Pre-requisites

SS501 Introduction to Sociology

Co-requisites

None.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, the student will be able to:

• Justify the use of two or three specific research methodologies or approaches relevant to their work

• Reflect, informed by a Christian Worldview and theory, on the nature of a chosen approach, situating it with the social sciences

• Generate an ethics application form informed by an awareness of ethical issues relevant to research in their general areas of interest where appropriate

• Plan the writing up of research

• Analyse research design and practice

Unit Description

This unit caters for students who plan to design a research project and write a thesis in disciplines such as social science, education, community development and counselling. It is not a generalist, all-purpose research methods course, but rather a focused preparation for carrying out specific research projects.

Informed by a Christian worldview research projects will be developed to focus on one of the core streams of study.

Since different students will come into the unit with a different mix of skills and will want to embark on a wide range of research projects, the unit is designed to identify individual capacities relevant to conducting research, provide focused specialist input, a collective forum for debating research approaches, and assistance with locating other necessary resources.

Topics

• Determining Individual Research Requirements
• Research Methods
  • Qualitative
  • Quantitative
  • Mixed Methods
• Research Strategies
• Debating research approaches
• Thesis preparation

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Unit offerings

Independent/Flexible: Semester 2, 2025 (Every Year, Semester 2)

Please note

The Unit Offerings listed above are a guide only and the timetable for any year is the final authority. The College may vary offerings based on demand, regulatory requirements, continual improvement processes or other conditions.

This unit may be available in different modes of delivery i.e. online and face-to-face as listed above. The unit content will not differ between these modes of delivery. There will possibly be a difference in the schedule and/or the prescribed assessment tasks, however both will cover and assess the same content.