Research Skills BM2313 Assignment

Dear Students,
Prepare for the Assignment.

MAY SEMESTER 2011
BIM2313 Research Methods
ASSIGNMENT (50%)

Lecturer : Zainudin Johari
zzj2004@gmail.com

SCOPE AND OBJECTIVE
This assignment aims to give you an opportunity to explore key features related to research methodology.

Specifically, the assignment requires that you study the theory/theories that form the basis of a particular area of research and the methodology employed in conducting the research. To complete the assignment, you need to conduct a critical review of FIVE journal articles, all of which are related to ONE specific area of research.
You are required to do the assignment on your own and the paper you hand in should be an original piece of work. Please be reminded that plagiarism in any form will be severely dealt with.

GUIDELINES FOR ASSIGNMENT

Step 1

Choose a specific area of research and write your RESEARCH QUESTIONS. Identify a specific area of research that is of interest to you. This may be related to your students’ learning or of importance to you as a student, or to City University College. Ideally, you should choose a research area that could be developed into a proposal for your intended study later. Before you settle with a specific area of research, it is advisable to go through the recent literature available in the field to determine what has been researched and has not been researched so that your choice is current and worth studying.

Write down your chosen area of research in the form of an appropriate title. A good title should reflect the focus of the research. Ideally, it should incorporate three important aspects, namely the variable(s) investigated, the research setting and the subjects of the study.

Example: · The effects of using hand-phones among IT City University College students. · A study of using Facebook among IT City University College students

Present your rationale for choosing the specific area of research [5 marks]

Step 2

Select readings FIVE journal articles that are directly related to your chosen area of research. All these articles should represent empirical studies from peer-reviewed journals. The articles should also contain different methodological approaches so that you will have a more in depth understanding of the methodological issues related your chosen research area. You can source this type of research articles from the City University College Digital Library.

You can also try the following resources to source for articles. http://aera-cr.asu.edu/ejournals/ http://www.google.com/Top/Reference/Education/Journals/ http://www.doaj.org/doaj?func=subject&cpid=127

Confine your search for current articles only, preferably within the past 5 years.

Provide a list of the journal articles and justifications for the choice of each article. [10 marks]

Step 3

Discuss the theoretical basis of the chosen research area Read through the articles and discuss the theory or theories that form the basis of or the foundation for the research.

Your discussion should provide a brief description of the theory/theories and an explanation of their relevance to the focus of the research.

Examine also how the theory/theories are used to guide the research, provide a rational basis for explaining or interpreting the results, make predictions based on the findings, etc. [15 marks]

Step 4

Analyse and synthesize Analyse the research methodology that has been used in the various journal articles you have read, synthesize key issues and write a report. You may focus your report on the following methodological aspects:

Approach: The use of a qualitative or quantitative approach or the use of surveys, experiments, cor relational method, case study method, ethnography, etc.

· Variables: The variables (e.g. independent, dependent and moderating) focused on and how they are related in each study and across the studies. ·

Sample/Participants: The samples and the sampling techniques used and why. ·

Instrumentation: The data collection instruments (e.g. survey questionnaire, tests, observational checklist, etc) and issues related to validity and reliability ·

Research procedures: The data collection procedures. their appropriateness to the focus of the research, their clarity to allow for replication in future studies, etc

In your report, you should compare and contrast the various methodological features in the articles and deliberate on their strengths and weaknesses with the aim of formulating a sound methodological framework for your intended study. [15 marks]

Step 5

Results, Conclusions and Problems faced. Write what are the results that you have found and what are the conclusions that you derived.

Also state the problems that you faced during the entire research project. [5 marks]


Pass up your assignment in the form of a bound copy containing the following sections:
A. Title and rationale of the research (5 marks)

B. List of journal articles and justifications for the choice (10 marks)

C. Discussion on theoretical framework (15 mark)

D. Analysis of methodology (15 marks)

E. Results, Conclusion and Problems faced (5 marks)

Download Assignment Questions