University of Massachusetts at Boston
Graduate College of Education
Critical and Creative Thinking Program
Processes of Research & Engagement*
CCT 692*
Fall 2007 Syllabus
(*formerly, CCT698, Practicum: Processes of Research & Engagement.)
Instructor: Peter Taylor, Critical & Creative Thinking Program
Email: peter.taylor@umb.edu
Phone: 617-287-7636
Office: Wheatley 2nd flr 143-09 (across from Counseling & School Psych office)
Class meetings: Mondays 7-9.30pm, Sept. 10-Dec. 10 (holiday on Oct. 8) in W-2-209
Office/phone call hours: Monday 4.40-6pm by sign up or by arrangement
Website: http://www.faculty.umb.edu/peter_taylor/698-07.html
Email list: Emails sent to cct692@googlegroups.com will go to everyone in the course
Wiki: http://cct.wikispaces.com/698, incl. Sign up sheet to bring refreshments
Course description and overview
In this course you identify a current social or educational issue that concerns you, e.g., you want to know more about it, advocate a change, design a curriculum unit or a workshop, and so on. You work through the different phases of research and engaging others on that issue--from envisioning a manageable project to communicating your findings and plans for further work. The classes run as workshops, in which you are introduced to and then practice using tools for research, communicating, and developing as a reflective practitioner. The class activities and course as a whole provide models for guiding your own students or supervisees in systematically addressing issues that concern them.
If you are a CCT student, you should integrate perspectives from your previous CCT courses and will end up well prepared for--or well underway in--your synthesis project. Students from other graduate programs and the honors program will find this course helpful for development of dissertation/research proposals and initial writing about their topics.
SECTIONS TO FOLLOW IN SYLLABUS:
MATERIAL DOWNLOADABLE FROM COURSE WEBSITE (or available as pdf):
Notes on teaching/learning interactions (incl. rationale for Assessment Requirements and Rubric; with link to assignment checklist)
Phases of Research and Engagement (notes on the tools/processes introduced during class and on recommended tasks and assignments; with links to annotated examples of previous students' work).
See also Summary of Recommended Tasks and Assignments for each Phase, with Target Dates
Annotated examples of previous students' assignments (Phases A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J)