-COURSE SYLLABUS--
Research Seminar
Religion 600--------DSED 450
Principles of Research and Writing in Religious Studies

Last revised: 8/28/07

The student demonstrates understanding of the appropriate tools, procedures and resources for research in the field of religion.

Rationale:

In order to do effective research and writing in the seminars and in the masters thesis, the student must have the prerequisite research skills for technical study of assigned topics. This seminar is intended to equip the student with the necessary tools and skills for doing research and writing in the field of religious and biblical studies.


Learning Objectives:

1. The student will demonstrate awareness of how to search for research data in both electronic and written sources on selected topics of study.
2. The student will demonstrate competency in efficiently collecting research data on selected topics of study
3. The student will demonstrate understanding of how to formulate a research topic into a thesis declaration and structured analysis of information in a coherent presentation.
4. The student will demonstrate mastery of proper documentation of research data in a formal written presentation, using specified style guides.
5. The student will demonstrate basic understanding of the development of modern religious studies.


Learning Tasks:

1. The student will give presentations, oral and written, demonstrating familiarity with the use of library classification systems and internet search engines for collecting research data.
2. The student will give presentations, oral and written, demonstrating evaluative understanding of the content, parameters and procedures for using a variety of style guides commonly employed for research in the field of religious studies.
3. The student will give presentations, oral and written, demonstrating awareness of effecient methods of collecting research data for selected topics.
4. The student will give presentations, oral and written, demonstrating understanding of proper written documentation of research data, following specified style guides.
5. The student will give presentations, oral and written, demonstrating basic skills in the formulation of a thesis declaration and the structuring of research data in a co-herent presentation.
6. The student will give presentations, oral and written, demonstrating understanding of the various aspects of modern religious studies, particularly in the field of biblical studies.


Religion 600 and DSED 450 is a cross listed seminar course between the Master of Arts degree in the Department of Religious Studies and the Master of Divinity degree in the School of Divinity. As a graduate seminar, the structure and function of the course will be different from a typical lecture style course.

----Turabian, Kate L. A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations. Seventh Edition. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2007 (ISBN - paper: 0226-82337-7; hardback:  0226-82336-9)

• Attendance:

Students are expected to attend all class periods.  University policy will allow no more than 25% absences from this course. This means a maximum of 11 absences for classes meeting three times each week; 7 absences for one meeting twice weekly; and 4 absences for one meeting once weekly. Note also: absences due to officially sponsored activities, such as athletic contests will count toward the maximum allowable number of absences but will not be factored into the grade adjustment. Each student is responsible to notify the professor of the reason for each absence to determine whether it is an excused absence. This is to be done exclusively through use of the Attendance Adjustment request form under Attendance & Tests forms in the Online Forms page of Cranfordville.com. Attendance and tardies will count 12% toward the final semester grade. See Semester Grade below for explanation and chart. Bonus points for the Class Participation grade may be given on occasion for extra ordinary contributions to the seminar.
• Exams:

Two major exams shall be given in the duration of the semester, including the final exam. See Assignment Sheet for exact dates. The grading of the major exams will be completed over a two week period after the test date. The format of each exam will be determined by the type of materials having been covered.
• Make-up Tests:

Make-up exams for the exams which are missed will be taken within two weeks of the regular exam.  One time for makeups will be scheduled, and a different, more difficult test will be administered.  Permission to take make-ups shall be given ONLY to those with justifiable reason for missing the regular exam (by university policy, only: athletic contests, emergencies, illness or bereavement). Each student needing a make-up exam must secure permission from the professor in advance of the scheduled make-up exam by completing the Request for Make-up Test form. The form must be approved by the professor before the make-up can be scheduled; approval will be sent to the student via his/her e-mail address.
• Paper Presentations:

For a listing of paper assignments see List of Assignments under Unit Three

Major Paper:

• A requirement for each seminar member, this assignment will consist of a research paper related to some aspect of religious studies.
• Paper Format:
• The paper will be written following the guidelines of the above Turabian 7th ed.
• Where Turabian doesn't address an issue, the Chicago Manual of Style will be mandated.
• See Topic 06 for details.
• The length of the paper will average between 25 and 45 pages
• Electronic copies of the paper will be made available to each seminar member one week in advance of the scheduled presentation date
• Late papers will be counted off 5 points for each day after due date! Due date is midnight for electronic submission.
• Paper presentation:
• The paper presentation will consist of the formal presentation of a research paper (30 minutes each), followed by an oral response from a chosen seminar member to each paper presentation.
• Each seminar presentor will receive two grades:
• (1) the evaluation of the written paper submitted one week in advance of presentation, and
• (2) the evaluation of their oral presentation.
• The grading of the oral presentation will follow the guidelines developed in the topic: Using research data.
Respondent paper:
• Paper Format:
• The respondent will submit an electronic copy of his/her critique of the major paper one day in advance of the schedule presentation date.
• The respondent paper will consist of a listing of style failures of the major paper, plus a critique of the contents of the paper
• The respondent paper will not exceed 10 pages
• The paper will be written following the guidelines of the above Turabian 7th ed.
• Where Turabian doesn't address an issue, the Chicago Manual of Style will be mandated.
• See Topic 06 for details.
• Late papers will be counted off 10 points for each day after due date! Due date is midnight for electronic submission.
• Presentation:
• Using the paper, the Respondent will cover a thorough evaluation of the major paper presenter's paper and presentation
• This oral critique will be limited to 15 minutes and will immediately follow the presentaiton of the major paper.
• Each seminar presentor will receive two grades:
• (1) the evaluation of the written paper submitted one day in advance of presentation, and
• (2) the evaluation of their oral presentation.
• Each seminar member will both present a paper and serve as a respondent for another paper during the semester.
• Assignments:

In addition, assignments shall be given randomly during the weekly class period covering various topics.  These will relate to the unit being covered at the time. They may be of a nature to be done outside of class and turned by the following class period. But they may also be in class activities completed during the class sessions. No make-up for in-class assignments are possible for those with unexcused absences! Assignments to be turned in will be made electronically using the Assignment Turn In menu under Assignments in the Online Forms page of Cranfordville.com. The average grade of these assignments will be factored into the Semester Grade. For a listing of assignments see List of Assignments.

Grading of Assignments:  Failure to record name on paper is minus 10 points.

The semester grade will be determined from an average of the following sources: Mid-Term Exam, Final Exam, average of Assignments, and the Paper Presentation grade, counting a 88 per of the semester grade. Additionally, class attendance, participation, and attitude will count for 12 percent of the semester grade.

The adjusted average of the above numerical grade will then be converted into a letter grade according one of the following curves. Both the GWU Graduate School and the School of Divinity have mandated grading curves, but they are not the same. Note very carefully these differences. The applicable curve will apply to each student depending on how the student is enrolled in the seminar.
 

GWU University MA Curve	GWU Divinity School Curve
A: 90-100 B: 80-89 C: 70-79 F: below 70	A:  94 - 100 B:  85 - 93 C:  70 - 84 D:  60 - 69 F:  Below 60


Note the following illustration of the above:

 

Grade Sources:	RELI 600	DSED 450
Mid-Term Exam	22%	22%
Final Exam	22%	22%
Assignments Avg.	22%	22%
Paper Presentation	22%	22%
Class Participation:	12%	12%
Sem Avg:	100%	100%
Semester Grade:	.

An internet based, continuously updated grade book, WebGrade, will be made available to each student so that his/her individual grades will be accessible 24/7 through secure access with a provided USER ID and PASSWORD that is distinct from those provided by Gardner-Webb University.

Special Needs.

All students needing accommodations to participate fully in all class activities and to fulfill requirements of the class should notify me of the need as soon as possible. Persons must be certified as having a disability by the Noel Program for Students with Disabilities in order to receive accommodations.

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Class Cancelation Notices.When classes are canceled due to bad weather, you can find this information posted on GWU's web site or call 1- 877-GWU-SNOW. Additionally, area radio -- especially the university's radio station WGWG at 88.3 FM -- and TV stations will be notified of the closing. Very rarely will classes on the Boiling Springs campus be closed for bad weather.