​NI Ming-Tsuey
(PhD. Art History,  University of Louisville, USA)
Assistant Professor, Art and Design Department
Research area: 19th and 20th European Art History, History of architecture, Art Theory and Criticism, Feminist Art History 

Course Objectives:
This course is designed to help students develop skills in conducting an independent research project to complete a intelligible, well documented and persuasive MA thesis. With the instructor’s guidance, each student will develop a research proposal that will include a topic of research, research problem/question, its background, literature review, research approach and method.  Individual conferences with the instructor also are intended to help students evolve their research projects.

Course Outline:

1. Understanding the Research Process
2. Research strategies and thesis format
3. Research ethics, plagiarism and paraphrase
4. searching appropriate databases
5. Searching for Sources
6. Deciding on a Topic
7. Literature review and defining the problem
8. Research question and thesis statement
9. Research methods
10. Bibliography-Documenting Sources
11. Writing research paper draft
12. Publication Process

Implementation method:
Lectures, class discussions and student-instructor conferences.

Grading Policy:
Class discussion and participation (20%)
20-minute oral presentations (30%)
Research proposal (50%)

References: 
Turabian, Kate L. A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses and Dissertations. University of Chicago Press; Eighth Edition edition. 
 
Booth, Wayne C. , Gregory G. Colomb, and Joseph M. Williams. The Craft of Research, University of Chicago Press, 3rd edition, 2008