Assessment Description:

This assessment builds on Assessment 2. In that assessment, you developed part of the research proposal by formulating a research topic, providing an introduction and justification for the research, and reviewing the literature on your topic.

In this assessment, you will finalise your research proposal by developing the methodology part of your research. In order to do this effectively, you should follow the structure below.

Structure of the paper

• State your research topic clearly at the start of the paper
• Provide an introduction to the research – justification for the research; research questions (at least 5 questions are recommended). (This information should be adapted from Assessment 2 and based on assessment 2 feedback).
• Engage in a brief, critical review of the literature. This information will come from Assessment 2. It should be brief and take into consideration the feedback provided to you in that assessment. The review should discuss what previous research has said about your topic and the gaps that you are trying to fill by carrying out this study.
• Discussion of methodology: This is the main part of this assessment. Students must engage in an in-depth discussion of their chosen methodology. This would include:
• The data collection methods and justification for those methods: the specific instruments used to collect the data (for example, interviews, questionnaires, observation, focus groups etc). Remember, you don’t have to use all of the methods, you just need to choose the one(s) that are most suitable for your chosen topic
• Sampling – what sampling strategy would you use; sample size (for this study, it is limited to between 0 – 10 participants); how will you recruit your sample (that is, how will you get access to the sample) etc
• Analysis of the data – explain how you plan to analyse the data. Since most qualitative data would be coded and categorised, it would be useful to explain how you would go about doing this - what would you be looking for? For example, based on your particular topic and research questions, you might expect certain themes to emerge (you should have an idea of these from your review of the literature) and these themes can be discussed as examples during your discussion of the coding process. The main idea here is to show the examiner that you understand the process of coding of qualitative data. In addition, if there are particular techniques of data analysis recommended by your theoretical framework, you should incorporate those into the discussion.
• Ethical implications - Discuss how you will ensure that  your research conforms to research ethics.
• Conclusion - Conclude the discussion.

Remember, you are not expected to go out and collect the data. This is just the ‘proposal’ or plan for what you intend to do.