Abstract
Reviewing the existing literature is a key step in developing a research project. Yet, courses rarely focus on how to do this effectively. As a result, undergraduate students often produce an awkward document that summarizes one article at a time until they reach the number of required citations. In this collaborative classroom activity, students get...
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Details
- Subject Area(s):
- Research Methods, Teaching and Learning in Sociology
- Resource Type(s):
- Class Activity
- Class Level(s):
- Any Level
- Class Size(s):
- Any
Usage Notes
This activity could be used in any subject course. The activity itself fits easily within a single class period (40-55 minutes), and can be adjusted depending on the amount of time spent brainstorming in Step 1 and organizing in Step 2. It can be adapted to online asynchronous classes by having students brainstorm what they know about vampires (or...
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Learning Goals and Assessments
Learning Goal(s):
- Goal 1: Students come to understand the structure and purpose of a literature review.
- Goal 2: Students demonstrate proficiency in employing the techniques learned in this activity to organize an outline and translate their outline into prose.
Goal Assessment(s):
- Assessment 1: Students contribute to the collaborative construction of a literature review about zombies or vampires in class. Indicators of success may include: (1) student verbal contributions focus on information about vampires/zombies, instead of on movies/books/TV shows, (2) student suggestions for thematic sections in Step 2 demonstrate awareness of...
- Assessment 2: During Steps 2 & 3, students create a thematic outline for a literature review on zombies/vampires and a prose paragraph that incorporates information from multiple sources related to a single theme. These in-class assignments can be assessed using the following criteria:
o To what extent does a student’s outline demonstrate their...
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