Anthropology 1100 ONLINE

                                                                              Brian Pegg

Guidelines: Proposal, Research Project, Quizzes and Participation

These guidelines are intended to help you complete your class requirements with a minimum of effort and the highest mark possible.  If you do not understand the nature of the assigned work or what is expected, then make sure to contact me so I can help you!

**Very important: all work on these assignments needs to be individual**

1. Proposal

This assignment is simply a proposal for the topic of your research project.  It should be complete in a total of two pages, with text double spaced.  You have four questions to answer.  You should use full sentences for your answers, not point form.  This is Page 1.

For your topic, you are going to pick a small scale culture and complete some academic research related to the anthropological study of that culture.  Do not pick a culture that is historic only (for example, Vikings, Japanese Samurai, or the Inca), do not pick a large culture (for example the national cultures of China, Canada or India) and do not pick a culture that you identify with.  Pick something small, current, and new to you!

Suggested topic list – small-scale cultures – ANTH 1100

The list below gives a sample of some small scale cultures that have large amounts of research available for them.  You do not need to limit yourself to this list.  **It may be difficult to find reference material for some of these cultures.  This is a student responsibility and is part of the assignment.**

Subcultures or corporate groups

Small scale cultures

·    British     football     firms     (Soccer hooligans)· ·Inuit (Canada) Kwak’wakwakw (BC)
·    Intravenous drug users (Regional) ·    Sex workers (Regional) ·    Music  subcultures  (ie.  Goth,  Punk,· · ·Tsimshian (BC) Pashtun (Afghanistan) Mosuo (China)
Hip Hop, Metal)·Marshallese (Polynesia)
·    Hacker culture (ie Anonymous)·Maori (New Zealand)

Religious groups

·    Hutterites

·    Haitian Voodoo

·    Rastafari

·    Wicca

·    Balinese Hinduism

·    Sami (N Europe)

·    Yanomami (S America)

·    Roma (Gypsies) (Europe)

·    !Kung (Africa)

·    Nuer (Africa)

·    Bedouin (Asia)

Guidelines –How to get a good mark in my class                                                                            1

After you have picked a topic, find a single academic, ethnographic source related to it (hint: use the research databases accessible through the KPU library), then answer the questions below in your proposal by listing them in this order:

1.         What is the topic you have chosen?

Answer in one sentence.

2.         Why did you choose this topic?

This should take one or two sentences to answer.

3.         Why is this topic important to anthropology?

Use SPECIFIC here. Cite  the Paraphrase your    

This should be your longest answer, probably about 3 or 4 sentences in length. Be specific!       Vague   answers   will   get   a   lower   grade.

INFORMATION fr yo academic source source, do not quote.    

om  the  source  you  have  found  for  help

u have found in the text of your answers.

4.         How is this topic related to course content?

Find some material in the online lectures, slides, or textbook that relates to your topic and explain how it is related.  Two sentences here.  Again, use SPECIFIC INFORMATION from your source, and cite your source in text.

Last, list one source in proper APA format as a reference, after answering the questions above.

IMPORTANT:

Both your proposal and your research project MUST be based on academic, ethnographic sources.   Research projects that have no ethnographies may receive a mark of  ZERO. An ethnographic source is a first hand academic study.  It does not include journalism, travel blogs, or most video material.  Stick to peer reviewed journals.

You must also include a screen shot of the first page of your source in the assignment

(this is Page 2), and your assignment MUST be submitted as a PDF.

Key Points Checklist (proposal)

q  Find a single, academic, ethnographic source related to your topic

q  Answer the four questions about your topic on a single, double spaced page

q  Cite your source in APA format in the answers to your questions

q  List the source after your questions as a reference in APA format

q  Include a copy of the first page of your source following your page with questions

q  Compile the assignment into a single PDF document and submit via the course web page before the due date.

q  Page 1: answer to the four questions.  Page 2: screen shot of your source.

Score           /5 Referencing and Citations  
Positive
Reference (literature source) is listed in proper APA format and is correctly cited.     J  
Negative    
Incorrect formatting for references.       
Major problems – plagiarized.   L  
Control of Mechanics and Language             /5   Positive
Correct syntax and grammar                
Information is clear and concise. Statements are clear and easy to understand                                            
Conveys points in a minimum of words  
Negative  
Frequent awkward language                
Frequently uses needless words  
Too many quotations                            
Serious organizational problems - did not answer assigned questions L  
Poor word choice                                  
Assignment is incomplete  
Research             /10   Positive  
High quality research source.  
J   Research is recent and pertinent to topic  
Negative  
Source out of date   Inappropriate source: non-research website, secondary textbook,                
Source not ethnographic or encyclopaedia, travel book, film,           
anthropological L magazine, news site  
Critical Thinking              
/5   Positive
Uses anthropology concepts from class                                                      
Fully addressed required questions   Summarized articles are anthropological  
Negative  
Did not relate topic to anthropology      
Did not address questions L    
Source is not anthropological (does not analyze culture based on ethnographic information).    

Proposal Grading Rubric                                                Mark out of 25: Student Name:                                                               % Score:

2. RESEARCH PROJECT

You must write in your own words (paraphrase) and do your own literature search.

Do not copy/paste and do not collaborate with another student!!!!!

You will find six (or more) anthropological sources related to the small-scale culture you have chosen, then answer a series of questions about the culture you have picked, and a series of set questions about the sources you have found.  This is not an essay, you must answer the questions in the order they are given.

An ethnographic source is something written by a researcher who directly studied a culture or subculture by participating in an original field study.   Your textbook is an example of a secondary source, not an ethnography, as it is based not directly on the authors’ research, but upon research done by other anthropologists.   Information from your sources needs to be paraphrased.  This means that you cannot directly use someone else’s language.   Do not quote, paraphrase all material.   On the title page, provide a statement that the assignment is in your own writing, and sign it.

When doing your research, keep in mind that many ethnographic sources are quite old; you should avoid these and rely on modern sources.  This means if most of your sources are from before the 1980s, you will not do very well.  Also avoid modern sources that are simply a repeat of older material.   Your sources should be based on original research, meaning that the authors were conducting a first hand study not simply summarizing material that others have published.   Most non-research websites are like this, summarizing existing material, as are travel websites and most news media.   Keep in mind,  however,  that  some  academic  sources  are  also  literature  reviews  (like  your textbook) and are not based on an original field study.

Your review must be based on a minimum of six strong, academic sources.  Stay away from encyclopaedias, news media, blogs, youtube vids, National Geographic, non- research  films,  book  reviews  (including  ones  in  academic  journals),  uncredited  (no author)  websites  (especially  travel  websites),  journalism,  Wikipedia,  and  magazines. You will lose marks for using inappropriate sources like these.

Use the KPU library research databases and focus on finding peer reviewed journal articles.

When you have found your six sources, you will be summarizing their information by answering a set number of questions.  Answer these questions within a maximum of two pages of double spaced text written in full sentence form, which each question used as the heading of part of your text.  Mix the information from all six of your sources into the answers, and make sure that you cite all six sources.

SUMMARY QUESTIONS – answer these questions within 2 pages.

1. Why is this culture significant to anthropology?

Answer in one paragraph of 3 to 4 sentences.   Make an argument, using specific information from your sources, that study of this cultural group is important.  Cite your sources in your text in APA format.

2. How is this culture different from your own?

Answer this question in two paragraphs of 3 to 5 sentences each paragraph.  Use your sources to find specific information about food, religious practise, family structure, economics, or other factors and compare to how you experience your own life.  When you are talking about your own life, you do not need to cite any sources.  However, when you are writing about the culture you have selected, you must cite the sources where you got the information in APA format.  Do not quote, paraphrase the sources and use your own words.

3. How is this culture similar to your own?

Very close to the question above, but highlight the similarities instead of the differences. Answer this question in two paragraphs of 3 to 5 sentences each paragraph.  Use your sources to find specific information about food, religious practise, family structure, economics, or other factors and compare to how you live your own life.  When you are talking about your own life, you do not need to cite any sources.  However, when you are writing about the culture you have selected, you must cite the sources where you got the information in APA format.   Do not quote, paraphrase the sources and use your own words.

Following the summary questions, you will, on a single page for each source, list the reference for your source at the top of the page in APA format, then answer the following questions about each source on the same page.  These answers should be a single double space page in maximum length for each source, and need to be written in your own words.  You do not need to cite here as you are directly discussing only a single source.

SOURCE QUESTIONS

For each of the six sources you have found, answer these questions:

1.   How do you know this source is credible?  Provide specific detail from the source. Do not simply google the author(s) and paste that information, make your own argument as to why the source is credible.  You need to prove you read and understood the source.

2.   Which SPECIFIC concepts relating to the course (ANTH 1100) are used in the source?  Do not just list them, explain how they are used.  Provide specific detail from the source.  You need to prove you read and understood the source.

3.    What makes this an ethnographic source?   That means a first-hand academic / anthropological study.  Prove this source is ethnographic.  Provide specific detail from the source related to the methods of the study.   If its not ethnographic, say so and document how you know this.  You need to prove you read and understood the source.

After you have answered all the questions about each source, include a copy of the first page of each source and attach these pages to the assignment.  You will also include a title page listing your name, the course, your section, the topic of your research, and your student number.  Include on the title page the following statement:

“This assignment is in my own words only.  I have not copied text from a source and have not written this assignment in collaboration with another student.”  When putting the statement on your title page, think about whether it is true or not.

Your assignment should be submitted via the course web page as a PDF.

RESEARCH PROJECT CHECKLIST

q  Find six academic, ethnographic sources related to your topic

q  Summarize all six sources by answering the summary questions in a maximum of two double spaced pages. Cite all six of your sources (APA format).

q  For each source, answer the three source questions in the order they are given.  At the top of each source question page, list the source in APA format

q  Include a copy of the first page of each source

q  Include a title page – name, student #, course and section, and your authorship statement

q  Compile the assignment into a single PDF document and submit via the class web page by the due date

Outline:

Page 1 – Title page, with name, student number, course, assignment title, and the authorship statement.

Page 2-3  Answers to the three summary questions - MUST HAVE IN TEXT CITATIONS.

Page 4 – Answers to the source questions for your first source. Page 5 – Answers to the source questions for the second source. Page 6 – Answers to the source questions for the third source. Page 7 – Answers to the source questions for the fourth source. Page 8 – Answers to the source questions for the fifth source. Page 9 – Answers to the source questions for the sixth source.

Page 10 onwards – paste screen shots of the 1st page of each source.  Make sure there are screen shots for all your sources and that they are legible.

Score           /5 Referencing and Citations   Positive References (literature sources) are listed in correct APA format. J  
Negative     Incorrect formatting for references.       
Major problems – plagiarized. L  
Control of Mechanics and Language             /5   Positive   Correct syntax and grammar                
Data presented in clear, correct technical language Statements are clear and easy to understand                                            Conveys points in a minimum of words  
Negative  
Frequent awkward language                
Frequently uses needless words   Too many quotations                            
Serious organizational problems - did not answer assigned questions L   Poor word choice                                  
Assignment is incomplete L  
Research             /10   Positive Peer reviewed journals form majority of research                                            
Critical sources present   Research is recent and pertinent          
Number of sources exceeds the minimum  
Negative  
Too few sources                                    
Sources out of date   Inappropriate sources: non-research websites, secondary textbooks,            
Sources are not ethnographic or encyclopaedias, travel books, films,     anthropological L magazines, news sites L  
Critical Thinking               /5   Positive Uses anthropology concepts from class                                                      
Fully addressed required questions J   Summarized articles are anthropological  
Negative
Does not state relevance of article to anthropology                                         
Did not address questions L   Summarized articles are not anthropological (do not analyze culture based on ethnographic information). L    

Research project grading rubric                              Mark out of 25: Student Name:                                                               % Score:

3. Participation

The participation grade is a subjective evaluation of your commitment and effort to the class.  Points towards participation can be earned in several ways.

Over the course of the semester you will be asked to post comments, questions, or introduce yourself on the course web page.  There are forums set up to accommodate this. Make sure to contribute thoughtful content to the class forums.  Avoid emojis and slang, try to adhere to a professional standard of online communication.  In addition, there may be mini-lab activities that you can complete at home or online, simply complete these activities (they are designed to be easy!) and prove you did it and that will help you.

It is also possible to lose participation marks!   Obviously if you cheat on a test or plagiarize an assignment, that is not participating in the course and your participation grade will go down.   If you post nasty comments on the course web page your participation grade can go down.   If you miss quizzes and assignments without a documented medical reason, your participation grade can go down.

4. Quizzes

There are quizzes throughout the semester on most weeks, with occasional breaks (for instance, there is no quiz the week your research project is due).   Each quiz will be primarily multiple choice questions with occasional short answer or other format.  The quiz will become available during set times weekly, and will be open for a limited time to attempt.  One attempt is permitted for each quiz.  Content for the quizzes can be drawn from the course materials, including readings, video lectures, annotated slides, or course documents like the course outline.

Since it is an online class, you are welcome to have your notes and text available to you while you are taking the quiz.  You are not permitted to collaborate with other students while taking the quiz.  If you miss a quiz, you will need a documented medical reason for an exemption or re-schedule.

Since you can have all your materials available while you take the quiz, it may be tempting to simply ignore the readings and lecture material until you take the quiz, then look up the answers.  This will be an unsuccessful tactic as the time is too limited during the attempt for this to work well.  Therefore, keep up with the class material and then use your notes / text to confirm your already learned knowledge!