GROUP 1 Project Information - September 11. 2001 is the topic:

 Each person will be placed within a group, about five (5) members per group for this group project. This group project is a large undertaking; you will develop several different skills through this project. You must all contribute to the project, do not leave it for others to develop the project as your team members will have a chance to grade you on your efforts.
 
By the end of the project you will have produced a proposal which applies the relevant theories and research methods appropriately. The proposals will be shared online and critiqued by the other groups.
 
There are several parts to the project. Initially, you need to create an account on intodit.com (a wiki site). Instructions for doing this are available in Blackboard. The first part of this project involves investigating a disaster and producing a literature review of that disaster. You can use websites and media, but you must also use peer-reviewed journals for your research. You also need to provide a theoretical analysis of this disaster using theories that we have discussed in class. Remember that though you are seeing these theories in isolation as written by academics, disaster research is an holistic field, and you are practitioners. You need to use as many of these theories as you feel fit to understand the context of the disaster. You also need to look at using these theories to explain how others could arrive at incorrect assumptions about human behavior. A literature review is a major undertaking; do not believe that a couple of sources will fulfill this requirement.
 
The second part of this project involves the application of research techniques to investigating this disaster. How would you go about researching this disaster? Why is the method you are choosing more appropriate than others? Explain your design and methods to be used. What do you see as being the ultimate outcome of the research?
The third part of this project is to write a proposal to a funding agency to gain funds to support your research.
Grading of this project will be accomplished in several different ways. You will be required to critique the members of your team based on a rubric. You will also be required to critique the wikis produced by the other groups. These two critiques will make up 50% of your grade for this project. The other 50% is the actual work that you do based on a rubric I have set, and the grade that your team members and other teams provide for your efforts and project.
Important note: I should not have to say this as you are graduate students, however I will. Wikipedia is NOT an acceptable source for citation in an academic paper. Do NOT use Wikipedia. Wikipedia’s information can be written by anybody from the public- you are producing a collaborative, professional piece based on research that you have undertaken. However, you do not know the accuracy of the information presented. Peer-reviewed journals provide articles on research that has been reviewed by other professionals in the field and can, therefore, be cited with some degree of authority on the subject. Having said that, many Wikipedia sites do have reference sections at the end, many which are from peer reviewed journals. These may aid you in your search for information.
For further assistance on writing your papers you can access The Chryst Writing Center, located in room 109B in Chryst Hall, right next to the Infirmary. Phone: 717.872.3183. Email: GAfor.Win@millersville.edu <mailto:GAfor.Win@millersville.edu> . Website: www.millersville.edu/english/writingcenter/ <http://www.millersville.edu/english/writingcenter/> .

Project is due Thursday 29th April.
Group project is worth 100 points.