Kin 304W: Inquiry & Measurement in Kinesiology (Writing Intensive)

Spring 2013

Instructor: Dr. Dawn Mackey

Office: K8629

Office Hours: Fridays, 9-10 am

Email: dmackey@sfu.ca

Course Description: This course emphasizes the application of statistical and data acquisition methods in relation to various research designs that are relevant to Biomedical Physiology and Kinesiology. The course builds upon the statistical knowledge acquired in STAT 201 and covers evaluation of measurement quality, statistical test construction and assessment, and computer techniques for data acquisition and signal processing relevant to issues in Biomedical Physiology and Kinesiology. A key component of the course is learning how to write a peer-reviewed scientific journal article. Both the writing assignment and course project will be marked, reviewed and returned to the student for revision and resubmission.

Prerequisites: KIN 142, 201, 205, and STAT 201.

Lectures and Lab Tutorials: The course includes two hours of lecture on Tuesdays, one hour of lecture on Fridays, and one hour of tutorial in a computer teaching lab on Fridays.

Text: Inquiry & Measurement in Kinesiology, Ward 2005. This is a custom text written specifically to cover the diverse topics in this course. Chapters will be posted as .pdf files on the course website at no charge.

Evaluation:

Lab Results Sheets (handed out at each lab)	4%
Lab Midterm 1 (Week 8) Lab Midterm 2 (Week 13)	6% 5%
Project Part I (Results Section) 1^st Submission (Week 8) 10% 2^nd Submission (at Final Exam) 5%	15%
Project Part II (Complete Journal Article) 1^st Submission (Week 12) 30% 2^nd Submission (at Final Exam) 5%	35%
Final Exam	35%

Lab Tutorials: Lab Tutorials will be held in a University Computer Teaching Lab. The T.A. will address skills and evaluation procedures necessary for the completion of the tutorials. Numerous example data sets and analyses will be used. Lab results sheets will be handed out at the beginning of lab. These sheets will be completed during the lab and submitted before leaving at the end of the lab. These sheets will not be handed out before the beginning of your registered lab.

Lab Midterms: There will be two 45-minute practical exams held during your regularly scheduled lab time in weeks 8 and 13. Lab midterms will test the knowledge and skills acquired in the preceding labs.

Project Part I: Students will be required to write the Results section of a journal article based on the results obtained from the data analysis completed in the Week 5 lab. This writing assignment will be given in Week 5 and is due at the Tuesday lecture in Week 8 (1^st submission). Project Part I will be graded, edited, and returned to the student in Week 10. The student will revise the Project Part I and re-submit it for 2^nd submission at the final exam. Note: Hand-in the marked 1^st submission of the Project Part I with the 2^nd submission.

Project Part II: Building on the Results section completed for Project Part I, students will be required to write a complete journal article as one would submit to a scientific journal. Project Part II will be due for 1^st submission at Tuesday lecture in Week 12. This will be edited and returned to the student at Tuesday lecture in Week 14. The student will revise the Project Part II and re-submit it for 2^nd submission at the final exam. Note: Hand-in the marked 1^st submission of the Project Part II with the 2^nd submission.

Attendance: Class attendance is strongly recommended. You are not required to attend class. However, if you choose not to attend, do not expect the instructor to repeat announcements, to loan you her lecture materials, or to give you any handouts that might have been distributed. If you know that you are going to miss a class, you might want to ask a classmate to pick up materials for you and to borrow her notes. If extenuating circumstances (unusual circumstances beyond your control, such as death of a close family member or severe illness) cause you to miss a lab or other marked activity, you should contact the instructor to make alternate arrangements as soon as you can. If you will need to miss class for a religious holiday or travel related to a university function (e.g., athletic competition), please let the instructor know within the first week of the semester.

The procedure to be followed if you miss class work due to illness is explained at the following link. http://students.sfu.ca/health/healthclinics/sicknotes.html

If a medical note is appropriate, please bring a Health Care Provider Statement to your physician for completion, especially if it is required for labs, midterms, the project, and final exam. The completed note should state the limitations caused by your sickness (e.g. requires bed rest, will not be able to sit for extended periods, cannot concentrate etc.)

The Health Care Provider form is available at the following link: http://students.sfu.ca/content/dam/sfu/students/pdf/healthcare-statement-general.pdf

Academic Honesty and Student Conduct: Academic honesty is a condition of continued membership in the University community. Academic dishonesty, including plagiarism or any other form of cheating is subject to serious academic penalty, i.e., failure on an assignment, failure in a course, suspension or expulsion from the University. The University codes of student conduct and academic honesty are contained in policies T10.01 and T10.02, which are available at http://www.sfu.ca/policies/gazette/teaching.html

Office Hours: Dr. Mackey’s office hours are Fridays from 9:00 – 10:00 am in K8629.

Perveen Biln (Writer Marker) will hold a number of office hours throughout the semester in K8619 to provide assistance and feedback on the project (writing assignments). Perveen’s office hours will be as follows:

Thursday, February 21: 1:30-2:30 pm (5 days before Project Part I is due)

Monday, February 25: 1:30 – 2:30 pm (day before Project Part I is due)

Friday, March 15: 1:30 – 2:30 pm (week that Project Part I is returned)

Monday, March 25: 9:00 am – 12:00 pm (day before Project Part II is due)

Wednesday, April 10: 12:30 – 2:30 pm (day after Project Part II is returned)