May 15, 2017

Monday May 15, 2017

Circle: What are you most excited about or nervous about next year?

Ted Talk: How to avoid death by Powerpoint


Presentation Project:

To help you complete the best presentation you can, work on the presentation will be broken into multiple assignments. This schedule is designed to allow you to tame the presentation Beast in a manageable way, and get useful feedback throughout the process. Also, there’s good data showing that externally-imposed deadlines maximize the quality of one’s work (Ariely & Wertenbroch, 2002).

1. Initial Presentation Ideas – 5% Due: Monday May 15th. You should state each idea as clearly as possible in a short, one-paragraph abstract. Make sure to (a) describe the topic generally with relevant background and (b) articulate the specific question that would be addressed by your presentation. In addition, you should (c) include at least one reference to a published scientific paper (in APA format) that is directly relevant to your topic. On Monday, I will meet with each of you individually to discuss your proposed topics.

Keep in mind that you will be devoting quite a bit of time and energy to your presentation. That being the case, it’s critical that you choose a topic of interest to you. Your proposed topics should be ones that you find captivating enough to discuss with classmates, think about in your free time, and mull over excitedly late at night when you should be sleeping.

2. Annotated bibliography – 5% Due: Wednesday May 17th.

The goal here is to facilitate a solid review of the literature in your area of interest. Getting a sense of the literature will help you hone your question, form a possible thesis statement and think about the structure of your presentation. The bibliography should include a minimum of 3 research articles. (We will be going over how to research with Ms. Lance in the library Monday) For each article you must 1) briefly summarize the findings, 2) identify main theoretical points of each article, and 3) describe how each paper relates back to your topic/thesis. Finally, in one paragraph, you should summarize what the articles collectively tell you and what this evidence allows you to say.

3. Outline AND Peer Review – 15% Due: Friday, May 19th

This installment of your presentation will allow you to start translating your ideas into the form in which they will ultimately appear in your presentation – and will also allow you to get feedback on your presentation early in the process. This draft should include an abstract, as well as an outline of the full presentation, which should make the logical flow and argument of the presentation clear. Break the presentation down into sections and list the main points to be made within each section.

4. Peer review – 10% Due: In class Monday, May 23rd

You will present presentation drafts with a partner in the class, and provide constructive feedback in written comments for in-class discussion with your partner.

7. Final presentation– 25% Due: Wednesday, May 23rd, 25th and 30th. Presentation Rubric

You must submit a copy of your presentation to me with  references even if you are absent from class that day to receive full credit. (p.toohey@msad17.org)

WHAT IS AN ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY?

An annotated bibliography is a list of citations to books, articles, and documents. Each citation is followed by a brief (usually about 150 words) descriptive and evaluative paragraph, the annotation. The purpose of the annotation is to inform the reader of the relevance, accuracy, and quality of the sources cited.

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ANNOTATIONS VS. ABSTRACTS

Abstracts are the purely descriptive summaries often found at the beginning of scholarly journal articles or in periodical indexes. Annotations are descriptive and critical; they expose the author's point of view, clarity and appropriateness of expression, and authority.

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THE PROCESS

Creating an annotated bibliography calls for the application of a variety of intellectual skills: concise exposition, succinct analysis, and informed library research.

First, locate and record citations to books, periodicals, and documents that may contain useful information and ideas on your topic. Briefly examine and review the actual items. Then choose those works that provide a variety of perspectives on your topic.

Cite the book, article, or document using the appropriate style.

Write a concise annotation that summarizes the central theme and scope of the book or article. Include one or more sentences that (a) evaluate the authority or background of the author, (b) comment on the intended audience, (c) compare or contrast this work with another you have cited, or (d) explain how this work illuminates your bibliography topic.

SAMPLE ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY ENTRY FOR A JOURNAL ARTICLE

Waite, Linda J., Frances Kobrin Goldscheider, and Christina Witsberger. "Nonfamily Living and the Erosion of Traditional Family Orientations Among Young Adults." American Sociological Review 51.4 (1986): 541-554. Print.

The authors, researchers at the Rand Corporation and Brown University, use data from the National Longitudinal Surveys of Young Women and Young Men to test their hypothesis that nonfamily living by young adults alters their attitudes, values, plans, and expectations, moving them away from their belief in traditional sex roles. They find their hypothesis strongly supported in young females, while the effects were fewer in studies of young males. Increasing the time away from parents before marrying increased individualism, self-sufficiency, and changes in attitudes about families. In contrast, an earlier study by Williams cited below shows no significant gender differences in sex role attitudes as a result of nonfamily living.

Activity: Develop a question or thesis for your presentation.