Introduction to Research Methods (PAD 5300) University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP)

Transcription

1 Introduction to Research Methods (PAD 5300) University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) Masters of Public Administration Program Disclaimer: This syllabus is tentative and any changes will be announced in class for which students are responsible I. Instructor: João Ricardo Faria Office: Room 410, Kelly Hall Office Phone: (915) Fax: (915) Professor Masters of Public Administration Program University of Texas at El Paso El Paso, TX II. Availability Office hours are on Mondays and Tuesdays from 4:00 p.m. to 6 p.m. If you find these hours inconvenient, please contact me via phone or to arrange another time to meet. III. Course Schedule Mondays: 6:00-8:45 p.m. UGLC 208 IV. Prerequisites Masters of Public Administration (MPA) Program admission or permission of instructor. V. Course Objectives Upon completing this course, students will be able to: Analyze important problems using statisticl tools Apply basic concepts of statistics Access basic data and programs Understand basic statistics concepts Learn how to apply statistics concepts and tools The ability to lead and manage in public governance (M); M2: Manage projects M3: Manage inter-and intra-group relations and functions The ability to participate in and contribute to the public policy process (PP); = Ability to understand and analyze public policy questions and organizational environments PP1: Describe and execute the policy making process The ability to analyze, synthesize, think critically, solve problems and make decisions (CT); CT1: Employ analytical tools for collecting, analyzing, presenting, and interpreting data,

2 including appropriate statistical concepts and techniques. CT2: Understand and apply theories of decision-making and models CT3: Understand how to prepare a budget reflecting policy priorities CT4: Articulate and apply methods for measuring and improving human performance The ability to incorporate public values into decisions (PV) PV1: Be ethically responsible when conducting research and making decisions PV2: Be able to identify short and long term consequences/ impacts of policy decisions The ability to communicate and interact productively with a diverse and changing workforce and citizenry (C) C1: Communicate effectively in writing C2: Communicate effectively orally C3: Work productively in teams VI. Course Description This course is intended for graduate students with interests in public policy issues, but little knowledge of probability and statistics. VII. Disability Accommodations If you are a person with a disability and anticipate needing any type of accommodation in order to participate in this class, please provide me with official documentation from the Disabled Student Services Office (DSSO) as soon as possible. The DSSO may be contacted at (915) More information regarding the Office is available on page 101 of the Graduate Catalog or the DSSO s website: VIII. Statement of Equal Opportunity The learning environment is based upon open communication, mutual respect, and nondiscrimination. It follows commonly practiced guidelines of nondiscrimination on the basis of age, color, disability, gender, national origin, race, religious belief (or lack thereof), sexual orientation, or veteran status. Please also refer to the Statement of Equal Educational Opportunity of the University of Texas at El Paso on the Graduate Catalog. IX. Scholastic Integrity It is assumed graduate students know how to avoid committing plagiarism. In this course, it is considered a violation of scholastic integrity to use within any out-ofclass, for-credit assignment the exact words, phrases, or a similar writing structure (where you use the sentence structure and/or paragraph structure, but change a few words or phrases) of a source or sources, even if you cite the source(s).

3 In order to maintain program standards, cases of [suspicion] plagiarism, are treated according to UTEP s Handbook of Operating Procedures. Ignorance is not an excuse. I thoroughly encourage verbal discussion among students in your studying of the course material. However, unless I give you written consent, all assignments that you submit for credit must be your own original work. In this course, this means that you may not provide assistance to or seek assistance from another individual during an in-class examination. Also, you may not possess materials that are not allowed during an in-class exam. Finally, while you may verbally discuss your problem sets and research projects, you may not provide direct assistance to or seek direct assistance from any other individual. Direct assistance includes, but is not limited to, downloading data, analyzing data, presenting data and/or findings, or writing any portion of the research report. Any violation of this policy constitutes academic dishonesty. For more information, please refer to the section on Scholastic Integrity (page 41) in the University of Texas at El Paso Graduate Catalog. This document contains a detailed definition of academic dishonesty, along with the University procedure for handling cases of alleged scholastic dishonesty. A more detailed guide to academic integrity is available in the Student Conduct and Discipline Section of the Handbook of Operating Procedures. Please contact me if you have any questions or need clarifications regarding this topic. X. Class Attendance & Preparation Students are expected to attend every class. Please avoid arriving late to class. Since there are only 12 class periods, if you miss 3 or more classes, I will need to drop you from the class due to excessive absence. I will use my discretion to apply the same rule to excessive and/or severe lateness. If you anticipate being absent from or late to a particular class period, please contact a fellow student as soon as possible to arrange note sharing. I do not re-teach course material to students who miss class. Please refer to the Class Attendance section (pages 39 and 40) of the Graduate Catalog for more information on UTEP s policy. As this is a graduate level course, I assume that you have prepared yourself prior your arrival to class. This means that you have read the required reading and understand the general material from that reading. I also expect that you have reviewed the notes from the previous class prior to the next class period. If you do not understand some of the reading or class material, I expect that you will ask specific questions about it in class. Due to our time constraints, I may not be able to fully answer all of your questions during class. In that case, I expect you to set up an office visit to discuss the material you find confusing. XI. UTEP s Tutoring and Learning Center (TLC) Students are encouraged to visit the Tutoring and Learning Center (TLC), located on the third floor of the library. The TLC offers free peer tutoring, especially in math and writing. These tutoring services are very helpful both for students returning to school

4 after a long delay and for students with limited backgrounds in mathematics or written English composition. Because statistics is a technically demanding subject, I urge you to visit the TLC early in the semester if you find the readings, lectures, or assignments difficult to understand. In the past, I have referred individual students to the TLC for assistance in writing. Such referrals were intended to help the students improve some aspect of their written communication. Because it is essential for graduate students to effectively communicate their ideas in writing, I will continue to make such referrals. If I refer you to the TLC using the Center s referral form, you must obtain assistance from a TLC tutor. Then, when resubmitting your revised assignment, you must provide me with the original referral form completed by your TLC tutor. I will consider your assignment incomplete without the completed referral form. XII. In-Class Etiquette Please switch your cell phone to vibrate or turn it off prior to the start of class. XII. Grading End-of-semester letter grades will be determined as follows: Letter Grade Numeric Grade Range A 90% - 100% B 80% - 89% C 70% - 79% D 60% - 69% F 0% - 59% Unless I have made a recordkeeping error, I will not adjust your grade for any reason. Please do not ask. As documented on pages 41 and 42 of UTEP s Graduate Catalog, [a]ssignment of the grade I (incomplete) is made only in exceptional circumstances[.] Because of the strict guidelines governing grades of I, I will not grant such a grade except in the most extreme emergencies. XIII. Timeliness of Work Submission Please submit your out-of-class assignments in the beginning of the following class. There is a penalty for the submission of late assignments. XIV. Electronic Communications Please check your at least once each business day when classes are in session. That way, you will know of any class news. Please consult the syllabus, course website, and other relevant course materials prior to call or sending me a an . XV. Assignments

5 A. Exams (50 %) B. Chapter and Computing Exercises (50%) Each class corresponds to textbook chapters. Students will solve the practice problems of each chapter and do the SPSS lessons of each chapter to be submitted in the beginning of the following class [they will not be returned, please make a copy for yourself]. To install IBM SPSS Statistics 21 in your computer please go to: XVI. Required Readings Textbook Frederick L. Coolidge (2013) Statistics, Third Edition, Wiley, ISBN XVII. Course Structure and Required Reading List (subject to change) Week Date Class Topic/Activity Required Reading 1 Jan 28 Syllabus; Introduction Syllabus; Chap 1 2 Feb 4 Descriptive statistics Ch.2 and 3 3 Feb 11 Standard scores Ch. 4 4 Feb 18 Inferential statistics Ch. 5 5 Feb 25 Correlation and regression Ch.6 6 Mar 4 The t tests Ch.7 and 8 7 Mar 11 First Exam Chs 1 to 8 8 Mar 18 SPRING BREAK 9 Mar 25 ANOVA and significant analysis Ch 9 and Apr 1 ANOVA design; Factorial ANOVA Ch.11 and12 11 Apr 8 Factorial ANOVA additional designs Ch.13 and Apr 15 Nonparametric statistics Ch Apr 22 Other Statistical Parameters and tests Ch Apr 29 Final Exam Chs. 9 to May 7 Last day of classes Open Disclaimer: This syllabus is tentative and any changes will be announced in class for which students are responsible.