3.1 Assignments

Your grade for this course will consist of a number of different assignments on which points may be earned. Each category of assignment is described below.

3.1.1 Attendance and Participation

Attendance and participation are worth 50 points, or 10% of your final grade.

As discussed above, both attendance and participation are important aspects of this class. The class participation grade will be based on (a) attendance, (b) level of engagement during lectures and labs, (c) level of engagement on Canvas, and (d) the completion of other exercises including “entry” and “exit” tickets, the student information sheet, a pre-test, and an end of the semester course evaluation.

Each of these elements is assigned a point value and assessed using a scale that awards full, partial, or no credit (see Grading). Not attending class or completing an “entry” or “exit” ticket will result in no credit being earned for that element on a given day. Disengagement during class may result in partial or no credit being earned. Late arrivals will result in only partial credit earned for that element on a given day.

Your participation grade will be split, with 25 points each for Part 1 (through Spring Break) and Part 2 (from Spring Break onward). Since the number of points awarded for participation are variable, the total number of points earned for each half will be weighted so that it is converted to a final score that matches the points available for that part of the course. I provide the final number of points earned for each part of the course. If you would like a more detailed breakdown of your participation grade and/or attendance record, please reach out and I will happily provide one.

3.1.2 Lab Exercises

Labs are worth 140 points, or 28% of your final grade.

Each course meeting will include time dedicated to practicing the techniques and applying the theories described in the meeting’s materials. These exercises will give you an opportunity to practice skills that correspond with the first four course objectives. Instructions for the labs will be posted in the lecture repositories on GitHub and will be linked to from the lecture pages on the course website. The instructions will also detail the deliverables to be submitted to demonstrate completion of each assignment. Replication files are also provided in the lecture repositories on GitHub.

There will be a total of fourteen lab exercises over the course of the semester, each of which is worth 2% of your final grade. Lab exercises are graded using the “check” grading system. Since replication files are posted, feedback for labs is not generally returned after the first few assignments and I will only respond with the number of points awarded if you do not earn full credit. It is your responsibility to reach out to discuss questions or concerns you had while doing the lab.

3.1.3 Final Project

The final project is worth 310 points, or 62% of your final grade. The waypoints are worth 24% of your final grade, and the final deliverables are worth 38% of your final grade. Deliverables vary by section; see below for details.

The final project corresponds with the fourth learning outcome. It will be organized slightly differently depending on which section you are enrolled in. Specific instructions will be provided in the final project guide.

As work progresses, there will be a number of waypoints where students will need to submit updates on their progress. Waypoints serve as the homework assignments for this class - this is your opportunity to show me how your skills are developing and make progress on your final project. They are generally due two weeks after the relevant topic is first introduced in class. The six waypoints are as follows:

  1. WP-1 - Monday, January 31 - memo submission
  2. WP-2 - Monday, February 28 - initial data cleaning
  3. WP-3 - Monday, March 7 - combining data sources
  4. WP-4 - Monday, March 21 - projecting data
  5. WP-5 - Monday, April 4 - geoprocessing data
  6. WP-6 - Monday, April 25 - draft story map

Deliverables for each waypoint are described in the final project guide. All waypoints are graded using the “check” grading system. Final materials will be due on Monday, May 16 (during Finals Week). Final deliverables differ by course section.

3.1.3.1 SOC 4650

If you are enrolled in SOC 4650, you will need to create a story map that features some introductory information, media, and thematic maps about your topic.

Table 3.1: SOC 4650 Final Project Breakdown
Assignment Points Quantity Total
Waypoints 20 pts x6 120 pts
Final Code & Docs 80 pts x1 80 pts
Final Storymap 110 pts x1 110 pts

3.1.3.2 SOC 5650

If you are enrolled in SOC 5650, you will need to create a story map that features some introductory information, media, and thematic maps about your topic. In addition, you will need to write a 3000-4000 word final paper written in the style of an empirical journal article. The following additional deadlines apply:

  1. WP-G1 - Monday, February 21 - annotated Bibliography with a minimum of fifteen peer reviewed sources
  2. WP-G2 - Monday, April 11 - draft paper due
  3. WP-G3 - Wednesday, April 20 - peer reviews of the draft paper and analysis development due as a GitHub issue in partner’s final project repository (graded as part of your draft paper grade)
  4. The final paper is due Monday, May 16 along with the rest of the final project.

Grading for SOC 5650 is broken down as follows:

Table 3.2: SOC 5650 Final Project Breakdown
Assignment Points Quantity Total
Waypoints 20 pts x6 120 pts
Annotated Bibliography 20 pts x1 20 pts
Draft Paper 20 pts x1 20 pts
Final Code & Docs 40 pts x1 40 pts
Final Storymap 55 pts x1 55 pts
Final Paper 55 pts x1 55 pts