Two ways to engage with complex material are to write and to discuss.  You will have ample opportunities to do both in this seminar. 

• Each week 1-2 students will be selected to lead our discussion.  Discussion leaders have two tasks:  to provide a brief overview of the readings, and (2) to focus our discussion by posing a set of questions for consideration by the rest of the group.  Bringing in additional material, reanalyzing data, and connecting to issues raised previously all tend to enhance your understanding of the readings, the quality of the discussion, and my opinion of your performance.  I strongly encourage discussion leaders to communicate with the class at least three days in advance of our session about core readings.
• I encourage you to write short response memos on each week’s readings, and to come to seminar prepared with questions and comments.  I will read and give you comments on up to three of these memos during the quarter, provided they are turned into me before class on the day we discuss a set of readings.  You are encouraged to share any or all of your memos with others in the seminar—particularly  with the discussion leaders before class; I have found that this practice often helps identify areas of confusion and important lines of criticism.   
• In terms of formal written work, the primary requirement for the course is to make substantial progress on an empirical research project that addresses a question that falls under the broad rubric of institutional analysis. It is my belief that substantial progress stems from regular writing on a set of related topics.  My expectation is that you will turn in, at regular intervals, at least three longish-memos (5-8 pages) documenting your progress on your project.  These memos should contain some evidence of how your thinking about your research is affected by the course, though they do not need to be explicitly driven by the course material.  At least one of these memos should address how you intend to use empirical evidence in your project.  At the end of the quarter, you will integrate these memos into a single, revised working paper.

If you do not already have a relevant project underway, during the course of this quarter you could:

1.  Identify and describe a research question that interests you;
2. Consider appropriate theoretical or analytic ways to address your question;
3.  Begin securing appropriate empirical evidence relevant to your question.

I am very supportive of collaborative research, and encourage you to develop research projects together.  Often this makes it possible to collect more data or to undertake more ambitious study designs.  Please talk to me if you would like to work in a small group. 

o       Whether you are working on an existing project, or beginning a new one, your first memo should describe your progress-to-date as well as provide a short outline of questions, issues, and problems that you would like to address during the quarter. 

o       Memos are due by the following dates (you are welcome to turn them in earlier):

                        Jan 21 (project overview)

                        Feb 11

                        March 3

Your final integrated working paper is due by March 17.