Ethics Forms
Everyone must complete an Ethics form, save it as a Google doc and share it with me for checking, and include it in your final submission. Do it as soon as possible after this class and share it with me at the beginning of next week. Find it on Moodle in the Section for 21 February – 27 February.
Next Seminar – TB2 Wk09
You will have only three weeks left to submit it. It should be substantially complete.
Do Now (TB2 Week 03)
a a primary study collecting data from people, create your instruments (e.g. questionnaires, interview questions)
b a text analysis, e.g. of cosmetics adverts, then find your texts, e.g. the adverts you are going to analyse and compare.
c research where the MAIN part of your project is an analysis of raw published data from, e.g. The World Bank, the IMF, the UN, etc., then also specify what data you need and create instruments for analysing that data, such as tables or a classification system to put the data into.
d a long Literature Review, write the specific questions you are trying to answer
Referencing
Your project must be informed entirely by up-to-date, reputable, academic and professional sources. You must acknowledge those sources using in-text citations and a bibliography. These document show you how to do that.
Writing your Project
The Overall Project Possible Plan below is a plan for your finished project. Remember: you cannot write it in that order. Write your project in this order:
While writing or after writing your literature review, you will choose your research methods. This will probably be just to extend your literature review into 4,000 words. That would be a good choice. Or you might choose to collect some ‘raw’ data yourself. See Research Methods below.
Research Methods
Depending on the research method you have chosen, read one of the examples. Use the Contents page to find the Methodology and the Results then read the Methodology & Results only. Then prepare questions to ask me about them which will help you write yours.
WARNING: Do not copy anything from the examples: they are examples ONLY of the STRUCTURE of a Project. They were written by students and the facts, the references and the language in them may be full of mistakes. Do Not Copy.
| a long literature review like this and this. | Using raw published data already collected by institutions and organisations, (e.g. from these sources) | Primary research: collecting your own data using, e.g.
– a text analysis like this or this. – a questionnaire or interview survey like this. – an experiment like this. |
||
| ● Eric
● Ray ● |
● Dong
● Charles ● Charsy ● Michael ● Stephen |
● Chuyu | ||
| TB2 03 Example 2 Case Study of H&M using secondary sources | TB2 03 Example 1 Questionnaire & Interview study – Argos in China | |||
| TB2 03 Example 3 Text Analysis – Vogue adverts | ||||
Below (again) is a possible Plan for a Project, explaining what to put in each section.
| The Overall Project: A possible plan
The structure – and argument – of your Project Report should be clear in your head and clear to the reader. See the example below.
The Abstract is your complete project in 100-200 words, including the conclusion (the answer to your question) so we don’t need to read the whole thing if we are in a hurry: approximately 1-2 sentences per section.
The Introduction tells us what your inquiry is about and your overall question, why it is helpful or interesting, how you have attempted to answer it and why, and gives us any background information we need. It also summarises the overall argument and shape of your project.
The Literature Review tells us what research and scholarship tells us now about your enquiry. It ends by saying what your own study hopes to add to it (e.g. to confirm or challenge the conclusion or answer the question arising from it).
The Methodology explains HOW you have answered the question.
The Findings/Results then present your Findings/Results, preferably as a numbered list. The Discussion gives your commentary or interpretation of your Findings. The Conclusion compares your Findings with the conclusion of your literature review and explains what your Findings have added to that conclusion. The Bibliography lists all your sources in alphabetical order. The Appendices give all your raw data including, for example, your completed questionnaires, the adverts you compared, etc. |
Below are examples of the kinds of things you should include in each section
| The Introduction | |
|
1 This is a report into books and other print materials and attempts to answer the question “Are print materials still useful?”. The conclusion is that print materials still have enormous value to us but that a great deal of this value is invisible to the majority of students and staff; and that the greater ‘convenience’ of digital materials is increasingly attractive to most readers. This conclusion is based on evidence from laboratory research comparing the effects of digital and print media on reading skills; and also on current research into university courses, library resources, and student attainment. The implications of this finding are that, …. However, this is an area of fast and accelerating change which requires constant monitoring in order to provide the best advice to universities, publishers, and to readers themselves.
For this report, the term ‘useful’ is restricted to the potential educational value of reading material and therefore excludes recreational reading. So, for example, …
Throughout this report, ‘print materials’ will include all paper-based materials including books, journals, …
2 This question is important for two main reasons: a Libraries need to decide how to divide their budget between paper materials and digital materials, … b Every society is defined and influenced to a great extent by its methods of communication. If it appears that our methods are changing, this may suggest … c …
3 This research question can be divided into three main research questions: i … to what extent do students use books in the preparation of their assignments? ii … do students perceive and value any qualities pertaining exclusively to print materials? iii … what circumstances are there under which teaching staff prefer to use print materials for their intrinsic qualities? iv Is there potential value in books which is not widely recognised?
4 The conclusion is based on three main sources of evidence. The results show that students and staff …, however, …
5 The report is divided into four chapters. In the literature review, I compare …, then I discuss … and show that … Finally, I conclude by arguing that an important element is missing, … In order to reveal this, I use a questionnaire to gather opinions from …. about …
In the Methodology, I describe the purpose and design of my questionnaire. I explain the purpose of each question and how each one contributes to the overall picture of the ‘invisible’ value of print materials.
In the Results, I show how most students are actually unaware of …; that staff, in general …; … |
⭠ Overall view of argument of project
⭠ Definitions
⭠ Reason/s for study
⭠ Research questions
⭠ More detail (if necessary)
⭠ Overview of argument / Report (also identifying chapters/sections)
|
| The Literature Review
● = an essay on the arguments around your topic which led you to your own research:
● “The question is “Does reading from a screen affect comprehension and retention?”. Many researchers believe it affects both adversely (Smith 2001, Jones 2010, Simpson 2011) and should therefore be resisted in favour of reading paper texts. Others agree there is a negative effect but that this negative affect can be neutralised ~ and should be because … (Peterson 2008, Roberts 2008.) Still others believe that …
● This is because ….
● In this discussion, it would seem that …. However, this leaves an important question. All of the research and discussion so far has been around students reading in their own language. How far do these results extend to people reading in a second or foreign language? In order to answer this question, I … |
⭠ Focus on the aims and approach of project ⭠ The question/s which the literature review will answer ⭠ Summary of the different positions of scholars / professionals
⭠ explain, compare, and evaluate the positions
⭠ Conclusion
⭠ the resulting question to answer in my own study |
| Methodology
● This study is designed to find out … ● The precise question is “…”. ● This question is answered in the following way: … ● The research questions for this study are as follows: 1. … 2. … 3. …
Explain exactly ● what information your study is designed to find out ● how that information will ‘plug in’ to your overall argument and help to answer your research questions ● the design of the study ● why you designed it like this (with references) ● the facts and figures of data collection: exactly how many people, days, dates, times, methods, etc. ● how you collected the data ● how you classified the data ● how you processed the data ● where the raw data is ● the fact that your data collection materials (e.g. questionnaires) are available for examination (a random sample will be required at the end) |
⭠ Reiterate aims ⭠ explain approach & method ⭠ Detailed Research Questions which you will answer in the Results/Findings
⭠ Detailed explanation of method so that another researcher can replicate your study
|
| Results / Findings
Your Results or Findings section should simply present your results without commentary or discussion. Put those in the next section: Discussion. That is why you need to number your results: so that you can refer back to your results clearly.
● Put all raw data in Appendices. Only put processed data in the Results section. ● If you used questionnaires, put the blank questionnaire and completed questionnaires in the Appendix. If they were online questionnaires, download them and include them. If you used more than 10 questionnaires, include 10 in the Appendix and provide a URL and
● Process data so that it can be easily understood, represented, and compared e.g. in percentages; on data collection charts. Explain exactly how you have processed it. Explain how the charts were designed and why they were designed like this. Do not leave the reader to work out what you done at any stage of the processing.
E.g. The raw numbers have been converted into percentages so that the results from the three groups can easily be compared.
The three groups consist of: A 12 respondents; B 10 respondents; and C 14 respondents.
● If your numbers are quite low, then put the raw figures in brackets after the percentages, e.g. 100% (12). Explain this in the introduction to your Results section.
● Account for ALL the data you collected. If you decide to discount the results from some questions, you must explain which questions and why you are discounting them (e.g., perhaps the respondents did not understand the question – and then explain how/why this happened)
● Give a clear explanation in words of every result. Use a diagram/chart/graph to illustrate each one. Put the text and the visual next to each other on the page so the reader can see both together without turning over.
● Make sure every chart is clearly numbered as Figure 1, Figure 2, etc. In your explanation, say: Figure 1 shows …; Figure 2 shows …; etc.
● Give every Figure a heading. For example, if it is the answer to a questionnaire question, give a) a title, and b) the question that the respondents were answering, e.g. |
Introduction ● how the data has been processed ● how the data is presented
The data ● 1 visual + explanatory text ● explanation of what each result shows
Example Questionnaire Question:
Question 3: How many books or print journals have you used this term? A 0 B 1-5 C 6-10 D 11-15 E 16-20 F >20 |
| Fig 4.4: The average number of print materials used this term by students.
Question 3: How books or print journals have you used this term (Spring 2013)? |
|||||
| 60% (=12) | 20% (=) | 15% (=) | 5% (=) | ||
| A: 0 | B: 1-5 | C: 6-10 | D: 11-15 | ||
| Figure 4 shows that 60% of students used no print materials at all in the Spring term. 20% used between one and five materials, and …
This seems to suggest that Year 1 students have little understanding of the value of print materials. |
| Discussion
Finish your Results with a commentary or summary of what the results show.
Limitations Criticise your own study before your reader does. Explain its limitations or any errors which are obvious now and how it could be done differently and why.
|
| Conclusion
This is a discussion of how your own results connect with your secondary research (in the Literature Review) and attempts to answer your overall question.
Include any recommendations arising from your Conclusion. |
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