Texas A&M - Central Texas

LSK 500Interdisciplinarity

Fall 2014

Instructor: Allen H. Redmon, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of English

Office:Founder’s Hall, 217-P

Phone:254.519.5750

Email:

Office Hours:By appointment. The best way to contact me is through my TAMUCT email account. Messages sent to my TAMUCT account will usually receive a response within 24 hours if not much sooner. Phone calls will be returned within one week. Emails sent through Blackboard will not normally receive a response.

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Course Description

This course presents students with an opportunity to research, write, and present about how paradigm shifts and paradigm development contribute to the emergence of disciplines and the creation of knowledge. Prerequisite: Graduate Standing.

Learning Objectives of Course

Students who successfully complete this course should be able to…

  • Define interdisciplinarity
  • Discuss the differences between disciplinary, multi-disciplinary, and interdisciplinary research
  • Examine the values and assumptions of critical findings
  • List the steps involved in sound interdisciplinary research
  • Address the complexities involved in interdisciplinary research
  • Construct a meaningful interdisciplinary study

Required Textbooks

Repko, Allen F. Introduction to Interdisciplinary Studies. Los Angeles: SAGE

Publications, 2014.

Repko, Allen F., William H. Newell, and Rick Szostak, eds. Case Studies in

Interdisciplinary Research. Los Angeles: SAGE Publications, 2012.

Suggested Readings may also be posted at the discretion of the instructor

Technology Requirements

This class will have some online components. As such, you will need reliable and regular access to a computer and the Internet.

Blackboard supports the most common operating systems:

PC: Windows 7, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 2000,

Mac: Mac OS 10.6 “Snow Leopard®”, Mac OS 10.5 “Leopard®”, Mac OS 10.4

“Tiger®”

Check browser and computer compatibility by following the “Browser Check” link on the TAMU-CTBlackboard logon page. (tamuct.blackboard.com) This is a CRITICAL step as these settings are important for trying to see online components.

For technological or computer issues, students should contact the TAMU-CT Blackboard Support Services 24 hours a day, 7 days a week:

Support Portal:

Online chat (through the support portal at:

Phone: (855)-661-7965

For issues related to course content and requirements, contact your instructor.

Technology issues are not an excuse for missing a course requirement – make sure your computer is configured correctly and address issues well in advance of deadlines.

Course Calendar

The anticipated activities for each week are as follows:

Week 1 Course Introductions (Chapter 1 and Conclusion, 2012); Investigatory Report

Week 2 Chapters 1 and 2 (2014); Chapters 3 and 4 (2014)

Week 3 Chapters 5 and 6 (Repko 2014); Book Reviews

Week 4 Chapter 7 (2014) and Chapter 2 (2012); Chapter 8(2014) and Chapter 3 (2012)

Week 5 Chapter 9 (2014) and Chapter 4 (2012); Chapter 10 (2014) and Chapter 5 (2012)

Week 6Chapters 11 and 12 (2014); Opening Presentation (Steps 1-3)

Week 7Chapters 7 and 8 (2012); Chapters 9 and 10 (2012)

Week 8Oral Presentations (steps 4-8); Final Paper (steps 1-10)

This schedule is subject to change at the discretion of the professor. All changes will be announced in Blackboard.Failure to read a schedule change does not excuse one from the implications of that change.

Assignments

This course has six categories of assignments:

  1. Reader Reports: Students offer a formal response to and refection over ten assigned readings. Reader reports will exist in four paragraphs (no paragraph can be more than 200 words).
  2. Paragraph one will provide an overview for both assigned chapters (or all three chapters when appropriate as it will be in week 6). The goal is not to summarize the readings; rather, it is to synthesize in a meaningful way the variety of ideas contained in the chapters.
  3. Paragraph two will discuss that which was familiar in the reading (ideas that have been heard before). Again, the goal is not to restate what you have read; instead, it is to identify an idea in our reading that you have heard before, where you heard, and how it was used in that place.
  4. Paragraph three will identify false friends in the reading (ideas that seem familiar but that take a different point of emphasis in our reading). This paragraph is like paragraph two in that you will compare what you are coming to know to what you are learning. The difference is that you want to consider how an idea that sounded familiar turned out not to be.
  5. Paragraph four will relate some idea discussed in the assignment (ideally, something from paragraph one, two, or three) within one’s research agenda. This agenda can be something outside the class, and it probably will be during the first two or three weeks. Eventually, though, one would do well to relate the ideas from our readings to one’s class project.

A Reader Report will be due by the end of the day on the following dates:

10/29Chapters 1 and 2, 2014

11/1Chapters 3 and 4, 2014

11/5Chapters 5 and 6, 2014

11/12Chapter 7, 2014; Chapter 2, 2012

11/15Chapter 8, 2014; Chapter 3, 2012

11/19Chapter 9, 2014; Chapter 4, 2012

11/22Chapter 10, 2014; Chapter 5, 2012

11/26Chapter 11 and 12, 2014; Chapter 6, 2012

12/3Chapters 7 and 8, 2012

12/6Chapters 9 and 10, 2012

All reader reports will be submitted to the appropriate forum on the Discussion Board. Essays that are submitted after the deadline or in the wrong place will forfeit all 10 possible points.

  1. Investigative Report: Students will spend the first week investigating the academic community that has formed around interdisciplinary studies and will report their findings in the Investigative Report. This report will exist in three parts: (no section can be more than 800 words).
  2. Section one will identify proposed scholarly definitions of closely related terms (disciplinary, multi-, cross-, trans-, and interdisciplinary studies). This discussion should be initiated with a meaningful argument, it should continue with at least one scholarly definition and explanation for each of the terms above mentioned, and ending with a statement that articulates some conclusion from these various definitions.
  3. Section two will investigate the stated goals of interdisciplinary studies. One could accomplish this goal in a variety of ways. I would like you to review the websites of a number of interdisciplinary graduate programs and to state the self-identified goals of these programs. This section should present goals from at least five programs. Again, the discussion should be framed by a meaningful argument in the first sentence and conclusion in the last sentence.
  4. Section three will identify and investigate the particular point of focus for five upcoming conferences with an interest in interdisciplinary efforts. The following link reports on upcoming conferences in interdisciplinary studies: The goal in this section is to, first,document the range of interests these calls exhibit, and, then, note their overlap. As with the last two sections, you should begin this section with a compelling argument; you should end it with a statement that brings the purpose of the discussion to a point.

The Investigative Report will be submitted to the appropriate forum on the Discussion Board by the end of the day on 10/25. Reports that are submitted after the deadline or in the wrong place will forfeit all 100 points.

  1. Book Review: Students will select, secure, and review one of the books mentioned in the Preface of Repko (xv-xxv, 2012). Reviews will appraise their book in five ways: 1) what does the author mean by “interdisciplinary”; 2) how does the author distinguish disciplinary from interdisciplinary efforts; 3) to what extent does the author create common ground between disciplines or other notions of interdisciplinarity; 4) what does the author state as the goal of interdisciplinary efforts; 5) what was your overall opinion of the book?

The Book Review assignment will exist in two parts (both worth 50 points for a total of 100 points). Part one will involve the posting of your review to the Discussion Board in Blackboard. Posts should copy and past the contents of a Word document into a thread. These posts will be due by the end of the day on 11/8. Part two of this assignment will require students to, first, query their peers about the book they reviewed (one query for every peer), and, then, to respond to each query over the book you reviewed. These initial queries are due by the end of the day on 11/9. Your responses are due by the end of the day on 11/10.

Reviews or responses that are posted late or in the wrong place will forfeit all possible points for that part (50 for the original post and 50 for the response).

  1. Initial Presentation: Students will create a compelling PowerPoint presentation that performs the first four steps of the interdisciplinary research model Repko develops (see xx, 2012, for the most concise presentation of this model). The initial presentation does not need to follow the order of these four steps, but it does need to perform each of them. Specifically, each initial presentation needs to 1) state the problem or focus question, 2) justify using an interdisciplinary approach, 3) identify relevant disciplines, and 4) conduct a literature search.

The Initial Presentation is worth 100 points in all. Content will contribute 80 points (20 for each step); presentation will contribute the last 20 points. The initial presentation will be posted in the Discussion Board of Blackboard by the end of the day on 11/29. Presentations that are posted in the wrong place or posted after the deadline will forfeit all 100 points.

  1. Final Presentation: Students will create a compelling PowerPoint presentation that performs steps 5-8 of the interdisciplinary research model Repko develops. As was the case with the initial presentation, the final presentationdoes not need to follow the order of these four steps, but it does need to perform each of these tasks. Specifically, each final presentation needs to 1) demonstrate adequacy in each relevant discipline, 2) analyze the problem and evaluate each insight into it, 3) identify conflicts between insights and their sources, and 4) create or discover common ground.

The Final Presentation is worth 100 points in all. Content will contribute 80 points (20 for each step); presentation will contribute the last 20 points. The initial presentation will be posted in the Discussion Board of Blackboard by the end of the day on 12/9. Presentations that are posted in the wrong place or posted after the deadline will forfeit all 100 points.

  1. Final Paper: Students will prepare a formal essay over the topic of their choice able to perform the ten step interdisciplinary model Repko develops. The final paper will be submitted to my TAMUCT account () as a Word-Compatible document by the end of the day on 12/13. The paper should be formatted according to MLA. Failure to format your document properly will forfeit 100 of the 500 possible points. Papers that are late will forfeit all possible points.

Grading Rubric and Conversion

Final grades will be awarded thusly:

Reader Reports (x10)100 points

Investigative Report100 points

Book Review100 points

Initial Presentation100 points

Final Presentation100 points

Final Paper500 points

1000 points

Final grades will be computed according to the following scale:

A= 900-1000 points

B= 800-899 points

C= 700-799 points

D= 600-699 points

F= 590 or fewer points

Students will earn the letter grade their real point total designates. Point totals that are close to the next letter grade do not warrant the next letter grade. Please take every assignment seriously to avoid the frustration of just missing a grade.

Drop Policy

If you discover that you need to drop this class, you must go to the Records Office and ask for the necessary paperwork. Professors cannot drop students. The Records Office will provide a deadline by which the form must be returned, completed and signed. Once you return the signed form to the Records Office and wait 24 hours, you must go into Duck Trax and confirm that you are no longer enrolled. Should you still be enrolled, follow-up with the records office immediately. You are to attend class until the procedure is complete to avoid penalty for absence. Should you miss the deadline or fail to follow the procedure, you will receive an F in the course.

Incomplete Policy

In some instances, life altering events occur after the drop deadline has passed. The majority of the class is complete, but the last assignment or two cannot be completed due to an unexpected occurrence. Should you find yourself in such a situation after the drop date, please see your instructor immediately to see if an incomplete is possible.

Academic Integrity

Texas A&M University - Central Texas expects all students to maintain high standards of personal and scholarly conduct. Students found responsible of academic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary action. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, cheating on an examination or other academic work, plagiarism, collusion, and the abuse of resource materials. The faculty member is responsible for initiating action for each case of academic dishonesty and report the incident to the Associate Director of Student Conduct. More information can be found at

Disability Support Services

If you have or believe you have a disability and wish to self-identify, you can do so by providing documentation to the Disability Support Coordinator. Students are encouraged to seek information about accommodations to help assure success in their courses. Please contact Vanessa Snyder at (254) 501-5836 or visit Founder's Hall 114. Additional information at

Tutoring

Tutoring is available to all TAMUCT students, both on-campus and online. Subjects tutored include Accounting, Finance, Statistics, Mathematics, and Writing (APA). Tutors are available at the Tutoring Center in Founder's Hall, Room 204, and also in the Library in the North Building. Visit click "Tutoring Support" for tutor schedules and contact info. If you have questions, need to schedule a tutoring session, or if you're interested in becoming a tutor, contact Academic Support Programs at 254-501-5830 or by .

Chat live with a tutor 24/7 for almost any subject on your computer! Tutor.com is an online tutoring platform that enables TAMU-CT students to log-in and receive FREE online tutoring and writing support. This tool provides tutoring in Mathematics, Writing, Career Writing, Chemistry, Physics, Biology, Spanish, Calculus, and Statistics. To access Tutor.com, click on

Library Services

Information literacy focuses on research skills which prepare individuals to live and work in an information-centered society. Librarians will work with students in the development of critical reasoning, ethical use of information, and the appropriate use of secondary research techniques. Help may include, yet is not limited to: exploration of information resources such as library collections and services, identification of subject databases and scholarly journals, and execution of effective search strategies. Library Resources are outlined and accessed at:

Instructor reserves the right to amend this syllabus at any time