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Research Class Activities

The purpose of this course is to provide postgraduate students with foundational skills in social science research. It will cover the philosophy, theories, processes, principles, and methodologies of social research. Students will also learn how to select topics, form objectives, participate in discussions, critique methodologies, and write research proposals. Assessment will include a topic selection, class participation, exam, interview analysis, thesis critique, and final research proposal.

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Caroline Ayuya
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37 views

Research Class Activities

The purpose of this course is to provide postgraduate students with foundational skills in social science research. It will cover the philosophy, theories, processes, principles, and methodologies of social research. Students will also learn how to select topics, form objectives, participate in discussions, critique methodologies, and write research proposals. Assessment will include a topic selection, class participation, exam, interview analysis, thesis critique, and final research proposal.

Uploaded by

Caroline Ayuya
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Purpose of the course

The purpose of this course is to provide an opportunity for students to get grounded in research
and be able to explore, conduct, and evaluate research in the field of social sciences at levels
appropriate for postgraduate studies. It will emphasize on the philosophy driving social
research, theories in social research, processes, principles, methodologies, presentation, and
evaluation of social science-based research.

Assessment

1. Topic Selection and Objectives (10%): To be presented in Class.

2. Class forums and discussions 10%

3. Mid semester Exam (20 Points)

4. Interview Protocol Assignment (10) marks):


For this assignment you will select a person (or a group of people) and conduct an ONLINE
interview with them on a topic for your proposal. Your paper should provide: (a) a brief
description of the person/people you interviewed, why you interviewed them, and what you
hope to achieve through this interview (what you hoped to learn);

(b) an interview protocol;

(c) an analysis of the interview. The analysis should include two dimensions: 1) what you
learned about the topic you were inquiring about through this interview, and 2) what you
learned methodologically from this interview. That is, what you learned as a researcher about
interviewing from this experience and how might you use what you learned in your thesis data
collection and future research.

5. Critiquing a thesis’s methodology: (20 points)


For this assignment, you will be allocated a sample thesis. NOTE: The given thesis is
specifically for Class use and should not be reproduced anywhere. Using what we have
learned in the course, provide a critique of its methodology. By critique I do not mere criticism
(this is what is bad with this thesis) but rather a way to explore, conduct a critical conversation
with the politics of knowledge production in thesis: what is the thesis about? How did the
researcher go about producing and making claims to knowledge? What methods did the
researcher use in data collection? Do you believe those methods were conducive to answer the
study’s particular questions and make its particular claims to knowledge and knowing? If so,
how? If not, why? To what degree do you believe the methods used in this study
matched/enhanced/contradicted the understandings & underlying the topic being studied (in
other words, did the study produce a methodology or merely a set of methods)? What do you
believe are some of the methodological strengths of this study (and why do you believe that?)?
What do you believe are some of the methodological weaknesses of this study (and why do you
believe that?)? What did you learn from this critique about conducting qualitative about
conducting qualitative research? How might this knowledge direct you in thinking about your
own study? What are some of the notes absences and silences in this study? On what is this

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study’s methodology silent? Why? With what consequences? How, if at all, does this study
deal with the ethical issues and those pertaining to power?

6. Project Paper: (30 points). The purpose of this assignment is to “consolidate” your learning
in/from this course and previous course. The intent is for you to use this assignment to begin
writing (or to consolidate) your research proposal. Your research proposal should include all
components of a research proposal from Preliminaries to Appendices.

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