Project One

Page history last edited by Abigail Heiniger 12 years, 6 months ago

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P1 Rubric.docx

Project One: Interview (3-4 pages)

100 points total

Rough draft workshop: 17 September 2012 (bring TWO copies of paper and POST rough draft to wiki).
Conferences: 19 & 21 September 2012.
Final draft: 24 September 2012.

The first project will get us started in a semester-long investigation of the discourse communities in individual majors (focusing on their research questions and textual productions). The interview will require several steps and conclude with a 3-4 page paper. For the interview, students will begin by taking a critical look at their major/discipline/profession and inquiring what genres and forms of writing they may be required to do. The interview should result in a revised list of concrete sources and genres that students will use throughout the semester. The interview should also lead students to consider the types of questions and issues surfacing in their field and the construction of a research question about which they would like to find out more.

Project One Steps:

Declaration of major/discipline/profession that students will explore for the rest of the semester (regardless of whether or not students continue in this major at WSU). Due 5 September 2012.

See Heiniger, Abigail for example.

List of 5-7 sources (academic journals or other scholarly sources) related to the chosen major/discipline/profession. Due 7 September 2012.

Heiniger Sample List of Sources.pdf

Email to interviewee. Due to instructor 7 September 2012. Send revised email by 10 September 2012 (BC instructor).

ALL email correspondence for this course MUST be made via official WSU email account.
Heiniger Sample Email.pdf

List of questions for interview. Due 14 September 2012.

Sample Generic Interview Questions.pdf

Rough draft of Project One for Rough Draft Workshop. Due 17 September 2012.

Rough draft MUST include draft of potential research question.
Conferences for Project One will be held in MY OFFICE on 19 and 21 September.

Final draft of Project One due to WIKI page AND SafeAssign (on Blackboard). Due 24 September 2012.

For the final draft of Project One, students should compile a portfolio of all the assignments listed above (see example on the instructor’s wiki page).
The final paper should be based upon the material and information collected in the scaffolded assignments listed above.

N.B. All projects should use the formatting and citation guidelines specific to their major/discipline/profession. The major citation style guidelines can be found in your Wadsworth.

Purpose:

The purpose of Project One is to begin familiarizing students with their (potential) discourse communities through contact with individuals already immersed in those communities. In other words, this is about getting an understanding of your discourse community in practice (rather than in theory).
Questions for the interview (which will be developed in class and reviewed by the instructor BEFORE being submitted) should revolve around that discourse community. For example:

What sort of technology do you use on a regular basis?
What sort of written material, if any, do you use on a regular basis?
What sort of research topics are currently being explored (what is hot in this field right now)? What sort of research topics are you currently interested in?
How is research typically formatted in this field?
Where is research published?
Is there any particular journal you would specifically recommend for a student interested in your field?
You can supplement specific questions about the discourse community in your field with more general questions, too (but do not neglect questions about the discourse community, because that is your primary focus for Project One):

What is one thing you would say to someone interested in entering your field/becoming a---?
What is something that you did as a student that prepared you for your job now?
What is one thing you would look for in a potential employee/student/colleague?

Sample Generic Interview Questions.pdf

Developing the Paper:

Project One is a paper about your interview(s) with a professional in your (potential) field or major. However, it is NOT a transcript of that interview. Rather, it uses the material learned in the interview (possibly supplemented with outside reading) to describe the discourse community you want to enter. Project One should concluded with the research topic that you want to pursue for the remainder of this course.

Project One should answer the following questions:

What are the different elements or facets of the discourse community you want to enter?
How is research formatted and published in the discourse community you want to enter?
What is the research topic you are considering pursuing for this course?
What are the next steps in entering this discourse community and beginning your research?