ALBANY STATE
UNIVERSITY
ALBANY, GEORGIA
MASTER OF PUBLIC
ADMINISTRATION PROGRAM
PADM 5502 COURSE
SYLLABUS
Fall Semester,
2009
Course Title: Research Design and
Data Analysis
Course Number: PADM 5502
Class Meetings: Thursdays 5:30 to 8:00 p.m.
Location: Simmons
Hall, Room 204
Instructor: Dr. Bruce
Neubauer, Simmons, Room 307
229-430-4872,
bruce.neubauer@asurams.edu
Office Hours: Daily 9:30 to 11:30
a.m. and by appointment.
Course
Home Page: http://www.robertcat.net/fall2009/padm5502/index.html
Textbooks: O'Sullivan, Elizabeth, Gary R. Rassel and Maureen Berner.
Research Methods for Public Administration, 5th.
http://www.pearsonhighered.com/educator/product/Research-Methods-for-Public-Administrators/9780321431370.page
Houghton, Peggy M. and Houghton, Timothy J. APA the Easy Way
ISBN 0923568557
Supplementary Readings: Additional materials and/or Web sites will be assigned.
COURSE PREREQUISITE
Successful completion of PADM
5500 – Computer Applications and Management of Information or course waiver is
required.
This
course is designed to acquaint students with the assumptions, concepts and
methods for quantitative and qualitative scientific inquiry and basic data
analysis techniques useful in public administration and nonprofit management
research. It introduces students to the
methodological tools administrators and policy analysts employ to conduct
scientific social research.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
The focus of this course is upon research design, hypothesis writing,
survey research instrument design, strategic sampling, reading and interpreting
public administration research reports, and use of software to analyze data and
test hypotheses. Data analysis depends
upon use of the syntax editor in SPSS software.
Upon completion of the course students will be able to assess the
quality of research done by others, and able to design survey research
projects, and perform preliminary data analysis. Students will be aware of the reasons for
"human subjects" review of prospective research projects and aware of
both ethical and practical implications of major kinds of social and evaluative
research. The course may include
introductory explanations of relational databases, social network analysis and
business process design and research, if time permits. The essential objective is help students
prepare for their capstone course which is likely to be a survey research
project, and to be able to analyze quantitative data using SPSS and appropriate
statistical techniques.
MEANS OF COURSE DELIVERY
The presentation and discussion of course content will be accomplished
using a hybrid model of traditional classroom meetings and asynchronous online
learning. This means of delivery of
educational services reflects Goal Four of Albany State University's strategic
plan, which is to provide and maintain state of the art information technology
that will support the University's mission and goals, including instructional
excellence.
The means by which course objectives will be achieved include readings,
classroom presentations by instructor and students, classroom discussion, a
course term paper, computer lab assignments and assessment by
examinations. Each course activity and
deliverable is intended to contribute to the technical insights relevant to the
responsibilities of non-technical public and nonprofit managers.
TEACHING METHOD
The course will include both theory and application. The class will meet regularly in the
traditional classroom. There will be
substantial use of the Internet to supplement traditional learning methods
through a blended (hybrid) approach to learning. This course will employ techniques to
integrate a variety of instructional techniques, encourage independent
learning, and use interactive learning methods.
CLASS ATTENDANCE POLICY
Class attendance is mandatory at Albany State University. The ASU attendance policy states that: “All
students are expected to be in class on time for all class meetings. Attendance begins the first day of class and
all students are expected to remain in class for the entire class period unless
prior arrangements have been made with the instructor. Absenteeism cannot exceed the credit hours
for the course. This means if a class
meets two times per week, a student cannot miss class more than two times
during the semester without suffering a substantial penalty. Excessive absences may result in the
instructor lowering the grade earned by one letter grade, e.g. “A” to “B” or
“D” to “F”. Students should contact the
instructor in advance regarding any foreseen instances of absence, tardiness,
or early departure. Students must
provide valid documentation by the next class meeting for excused absence.
CLASS AND COURSE CANCELLATION/MODIFICATION
POLICY
The instructor reserves the right to make
modifications to the course syllabus and requirements that are in the best
interest of the learning environment.
Students will be notified in a timely manner of any such
modifications. Moreover, in the event a
class meeting needs to be cancelled, the instructor will make every effort to
notify students via email or telephone.
The topics missed during this class will be rescheduled or an
independent class assignment given.
UNIVERSITY WRITING REQUIREMENT
Albany State University has a writing reinforcement policy. Writing is integral to teaching and learning
in all disciplines. Writing activities
in this course will be evaluated and may include a variety of in-class and
out-of-class writing assignments and forms of essay writing required on
examinations. The APA Writing Style
(current edition) is used for this course.
UNIVERSITY'S
COMMUNICATIONS POLICY STATEMENT
“ASU RAMmail account is the university’s official means of
electronic communication with students. Students are required to use the ASU
website (www.asurams.edu)
and RAMmail for important university’s official
information on financial aid, current class schedule, registration holds,
account balances, etc. In order to communicate with students by other means as
needed, each student is required to provide the university with his/her current
telephone number(s) and mailing address via BannerWeb.“
INTEGRATION OF TECHNOLOGY
Technology is an integral part of this course. The course Web site and other computer-related resources will be used extensively to the degree to which the resources become available during the semester.
SEXUAL HARRASSMENT STATEMENT
Albany State University does not condone sexual
harassment.
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY STATEMENT
Albany State University is an equal
opportunity agency of the State of Georgia and as such does not discriminate
against students on the basis of race, national origin, religion, disability,
gender, sexual orientation, or family status.
DISABILITY AND ACCESS STATEMENT
Albany State University offers the Disability Student Services Program to
ensure equal opportunity education to all students with disabilities. All eligible students with disabilities must
have equal access to student programs, facilities, activities, and services. Students may contact the ASU Disability Student
Services Program at (229) 430-4667 for appropriate disclosure and accommodation
procedures.
CLASSROOM STANDARDS
Students are to adhere to all university policies on attendance,
punctuality, make up tests, plagiarism/cheating, withdrawal from class,
incomplete grades and final examinations. Failure to participate in the course
plus failure to formally withdraw as per University policies and schedules will
result in a grade of F. Please refer to
the student handbook, graduate catalog, and any departmental and program
guidelines. In class, respectful and
professional conduct is required towards all.
Use of cell phones and ringing of cell phones and pagers in the
classroom are not allowed. As per University policies, children, infants and
other persons not enrolled in the course are not allowed to attend classes. Audio and/or video recordings of class
sessions are not permitted. Students may
not sell notes of class presentations. A
grade of Incomplete will not be given except as intended by University
policies. An Incomplete will only be
given if the student is otherwise passing the course at the end of the semester
and has one assignment that cannot be completed during the semester for reasons
beyond the student's control. I do not
consider failure to complete the term project to be the basis of an Incomplete
grade because the assignment is known from the first day of class.
PRELIMINARY
DESCRIPTION OF TERM PROJECT
The individual term project in this course is a partially completed MPA capstone paper written using APA style, including your completed application for IRB expedited review of your research proposal. Your paper will include the following sections shown below. To earn full credit for the individual term project, the paper must be formally written using APA style; the proposal must be doable and make sense; the research topic must be appropriate to Public Administration; the research question must be well-defined; the method of sampling must be reasonable and well-explained; the instrument must be complete and make good sense; there must be a research model that is reflected in the instrument and other parts of your paper; your hypotheses must be well written in the form taught in class; the literature review must include at least ten (10) appropriate peer-reviewed journal articles; the literature review must be your own flow of thought and you must correctly cite the literature in your References using correct APA style.
This is to be your own ideas and your own writing. Use APA style. Do not plagiarize resources. "Mashups" are not acceptable. The work you turn in must be your own work. Your topic must be different from other topics selected by other students.
There are three installments of the individual term project. Due dates for each installment are in the course calendar, available on the course web site. Each installment will be graded. If your grade on the third installment is higher than the average of your three grades on the term project, then the grade on each of the three installments will become the same as the grade on the third installment.
Each installment is cumulative. It is important that you refactor all previous sections with each installment. This is not a simple or small assignment that you can "pull out" in a brief period of time. I will help you during the semester but I do not intend to help you work a miracle at the end of the semester. I do not intend to give any incomplete grades for lack of a term paper. You have the assignment on "day one." Day one is the time to begin. The lack of completion of the term project does not constitute a valid reason for a grade of Incomplete.
Installments are as follows. Due dates are in the course calendar, available on the Web as part of the course Web site.
Installment 1:
· a cover page with the usual information (complete and formal)
· INTRODUCTION (complete and formal)
· LITERATURE REVIEW (stub)
· RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND RESEARCH MODEL (complete and formal)
· METHODOLOGY, POPULATION AND SAMPLING STRATEGY (incomplete)
· HYPOTHESES (complete and formal)
· FINDINGS (stub)
· DISCUSSION (stub)
· CONCLUSION (stub)
· REFERENCES (stub)
· APPENDIX 1: IRB FORMS (stub)
· APPENDIX 2: SURVEY INSTRUMENT (stub)
Installment 2:
· a cover page with the usual information (complete and formal)
· INTRODUCTION (revised, complete and formal)
· LITERATURE REVIEW (first major draft including correct APA citations of five appropriate peer-reviewed journal articles and/or books)
· RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND RESEARCH MODEL (revised, complete and formal)
· METHODOLOGY, POPULATION AND SAMPLING STRATEGY (complete and formal)
· HYPOTHESES (revised, complete and formal)
· FINDINGS (stub)
· DISCUSSION (stub)
· CONCLUSION (stub)
· REFERENCES (at least five peer-reviewed sources in correct APA style)
· APPENDIX 1: IRB FORMS (stub)
· APPENDIX 2: SURVEY INSTRUMENT (first draft)
Installment 3:
· a cover page with the usual information (complete and formal)
· INTRODUCTION (revised, complete and formal)
· LITERATURE REVIEW (first major draft including correct APA citations of FIVE appropriate peer-reviewed journal articles and/or books)
· RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND RESEARCH MODEL (revised, complete and formal)
· METHODOLOGY, POPULATION AND SAMPLING STRATEGY (revised, complete and formal)
· HYPOTHESES (revised, complete and formal)
· FINDINGS (stub)
· DISCUSSION (stub)
· CONCLUSION (stub)
· REFERENCES (at least FIVE reviewed sources in correct APA style)
· APPENDIX 2: SURVEY INSTRUMENT (complete and formal)
STUDENT
EVALUATION AND FINAL GRADE
There is an opportunity
to earn 1000 points in the course.
Course grades will be based upon the following translation of numeric
scores to letter grades.
A 900 to 1000 points
B 800 to 899 points
C 700 to 799 points
D 600 to 699 points
F < 600 points
|
|
Percentage |
Points of 1000 |
|
Completion of online IRB certificate |
10% |
100 |
|
Midterm Examination |
30% |
300 |
|
Term project installment 1 |
10% |
100 |
|
Term project installment 2 |
10% |
100 |
|
Term project installment 3 |
10% |
100 |
|
Final Examination |
30% |
300 |
A higher grade on the final examination will substitute for a lower grade on the midterm examination. All work will be evaluated based on both content and quality of expression.
REVISIONS TO SYLLABUS AND/OR COURSE CALENDAR
As instructor, I reserve the right to make reasonable changes in the syllabus and course calendar with appropriate notice. The current syllabus for this course will be available on the course website. Revisions to this syllabus and/or the course calendar will be announced in class, with appropriate notice, and will be reflected in the edition of the syllabus and the calendar available on the web.
COURSE SCHEDULE
A calendar of class events will be available on the course website.
----------------
This syllabus was modified Nov. 19, 2009 to reduce the requirements regarding Installment 3. -- bjn