SYLLABUS
1.
WAYLAND BAPTIST UNIVERSITY
School of Language and Literature
Fairbanks Campus, Alaska
2.
Wayland Baptist University Mission Statement: Wayland Baptist University exists
to educate students in an academically challenging, learning focused, and distinctively
Christian environment for professional success and service to God and humankind
.
3. Course Name: RSWR 3345 (FB) – Research Writing Methods
4. Term and Year: Summer Semester: May 25, 2015 – Aug. 8, 2015
5. Name of Instructor: Dr. Nick O. Ejimabo, Associate Professor of Business and Education
6. Office Phone and Email: (907) 377-4398; (Cell: 512-589-9532) ejimabon@wbu.edu
7. Office Hours, Thursday 2pm-6pm & by appointments; Building and Location: 2623 Wabash
Avenue, Suite 109, Eielson - AFB.
8. Class Meeting Time and Location: FT. Wainwright-Monday, Bldg. 4391/Rm 5; 6pm to 10 pm.
9. Catalog Description: This research writing methods course provides instruction for students
to learn how to formulate research topics, conduct effective research, and write an in-depth,
research-based paper which marshals support from primary and secondary sources. Students will
learn how to evaluate the validity of sources for research projects, to read and understand
authored research reports, to analyze and interpret results, and to prevent plagiarism by
paraphrasing and by giving proper credit for all sources used in both their academic and learning
disciplines.
10. Prerequisite: ENGL 1301 – Composition and Rhetoric
11. Required Textbook and Resources:
BOOK
Writing from Sources
AUTHOR
Spatt
ED
8th
YEAR
2011
PUBLISHER
Bedford/St.
Martin’s
ISBN#
978-0-31260290-1
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association: Sixth Edition
(2010). American Psychological Association: Washington, DC.
12. Optional Materials:
 Hacker, Diana. A Writer’s Reference Seventh Edition (New York: Bedford/St Martin’s
Press, 2011).
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
Internet and WBU Library
 It is recommended that each student use a standard American English dictionary:
For example, The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language,
Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary or the college edition of either The Random
House Dictionary of the English Language or Webster’s World Dictionary of the American
Language.
13. Course Outcome Competencies: Upon the conclusion of this course, students will be able
to:
1. Research effectively in a library and on-line.
2. Evaluate the validity of sources for research projects.
3. Differentiate between the purposes and types of academic essays.
4. Design writing projects appropriate to given goals.
5. Write effective exposition and argumentation.
6. Effectively edit documents with reference to organization, grammar, and style.
7. Prevent plagiarism by giving proper credit for all sources used.
8. Apply APA/MLA rules accurately with reference to: writing a research question/proposal, a
review of the literature, an abstract, an outline, a summary, a synthesis, and a unified, coherent,
complete research paper.
14. Attendance Requirements: As stated in the Wayland Catalog, students enrolled at one of
the University’s external campuses should make every effort to attend all class meetings. All
absences must be explained to the instructor, who will then determine whether the omitted work
may be made up. When a student reaches that number of absences considered by the instructor
to be excessive, the instructor will so advise the student and file an unsatisfactory progress report
with the campus executive director. Any student who misses 25 percent or more of the regularly
scheduled class meetings will receive a grade of F in the course. Additional attendance policies
for each course, as defined by the instructor in the course syllabus, are considered a part of the
University’s attendance policy.
Additional Attendance requirement: Excessive late arrivals or early departures will be taken
into consideration. Material will be discussed in class and included in the exams that are not in
the book. It is the student’s responsibility to obtain any material missed by not attending class
for any reason. The student must not miss any more than 25% of the class. Any more misses may
result in failure of the class. In case of TDY’s the instructor should be notified as soon as
possible.
15. Disability Statement: “In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
(ADA), it is the policy of Wayland Baptist University that no otherwise qualified person with a
disability be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subject to
discrimination under any educational program or activity in the university. The Coordinator of
Counseling Services serves as the coordinator of students with a disability and should be
contacted concerning accommodation requests at (806) 291- 3765. Documentation of a
disability must accompany any request for accommodations.”
STUDENT RESPONSIBILITY: Students are responsible for reading, understanding, obeying,
and respecting all academic policies, with added emphasis being placed upon academic progress
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policies, appearing in the Wayland Baptist University Academic Catalog applicable to their
curriculum and/or program of study.
16. Course Requirements: Grading Assignments and Points
a. Topic Selection and Annotated Bibliography: Each student is required to select a research
topic of his/her interest in this course. Students should make sure primary and secondary
research materials are available to support research on their selected topic of interest. In that
regard, you will write a 10 to 12 item annotated bibliography that relates to your select research
topic of interest. Some examples of the research topics and annotated bibliography will be
discussed in the class. Your selected topic/s MUST be approved by the course Instructor. (Hint:
You cannot wait until the due date to start this assignment). Total point value 100. Due date:
b. Survey: Each student will develop a selected research topic related survey instrument and
conduct, as a minimum, a 5 - 10 person survey and then writes, as a minimum, a three-page
report that interprets the survey results with tables, charts, figures or graphics. Total point
value of: 200.
c. Interview: Construct an interview protocol (questions), based on the responses received during
the survey. Conduct an interview of the 5 - 10 people surveyed to discover the voice and the
reasoning behind their responses. These responses should be recorded with the permission of the
respondents. Write a three-page analysis of the interviews. The instructor must approve the
protocol/questions before performing interviews. Total point value of 200 points.
d. Research Project: Write a minimum of 10 -12 pages of research paper excluding the title page
and reference page. This paper should consist of all the material you have collected up to this
point (annotated bibliography, three-page survey paper, three page interview paper). Most of the
research for the paper should be already collected at this stage. The course final paper will be
prepared in the American Psychological Association (APA) style, 6th Edition. Total point value
of 300 points.
e. Final power point presentation of the Research project in the class by all participants. Total
point value of 100 points.
f. Attendance Class Discussion and Participation
You are expected to attend, participate and respond to the discussions and questions in every
class. It involves answering of questions, personal experience, and suggestion on what you think
about the class discussions and topics. Class participation is a grade activity that reflects
preparedness for class as well as attendance. Arrive on time with assigned reading and papers
completed on the prearranged deadline. Total point value of 100 points.
Note: Students are required to demonstrate proficiency in the requirements covered in this
Syllabus and in class. Students who are underperforming or who believe they need additional
help are to inform the instructor or dean immediately.
17. This course outline serves merely as the anticipated roadmap I hope to use during this 11
weeks program. However, due to circumstances and the dynamic nature of this course, there may
be some changes in the schedule. During such situations, you will be advised and changes will be
discussed and noted accordingly. The dates and weeks listed below are the dates by which the
course materials are expected to have been read.
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Week
Date
Activities/discussions
Reading assignment
1
May 25.
Introduction & Course Overview. “Getting to
Know You”. Making Sources Your Own in
Reading & Writing.
Spatt: Part 1
 Asking Questions
 Doing Exercises #2
Ref. APA manual-Ch.1
Spatt: Pat 11- pg.75 – 101
 Case study (p. 80).
 Exercise (p.85).
2
June 1st.
Academic Writing: Presenting Sources to Others
 Writing about the text & in the disciplines
 Paragraphing
 Summarizing Sources-Article & Essay
 Constructing reasonable arguments
 Evaluating arguments
Examples of the research topics &
annotated bibliography
Ref. APA manual-Ch. 2
3
4
Jun. 8th.
th
Jun.15 .
Quoting Sources in Writing
Sentence style & Usage: Quoting Sources
 Reason for quoting/accurately
 Using quotations
 Writing citations/Avoiding Plagiarism
 Problems with modifiers and sentence
varieties
Spatt: Part 11 – pg. 106-144
 Case Study (p.138).
 Exercise (p.142).
Paraphrasing Sources/Materials
Document content, format & style/design:
 Sentence style & Usage: Paraphrasing
 Challenges of paraphrasing
Spatt: Part 11 – pg. 146-176
 Case study (p.169).
 Exercise (p. 175).
Data collection and research Paradigm
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Grammatical Sentences/Process of delivering your
massage/understanding your audience
Jun.22nd.
Writing from Sources


The Single-Source Essay
Writing Strategy/Structure/Analysis



The Multiple – Source Essay
Analyzing /Synthesizing multiple sources
Organizing/evaluating multiple sources
Reason & Sequence
Jun.29th.
Multilingual writers & ESL Challenges
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July 6th.




Writing the Research Essay
Finding Sources/Topic Narrowing
Locating Relevant Resources
Survey/Interview/Field Research
Documentation of Data/Recording
Topic Selection and Annotated
Bibliography due
Journal/Article Collection for
Research Topic
Spatt: Part 111 – pg. 183- 215
Field work for Data Collection:
Survey/Interview/Library
sources
Spatt: Part 111 – pg. 218- 277
Field work for Data Collection:
Survey/Interview/Library sources
Research design & methodology
(quantitative & qualitative
methods)
Spatt: Part 111 – pg. 218- 277
Research design &
methodology (quantitative &
qualitative methods).
Survey Instrument/paper due
4
8
Jul.13th.
Research Methods & Article Review-: Evaluating
Process and applications:
 Evaluation & Assessments of Research
Processes/research Paradigm
9
Jul. 20th.
th
Spatt: Part 111 – pg. 218277
Interview Protocol/paper due
Writing the Research Essay
Practice and models: Introductions:
10
Jul. 27 .
Final Process of conducting a Research study
Understanding library and on-line Sources.
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Aug. 3rd. User Reference Tools/Evaluations/feedbacks
End of class
Reviews on special topics
Research paper due
Final Presentation
Note: The Instructor reserves the right to change the syllabus.
18. Grading Schema/Scale:
A = 90-100%,
D = 60-69%
B = 80-89%,
F = 59 and below
C = 70-79%,
I = Incomplete
19. Other Rubrics will to be discussed in the class for more clarity.
Grading Weight (based on 1000 points possible)
Assignments
Possible Points Earned Points
Topic Selection and Annotated
100
Bibliography
Survey Instrument/paper
200
Interview Protocol/paper
200
Research Paper
300
Final Exam: Presentation
100
Attendance and participation
100
Total Points
1000
----------Note: All assignments will have due dates and late penalties. Failure to submit assignments on
time will result in the reduction of your grade by 10 points per 24-hour period following the due
date.
20. ADDITIONAL COURSE REQUIREMENTS: Readings: Assigned readings are to be
completed prior to the class session for which they are assigned.
CLASSROOM COURTESY: Exhibit courtesy to everyone in your class by being on time and
staying for the entire class time. Turn cell phones off and do not use them during class. Use cell
phone outside of the classroom during breaks. Limit your discussions to course content.
21. POLICY ON ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: The University proudly adheres to high
standards of intellectual, moral, ethical, and spiritual values. It entrusts each student with the
solemn obligation of preserving these standards. In light of revelation, reason, and custom of the
Christian community from which the University has grown, personal integrity in keeping with
New Testament standards is expected of all students. Academic dishonesty, including cheating
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and plagiarism, may be grounds for disciplinary action by the University and, at minimum, will
result in a grade of zero /F on that project.
22. Format of Course deliverables
All course assignment must be submitted in the class. All course deliverables must be
constructed in Times New Roman, 12pt font, double spaced, and submitted in Microsoft Word
format. The use of APA format prescribed in the Publication Manual of the American
Psychological Association 6th Edition is encouraged.
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