PER5025 - Research Skills in Philosophy, Ethics and Religion

Objectives:

Assessment tasks are designed to enable students to demonstrate the Learning and Employability outcomes for the relevant level of study. Level Learning Outcomes are embedded in the assessment task(s) at that level. This enables a more integrated view of overall student performance at each level.

Content:

This module will develop the skills required to plan and begin an independent research project within a supportive learning environment and will reinforce research skills developed in Level 4 modules. The sessions will cover the basic skills and requirements for undertaking a dissertation (for example: developing research questions, understanding research ethics, distinguishing primary and secondary sources, and other learning skills). After core research principles are examined, students will be able to direct attention towards particular research themes or challenges. The module will consist of live demonstrations and activities, where students will have opportunity to practice their research skills and not just learn about them in abstract terms. As the module progresses, attention will be directed towards research proposals – what they are, what they do, what they contain and how to create one. Upon completion of this module, students will be able to efficiently gather and utilise resources, identify challenges and solutions to research tasks, and be able to recognise the essential components of academically rigorous research.

Learning and Teaching Information:

As this module is entirely skills-based, it will be delivered through interactive sessions that utilise tasks and activities, as opposed to lectures that cover theoretical content. Each week will identify and address a particular research theme, ability or skill, such as academic writing, structure, methodologies and conventions. Students will be encouraged to identify particular areas which they would like further attention on, and through co-creation activities, the module will address them.

You will be taught using LTU’s multimodal approach to teaching. Your learning will be divided into three stages:

Preparation: You will be given clear tasks to support you in preparing for live, in-person teaching. This may include watching a short, pre-recorded lecture (or other open educational resource), reading a paper or text chapter, finding resources to discuss with your peers in class, reading and commenting on a paper or preparing other material for use in class. Your Module Tutor will give you information to help you understand why you are completing an activity and how this will be built on during live, in-person teaching.

Live: All your live, in-person teaching will be designed around active learning, providing you with valuable opportunities to build on preparation tasks and interact with staff and peers, as well as helping you to deepen your understanding, apply knowledge and surface any misunderstandings.

Post: Follow-up activities will include clear opportunities for you to check understanding and apply your learning to a new situation or context. These activities will also be a source of feedback for staff that will inform subsequent sessions.

Seminars and Workshops
Hours: 24
Intended Group Size: 30

Guided independent study
Hours: 126

Further details relating to assessment
Students are required to write a portfolio consisting of two parts, (i) research proposal suitable for an L6 Dissertation, (ii) section addressing key features of the proposed research project. The research proposal should include a summary of the topic and problem addressed, and could feature – where appropriate – the hypothesis, research questions and basic methodology, as well as a brief literature review of relevant primary and secondary sources, a projected chapter outline, and a preliminary bibliography. As there are a wide variety of research methods, skills and mediums, students have freedom to propose which ones they want to include in section (ii). For example, students may wish to have a section on oral research presentations, others may want to discuss the importance of ethics and participant recruitment, whilst others might want to write about the differences between research questions and hypothesises. Examples and suggestions will be explored and discussed throughout the module.

Assessment:

001 Portfolio; 2,000 words; mid-semester 2 100%

Fact File

Module Coordinator - David Ellis
Level - 5
Credit Value - 15
Pre-Requisites - NONE
Semester(s) Offered - 5S2

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