The University of Ontario Institute of Technology
Faculty of Criminology, Justice and Policy Studies
Instructor: Dr. Patrik Olsson
Office: UA 2013
Phone: 905-721-8668 ext. 2852
Office Hours: Tuesday 10.00am-11.00am or by appointment
Course email: patrik.olsson@uoit.ca
Teaching Assistants: June Melnychuk and Kirandeep Singh Kainth (contact
through WebCT)
SSCI 1910U Computing for the Social Sciences
Fall 2008
READ THIS SYLLABUS VERY CAREFULLY!
Course Syllabus
Overview
Dear students, the purpose of this course is to get you prepared and to provide
you with a foundation in the academic skills of writing competently within our
discipline.
This course will include some of the major aspects of academic writing, from
grammar, information literacy, research and citing sources to formal essay
writing. You will be introduced to the major features of the various styles and
practices of academic writing.
The assumption in this course is that students have none or only a rudimentary
understanding of academic writing and research. In this course we recognize that
students come to university with different levels of experience and skills and we
will make sure to find a level that suits all of us. This course is aimed at leveling
the playing field on writing and research skills and to some extent also the use of
information technology.
Course Format
This course has lectures, exercises, tutorials and online components. The online
aspect of the course will be handled through WebCT. There will be lectures and
exercises each week. Some of the exercises will require students to demonstrate
that they have completed some task during the assignment. For some exercises,
students will be asked to work in groups composed by 5-6 students, this to
stimulate discussions, participation and teamwork.
Course Assistants
• The Teaching Assistants – June Melnychuk and Kirandeep Singh Kainth
The Teaching Assistants, like the teaching assistants in all of your other courses,
are university graduates with extensive experience that is relevant to the course.
In this course the teaching assistants handle all of the grade book issues and
assess the online assignments. If you have any questions about your grades
then you should direct your inquiries to the teaching assistant(s) or to the
instructor.
Email and Office Hours
Meetings with Dr. Olsson are by appointment or during office hours (Tuesdays
10.00am-11.00am). Please use patrik.olsson@uoit.ca for individual contact with
the instructor. Normally, I will be able to get back to you within 2 teaching days
(not counting weekends, holidays and breaks) about an appointment. Some
issues can be easily resolved using email. Complex issues may take some time
and interviews. You can contact me at the end of the lectures with questions or to
make appointments.
The assistants have online office hours and can be contacted through the
WebCT system.
Academic Honesty
Any form of academic dishonesty will not be tolerated. Please see regulation
5.15 of the Academic calendar with respect to academic dishonesty, including:
plagiarism, cheating and examination impersonation.
The issue of academic dishonesty in this course is complicated by its
independent pass/fail nature.
In accordance with university policy acts of academic dishonesty will be reported
to the dean without exceptions. The penalties could include a zero for the
relevant assignment or quiz. Since this is a pass/fail course that requires
students to complete all tests and assignments a zero on one assignment will
result in failure of the course. More serious cases may result in more severe
sanctions.
In this course I have an attitude of trust with my students, we are here to learn! I
trust that you will want to learn the many interesting facts and useful skills that
are being offered in this course. The course is organized so that you take
responsibility for doing the work in an honest way. If you are found to be
dishonest then the consequences are severe. I assume and hope that there will
not be any problems. In my experience there rarely are any difficulties. However,
I am obliged to make it clear that academic honesty is a priority just in case there
is any confusion about expectations.
Laptops in Class
Students should always bring their laptops to class. This is a writing oriented
course that requires the use of laptops in class. Even though we need to use
laptops in class we may sometimes have to limit laptop use, or network access,
for technical reasons if this use degrades the bandwidth that is needed during
lectures. In this class, personal messaging, etc. or other disruptive behavior
during class is strictly prohibited and will by no means be tolerated.
Exams/Evaluation
There will be writing assignments, midterm exam, info literacy tests and one final
exam in this class. The exams are based on the lectures, the literature and other
exercises. Students are expected to complete all of the reading and assignments
in the course.
1. Writing assignments and ILT pre-test: Worth 20 percent.
There will be writing assignments with peer reviews (worth 15%) and furthermore
also one Info Literacy pre-test (one hour and worth 5%) on October 17th.
2. Mid Term Exam: Worth 20 percent
Students will write a mid term exam that is worth 20 % and the exam will be
based on what we have learnt from the lectures, exercises and the literature
since the start of the semester.
3. Info Literacy test: Worth 30 percent
Students will write an info literacy test that is worth 30 % of the final grade and
the test will be based on what we have learnt from the info literacy sessions.
4. Final Examination: Worth 30 percent
The lectures and the required reading will constitute the largest portion of the
body of knowledge for which you will be responsible and on which you will be
tested during the final exam. The final exam will be held during the final exam
period, which will be announced by the scheduling office. Students are advised
not to make other commitments (e.g., vacation) during the final exam period. The
exam will consist of multiple choice questions and possibly short answer
questions. The final exam will be comprehensive and on the materials covered
throughout the course.
Total possible percent = 100
The grading scheme used in this class is as follows:
Grade
A+
A
Percentage
90-100
85-89
A-
80-84
Grade Points Description
4.3
Excellent. Strong evidence of originality and
independence of thought; good organization;
4.0
capacity to analyze and synthesize; superior
3.7
grasp of subject matter with sound critical
B+
B
77-79
73-76
3.3
3.0
B-
70-72
2.7
C+
67-69
2.3
C
60-66
2.0
D
50-59
1.0
F
0-49
0.0
evaluations; evidence of extensive knowledge
base; an outstanding ability to communicate.
Good. Substantial knowledge of subject
matter; some evidence of organization and
analytic ability; a moderate degree of
originality and independence of thought;
reasonable understanding of relevant issues;
evidence of familiarity with literature; an ability
to communicate clearly and fluently.
Adequate. Student is profiting from his/her
university experience; an acceptable
understanding of the subject matter; ability to
develop solutions to representative problems
in the material; some ability to organize and
analyze ideas; an ability to communicate
adequately.
Marginal. Some evidence that critical and
analytic skills have been developed;
rudimentary knowledge of the subject matter;
significant weakness in the ability to
communicate.
Inadequate. Little evidence of even superficial
understanding of subject matter; weakness in
critical and analytic skills; limited or irrelevant
use of literature; failure to complete required
work; an inability to communicate.
It is highly recommended to keep up with the work and the sequence of the
course. If you find that you are not keeping pace with the course for health or
other extreme personal reasons please notify the Teaching Assistant(s) or the
Instructor or contact our excellent Student Advisor, Amy Anderson. Students who
are falling behind in their work will be contacted and asked to withdraw from the
course if this seems the best option. The Final Exam date will be announced by
the scheduling office!
Tutorials
There are tutorials every week, which are help sessions for students. Make sure
to team up with some of your classmates to learn even more.
There will be teaching assistants available during the tutorials to help students. In
addition, the instructor will provide some help online.
Online Assignments
There are some online tasks that students will have to perform. The instructions
for the online assignments will be posted on WebCT and you will be advised in
advance.
Discussion Postings
Please use the Discussion board on WebCT for online discussions and also to
introduce yourself to other students and the instructor.
Students with Special Needs:
If there is any student in this course, who, because of a disability, may have a
need for special accommodations, please come and discuss this with me after
you have contacted The Centre for Students with Disabilities (also known as
REACH). In compliance with University of Ontario Institute of Technology policy
and disability laws, I am available to discuss appropriate academic
accommodations that you may require as a student with a disability. Requests for
academic accommodations need to be made during the first week of the
semester so arrangements can be made. I encourage you to register with
REACH for disability verification and for determination of reasonable academic
accommodations.
General Expectations:
• You are allowed to use your laptops in this class. However, do not use them
to send messages to each other during class time, to surf websites (unless I
specifically ask you to), to play games, or to otherwise use them
inappropriately. Doing so is disrespectful to me, distracts other students, and
is basically a waste of your time. If I find that you are using your laptops
inappropriately, you will be asked to leave the class for that day and 2 percent
will be deducted from your final grade for each violation.
•
I expect students to attend classes, be on time, be prepared and not disrupt
class by arriving or leaving in the middle of a lecture. I will be prepared and be
on time.
•
Please do not forget to turn on your cell phones and pagers when you leave
class!
Course Evaluations
The university has a standard course evaluation survey but we may use
additional survey(s) in this course to help give feedback to the instructor for the
improvement and development of the course.
Textbooks and Online Materials
The Criminal Justice Student Writer's Manual, The (4th Edition) (Paperback)
by William A. Johnson, Richard P. Rettig, Greg Scott, Stephen M. Garrison,
Publisher: Prentice Hall; 4 edition (March 3, 2007)
Online material:
There may be some additional online material that is available through the library
online services or on the Internet. These are free of charge.
Course Organization and Readings
The way to keep ahead is to read the selections in the appropriate week. You
should read everything at least twice. If you read everything once before the
lecture and then again soon after you will likely do very well indeed. The course
schedule may be amended as we go along. The weekly guides below are the
definitive schedule for the course.
CRN
41243
41243
41248
41249
Classroom
UA 1140
UA 1140
Univ. Pavilion J102
UA1120
Weekday
Tuesday
Friday
Monday
Monday
Time
8:00am
9:30am
11:10 am
7.10pm
9:30am
11:00am
12:30 pm
8.30pm
Note: I reserve the right to make changes to this reading outline and to the
schedule.
Lecture 1. Introduction to the course
• Introduction: September 5
Lecture 2.
• Lecture – Writing as communication– September 9, September 12
•
Reading - Chapter 1.
Lecture 3.
• Lecture – Writing competently - September 16, September 19
•
Reading - Chapter 2.
Lecture 4.
• Lecture – Student Paper Formats– September 23, September 26
•
Reading – Chapter 3
Lecture 5.
• Lecture – Citing Sources in ASA style – September 30, October 3
•
Reading – Chapter 4
Lecture 6.
• Lecture – Organizing the Research Process
•
Midterm Exam – October 10
•
Reading Chapter 6
– October 7
-Lecture 7.
• Lecture – Introduction to Information Literacy; October 14
•
ILT- Information literacy pre-test (5%) October 17
-Lecture 8. – October 21, 24
• Lecture/lab - The research process; RefWorks; Write-N-Cite;
•
Reading:
Western Assignment Planner https://www.lib.uwo.ca/instruct/calculator/
Getting Started http://www.uoit.ca/EN/library/main/17195/67197/step_one.html
Textbook pages 109-116
Textbook chapter 5 (fyi; use as a reference when required)
-Lecture 9 – October 28, 31
• Lecture/lab - Find the best information quickly: comparing books, journals,
websites; identifying scholarly and popular texts; understanding the
differences between primary and secondary sources
•
Reading:
Getting a Hair Cut
http://cybrary.uwinnipeg.ca/Learn/eManual/chapter.cfm?fldChapterID=7&fldHeadi
ng=25, and the Textbook Chapter 7
-Lecture 10. November 4
• Lecture – Google’s algorithm; tagging; putting it all together with Write-NCite
•
Reading: EPIC http://robinsloan.com/epic/
Lecture 11.
• Lecture – Reaction Papers/ Article Critiques – November 11, November 14
•
Reading – Chapter 8, 9
Lecture 12.
• Lecture –Book Reviews/ Annotated Bibliographies - November 18, November
21
•
Reading – Chapter 9, 10
Lecture 13.
• Lecture – Writing a Police Report - November 25, November 28
• Reading – Chapter 11
Lecture- 14
• Criminal Justice Agency Case Studies December 2
•
Lecture Criminal Justice Policy Analysis Papers December 5
•
Reading – Chapter 12, 13
Lecture 15 – Info Literacy Test December 9
Final Exam date to be announced by the scheduling office!