Japn, Chin, Asia 499W	Japanese/Chinese/Asian Studies Senior Seminar	Spring 2014
R. Loftus Walton 144		Email: rloftus; voice mail 6275

Course Description and Requirements

The Senior Seminar is the paramount experience for students majoring in Asian Studies, Chinese Studies and Japanese Studies. This year there will be two International Studies seniors working with our group as well. Students are expected to integrate knowledge from different classes in their field and engage the core knowledge and important issues of their field as a critical reader and writer. There are four possible forms of research available for the senior seminar. The professor of this course will approve specific formats for each student after consulting on with the student on his/her topic and her/his readiness for the senior experience. The students’ work will be subject to several stages of criticism and rewriting. The students will defend their research near the end of the semester; upon completion of the final revisions recommended by the committee, a successful defender can submit his/her final work to the professor.

The objective of the Senior Seminar is to develop a senior project that will consolidate and integrate the student's knowledge of Japan/China or Asian Studies and the field of Japanese/Chinese/Asian Studies. Students will be expected to integrate knowledge from different classes in their field and to demonstrate the core knowledge of and the important issues in their field as a critical reader and writer. Therefore, the most basic Student Learning Objecyive for this course is

Learning Outcomes:

Students will carry out a self-designed research and writing project grounded in the scholarly literature of the field as measured by the completion of a successful senior seminar paper read by at least two cooperating faculty members. The Asian Studies Faculty and the members of the Department of Japanese and Chinese expect students to be able to:

1. Demonstrate basic language proficiency in an Asian language

2. Demonstrate a broad cultural knowledge of China, Japan or other Asian societies

3. Demonstrate interdisciplinary understanding of China, Japan or other Asian societies by completing an interdisciplinary project for this course

4. Demonstrate writing proficency as defined by the Writing Rubrics by successful completion of a written senior project

Important Course Guidelines:
•Unexcused absences will negatively affect the course grade. Students must make up all work missed to receive credit.
•The professor reserves the right to refuse or penalize late assignments.
•Cheating or plagiarism will not be tolerated. Students found to have cheated or plagiarized will fail the course. Please see http://www.willamette.edu/cla/dean/policies/plagarism.html for university policy.
•All accommodations authorized by the Office of Disability Services will be honored. Students requesting accommodation should notify the professor as early as possible. Please see http://www.willamette.edu/dept/campuslife/policies/index.html for university policy.

NOTE: For every class hour, there is an expectation of 2-3 hours work outside of class.  Since our class meets twice a week for 90 minutes so you should expect to do 6-98 hours outside of class engaged in course-related activities such as research, reading, going to the library, working with librarians, drafting your thesis, doing peer reviews for classmates' thesis drafts, etc.

Basis for Evaluation un the Senior Seminar:
• Attendance 10%
• Jan. 30 Project description with bibliography 5%
• Presentation on your Project to the class 5%

• Drafts (5% x 3) 15%
First draft due Feb 20 at in class.
Second draft due April 3 in class.
Third draft due May 6 by 12:00 p.m.
The first and the third drafts must be reviewed by the first (and the second) reader(s).
The second draft must be reviewed by the first or second reader and a peer reviewer in class.

• Peer Reviews 5%
In class Feb. 20-25

• Defense 10%
In class Apr 22 and 24

• Final Paper 50%
Final version due May 6

Each student will have a second reader other than me where appropriate, i.e., a member of the Asian Studies faculty who has relevant expertise in your topic area.

Varieties of Senior Projects:

There are four possible varieties of senior project available for the senior's in this seminar.

1. Senior Research Paper
2. Review Essay + Research Questions
3. Biography with Commentary
4. Translations with Commentary

The professor of this course will recommend in consultation with the student, a suitable style for each student after consulting on the student’s topic and readiness for his/her senior experience. The students’ projects will be subject to several stages of criticism and rewritings. The students will defend their research near the end of the semester and, with the final revisions recommended by the committee, a successful defender can submit his/her final work to the professor. The length of your senior paper should be be approximately 25-30 pages. Longer is fine. Since this is a writing-centered class, we will spend time in conferences about your work in process, as well as in reading and revising drafts of your work with peers and with your instructor as well.

 

DETAILS on these four varieties:

1. Senior Research Paper (see WISE, Research Style Examples, “Research Paper.pdf” file as an example)
• Original study with a clear thesis and arguments
• Structure
Reviews on previous studies (called “literature reviews”)
Thesis/Hypothesis/Research Question (finding a niche in the previous studies)
Arguments (presenting evidence, analyses and discussion)
Conclusion
• Length – 25~30 pages (double-spaced)
• References (15~20 or more)
• Use of a primary source in Chinese or Japanese is not required but strongly recommended

2. Review Essay + Research Questions (see WISE, Research Style Examples, “Review Essay.pdf” file as an example)
• Summarize different interpretations of the issue in previous studies, comment on them and generate your own research questions.
• Survey existing literature on a certain topic.
• Choose 4~5 books to review. Students need to read the entire book carefully.
• Summarize each author’s main ideas and different interpretations of the topic. For example, “The Road to WWII.”
• End with research questions
• Length – 25~30 pages (double-spaced)
• Reference (3~4 books)
• Use of secondary source, i.e., books in English.

• If students cannot find 4~5 books on the same topic, book reviews for unrelated books might be possible. Consult the instructor.

3. Biography with Commentary (see WISE, Research Style Examples,“Biography.pdf” file as an example)
• Research on a particular person in the field and write a biography of that person.
• Selection of the person
Sufficient written materials in primary and/or secondary sources that the person produced and/or are written about the person are required.
• Writing a biography
Read and analyze the written materials
        Justify your choice of the person by explaining the individual’s significance or legacy
Offer your own unique perspective or insight into the person's life

• Length – 25~30 pages of text (double-spaced)
• References (15~20 or more)
• Use of a primary source in Chinese or Japanese is not required but strongly recommended

4. Translations with Commentary
• Translate materials in Chinese or Japanese into English with your own commentary.
• Translation
Literature (novels, short stories, poems, etc.)
Non-literature materials such as journal articles, academic books, etc.
• Commentary
Introduction (background information)
Significance of the materials to the field (Why did you choose these materials to translate?)
• Length – minimum of 15~20 pages of text for the translation and 5~10 pages for the commentary (double- spaced); details to be worked out with the instructor
• References (5 or more). This does not mean translating 5 or more materials. Five or more references from other sources that will be necessary to write your commentary.

On January 30, students will make an initial presentation on their research design to the class.

On February 20, a first rough draft will be due with bibliography. 10-12 pages; 3 copies: 1 for me, 2 for Peer Review; you should also show your 2nd reader a copy, too. In class, be prepared to give a brief summary of where you are and how you will proceed.

NOTE: During the course of the semester, there will be a total of 7-8 weeks--or more than half of the semester--without regularly scheduled class time (though one of those weeks will be dedicated to conferences with students on their progress). Having these kinds of significant blocks of time for reading, reflection, research, and writing is what should make the Senior Seminar different from all the courses you have taken up until now. If somehow, you do not use your time well and wind up devoting only the same amount of time you would devote to a large paper in another class, then you have robbed yourself of a valuable experience. It is time you will never get back!! Therefore, it is critical that you do not procrastinate and squander this valuable time. Consider what the great Japanese writer Natsume Soseki had to say about senior thesis writing in his early 20th century novel Kokoro.

Do you want your senior project to hang over you "like a curse?" Of course not! There are two keys to avoiding this fate:

1. Pick a topic/project that you are passionate about.

2. Adhere to the following key dates:

1. Jan. 30 Student Submission/Presentations of their Preliminary Research Designs--one or two paragraphs describing your project and your preliminary bibliography

2. Feb. 20, First Rough Draft due --10-12 pages; 3 copies: 1 for me, 2 for Peer Review; you should also show your 2nd reader a copy, too.

3. April 3, 2nd Draft Due; this will be your First Complete Rough Draft; 3 copies, please: 1 to your 2nd Reader, 1 to me, and 1 for Peer Review by a class member

4. April 22 and 24, Thesis Defense in class: 5-10 minute Presentations of Final Research Project with 5-10 minutes for Q&A/Defense of your thesis

5. May 6, Final Paper due by 12:00 pm. Please send the final draft of your senior thesis WITH A COVER PAGE to Sandra Dubuque<sdubuque> as a Word Attachment

To recap, your first COMPLETE rough drafts will be due shortly after Spring Break.

Your final, complete, but still "rough" draft will be due April 3.

The revised, final version of the paper will be due in class on Tuesday, May 6.

Senior Seminar Complete Schedule – Spring 2014

April 3 First complete rough draft due in class: 3 copies for Peer Review, etc.

Please bring 3 copies of your first draft to class, one for me and one each for two of your peers.

April 8-10 Continue Working on Rough Drafts and preparing for Thesis Defense

Sunday April 13 Senior Summit

 

 

April 22-24 In-Class Defense of Senior Projects

Final Version Due May 6, 12:00 pm

Please send your final draft of your senior thesis electronically as a Word Attachment WITH A COVER PAGE to me and toSandra Dubuque <sdubuque> > by12:00 pmTursday May5. The department will bind each thesis and retain one of these bound, clean copy for our files. We will provide you with one bound copy. If you wish extra copies for yourself, please take it to the Copy Center with the copy request form signed byJanet or myself and arrange to pay for the extra copies yourself.

"My professors apparently did not have as high an opinion of my thesis as I did.

I was, however, allowed to graduate that year." [Yaaaay!]

Soseki, Kokoro