RSCH20001 Asst. 3 Research Design Marking Criteria

RSCH20001 Asst. 3 Research Design Marking Criteria

Criteria Evaluation

Satisfactory or Needs revision/ Comments

Title page included all relevant information. Table of contents (and/or Table of Tables, Table of figures as appropriate):

Main headings sub-headings with corresponding page numbers

Formatted so hierarchy of topics is clear

Auto-generated using MS Word Introduction:

Outlines the research problem or main focus of the proposed research project

Provides context and background for the project

Explains reasons for, and significance of, undertaking the project Research aims and objectives:

Provides clearly stated outline of the project aims and objectives

Aims and objectives are relevant to the chosen topic

Research questions and/or hypotheses (as appropriate):

Lists appropriate research questions and/or hypotheses that flow from the aims and objectives

Demonstrates the linkage between the proposed research topic, research design, methodology and methods/techniques Philosophical positioning:

Discusses ontology and epistemology being followed

Explains qualitative (inductive) and/or quantitative (deductive) and justifies reasoning with respect to the project

Methodology, methods, and/or research design (as appropriate):

Demonstrates linkage between the proposed research topic, research design/research methodology and research methods

Discussion, analysis and alignment of each research method to your research design/methodology and research methods

Justifies how the research design will allow you to address the research problem and answer the research question/s and or prove or disprove your hypotheses Ethical statement:

Clearly identifies if you need to seek ethical clearance and how that will be accomplished (low risk pathway or full application)

States relevant committee (HREC or SEC)

Or justifies why ethical clearance will not be required Conclusion:

Reminds the reader of the research question/s

Summarises the research design and the suitability of the methods/techniques to the proposed research project

States the expected outcomes and significance of the research project Academic writing style:

Within the expected work length (~4,000 words)

Uses correct spelling and grammar

Presentation style and format appropriate for a RHD research design References:

In-text citations acknowledging other author's work

List of all references cited in-text

Formatted using the style indicated on your title page

Reference list commences on a separate page Assessment Result = Satisfactory or resubmit

Dr Cheryl Bookallil

Assessment item 3 Research design

Due date: Friday of week 8 ASSESSMENT

Grading: Marked satisfactory or resubmit 3

Length: Maximum 4000 words (+/- 10%) excluding reference list and appendices (if used).

Objectives

This assessment item relates to unit learning outcomes in the RSCH20001 unit profile.

Requirements

This assessment item builds on general knowledge and skills obtained in previous weeks where various research paradigms, approaches, theories, methodologies and methods were explored. A research design (or methodological approach) is a detailed framework or plan to guide you through the research process with the aim of achieving your research objectives. Research designs can range from phenomenology, experimental, simulation studies, population studies, phased sequential mixed methods, qualitative inquiry, ethnography to name a few. Research methods, on the other hand, are the different techniques used for collecting and analysing data. Examples are unstructured interviews, experiments, observations and thematic analyses or the use of SPSS software.

It is expected that by this time you will have a more defined research project in consultation with your Research Supervisor(s). Guided by your analysis of different research designs used by authors of the research articles you have critiqued, you will choose one design as appropriate for your proposed research project at this stage of its development.

This assessment requires you to provide an overview of your research design and identify the research methods (to be used for data collection and/or data analysis) that could be used in your proposed research project. Your choice of research design and research methods should be based on the review of research approaches and paradigms discussed in the unit materials and the research designs/methodologies in the research articles you have been reviewing and through discussions with your supervisors.

Prior to constructing your research design and selecting the appropriate research methods, you must discuss your choices with your Research Supervisors so that your effort is directed to the relevant research designs deployed in your chosen research discipline area.

Make sure that you send a draft of your assessment to your supervisorswell beforethe Due Dateso they have time to provide you with feedback to improve the final draft of your assessment. Include on the assignment cover page the date you first provided a draft of the assignment to your supervisor and any other subsequent dates.

This assessment item requires you to build on the research foundations, research processes, research methods and practices that you have explored in this unit. It is expected that by this time you will have a clearly defined research project in consultation with your research supervisor(s). Guided by theory and your examination of the research methodologies, you should be able to formulate a research design for your proposed research project.

In this assignment you need to outline the overall research strategy that you will employ to integrate the various components of your proposed research project in a logical and coherent manner. The research design must ensure that you will effectively address the research problem you have identified. It must include the research aims and objectives, the research questions and/or hypotheses you propose to answer, and the research paradigm, methodology, research methods and techniques you intend to use to collect and analyse data for your proposed research project. If your project involves animals and/or human participants please address the ethical statement.

Submission

Please write your assessment using the following presentation style and format, then upload it onto the RSCH20001 Moodle website using the Assessment 3 link in the Assessment box.

Note: Every assessment must be submitted as a Word document. It must be a final draft (no comments or track changes).

Presentation and format

The document should be formatted on A4 International Standard paper with formatting style (margins, line spacing, font size, etc.) in accordance with your chosen referencing style. For example: Harvard has 1.5 line spacing and APA has double line spacing. Other styles are different again. Formatting manuals for the most popular styles can be found under week one on the Moodle site. If using Arial then font 11 is fine. If using Times New Roman it needs to be 12 point. Pages should be numbered in the footer as follows: Title page has no page number; Table of contents should have the Roman numeral i; and the main text to have Arabic numerals commencing at 1.

Structure

The structure of this assignment should be that of an academic report. That is, there should be a title page, a table of contents, an introduction preceding the body of the report, and a conclusion at the end. As every student will have a unique project you may want to confer with your Research Supervisors about an appropriate format that is suitable for your specific discipline area. A suggested structure would be as follows:

Title Page

A cover page with the unit code, assessment number, proposed thesis title (no more than 25 words, which should be descriptive and unambiguous), your name, student number, student email address, name of the course you are enrolled in (e.g., Masters, Professional Doctorate or Doctor of Philosophy), referencing style (e.g., APA, Harvard), assessment due date, names of Research Supervisors and Unit Coordinator. If you have an approved assessment extension this needs to be noted on the title page.

Add acknowledgements of re-using previous work if applicable.

Table of Contents Page

Table of contents should be auto-generated using MS-Word. Instructions can be found here:https://support.office.com/en-gb/article/Create-a-table-of-contents-or-update-a-table-of-contents-eb275189-b93e-4559-8dd9-c279457bfd72#__create_a_table.

Introduction

The introduction should provide the context for what you are proposing to research by explaining the reasons you are going to undertake the research. The research problem or main focus of your proposed research project should be clearly set out. You should include the background to your proposed research study.

Research Aims and Objectives

Describe or explain the research aims and objectives of your proposed research project. An aim is a general statement of what the research sets out to achieve. An objective is a specific statement related to the aim of your research. In other words, the aims should set out what you want to achieve, and the objectives should describe how you are going to achieve those aims. This should lead into your specific research questions or hypotheses.

Research Questions and/or Hypotheses (whichever is appropriate)

The research questions/hypotheses should guide and focus your research and enable you to address the research problem. They should be clear, focused and feasible.

A hypothesis should offer a clear and concise statement of what you expect to find in relation to your variables, and what you plan to test. It is a statement of the proposition that you intend to verify through the investigation.

Methodology, Methods and/or Research design (choose the heading appropriate to your study)

This section should provide the framework for your research design and include the rationale behind your chosen research approach (methodology). This should lead into a discussion of relevant research methods that you propose to use to support your research design. When discussing the research methods, you should analyse the advantages and disadvantages of each one and describe how they will allow you to answer the research questions and/or confirm/refute the hypotheses. Justify your selection of the research methods by describing how they align with your research approach and research design.

Ethics (Human and/or Animal)

According to theConfirmation of Candidature Proceduredocument (p. 3) a statement regarding the need for Animal and/or Human Ethics clearance (but not the application or clearance itself, unless pre-confirmation clearance has been negotiated) should be included in Section B which is a statement of logistics, resources and compliance. Some Research Supervisors have indicated that they want their students to include a statement regarding the need for ethical clearance in Section A of the CoC as the peer-reviewers are supplied only with Part A for assessment purposes. Therefore, they cannot read the ethical statement and this may result in a negative comment in the peer-review process.

Please consult with your supervisory team about the specific needs of your project, and whether it is warranted that you refer to the ethical clearance implications in Section A (in addition to Section B).

Conclusion

The conclusion should sum up the research design and discuss how the proposed research design will allow you to address your research questions and/or hypotheses and achieve your research aims and objectives.

References

List all your references (as per the chosen referencing style). This should start on a new page.

Assessment criteria

ALL assignments will be checked for plagiarism (material copied from other students and/or material copied from other sources) using Turnitin. If you are found to have plagiarised material or if you have used someone elses words without appropriate referencing, you will be penalised for plagiarism which could result in a Fail for the assessment. In some circumstances a more severe penalty may be imposed

This assessment is marked as satisfactory or resubmit. If you receive a resubmit, you will be given seven (7) days to resubmit the assessment. Please contact the course coordinator to discuss the feedback and confirm the resubmission date.