week Two Mission: Minuted
and Safely Stored.
 Assign Group Roles
 Set up Group Schedule
 Name research Group
 Generate a research question
 Brainstorm your ‘tool kit’ of concepts
Connect
At each stage you
will be individually
responsible for
your own work.
Connect
You will also pick
one part of your
groups’ project to
further explore on
your own.
Connect
This will form the
basis of your
individual
portfolio.
Connect to your individual interests
I want to know if people’s
perceptions of ‘clean’ and
‘dirty’ affect their attitudes
toward recycling?
Does where Richmond
students have been
shape their attitudes
toward environmental
politics?
Assessment
Group Portfolio
(15%)
•Group info
Your group
portfolio
collects all of
your completed
tasks together.
•Research question
•Background research
•Research design
•Evidence of research
•Analysis
•Group Minutes
•Citations and
appendixes
Individual
Assessment (85%)
Likewise, your
Individual Portfolio
collects all of your
individual work
completed throughout
the term.
•Individual Proposal
(5%)
•Reflection Reports (2x
10%)
•Individual Portfolio
(15%)
• Exhibition poster &
presentation (15%)
•Final Exam (30%)
At the end of term we will Exhibit our findings
Questions?
Group Allocation Cards
•
Fill out your group allocation card
thoughtfully.