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Research Methods
BS4S14

Assessment overview

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 Session outline
• Assessment rationale
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• Assessment 1
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• Assessment 1 guidance
• Assessment 2
• Assessment 2 guidance
• Submission

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 Assessment rationale
• The purpose of the assessments are to assess students
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understanding of research methodologies and methods with
respect to quantitative and qualitative research designs.
• The assessment is designed to allow students to explore
data which is relevant to their personal research interests.

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 Assessment 1
• Select 3 quantitative papers from your research area and
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critically appraise the research methods adopted.
• Word count – 2,500 words (+/- 10%)
• Contribution to overall module grade – 50%
• Submission date – see Blackboard

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 Assessment 1 guidance
• The purpose of this assignment is for students to demonstrate
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an understanding of quantitative research design.
• The papers selected should all explore the same broad topic
area (your area of research interest).
• Try to use high ranking journals as your source material.
• It is important that each paper selected incorporates a
different analytical technique.
• Use wider reading to critique the approaches used.
• Remember to cite your sources using the Harvard referencing
system (you can use Mendeley to support).
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 Assessment 2
• Collect qualitative data, analyse the collected data and
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present the findings. title style
• Word count – 3,000 words (+/- 10%).
• Contribution to overall module grade – 50%
• Submission date – see Blackboard

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 Assessment 2 guidance
• You must collect primary data for this assignment.
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• The data should relate to your research interests.
• The following data collection techniques are acceptable:
– Interviews
– Focus groups
– Questionnaires
– Secondary sources – press releases, company statements, interviews
• You should use a recognised approach to qualitative analysis
covered in this module, such as axial coding/ thematic analysis.

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 Assessment 2 guidance continued
• Your research must comply with USW ethical guidelines.
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• Seek approval from the module tutor before conducting
research.
• Use an informed consent questionnaire
• Develop interview protocol (if relevant)
• Remember the requirements of GDPR

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 General guidance
• Submit you work through Turnitin
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• Remember Master title style
the requirements of handing in on time
• Remember the requirements of proper citation and the implications
of plagiarism
• Format guidelines
– Word document
– Ariel/ Times New Roman font, size 12
– 1.5 line spacing
– Justified margins
• Word counts do not include the references list or appendices. One
of the criteria to pass is to submit work inside of the word count limit.
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 Marking scheme
• Subject knowledge (30%). The ability of the student to demonstrate an
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understanding of the concepts assessed.
• Engagement with theory (30%). The ability of the student to demonstrate
an engagement with wider, appropriate sources to underpin their narrative
and inform the decisions they have made.
• Application of theory to practice (30%). The ability of the student to
demonstrate a critical application of the academic material. An appreciation
of the complexities of the subject material and mature synthesis of the
sources to make informed judgements and conclusions.
• Presentation (10%). The ability to demonstrate professional academic
practice. Skills such as academic writing, referencing, presentation of graphs
and tables, appropriateness and maturity of writing style shall be assessed.

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 Summary
• The purpose of the assignments is to test your
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understanding of both qualitative and quantitative research
designs.
• Assignments take a long time to do (particularly assignment
2, where you are gathering data). Make sure you plan
sufficient time to complete your assignments on time.
• The next lecture is the start of the teaching material where
we will explore the purpose of research.

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