Module Information
Course Delivery
Assessment
| Assessment Type | Assessment length / details | Proportion |
|---|---|---|
| Semester Assessment | 2,500 word Text Analysis based on an historical or contemporary text | 50% |
| Semester Assessment | 2,500 word qualitative essay which discusses the application of survey methods and three types of quantitative and qualitative techniques to a research project of students choice. | 50% |
| Supplementary Assessment | Text Analysis - resubmission of failed components using a different set of data from original submission | 50% |
| Supplementary Assessment | Qualitative essay | 50% |
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this module students should be able to:
Demonstrate an ability to conduct small and large scale survey projects
Collect qualitative data
Demonstrate an ability to manage research data , and use IT in such data management
Conduct research in a manner which is consistent with professional practice
Produce and interrogate qualitative data
Brief description
This module is designed to be an integral component of the RT courses which the University has introduced in order to meet the joint funding Research Councils statement on Research Training. Through this module Masters and PhD students will gain a broad knowledge of a range of transferable skills which they can apply in a variety of research contexts.
Aims
This module is designed to give students a grounding in the basic principles of qualitative research methodology. It will provide students with an introduction to the major methods of qualitative data collection and analysis, how qualitative data are actively constructed and interpreted by a researcher and an appreciation of the practical and epistemological concerns raised by qualitative data collection.
Content
- Principles of Qualitative Research
- Semiotics
- Designs - qualitative and mixed methods
- Data Collection including Sampling, In depth interviews, Focus groups, Interviewing, (preparation, protocol, design, implementation, questionnaires)
- Data Analysis including Content Analysis,Grounded theory, Discourse analysis, Archival analysis
- Interdisciplinary research
Module Skills
| Skills Type | Skills details |
|---|---|
| Application of Number | This module will reinforce aspects covered in PGM1010, especially with regard to mixed methods. |
| Communication | The module develops written communications skills via the coursework. Students will be expected to submit their work in word-processed format and the presentation of work should reflect effective expression of ideas and good use of language skills in order to ensure clarity and coherence. |
| Improving own Learning and Performance | The whole module has an emphasis on providing students with a range of research skills to enable them to manage their own career development. |
| Information Technology | One element of the module will introduce students to the uses of appropriate computer packages in the storage and analysis of different types of research material. |
| Personal Development and Career planning | The module is explicitly designed to give students an appreciation of a broad range of research skills, which they will be able to utilise for career purposes beyond the particular skills they require for their own individual research topics. |
| Problem solving | One explicit aim of the module is to develop the ability of students to undertake independent research projects, and a large element of the students’ learning will be directed to this end. Students will also be required to submit independent work which is linked to their own particular research topic, and to their ability to collect and analyse data. |
| Research skills | Students will be assessed through a range of written material in which they will be expected to appropriately set out a range of research strategies. |
| Subject Specific Skills | It is expected that the qualitative and text analysis skills will be transferable to the student’s own research project. |
| Team work | Team-working skills will be covered in the module in terms of the skills needed to conduct and administer group research. In this sense the research cycle will be used to impart team-working skills, from the initial formulation of research problems through to the implementation of research, the analysis of the data, and the dissemination of results. |
Notes
This module is at CQFW Level 7