 Syllabus - 820-301/501 Department
of Political Science
Spring
2007
Office: Salisbury 245 Office Hours: TTh 3:30-4:30 p.m. W 2:00-3:00 p.m. Office Phone: 920-723-6736 Home Phone: 920-728-0599 (Before 9:00 p.m. please) Home Page: http://facstaff.uww.edu/cottlec email: cottlec@uww.edu Textbook: Research Methods in Political Science: An Introduction Using Microcase (5th edition), Michael Corbett and Michael K. Le Roy. Course Description: This course introduces students to quantitative research methods in political science. Topics in the course include: an introduction to measurement theory, sampling theory, data preparation, descriptive statistics, tests of statistical significance and measures of association, bivariate analysis of variance, cross-tabulation, and a brief introduction to correlation and regression. These topics will be addressed using data and examples of interest to political scientists. This is an "online" course. With the exception of the textbook noted above, all materials and assignments will be distributed in a Web-based environment called "Desire2Learn." (We will refer to Desire2Learn most of the time simply as "D2L.") Also, class discussions, homework delivery, and examinations will be conducted in the online environment. It will be important that students check D2L on a daily basis for announcements, discussion postings, and course related email. If this is your first online course, please note that taking an online course is quite different from a traditional in-class course. The major difference is that the online course requires much more self-discipline. When you read and do assignments is much more self-directed than in the traditional course. For this reason it is important that you check your email, assignments, and announcements on a daily basis for this course. I will use your campus email unless you change it inside D2L. For assignments and test dates be sure to look at the Schedule inside D2L. (The Schedule is one of the choices on the navigation bar.) There you will find a calendar of your weekly assignments. Assignments and Expectations: Grades in this course will be based on two sources: weekly assignments, a research project, and tests. There will be two tests, a midterm and a final exam. Weekly assignments will be based on the chapter worksheets in the text, discussions, and other special written assignments. Each of the tests will be equally weighted. The weight for each component of the course is shown below.
Weekly assignments must be submitted to the D2L dropbox. Please do not email them to me. We will use the Schedule feature in D2L to keep tract of assignments and test dates. Be sure you look at Schedule using the week view. I will not enter assignments for individual dates, but rather on a weekly basis. Of course, you may also look at the month view as well. Because this course requires a substantial amount interaction online, students must check their email and D2L announcements several times a week. I will use the email addresses provided in D2L. Please do not request that I use special, off-campus, email addresses for you. Graduate Student Requirements: In addition to the assignments listed above, graduate students will prepare an additional written assignment approximately 10 pages in length. University Related Announcements
Academic
Misconduct: The
University believes that academic honesty and integrity are fundamental
to the mission of higher education and of the University of Wisconsin
System. The University has a responsibility to promote academic honesty
and integrity and to develop procedures to deal effectively with
instances of academic dishonest Students are responsible for the honest
completion and representation of their work, for the appropriate
citation of sources, and for respect of others' academic endeavors.
Students who violate these standards are subject to disciplinary
action. UWS Chapter 14 identifies procedures to be followed when a
student is accused of academic misconduct. For additional information,
please refer to the section in the Student Handbook itled, Student
Academic Disciplinary Procedures.
Religious Beliefs Accommodation: Board of Regents policy states that students' sincerely held religious beliefs shall be reasonably accommodated with respect to scheduling all examinations and other academic requirements. Students must notify the instructor, within the first three weeks of the beginning of classes (within the first week of summer session and short courses) of the specific days or dates on which they will request accommodation from an examination or academic requirement. For additional information, please refer to the section in the University Bulletin and the Timetable titled, Accommodation of Religious Beliefs. Official Notice: The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater is dedicated to a safe, supportive and non-discriminatory learning environment. It is the responsibility of all undergraduate and graduate students to familiarize themselves with University policies regarding Special Accommodations, Misconduct, Religious Beliefs Accommodation, Discrimination and Absence for University Sponsored Events. (For details please refer to the Undergraduate and Graduate Timetables; the "Rights and Responsibilities" section of the Undergraduate Bulletin; the Academic Requirements and Policies and the Facilities and Services sections of the Graduate Bulletin; and the "Student Academic Disciplinary Procedures" [UWS Chapter 14]; and the "Student Nonacademic Disciplinary Procedures" [UWS Chapter 17]). |