LNT 521 Liberal & Integrative Studies

LNT 521 Liberal & Integrative Studies Credit Hours: 3 hours Term Year: Fall 2012

Instructor: Dr. Eric Hadley-Ives UHB 3028 Office Hours: By appointment Tuesday afternoons are best Phone: 217-206-8207

Email: [email protected] Skype: eric_ives (on campus) or hadleyives (when working at home or travelling) Fax: 206-6217 This semester I am going to be on campus every Tuesday and Wednesday, and usually also on Mondays and Fridays, but I will try to work from home on Thursdays.

Course Description Rationale: An important element of the self-designed degree at the University of Illinois at Springfield involves reflection and integration. The degree proposal, which you completed at the beginning of your studies, required that you plan an integrated curriculum, commenting upon the rationale for each course and learning experience proposed. The Liberal and Integrative Studies Paper requires you to make a retrospective assessment of your learning experiences. Most graduate students benefit from a structured process to create the proposal for their final demonstration of achievement. The LNT program uses peer feedback and instructor guidance to help facilitate a guided process for your thesis/project proposal development.

Course Objectives/Learning Outcomes Your work in LNT 521 should result in the production of two documents: 1) A paper that discusses the results of your experiences in all of your courses, independent learning experiences and non credit activities. This paper should help you and your committee how you have made progress toward mastery in your self-defined discipline. 2) A draft of your MA thesis or project proposal.

Both documents must be shared with your committee upon completion and will be discussed at your second meeting.

Reasonable accommodations are available for students who have a documented disability. Please notify the instructor during the first week of class of any accommodations needed for the course. Late notification may cause the requested accommodations to be unavailable. All accommodations must be approved through the Office of Disability Services (ODS) in the Human Resources Building (HRB), Room 80, 217-206-6666.

of 8 Last Edited on August 29, 2012 Expectations As facilitators of this process we expect that you will participate in all sessions, read assigned materials, and contribute to class discussions. Remember that your learning has not stopped!

As students you can expect that we will be sensitive to external and internal barriers; give you timely feedback on your work; design relevant learning experiences; and respect your individual style and degree journey.

This course goes from Tuesday to Monday. Your work is expected to be complete and submitted for the session upon which we are working by Monday 5 PM Central Time. In this syllabus, assignments are listed in the session when they are due. They are due at the end of a session. So, you work on the assignments and finish them during the session where they are mentioned in the syllabus.

Required Text 1) A copy of your original degree proposal. 2) LNT Graduate Student Handbook. 3) Course materials, notes, etc. 4) Scissors, glue, computer and imagination. 5) A good book on doing research or writing a thesis or doing a project. Here are a dozen recommended possibilities. You can pick one or two of these, or get some similar book. 1. The Research Paper: Process, Form, and Content. Audrey J. Roth (1999). $27 2. MLA handbook for writers of research papers, 7th edition. Joseph Gibaldi (2009). $18 3. Writing research papers: a complete guide. James D. Lester (1998). $45 4. The craft of research, 3rd edition. Wayne C. Booth, Gregory G Colomb, and Joseph M. Williams (2008). $11 5. The curious researcher, 7th edition. Bruce Ballenger (2011). $45 6. Becoming an academic writer: 50 exercises for paced, productive, and powerful writing. Patricia Goodson (2012). $31 7. How to prepare a dissertation proposal: Suggestions for students in education and the social and behavioral sciences. David R. Krathwohl & Nick L. Smith (2005). $15 8. The dissertation journey: A practical and comprehensive guide to planning, writing, and defending your dissertation. Carol M. Roberts (2010). $30 9. How to write a master's thesis. Yvonne Nguyen Bui (2009). $28 10. Writing for social scientists: How to start and finish your thesis, book, or article: 2nd edition. Lawrence A. Machi & Brenda T. McEnvoy (2007). $8 11. The literature review: Six steps to success. Howard S Becker (2008). $27 12. Preparing literature reviews: Qualitative and quantitative approaches, 3rd edition. M. Ling Pan (2007). $50

These books should mostly be available in libraries (including the UIS Brookens Library, or another i-Share library). Prices given above reflect cost of new books from online sellers. Used books available online may cost as little as $5 or $6 with shipping included.

Course Requirements LNT 521 is a Credit/NO Credit course. Successful completion of the course is based on participation in class activities and fulfillment of written assignments. Failure to participate in class may result in a NC. Communicate with your professor prior if a problem arises.

of 8 Last Edited on August 29, 2012 Delivery Method The half semester class is an entirely online activity with instructor lectures and discussion, experiential activities, peer evaluation, and readings. If you find references to on-campus class, please ignore. Course Calendar or Schedule

of 8 Last Edited on August 29, 2012 Session Topic Assignment

1 Two week session. No assignment due in the first week, but by the August 27 end of the second week you should have the Introduction sorting exercise done. Please participate in the to September 10 discussion board. Here is our work: Course Orientation Reading: What is a master’s degree? First Session Course Session. Follow link in Blackboard or go directly to the page at In what discipline do you https://edocs.uis.edu/Departments/LIS/Course_Pages/LNT521/ have mastery? EHI/LNT521_1.html The Master's Degree, a policy statement by the What is an academic Council of Graduate Schools in the United States. discipline? A Silent Success: Master's Education in the United States. By Clifton F. Conrad, Jennifer What courses have you Grant Haworth, and Susan Bolyard Millar. taken? (Published in 1993 by Johns Hopkins University Press) (Just the chapter on Attributes of High- What are the themes of Quality Master's Experiences). your degree? Working Paper on Integration of Ideas by Ed Cell. What were your learning Assignment: needs and life goals when you were in LNT-501 Do the idea sorting exercise. Graduate Colloquium? 1.Make 3 x 5 cards for each graduate course. Put title at the top. From your memory, put down key concepts and words on each card. Review your class materials and add other important concepts. Sort your cards into three piles. 2.Label these piles. What overall theme do you see to your courses? Can your sort your courses into 3 new piles? Does your overall theme change when you do this? Choose one of these sets with the goal of thinking about an overall theme with supporting areas for your paper.

2 One week session Reading: September 11 Preparation for writing the 1. You need to read from whatever books to September 17 Liberal & Integrative on research or writing dissertations or Studies Paper. creating literature reviews you have selected from our list of 12 Initial writing of the recommended book (or any other book Liberal & Integrative similar to those on our list). Paper. 2. You will need to re-read some of the papers you have written in your Finding and Visualizing an courses, look over the syllabi for Integrative Theme classes you have taken, and that sort of thing. 3. You must read “Guidelines for the MA Thesis/Project Proposal” from your LNT Handbook. Assignments: 1. Create a visual/graphic representation of how your learning fits together. Post it to the Discussion Board. 2. Also post a draft of a two paragraph introduction which displays/explains your theme and three subcategories. 3 One week session Assignments: September 18 MA thesis/Project Proposal 1. Create a first draft of your liberal and to September 24 integrative studies paper.

4 One Week Session Assignments: September 25 Peer Review - Integrative 1. Read the version of the liberal and to October 1 Paper integrative paper submitted by your assigned partner and give feedback of Writing the thesis their work. statement and problem 2. Work on editing or revising your definition liberal and integrative paper. 3. Do the thesis statement/question or problem statement exercise. 4. Describe your LNT committee and other resources persons, and propose who should serve as a dean’s representative for you. 5. Prepare the final (hopefully final) version of your thesis question or statement of need (for a project). Write the question you want answered through your research or the need your project will fill.

5 One Week Session Assignments: October 2 to October 8 Refining your ideas for 1. Revise, edit, and finalize your liberal your Proposal and integrative studies paper. 2. Post a copy of the completed draft of the Integrative papers to the Signs of a good Discussion Board and to your proposal. Assignments Page. 3. Identify a thesis/project advisor and Dean’s Representative; LNT Procedures for 4. Prepare a draft of the review of literature Closure and/or the background and significance of your thesis/problem. 5. Post the initial draft of the literature review / significance of the problem / background section of your proposal.

6 One Week Session 1. identify your methodology for your thesis/project and write out a October 9 Refining the Proposal/ description of that part of the proposal. to October 15 Peer Review 2. Post in the discussion board your initial draft of the methodology section Writing a methodology of your paper. section. 3. Read and give feedback to your assigned partner for the final draft of Giving feedback on the liberal and integrative studies literature reviews / paper. backgrounds / 4. Read and give feedback to your assigned partner for the initial draft of significance. the literature review / background / Outlines of final significance part of the proposal. 5. Submit a memo to your LNT products (thesis or instructor requesting a dean’s academic paper representative. The memo must describing the project) include a list of those who are on your committee, the name of the person who will sponsor your work on the closure project (your master’s thesis or project), the provisional title of your closure project, a one sentence summary of what you are thinking of doing with your thesis or project, and a proposal for who would be an appropriate dean’s representative. 7 Two Week Session Use these two weeks to finish final edits and revisions October 16 to your liberal and integrative paper and your closure Tips for successfully project (thesis or project) proposal. to October 29 completing the By the end of the seventh session, submit the final draft Thesis/Project of your liberal and integrative paper and your project/thesis proposal in the assignments area of the course. The two documents should be merged into a It is understood that although you final document that you can (eventually) send to your submit a final draft at the end of committee. You must also share the final document in this session, the instructor in LNT- the discussion board. 521 may insist on further revisions and edits, so that the final drafts of You should begin working with your sponsor for the these documents will be completed closure project/thesis and use their feedback and help to later and sent to your committee refine your project/thesis proposal. by the end of the 8th or 9th session. Your two documents are due by the end of the seventh session.

of 8 Last Edited on August 29, 2012 Session Topic Assignment 8 Two week session. Read and give feedback to your assigned peer October 30 on their final draft of the whole LNT-521 Elements of the best thesis finished document (L&I Paper and Proposal). to November 16 papers. If you know your proposal and L&I Paper are Elements of the best already good enough, share them with your projects and papers about closure thesis/project sponsor, and if they projects. agree, you may already send these out to your LNT Degree Committee. What happens at your 2nd LNT Degree Committee Meeting. 9 After receiving feedback in session 8, make One week session November 26 any final modifications to your LNT-521 finished documents, and then send them to to December 3 rd What happens at your 3 your LNT advisor and the sponsor of your and final LNT Degree closure thesis/project. Ask the sponsor of Committee Meeting. your closure thesis/project whether they would have you make any further changes What to do if you don’t before sending it out to your whole LNT finish your closure committee. Tell your LNT advisor you’ll be project/thesis in time? sending out the document to your committee after you get approval from the sponsor of Writing the thesis. your closure project/thesis. 10 Celebration You should have your second LNT Degree Teacher Evaluation December 4 Committee Meeting in the tenth session, if not earlier. to December 17 11 Not a class session. This is The class is done on December 17th. the time for your faculty December 17 facilitator to complete to December 21 grading courses.

of 8 Last Edited on August 29, 2012