Spring 2022

Research Methods in American Culture

Listed in: , as EDST-468  |  American Studies, as AMST-468

Formerly listed as: AMST-68  |  ENGL-95  |  HIST-83

Faculty

Kristen V. Luschen (Section 01)
Karen J. Sanchez-Eppler (Section 01)

Description

This course is designed to provide American Studies majors, as well as Education Studies majors and others, with a methodological grounding to conduct interdisciplinary research. Students will have the opportunity to conduct research on a topic of their own choosing and develop a research prospectus. Students will be exposed to and experiment with a wide range of theoretical and methodological approaches, gain familiarity with methods such as participant observation, interview and oral history practice, and study a range of materials—visual, literary, print, digital, audio—via a traditionally interdisciplinary American Studies praxis. Students will gauge the utility of various theoretical and methodological approaches to determine which are most useful for their own independent work. A major requirement of this course is participation in a "work-in-progress" presentation as part of a public mini-conference at the end of the semester.

Limited to 18 students. Open to juniors and seniors as a research seminar; or with consent of the instructor. Spring semester. Professor Sanchez-Eppler and Visiting Professor Luschen.

Students who enroll in this course will likely encounter and be expected to engage in the following intellectual skills, modes of learning, and assessment: an emphasis on written work, readings, independent research, oral presentations, group work. Students with documented disabilities who will require accommodations in this course should be in consultation with Accessibility Services and reach out to the faculty member as soon as possible to ensure that accommodations can be made in a timely manner.

This is preliminary information about books for this course. Please contact your instructor or the Academic Coordinator for the department, before attempting to purchase these books.

ISBN Title Publisher Author(s) Comment Book Store Price
American Studies: A User's Guide University of California Press Deloria, Phillip and Olson, Alexander Amherst Books TBD
Ghosts in the Schollyard: Racism and School Closings on Chicago's South Side University of Chicago Press, 2020 Ewing, Eve Amherst Books TBD
Boneyarn Ashland Poetry Press, 2021 Mills, David Amherst Books TBD
All that She Carried: The Journey of Ashley's Sack, a Black Family Keepsake Random House, 2021 Miles, Tiya Amherst Books TBD

These books are available locally at Amherst Books.

Offerings

Other years: Offered in Spring 2008, Spring 2009, Spring 2010, Spring 2011, Spring 2012, Spring 2013, Spring 2014, Spring 2015, Spring 2016, Spring 2017, Spring 2018, Spring 2019, Spring 2020, Spring 2021, Spring 2022, Fall 2023, Spring 2025