This site is for the version of the module that will run 26th - 31st October 2015. The sites for the other runs of the module are still accessible here.

Coursework and Assessment

The assessment for this course is based on three elements.

Attendance (minimum 80%) and participation on the sessions. No grade will be given for this element.

Please note that it is the responsibility of students to sign the register for each session.

The production of a methodological review of one of the review articles (1500 words).

In preparing the review, look again at the questions and issues that have been raised in the documentation for the relevant session—especially those marked in red—and at your own notes from your reading and from the seminar discussion. Please bear in mind that you need to focus on the methodological issues rather than on the rationale or on the substantive findings of the research. The review should identify the key issue or question that the research addresses and delineate the argument that is produced in establishing the claims that are made in respect of this issue or question, concentrating on the evidence that is presented and the way in which this evidence is presented in making the argument. Reviews will need to explore the methodological and theoretical approach adopted in the article and consider the research design and the sampling strategies as well as strategies of data collection and analysis. The review should also consider whether sufficient information is given in the article to address these questions unambiguously. The review should look particularly at the ways in which and the extent to which the author of the article seeks to generalise from their research, particularly in respect of implications for professional practice. Remember that you are to consider the research in its own terms and not engage in a discussion of what you would have liked the author to have written/researched about, nor should you be expressing opinions: the task is to present an argument.

Please note: since all of the articles will have been discussed fully during the course and notes on them are given in this documentation, no feedback will be provided on draft work for this element.

The presentation of a dissertation/report research proposal (3500 words). Please review the notes in for session 12. The proposal should begin with a brief statement of the research issue or question, which should be followed by a critical discussion of two relevant research articles from or originally published in English language research journals and reporting empirical research. These critical discussions will not, of course, be as extensive as the critical review that forms the first coursework task, but should adopt the same form. The articles discussed should include work relevant to the empirical field of the proposed research. The purpose of this critical discussion is to situate the proposed research within a relevant field of research. Following the critical discussion, the proposal should introduce the general approach to be adopted, for example, it might be stated that the approach will follow a narrative approach and there should be a brief discussion on how this is to be interpreted. The proposal should discuss sampling and data collection and analysis strategies to be deployed, making appropriate reference to the issue of access and also relevant ethical issues. The proposal should, where possible, anticipate difficulties that may arise (sample mortality would be an example). Finally, the proposal should outline how the research might be hoped to contribute to the researcher’s professional and/or academic development.

Feedback will be provided on a 2000 (maximum) word draft of the proposal element provided that it is submitted in time (see below).

Please note that, following a recent course board decision, work that exceeds the word limit by more than 10% will not be accepted. This applies to both draft work and final submissions.

Assessment Criteria

For both pieces of work, the submission must demonstrate an understanding of key methodological issues that will have been raised on the course as they are relevant to the research articles that are reviewed and to the proposed research (see the ‘key issues’ on pp. 3-4).
The methodological review and the 2 reviews included in the proposal must identify the central claims that are made in the research and consider how methodological decisions taken have enabled the argument in support of these claims. The articles reviewed in the proposal must be from or originally published in English language research journals.
The proposal must present a viable project that can be completed in the time frame and with the resources that are available on an MA programme.
The submission must be written to a satisfactory standard of English.

A composite grade will be awarded for elements 2 and 3 provided that element 1 has been satisfied.

Deadlines

12th January 2016

Submission of draft work for the research proposal. Drafts should be no longer than 2000 words in total and may be in note or bullet point form. Draft work must be submitted in digital form by email to Professor Dowling.

2nd February 2016

Receipt of feedback on draft work. Feedback will be provided by email to the addresses that participants have used to submit the work. Please note that I shall return feedback in the order in which I receive the drafts, so get it in early. I try to return feedback in advance of my deadline.

7th March 2016

Receipt of final versions of all coursework. Coursework must be submitted in digital form to Professor Dowling AND on Moodle; TWO paper copies must also be submitted to the programme administrator.

Please note that feedback on drafts is a very important part of the pedagogy on this programme. Students failing the course tend to be the ones who do not submit draft work for feedback or who pay inadequate attention to the feedback that is given.

Note also that I cannot provide feedback on draft work that breaks the rules (eg in terms of length or deadline).

ALL WORK MUST CONFORM TO THE REGULATIONS REGARDING WORD LENGTH, THAT IS, WITHIN ±10% OF THE NOMINAL WORD LIMIT (1500 WORDS FOR THE REVIEW, 3500 WORDS FOR THE PROPOSAL). WORK THAT FALLS OUTSIDE OF THIS RANGE WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.