SESSION 2024-2025
SP4039 Dissertation in Spanish and Latin American Studies
Wednesday 11-1, KCF6
(30 credits)
Course coordinator: Dr Lourdes Parra Lazcano
Office Hours (teaching weeks) Monday 12-13 hrs in Taylor A60 or by appointment, for
in person or virtual meetings, please send an email to lourdes.parralazcano@abdn.ac.uk
1. What the Course is about
This year-long course unit combines dissertation research with research methods training.
The dissertation is a piece of extended independent research (8,000-10,000 words long),
structured as a critical evaluation, analysis or argument, about a topic germane to Spanish and
Latin American Studies. The topic is chosen by the student, in conjunction with the
dissertation coordinator and an individual Departmental supervisor, both of whom must
approve the topic. Students are encouraged to design their topic building on their previous
studies, especially honours courses. The dissertation offers a chance for students to carry out
in-depth independent study in Spanish and Latin American Studies, and to acquire and
develop valuable research skills. The course begins, in the first half session, with workshops
on diverse research methods and the creation of peer support groups. The second half session
includes structured meetings with the dissertation supervisor and meetings with the peer
support group, as well as independent research and writing.
2. Course Aims and Learning Outcomes
Aims:
This course aims to provide students with an overview to the research methods and skills
needed for their dissertation research, as well as the support to undertake that dissertation
research.
Students will undertake guided independent research; organise and evaluate the merits and
weaknesses of substantial bodies of material, information and argument; demonstrate
awareness of, and sensitivity towards different critical/theoretical approaches and responses
to the material studied; demonstrate a self-reflective awareness of your own critical and
theoretical approaches to the material studied; structure ideas and arguments coherently and
cogently in written work.
Learning Outcomes:
- to develop a sophisticated understanding of the research process;
- to pursue intellectual questions in a rigorous and academic manner by
employing analytical skills and critical thinking;
- to compare, contrast and choose between different research methods and
justify the choice through working knowledge of research methodologies;
- to use a wide variety of research techniques (archival research, interview,
image analysis etc.) as practice ahead of the final year dissertation;
- to produce an original research project characterised by an understanding of
research methods and critical insight.
Transferable Skills
Assessments develop time-management skills, and group activities demands teamwork.
Because students will need to use library facilities, and because professional presentation of
written work is required, basic computer and word-processing skills will also be developed.
Research skills demand information gathering and synthesis of material, as well as judgement
of source reliability. Students will also improve IT skills by accessing course material (for
additional material and group tasks). This course has a learning support web site that can be
accessed using the university username and password at
http://www.abdn.ac.uk/library/myzone/blackboard/
Classes
Classes are held once a week in a two-hour slot, on Wednesday from 11-1 KCF6. Classes are
a crucial opportunity to hear and engage with views, analysis and information from the
lecturer and from other students. You are expected to attend without fail and you must come
to class having read the text, studied the material or undertaken the task to be discussed.
3. Assessment
We will discuss further what is expected of you in these tasks during the course. For all your
written assignments there is leeway of +/- 10%, with a two mark penalty applied to work that
exceeds or falls short of this permitted leeway. At the end of each written assignment please
include the word count. References and quotations are included in the word count,
bibliographies are not.
As you complete your assessed course work it is important to be aware of the attribution of
your sources and also not repeat work from another course unit. The use of exactly the same
wording in more than one piece of work (e.g., an essay from one course and an essay from
another course, or an essay from one course and a dissertation), where the material reused
constitutes more than ten consecutive words not derived from another source, will lead to a
penalty of up to three CAS points. This penalty will be levied in addition to any penalty
for overlap of argument or analysis. Please remember that TurnItIn records past student
submissions as well as scholarly material.
Research reflection 10% 1,500 words
Due 12 December, 2024
Bibliographic exercise 10% 500 words
Due 6 February, 2025
Draft chapter 10% 1,500-2,000 words
Due 7 March, 2025
Dissertation 70% 8,000-10,000 words
Due 2 May, 2025
Research reflection:
The point of this research reflection, which in any case will have 3-4 entries over time, is to
help you consciously think through how you go about finding material, the questions your
research raises for you and how you develop your arguments and ideas over time. Your
reflection will be based on your dissertation research. The research reflection must include
specific information about how and where you have searched for material and what different
approaches yielded. There are models of this assessment on MyAberdeen.
Bibliographical exercise:
1) Find a secondary text, published within the last 10 years, that is appropriate to your
planned dissertation topic. This text could be an academic journal article, a scholarly book or
a chapter in a scholarly book. This text should be new to you. Let's call it 'Text A'.
Using Text A's in-text references 2) find three new academic sources (peer-reviewed articles,
scholarly chapters or scholarly books which we'll call texts B1, B2 and B3) and trace back
how these new sources were used in Text A. Try to mix electronic sources with print sources.
From your B list (B1-B3) 3) choose one (B1, B2 or B3) and in that one find two additional
sources (C1 and C2) that meet the previous criteria. Analyse the role of C1 and C2 in your B
text as you have analysed your B text for text A.
From this research write 500 words explaining why you choose Text A, how you chose your
subsequent works and analyse what you may have learned from your own reading of sources
cited by others. Your analysis may focus more on some texts than others, depending on what
you find. Your analysis may include a critique of how a B or C source was used, it may
include discussion of how your B and C sources contributed to the arguments in your A and
B texts. It may include aspects of your B and C sources which should have been used better
in your A and B texts. 4) List all of your works consulted, in MHRA bibliographic style.
(This bibliography is not included in the 500 word count and will include six works in total.)
There are models of this assessment on MyAberdeen.
Draft chapter:
This draft chapter is exactly what the title suggests: a draft chapter of your dissertation. This
chapter is your chance to get detailed feedback from your supervisor on your writing and
argument. Your supervisor will be aware that, as a draft chapter, it will be a work in process.
What your supervisor will be looking for is evidence of your engagement with your material,
the debates in the literature and the start of an original contribution. If the mark for the draft
chapter is lower than the final dissertation mark, the mark for the draft chapter will be raised
to the same mark as the final dissertation mark. Thus, your draft chapter cannot reduce your
overall mark, but, in fact, only raise it.
Dissertation:
The dissertation will make an original contribution to the literature and will make a critical
argument. Student topics may be limited, and students will be encouraged to build their topic
from their honours courses. Students are not, however, limited to honours course themes. If
your topic ideas won’t work for some reason, the dissertation module coordinator and your
supervisor will work with you to find another topic that’s more suitable.
For all written work:
One copy must be submitted electronically to Turnitin via MyAberdeen.
It is your responsibility to ensure that the coursework is submitted within the deadline. We
will discuss further what is expected of you in these tasks during the course.
The penalty for unauthorised late submission of work will be as follows: up to 24 hours late,
the grade will be deducted by 2 CGS points; for each subsequent day, the grade will be
deducted by a further CGS point for each day, or part of a day, up to a maximum of seven
days late; and over seven days late, a grade of G3 will be awarded. If you think you’re going
to have difficulty making a deadline for coursework, please speak to me before the deadline.
The resit is 100% dissertation.
4. Course Coordinator/Tutor
Overall responsibility for this course lies with me, Dr Lourdes Parra Lazcano. If you wish to
see me outside of class time, please use my office hours as a first option. Alternatively, you
can email me at lourdes.parralazcano@abdn.ac.uk for an appointment if you cannot make my
office hours.
Please address any recommendations, observations or complaints about the running of the
course to me, either directly or by way of the elected programme representative.
5. Study Tips
• Multi-tasking doesn’t work. There are a few exceptions, like driving a car while talking,
but even in that case there are moments where drivers need their full concentration on the
road. When we think we’re multi-tasking, we’re actually switching tasks very quickly and
each time we switch tasks we lose focus and then take time to re-concentrate. We also deplete
our limited decision-making capacity for day. Instead, allow yourself to focus on one thing
at a time. As distracting thoughts come into your mind, jot them down for later. That way,
you won’t forget them, but you can still concentrate on one task at a time.
• Breaks are vital to good studying and well-being. There is a limit to how long we can
concentrate before we need a break, especially when we’re spending so much time on
screens. Blocks of 20-25 minutes, with small breaks, are good. Then take a longer break
every few hours. Allowing time to ‘play’ and take a step away from a challenging problem
leads to more innovative and smarter solutions, as our unconscious mind continues to mull
over knotty problems when we give our conscious mind a break. Concentrating is hard work
for the prefrontal cortex, and when we take a break, we rest that part of the brain, allowing
for improved focus overall, greater motivation, productivity and creativity.
• Physical activity and exercise are important to health and well-being. Sitting down is
not good for us. It is associated with higher risks of heart disease, depression, diabetes and
obesity. Moving around is good for us – even a five-minute walk once an hour has benefits.
Physical activity improves brain health because it increases blood flow, improves the
connection between neurons and stimulates growth in the part of the brain responsible for
memory and learning. Exercise also improves mood, memory, attention, focus and our
capacity to cope with stress. So, it’s important to think about activity both in terms of
‘exercise’ but also in terms of being more active in general, with light to moderate exertion,
throughout the day. Get up to make a cup of tea. Get up to check a book that you’ve left
across the room. Get up and go for a walk when you’re facing a challenge. When you’re
stuck, move.
• Sleep well. Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that you can sacrifice sleep in order to
study. Without sleep, your brain won’t function nearly as well. Adequate sleep improves your
mood and your memory (short term memories move to long term memory while you sleep).
Sleep also increases longevity, reduces inflammation (linked to heart disease, stroke,
depression, arthritis and diabetes), makes you more creative, improves sporting performance,
strengthens your immune system, improves your work in class and assessments, improves
attention, lowers stress, helps keep weight healthy and reduces the likelihood of depression.
One key way to sleep well is to be aware of your screen time. Most screens give off blue
light, which tells our bodies to ‘wake up’. If you’re on your computer or phone, right before
bed, or check a screen with this blue light in the night, you’re sending confusing messages to
your body. If your screens emit blue light, stay away from them for the two hours before you
plan to go to sleep. You can also get glasses that protect your eyes from blue light or (with
some screens) change the light setting. But even with these protections, it’s good to avoid
screens before bed unless you’re doing something relaxing. Avoid bright white lights in
those hours before sleep, too, as they also wake you up. It’s not just important to get the right
amount of sleep but also to keep regular hours. Keeping to the same scheduled (getting up
and going to sleep at the same time each day) helps you get all the benefits above because
your body will develop its own sleeping/waking cycle.
• Ask for help. Your teachers and personal tutors are here to help you, but they can’t if they
don’t know about the problem that’s worrying you. If you need help, ask.
6. MyAberdeen
A provisional course structure, including topics and readings can be found on MyAberdeen
(under ‘course materials’), which will be updated regularly.
7. Class Representation
The University operates a system of Class Representatives, which is co-ordinated by the
AUSA. These are nominated by students, and generally one class representative is identified
for each course. Class representatives are the main point of contact between the student body
and the staff who teach the course, and will be members of the relevant School Staff-Student
Liaison Committee. Training is provided and further information can be found on AUSA’s
webpages. If you are interested in being a Class Representative, or would like to nominate a
classmate, watch out for the announcements near the beginning of the semester and speak to
your Course Coordinator.
8. Academic Integrity
The University expects that all students will undertake their studies with integrity and will
submit assessments that have been prepared by themselves, with appropriate
acknowledgement of external source materials. To do otherwise, to act dishonestly and cheat
in an assessment, is classed as academic misconduct and will incur penalties. These web
pages and the associated resource, ‘Academic Integrity: A Guide for Students’ have been
developed to explain the meaning of academic misconduct, how you can avoid it and what
the penalties are should you act dishonestly.
The use of exactly the same wording in more than one piece of work (e.g., an essay from one
course and an essay from another course, or an essay from one course and a dissertation),
where the material reused constitutes more than ten consecutive words not derived from
another source, will be treated as self-plagiarism and will incur a penalty.
9. External Examiners
External examiners ensure that standards are maintained at the University of Aberdeen on a
comparable level with universities throughout the United Kingdom and that our system of
assessment is fair to all students.
10. Institutional policies
Students are asked to make themselves familiar with the information on key education
policies, available here: https://www.abdn.ac.uk/staffnet/teaching/key-education-policies-for-
students-11809.php
These policies are relevant to all students and will be useful to you throughout your studies.
They contain important information and address issues such as what to do if you are absent,
how to raise an appeal or a complaint and how the University will calculate your degree
outcome.
Further information can be found on the University’s Infohub
webpage: https://www.abdn.ac.uk/students/ or by visiting the Infohub.
These University-wide education policies should be read in conjunction with this Course
Guide, the Programme Guide for your subject area, and other School-specific policies which
can be found on the LLMVC Organisations page on MyAberdeen.
