Course Information

Course Description:

As a culminating experience, this course provides the student with the opportunity to synthesis current knowledge in the major or concentration area of study.

Course Objectives:

At the completion of the course, the student will:

1. Complete a scholarly state of the science paper guided by a graduate faculty member.

2. Produce useful conclusions and recommendations as a result of exploring the state of the science of the specific topic.

3. Demonstrate writing skills of academic excellence.

Prerequisites and Co-requisites:

NURS 5002 Advanced Nursing Research; permission of department. As a culminating experience this course is intended to be taken during the semester of planned graduation.

What is a State of the Science paper?

A state of the science paper is an account of what has been published on a topic by accredited scholars and researchers. A state of the science paper must do these things:

• Be organized around and related directly to question or issue
• Synthesize results into a summary of what is and is not known
• Identify areas of controversy in the literature
• Formulate questions that need further study

Assessment and Grading

Testing Procedures:

No examinations are administered in the course.

Assessment and grading will be done throughout the course as assignments are submitted. Mentoring by the assigned faculty will continue throughout the semester.

Grading Procedure:

All scholarly synthesis papers will be guided by a graduate faculty member.

The paper topic must be approved by the supervising faculty member and the concentration coordinator.

Methods of Evaluation:

All scholarly synthesis papers will be guided by a graduate faculty member. The paper topic must be approved by the supervising faculty member and the concentration coordinator.

Assignments to be submitted.

1.The student will write a one page paper describing the proposed topic and why the topic is significant. The paper should clearly demonstrate that the student has begun preliminary literature search and has sufficiently narrowed the topic. This one page paper must be approved by the concentration coordinator as well as the supervising faculty member before proceeding with the paper.

2.The student will submit a topical outline that clearly addresses the areas that are anticipated in the project. The student will also identify databases to be used as well as specify the time frame (years) that will be used to limit the literature search.

3.The student will submit a preliminary draft of the paper. The draft will be in APA format without grammatical or punctuation error. The supervising faculty will review the draft and make recommendations.

4.The student will submit the final draft of the paper. The scholarly synthesis paper will be graded according to the grading rubric identified below.

Grading Scale:

A final course grade will be assigned using the following scale:

A = 93-100
B = 85-92
C = 77-84
D = 70-76

F = <70

Textbooks, Supplementary Materials, Hardware and Software Requirements

Required Textbooks:

Hardware Requirements:

The minimum requirements can be found at http://www.tn.regentsdegrees.org/students/hardware_software.htm.

Software Requirements:

The minimum requirements can be found at http://www.tn.regentsdegrees.org/students/hardware_software.htm. Specific hardware requirements for this course include Microsoft Word. Others may be required to accomplish specific options (i.e. Microsoft PowerPoint; SPSS, etc).

Instructor Information

Please see the separate page inside the course to find instructor contact information as well as a statement of virtual office hours and other communication information.

Assignments and Participation

Assignments and Projects:

See your course calendar for assignments and due dates.

Class Participation:

Students must communicate with the instructor as a learning resource.

Punctuality:

Each student should adhere to the timeline for completion of activities relative to the course.

Course Ground Rules

All course requirements (outlines, drafts, final paper, discussions, etc) must be submitted inside the course management system (D2L). Email attachments outside of D2L will not be accepted.

Guidelines for Communications

Email:

•Always include a subject line.

•Remember without facial expressions some comments may be taken the wrong way.

•Be careful in wording your emails. Use of emoticons might be helpful in some cases.

•Use standard fonts.

•Do not send large attachments without permission.

•Special formatting such as centering, audio messages, tables, html, etc. should be avoided unless necessary to complete an assignment or other communication.

• Respect the privacy of other class members.

Discussion Groups:

• Review the discussion threads thoroughly before entering the discussion.

• Try to maintain threads by using the "Reply" button rather starting a new topic.

• Do not make insulting or inflammatory statements to other members of the discussion group.

• Be respectful of others’ ideas.

• Be patient and read the comments of other group members thoroughly before entering your remarks.

• Be cooperative with group leaders in completing assigned tasks.

• Be positive and constructive in group discussions.

• Respond in a thoughtful and timely manner.

Chat:

• Introduce yourself to the other learners in the chat session.

• Be polite. Choose your words carefully. Do not use derogatory statements.

• Be concise in responding to others in the chat session.

• Be prepared to open the chat session at the scheduled time.

• Be constructive in your comments and suggestions.

Web Resources:

• All papers must follow the latest (fifth) edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (2001). Recommended resource for online citation: http://www.bedfordstmartins.com/online/cite6.html

Library

The Tennessee Virtual Library is available to all students enrolled in the Regents Degree Program. Links to library materials (such as electronic journals, databases, interlibrary loans, digital reserves, dictionaries, encyclopedias, maps, and librarian support) and Internet resources needed by learners to complete online assignments are provided inside WebCT.

Students With Disabilities

Qualified students with disabilities will be provided reasonable and necessary academic accommodations if determined eligible by the appropriate disability services staff at their home institution. Prior to granting disability accommodations in this course, the instructor must receive written verification of a student's eligibility for specific accommodations from the disability services staff at the home institution. It is the student's responsibility to initiate contact with their home institution's disability services staff and to follow the established procedures for having the accommodation notice sent to the instructor.

Syllabus Changes

The instructor reserves the right to make changes as necessary to this syllabus. If changes are necessitated during the term of the course, the instructor will immediately notify students of such changes both by individual email communication and posting both notification and nature of change(s) on the course bulletin board.

Technical Support

Telephone Support: