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The Understanding Research (UR) module aims to provide a general introduction to social research and to advance students’ ability to recognize, describe and appraise different types, principles and practices of research in education and the social sciences. It introduces students to the methodological landscape of education research and the social sciences and explores the purposes of different types of research. Students will learn to engage with research as a critical reader, develop a critical stance towards research and its uses and critically reflect on the range of theories of knowledge which underpin different approaches to research. In the course of this module, students will become familiar with a range of research concepts and approaches and will learn how to critically assess various purposes of research, specifically reflecting on how different research approaches help to explore and shape what is possible to know about particular research topics within the field of education and social science.Ìý

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Teaching Delivery: Ìý

The module lasts for 10 weeks, with a reading week halfway through. Each weekly session spans from Monday to Friday. For face-to-face students, each weeklyÌý session includes attending a 1.5-hour lecture/discussion with the lecturer session and a 1.5-hour group seminar. Distance learning students will participate remotely, via Zoom, in their seminar and discussion with the lecturer session.Ìý

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Indicative Topics: Ìý

Each weekly topic will be themed around a different issue related to the topic of understanding social science research.Ìý Indicative lecture topics include as follows (please note that the topics are based on module content in 2023/24, subject to possible changes):Ìý

1. What is research: Introduction to the moduleÌý

2. How to address research questions and describe researchÌý

3. Theory in researchÌý

4. Participatory researchÌý

5. Developing critical reading and working with published researchÌý

6. Portraying social lifeÌý

7. Surveying social lifeÌý

8. Evaluating interventionsÌý

9. Researching assessmentÌýÌý

10. Innovative research methodsÌý

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Module Aims and/or Objectives

Module Aims: Ìý

This module aims to provide student the opportunity to:Ìý

• read and critique research within their own and other disciplines;Ìý
• develop as a critical reader of researchÌý
• develop a critical stance towards research and its uses;Ìý
• explore the purposes of different types of research;Ìý
• investigate the range of theories of knowledge which underpin different approaches to research;Ìý
• critically reflect on ethical issues for research;Ìý
• become familiar with a range of research concepts and methods for data collection and analysis.Ìý

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Recommended Readings: ÌýÌý

C. Ragin & L. Amoroso (2011). Thousand Oaks: Forge Press.Ìý
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Islam, M.R., Khan, N.A., Baikady, R. (eds) Principles of Social Research Methodology. Springer, Singapore.ÌýÌý

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Cohen, Louis, Lawrence Manion, and Keith Morrison. Research Methods in Education: Eighth Edition. New York: Routledge, 2018. Print.Ìý

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Hamilton, P. 1992, ‘The Enlightenment and the Birth of Social Science’, Ch. 1 in Hall, S. and Gieben, B. Formations of Modernity, Polity Press/Open UniversityÌý

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Clark, A., 2011. Breaking methodological boundaries? Exploring visual, participatory methods with adults and young children. European early childhood education research journal, 19(3), pp.321-330.Ìý

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Denscombe, Martyn. The Good Research Guide : For Small-Scale Social Research Projects /. Maidenhead : Open University Press, 2014. Print.Ìý

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Clandinin, D. Jean., and F. Michael Connelly. Narrative Inquiry : Experience and Story in Qualitative Research / by D. Jean Clandinin and F. Michael Connelly. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2000. Print.Ìý

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Wyse, D. and Cowan, K. (2017) ‘Reading Widely’, in The good writing guide for education students. 4th edition. London: SAGE Publications Ltd.ÌýÌý

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Wolf, C., Joye, D., Smith, T. W., & Fu, Y. (2016). The SAGE Handbook of survey Methodology. SAGE Publications Ltd, Ìý

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Gorard, S., See, B., & Siddiqui, N., (2014). A randomised controlled trial (or ‘fair test’): Evaluating an educational innovation. In Sage Research Methods Cases Part 1. SAGE Publications, Ltd., Ìý

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The SAGE Handbook of Social Research Methods, edited by Pertti Alasuutari, et al., SAGE Publications, Limited, 2008. ProQuest Ebook Central, https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/ucl/detail.action?docID=1046489.Ìý

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Additional Costs: Ìý

N/A