Learning Outcomes:

Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of

• The Research Process (key phases and stages),
• Research design and Key Methodological Approaches
• Ethical Conduct & Implications of Different Approaches

Evaluate the appropriateness of various methodological approaches for different avenues of inquiry

Show how you have taken a research topic, refined it, focused it into a research question and justified the need and/or value to answering it.

Open Book Tests: Applied Learning Scenarios

Task:

Task: In order to encourage full engagement with the online materials provided for this course, students will be required to complete 3 open book tests, each consisting of a number of applied learning scenarios and weighted equally to determine the grade for CA1. In an applied learning scenario you will be required to apply your knowledge to a contextualized problem or situation which may be described to you in writing or presented to you in some other media form (e.g. a video).

You will be asked to respond to multiple choice  questions based on the scenario. The tests will assess materials covered in the online video lessons and completion of these video lessons will be a prerequisite for unlocking each test. Students will not be able to access the test unless they have completed all online lessons up to that date.

Each test will be delivered via module using the quiz function and the tests will be timed with a maximum period of 60 minutes to complete each. The schedule for releasing the tests can be found below and each test will be available on Moodle for a period of 5 days enabling students to complete the test in their own time within that time frame. Please beware that once you start the test, you will be required to complete it. You may not exit the test and start again at another time.

Students are cautioned that they should not collaborate with one another when completing these tests as this would be considered collusion – a form of academic impropriety that is punishable by the College. Response and submission patterns may be monitored to detect any such transgressions and students are encouraged to report any such behavior that they may encounter.

Problem Statement and Research Question

Task:

Students are required to put forward a problem statement and research question that will form the basis of the dissertation research project. The problem statement should first introduce the research topic, highlight key issues relating to that topic and demonstrate the motivation and rationale for selecting this topic for the dissertation research project.

The problem statement should contain references to theoretical and empirical literature (along with professional reports and statistics where relevant). There should be clear evidence that the student has first identified a topic and then refined to achieve a narrow focus. The problem statement should clearly refer to gaps in knowledge that would be filled by completing the research project and/or highlight the novelty and value of their project with respect to applications relevant to their domain of study. The problem statement should build towards and provide contextual and theoretical framing for the presentation of a research question that the student will take forward to dissertation