HPER 3320 (Spring 2011)
Research and Writing in Recreation Dr. Jim Lewis HPER 4024-20 (269) 387-2697 E-Mail: Spring 2010 MWF 11:00-11:50, Room 3016 |
Text (Required): MyCoursePack Readings for HPER 3320 Available at the WMU Bookstore
Purpose:
This course is designed to instruct the student on research in the
fields of recreation, leisure, and sport. It will introduce students to the
different types of research and research methodologies commonly used in the
recreation profession. This course will also emphasize professional writing as
it is used in the field of parks and recreation. The course will emphasize, but
is not limited to writing assignments including reports, research papers,
research proposals, year-end reports, and other types of writing that are
required of a successful professional in parks and recreation.
Objectives
In accordance
with the standards of the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA), upon
completion of this course, a student will:
Have
the ability to apply basic principles of research and data analysis related to
recreation, park resources, and leisure services.
Understand
evaluation and the process of evaluation.
Understand
the influence of current trends and issues on the field or recreation. In addition, a student will understand
how to research and report on issues in the field.
Understand
the process of Needs Identification and Assessment.
Instruction:
The student
will develop writing abilities to demonstrate the baccalaureate-level criteria:
technical referencing in the style of the American Psychological Association
(APA), the ability to analyze, synthesize and evaluate points of interest,
sustain the development of a point of view over the span of 500 words, signal
unfolding of a written passage by the use of organized paragraphs, and
traditional devices, conventional use of capitalization and punctuation, a high
standard of grammar, syntax and spelling of written English.
Evaluation:
Written Work:
All papers in
this class will follow APA Style and an purchasing an APA Style Book might be a good idea for this class.
All written work will be graded according to the
following criteria:
|
Style
|
Is the style of the paper
appropriate to the subject? For example, research papers follow a certain
style (will be presented in class). Does your paper follow that style? Does
the paper follow APA Style? |
10%
|
|
Vocabulary
|
Is the vocabulary of the
paper appropriate to the audience for the paper? For example, if you are
writing a paper for a Community Park Board, does the vocabulary reflect that?
Is your paper appropriate for the audience that will read the paper? |
30%
|
|
Grammar
|
This is an increasingly
important issue in writing, especially with the use of word processing.
Reading and proofreading are essential in this class. In fact, many of the
assignments will be proofread by fellow students. All the word processing
packages have grammar and spell check, yet very often spell check does not
assist you. For example computer spell check does not differentiate between
the word "there" and "their" yet they mean different
things. All written work should be carefully proofread for grammar and
punctuation. Please get used to using your grammar and spell check tools and
re-reading your paper. |
40%
|
|
Mechanics
and Organization |
Written work should be well
organized. In addition, well written papers will have a flow to them. The
reader should be able to able to understand the paper and the topic. You
should get into the habit of outlining your written assignments and writing a
rough and final draft from a detailed outline. You will be required to
complete a detailed outline for most of the written assignments in this
class. |
20%
|
Attendance and Expectations:
1. I expect you to be
in class. All assignments are due in class. (You must be in class to hand in an assignment). Late assignments are not accepted. One unexcused absence will result in the loss of a letter grade.
Three unexcused absences will result in an "F" as a final grade.
Tardiness to class will not be tolerated. If you are persistently tardy, you
will lose a letter grade. Tardy to class more than 3 times will result in
failure. (You will only be excused for athletic contests-WMU Athletics, Family
Situations, or Documented Illness. Just because you call does not mean that you
will be excused from class.)
Attendance Policy: Every day you will be given five (5) points for attendance. If you miss class (unexcused) you will lose 10 points. If I see you texting or using your cell phone in class you will lose your attendance points for the day, plus be docked another 5 points (total of 10 points). At the end of the semester you will know 30% of your grade from attendance. Calling or e-mailing to say you will not be in class does not excuse you!
2. Because this is a
Baccalaureate Writing Class there will be a substantial amount of writing
during the semester. All of your writing will be graded on style, vocabulary,
grammar, mechanics and organization as outlined above. In addition, your papers
will cover many different topics, many of which you will choose. A common
question often asked by students is "how many pages does this paper have
to be?". Please do not ask this question. The length of a paper is
determined by how well you cover the topic.
3. It is only possible
to improve your writing by working on your writing. As such, it doesn't do you
any good to hand in a paper, have it corrected and receive a grade and not have
the opportunity to improve your paper. All of the assignments will be graded,
returned, and you will then be required to re-submit your paper.
4. WMU provides a
valuable resource to students through the Writing Center. The Writing Center is
part of the Center for Academic Support Programs and is available for all
students (http://www.wmich.edu/casp/writing_center.htm). Please take advantage
of this valuable resource. At the same time however, please do not go the
writing center the day before a paper is due and expect them to help you rush
through a paper. Please use the center correctly.
5. Information about
this class as well as the syllabus and the assignments is always available on
the world wide web. The class web page will have links to writing topics,
research help, the Academic Support Programs, and other topics. In addition, I
am available to help whether you would like to set up an appointment or talk to
me after class. The best method to contact me is via e-mail from my web page,
or using the address
6. Get accustomed to referring to this page http://owl.english.purdue.edu. It is the online writing lab at Purdue University and is an excellent source for writing.
7. Using your cell and texting in class is RUDE and will not be tolerated. If I see you texting in class you will be asked to leave and assigned an absence for that day.
Overall Course Grading
All written work
will be graded according to criteria discussed earlier in this syllabus. That
written work will comprise 50% of your grade. Grading Break Down:
|
Topic |
Percentage |
|
Written Work |
65%
|
|
Attendance/Discussion |
20%
|
| Exams, Quizzes | 15% |
Writing Resource Links for PEPR 3320
HPER 3320 Spring 2011, Final Exam Wednesday, 4/27 10:15am
|
|
http:.//homepages.wmich.edu/~lewisj/332syl06.html
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