Identifying and Choosing a Topic

A research question as the title of the report

• The research question should be in a form that will offer the possibility of a discussion of different views and evidence.

• It should be phrased in an appropriate academic fashion.

Identify one or more areas of interest

AP subjects Future College courses

News items / current events / reading /

interests/ Seminar topics

Explore in more detail: Where are the useful sources?What are the different views?

Identify sub-topics Identify strands of opinion

Construct several possible research questions.

Discuss with your teacher or tutor

Criticise and improve

Select a focused research question.

Are there any topics from your current studies that they wish to take further?• An English learner might want to explore a

particular poem, author, novel

• A mathematician might be fascinated by calculus

• A physicist might be intrigued by the concept of time travel

• A historian might want to learn more about revolutions

• A philosopher might want to explore religious experience

• An anthropologist might want to understand more about the cultural importance of dreams

• A biologist might consider the Anthropic Principle and Evolution

Are there any current events or ethical issues you may wish to study?• The expansion of NATO

• The cult of celebrity

• Faith and the law

• Sport and politics/economics

• Emerging superpowers

• The war on terror

Moving towards higher education – is there something you would like to study that links in?• Medicine – Xenotransplantation?

• Teaching – Assessment for Learning – is it fit for purpose?

• Engineering – Can we make Green Fuels economically efficient?

• Psychology – Mercia Eliade and dreams – spiritual or cerebral?

• Computer science – Are we catering for the new 'older generation’?

• Law – Is anonymous evidence ever acceptable?

Questions to ask of the question…

• Is it relevant?

• Is it manageable?

• Is it clear and simple?

• Is it interesting?

• Can you move plans into action?

• Is it fit for assessment?

Is it relevant?

• The question will be of academic and intellectual interest.

• The question arises from issues raised in the literature or in practice.

• Students should be able to establish a clear purpose for their research in relation to the chosen field. For example, are they filling a gap in knowledge, analysing academic assumptions or professional practice, questioning a development in practice, comparing different approaches or testing theories within a specific field etc.?

Is it manageable?• Students need to be realistic about the scope and scale of the

project. The question students ask must be within their ability to tackle. For example, are you able to access people, statistics, or documents from which to collect the data you need to address the question fully? Are you able to relate the concepts of their research question to the observations, phenomena, indicators or variables you can access? Can this data be accessed within the limited time and resources they have available?

• Sometimes a research question appears feasible, but when a student starts their fieldwork or library study, it proves otherwise. In this situation, it is important to write up your problems honestly and to reflect on what has been learnt. It may be possible, with your tutor, to develop a contingency plan to anticipate possible problems of access.

Is it clear and simple?• The complexity of a question can frequently hide unclear

thoughts and lead to a confused research process. A very elaborate research question, or a question which is not differentiated into different parts, may hide concepts that are contradictory or not relevant. Getting this clear and thought-through is one of the hardest parts of the work.

• Equally, you will want to get started with your literature review and data collection, and you may feel tempted to 'make do' with a broad and vague research question for the moment. However, a muddled question is likely to generate muddled data and equally muddled analysis.

• If students create a clear and simple research question, you may find that it becomes more complex as you think about the situation you are studying and undertake the literature review. Having one key question with several sub-components will guide your research and a mind map/poster approach is useful.

Is it interesting?• This is key! The question needs to be one that interests the

student and is likely to remain intriguing for the duration of the project. There are two traps to be avoided.

• First, some questions are convenient - the best you can come up with when you are asked to state a question on the OPF form, maybe – or perhaps the question fits in with their other studies so you decide it will do.

• Second, some questions are fads. They arise out of a particular set of personal or current global circumstances, once those change you can lose enthusiasm and/or sources of information for the topic - it becomes tedious.

• Make sure that you have a real, grounded interest in their research question, and that you can explore this and back it up by academic and intellectual debate. It is your interest that will motivate you to keep working and to produce a good report.

Can you move plans into action?• Make sure you note anything they read that is relevant to their

study.

• Where (i.e. in what settings) does the work they are interested in take place? What access do you have to it? Will there be ethical issues? How might you be able to negotiate access? What obstacles are there?

• What sort of time scales are you going to need to do the sort of research planned? How much time have you got? Are plans unrealistic?

• Having thought about these things, you should try narrowing down ideas again to the sort of research you can do.

• You should make a list of the skills and knowledge you could bring to the research task. Do you like interviewing? Will you be able to get interviews transcribed? Are you keen to do surveys?

• Are there sources of secondary data that you could access?

• Are there possibilities for documentary analysis?

Is it fit for assessment?

• Students must remember, you must satisfy the learning outcomes of the course.

• Your question must be open to assessment, as well as interesting.

• You must keep referring back to the assessment objectives throughout the process (see student workbook for a student friendly version).