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DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2011/2012
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DRPS : Course Catalogue : Moray House School of Education : Research (EDU)

Postgraduate Course: The Nature of Enquiry (EdD) (REDU12002)

Course Outline
SchoolMoray House School of Education CollegeCollege of Humanities and Social Science
Course typeStandard AvailabilityNot available to visiting students
Credit level (Normal year taken)SCQF Level 12 (Postgraduate) Credits20
Home subject areaResearch (EDU) Other subject areaNone
Course website None Taught in Gaelic?No
Course descriptionThe aim of this course is to introduce philosophical and epistemological perspectives that inform the aims and practices of social and educational research. Discussion of the main debates between the various schools or paradigms will lead to a consideration of the arguments and assumptions which each makes about the social world. The course will focus on issues of methodology (i.e., the principles of research) rather than on providing training in the use of specific research methods, but these will then be linked with the discussions in other courses on the actual practice of research. It is also important that a course of this nature should address the values and ethical problems inherent in social and educational research and this course introduces them.
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations Other requirements None
Additional Costs None
Course Delivery Information
Delivery period: 2011/12 Full Year, Not available to visiting students (SS1) WebCT enabled:  Yes Quota:  None
Location Activity Description Weeks Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
No Classes have been defined for this Course
First Class First class information not currently available
No Exam Information
Delivery period: 2011/12 Full Year, Not available to visiting students (SS2) WebCT enabled:  No Quota:  None
Location Activity Description Weeks Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
No Classes have been defined for this Course
First Class First class information not currently available
No Exam Information
Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course students should be able to:

identify the main traditions/paradigms of social and education research

analyse the ways in which the different methodological positions affect research questions, research design and the choice of data collection instruments and analysis techniques

discuss the contribution of systematic enquiry to understanding social and educational issues and developing public policies to address these issues

demonstrate an awareness of the values and ethical debates inherent in social and educational research

Assessment Information
Students should submit and assignment of 4,000 to 5,000 words that explores the nature, the context and the goals of social enquiry. The assignment should be illustrated with references to their own area of research interest and/or professional expertise.
The assignment might be tackled in a variety of ways. For example, it might involve a detailed discussion of the influence of a particular paradigm on research in their area, or it might take the form of an argument for more diversity, e.g. an argument (eg. an argument concerning the need to move away from a positivist perception of enquiry to a more interpretivist model). It should not be merely a descriptive account of the main features of positivist, structuralist and/or intrepretivist approaches to social enquiry.
Special Arrangements
None
Additional Information
Academic description Not entered
Syllabus Not entered
Transferable skills Not entered
Reading list Not entered
Study Abroad Not entered
Study Pattern Not entered
KeywordsNot entered
Contacts
Course organiserProf Morwenna Griffiths
Tel: (0131 6)51 6104
Email: morwenna.griffiths@ed.ac.uk
Course secretaryMs Sarah Mcneil
Tel: (0131 6)50 4707
Email: Sarah.F.McNeil@ed.ac.uk
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