IS41160 Capstone Project (30 Credits)

Academic Year 2021/2022

This module is worth 30 credits and is required for the MLIS degree programme. The purpose of the Capstone Project is to help students develop and hone the research, writing, and reflective skills that are critical to most, if not all, careers in the 21st Century, to encourage a practical and reflective approach to personal and professional development, and to provide an opportunity for each student to take ownership of their emerging career and professional identity in the specialisation of their choice. Students will deepen their understanding of the library and information fields, through working with academic staff members to articulate, research, analyse, and write about an issue of concern to the library and information professions, and to their own professional interest. They will contribute to their own professional development through preparing a portfolio, which includes a plan outlining their career goals and the future activities they plan to undertake to advance their chosen career pathway, a professional CV and sample job application letter, in addition to carefully chosen samples of work in selected modules. The portfolio will allow students to showcase some of the skills and competencies learned on the programme. Finally, students will reflect on how their intellectual engagement and immersion in the MLIS programme has prepared them as information professionals and shaped their professional identity as they graduate.

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Curricular information is subject to change

Learning Outcomes:

On successful completion of IS41160 Capstone Project, students will be able to:

1. Present a professional profile through gathering evidence of reflection, learning, research, career planning and professional engagement with the LIS field;

2. Identify, research, critically analyse and suggest solutions for a current issue of concern to the Library and Information professions or cognate fields;

3. Critically reflect on their own emerging role as an information professional in relation to the political, economic, social, cultural and technological trends and factors that influence the profession as a whole;

4. Plan and Prepare a Professional Development Portfolio (PDP) to a high standard, which includes a Professional Development Plan, including a statement of career goals and future professional activities and CPD, a professional-standard Curriculum Vitae, and a sample job application to prepare them for the next step after graduation;

5. Reflect on their engagement with learning on the MLIS programme, and critically evaluate how programme content and learning activities have contributed to their understanding of their emerging role in the profession;

6. Showcase and illustrate their intellectual engagement with academic content, and the knowledge, skills and professional competencies gained during the year.

Indicative Module Content:

Professional identity development
Career planning
Secondary research
Literature reviewing
Reflective learning


Student Effort Hours: 
Student Effort Type Hours
Seminar (or Webinar)

2
Autonomous Student Learning

623
Total

625
Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
Two class meetings; one as part of the module IS41060 Research & Practice in LIS in trimester 1; and one as part of the module IS40940 Applied Research Methods in trimester 2.
Course materials are available via Brightspace.
Independent work - literature searching, career planning, professional identity development, critical writing and analysis, reflection.
Academic supervision from faculty member. 
Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.


Module Requisites and Incompatibles
Not applicable to this module.
 
Assessment Strategy  
Description Timing Open Book Exam Component Scale Must Pass Component % of Final Grade
Assignment: Annotated Bibliography Varies over the Trimester n/a Standard conversion grade scale 40% No

20
Assignment: Reflection on Learning Coursework (End of Trimester) n/a Standard conversion grade scale 40% No

10
Essay: Professional Issues Paper Coursework (End of Trimester) n/a Standard conversion grade scale 40% No

50
Portfolio: Professional Development Portfolio (Professional Development Plan, CV, Letter of Application & Work Samples) Varies over the Trimester n/a Standard conversion grade scale 40% No

20

Carry forward of passed components
Yes
 
Resit In Terminal Exam
Autumn No
Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 
Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Feedback individually to students, on an activity or draft prior to summative assessment
• Feedback individually to students, post-assessment

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Students will receive informal feedback from their academic supervisor on ONE full draft of their Professional Issues Paper, by mid-August at the latest. For submitted components, students will receive an individual feedback form, consisting of an assessment rubric with graded individual components, additional qualitative comments, and a final overall grade. Grades and feedback forms will be made available via Brightspace.

Name Role
Assoc Professor Amber Cushing Lecturer / Co-Lecturer
Dr Odile Dumbleton Lecturer / Co-Lecturer
Ms. Odile Dumbleton Lecturer / Co-Lecturer
Professor Crystal Fulton Lecturer / Co-Lecturer
Dr Stefanie Havelka Lecturer / Co-Lecturer
Dr Lai Ma Lecturer / Co-Lecturer
Professor Kalpana Shankar Lecturer / Co-Lecturer