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DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2023/2024

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DRPS : Course Catalogue : Edinburgh Medical School : Medical Education

Postgraduate Course: Introduction to Qualitative Educational Research for Health Care Professionals (MEED11033)

Course Outline
SchoolEdinburgh Medical School CollegeCollege of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine
Credit level (Normal year taken)SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate)
Course typeOnline Distance Learning AvailabilityAvailable to all students
SCQF Credits20 ECTS Credits10
SummaryThe course aim is to enable students to develop skills in understanding and conducting qualitative research in health care education. The key principles of qualitative research are introduced and explored over the course allowing students to develop an appreciation of health care related qualitative research specific to their domain of practice/area of educational interest.
Course description Students will be introduced to qualitative research in health care education with an overview before exploring the role of theory in guiding the qualitative research process. The course will focus on developing skills of questioning and criticality and aim to develop the students' ability to produce as well as consume educational research. Students will be introduced to, and will explore, the key research proposal domains, including:
Ethics and data management
Qualitative methods/data collection
Qualitative approaches/analysis
Reading/appraising/integrating qualitative research critically.
Quality in qualitative research
Overarching theoretical frameworks

Students will use the weekly sessions to build an understanding of qualitative research in health care, education allowing them to develop a research proposal specific to their domain of practice.
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations Other requirements None
Information for Visiting Students
Pre-requisitesNone
High Demand Course? Yes
Course Delivery Information
Academic year 2023/24, Available to all students (SV1) Quota:  None
Course Start Blocks 4-5 (Sem 2)
Timetable Timetable
Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) Total Hours: 200 ( Lecture Hours 8, Seminar/Tutorial Hours 8, Online Activities 65, Feedback/Feedforward Hours 1, Formative Assessment Hours 1, Summative Assessment Hours 30, Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4, Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours 83 )
Assessment (Further Info) Written Exam 0 %, Coursework 100 %, Practical Exam 0 %
Additional Information (Assessment) One written assignment of around 3000-4,000 words, there will be a choice of subject but the broad topic will relate to a methodological critique and consideration of alignment in qualitative research. Formative feedback will be provided primarily by discussion board comments.
Feedback Individual feedback on formative and summative work will be provided using audio feedback and in-text comments.
Students will also receive ongoing feedback through online discussion boards and tutorials.
No Exam Information
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
  1. Demonstrate understanding of the principles and process of educational qualitative research applied to health and health care settings.
  2. Compare and contrast different qualitative methodologies and their application to health care problems.
  3. Demonstrate understanding of techniques for qualitative data collection and the ethical issues involved in application to health and health care education.
  4. Understand and apply criteria for assessing qualitative research to health and health care education research.
  5. Critically evaluate qualitative research literature specific to health and health care education.
Reading List
Green, J., & Thorogood, N. (2018). Qualitative methods for health research. sage.

Cousin, G. (2009). Researching Learning in Higher Education: An Introduction to Contemporary Methods and Approaches. Routledge.

King, N., Horrocks, C., & Brooks, J. (2018). Interviews in qualitative research. SAGE Publications Limited.

Bourgeault, I., Dingwall, R., & De Vries, R. (Eds.). (2010). The SAGE handbook of qualitative methods in health research. Sage.

Pope, C., & Mays, N. (2006). Qualitative methods in health research. Qualitative research in health care, 3, 1-11.

Pope, C., Ziebland, S., & Mays, N. (2000). Qualitative research in health care: Analysing qualitative data. BMJ: British Medical Journal, 320(7227), 114.

Rice, P. L., & Ezzy, D. (1999). Qualitative research methods: A health focus (Vol. 720). Victoria, Australia: Oxford.
Additional Information
Graduate Attributes and Skills Enquiry and lifelong learning
Aspiration and personal development
Outlook and engagement
Research and enquiry
Personal and intellectual autonomy
Personal effectiveness
Communication
Special Arrangements There are limited places to take this course as an outside elective and students not on the Clinical Education programme wishing to enrol, should first contact the Course Secretary to ascertain availability. Email: clinicaleducation@ed.ac.uk
KeywordsHealth professionals,research methods,qualitative data,health education research
Contacts
Course organiserDr Charles Marley
Tel: (0131 6)51 3970
Email: Charles.Marley@ed.ac.uk
Course secretaryMrs Femke Morrison
Tel: (0131) 242 6385
Email: Femke.Morrison@ed.ac.uk
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