sensation and perception
Class Project
Instructions
A class project that critically evaluates recent research on a problem in sensation and perception should be submitted not later than the deadline listed in the syllabus schedule, using Eastern Daylight or Eastern Standard time, whichever is appropriate for the time of year. Your project should bear your name, a title, and references in APA format. Your project must include at least one peer-reviewed reference. You are not restricted to topics that appear in the assigned readings and videos, but your project must be based on serious scholarship. Although it is permissible to choose the same topic as another class member, all work must be your own; this is not a collaborative project.
The assignment may be fulfilled by a term paper of no more than 1,600 words (about 6 to 8 pages not counting references, but be guided by the word count in judging length, and stay within 200 words of the target to avoid penalties) accompanied by either of the following: a podcast in MP3 format of five minutes’ length or five MB file size; or a slide presentation (e.g., PowerPoint) of about six slides. Your written portion will be worth a maximum of 50 points, and the podcast or PowerPoint that accompanies it will be worth a maximum of 10 points. Thus, the project as a whole will be worth 60 points. The penalty for a late project is ten percent of the score on the project.
Everyone needs to write a paper. Beyond that, pay attention only to the part of the project description that concerns the activity that interests you.
Written paper. As an example, the problem you choose might be to identify the way we recognize faces. Your paper should state the fundamental issues, pinpoint unanswered questions, and evaluate recent research that aims to solve the problem. To accomplish this, you will have to use one or more recent research articles published within the last five years, along with supplementary information that may be drawn from reputable magazines like Scientific American or blogs from professionals such as MindHacks.com. Avoid tabloid newspapers and blogs by authors without appropriate credentials. You may use any of a number of electronic databases to find research articles that deal with your topic, including the library and the Internet. (You may wish to consult with the library staff or your faculty member to confirm whether a particular journal is peer-reviewed.)
You should avoid simply repeating the articles in summary form, but rather use them within the text of your paper to illustrate important points. You are welcome to discuss your choice of topic with your faculty member to make sure you are on the right track.
The paper will be graded on content, organization, and writing mechanics and style. The following rubric is used to assign points associated with each main topic.
Grading Rubric for Project: Written Paper
5
4
3
2
1
0
CONTENT
1. All topics were discussed in clear detail.
2. Author supported assertions correctly.
3. Ideas were inter-related coherently and logically.
4. Author creatively enhances the topic.
ORGANIZATION
5. An introduction previews main points of study
6. Body of paper develops and elaborates main ideas.
7. A conclusion summarizes main points.
WRITING MECHANICS and STYLE
8. Paper free of mechanical errors (e.g., misspellings, typos, etc.)
9. Paper grammatically sound (proper sentence structure)
10. Citations and references in proper style (e.g., APA).
You may wish to submit a draft of your complete or near complete paper to the Effective Writing Center (EWC) for review and comment, prior to the due date of the paper. This should be submitted well in advance of the due date, in order for the EWC to respond and for you to make the necessary corrections. Once you receive feedback from the EWC, you can copy and paste it into a Word Document, then upload it into LEO by the due date, for your instructor to view as necessary. The EWC can help address questions regarding format, structure, writing style, and appropriateness of references.
Podcast presentation . The podcast should be targeted to the public and should summarize and discuss the topic of your written paper. It should not be a verbatim reading of your paper. You will record your spoken comments with a microphone and audio software, then upload your audio file to class. You will need to create an audio story (approaching it the same way you would any other story or essay) on your paper topic. The podcast should be in MP3 format of five minutes’ length or 5 mB file size. You may download free audio recording software at http://www.audacityteam.org/
Grading Rubric for Project: Podcast (Audacity or substitute)
2
1
0
Information Content
Describes the topic fully and accurately
Describes the topic superficially or incorrectly
Description fails to correspond to the written description
Technical
Volume, transitions, and noise are effectively controlled
Uneven control of sound that occasionally interferes with clarity
Missing intervals or unintelligible sound recording
Creativity
Narrative enhanced with special effects throughout the delivery
Narrative exhibits momentary enhancement
Narrative lacks creative enhancement
Spoken production
Clear, well-rehearsed delivery
Unrehearsed or unclear delivery
Unintelligible enunciation
Relevance
Meets requirements of the assignment in length or size
Comes acceptably close to meeting the requirements of the assignment
Varies widely from the assigned requirements
PowerPoint presentation . The PowerPoint presentation should summarize and illustrate the topic of your written paper. The main purpose of this is to familiarize you with the most widely used state-of-the-art presentation form