Assignments

There are three graded assignments that you will be responsible for completing over the next 10 weeks. Follow the links below to read an in-depth description of each assignment.

Assignment Descriptions

1.Research / Evaluation Problem Statement

• Draft: October 15 (10%)
• Final: December 4 (20%)

2.Literature Review

• Draft: October 30 (10%)
• Peer Review: November 11 (5%)
• Final: December 4 (20%)

3.Data Collection and Analysis Protocol

• Draft: November 20 (10%)
• Final: December 4 (20%)

Structure of Assignments in LIS 570

Each assignment will require you to first produce a draft, and then a final completed document that you will turn in at a later date.

The drafts are simply completion grades - if you turn in a document that meets all of the requirements of the draft you will receive full credit.

For the second assignment you will also be required to produce a peer review. This will require you to read a peer’s assignment and provide feedback. There will be a template provided for the peer review that you are responsible for completing.

The final draft of each assignment will be graded using a rubric that is included in the assignment description. You will receive written feedback about applying course concepts to your own research ideas.

Notes

Some important things to keep in mind about assignments in 570:

• These three assignments are related. Meaning you should not do a problem statement about one topic, a literature review about another topic, and a protocol about a third topic. Topical coherence makes each of these assignments easier and more useful to you.

• The downside to having three topically related assignments is that your choices early in the quarter lock you into a topic: choose wisely, and revise strategically.

• You may work independently or as part of a group (up to three people) on the assignments above. I highly encourage you to work on these assignments as a group. You will get much more out of the course, and the assignments by being able to talk about and validate your ideas with group partners.

• If you read carefully you will note that all three assignments have a final due date of December 4th. This is the last day you can turn in a final draft of each assignment. However, nothing prevents you from completing these assignments in advance. I have worked with the instructors for LIS 530 to make sure that due dates between our two courses do not conflict - turning in assignments early will further lighten your work load for the end of the quarter.

• There are no participation grades in this class. We are each dealing with various aspects of public health emergencies, natural disasters, and the chaos of caring for loved ones while trying to also engage intellectually with new content. As I said in the introduction to 570 - let’s treat each other to a healthy amount of good will. If however you are dealing with an unresponsive classmate please feel free to get in touch with me or your TA at any time.

---