VirtualMV/Research Workshop/Home

We noticed that many of our international students had issues writing reports to our specifications, particularly in the area of citing and excessive amounts of cut and paste.

This page is just a list of initial ideas.. so feel free to add to help us make this a useful and relevant workshop. Our initial idea is to deliver this face to face but I am keen to set up a WikiEducator online version.

Time: 2 x 1 hour sessions of about a week apart.

Learning outcomes

 * 1 Synthesise information and cite it
 * 1a citing: APA referencing in text (intro)
 * 1b Referencing: APA referencing at the end (intro)
 * 1c How to: skim, summarise, read for understand.


 * 2 Answer the question asked (relevant, summary, targeted)
 * 3 Structure abstract/executive summary, introduction, [body], conclusion
 * 4 Where to go to learn more/better

Pre-Workshop Activity

 * 1) Read the article assigned by your facilitator (links in the Appendix)
 * 2) What is the article about (in 2 sentences)?

Session 1: Learning Activities
Possible Research question(s) are included with each paper (see Appendix)
 * 1.1 What does the research question mean?
 * 1.2 Is the paper relevant to the question? (In this case the answer should be yes)
 * 1.3 What will your answer look like?
 * Discussion: Template (structure) - See Appendix
 * Discussion: How to Reference and Cite


 * 1.4 In the article(s) highlight sentences you could use to answer the question . Also make notes in the margins (good to have a big margin :) )

Post-session activity

 * 1.5 (LO 1a, 1b) Write the body of the report (Maximum 1 page) - summarising information from article(s), citing in text and building the reference section.

Session 2: Learning Activities

 * 2.1 Review what was written (small groups of 3 ish?)
 * Does it target the question (2.2, 2.4) - Lecturer-mentors
 * Does it cite correctly (1a, 1b)
 * Is it summarised / synthesized or copied (1,2,3)


 * 2.2. Activity
 * Check the template (which list what to do) - roughly 10 mins for each
 * Write a conclusion
 * Write an introduction
 * Write an abstract


 * 2.3 Review
 * Does it answer the question
 * Feedback to lecturers to follow up.

Not covered

 * How to Google, find sources
 * How to choose good quality sources
 * Stats, data gathering, research
 * How to "critique", how to "compare"
 * How to structure a report/answer
 * Pyramid style (Upside down triangle)
 * Summarise whole article in 1 paragraph (Research Methods)

Notes: Sessions to be normal classroom

Research paper template

 * Title
 * Abstract
 * Outline of papar
 * What the research will involve
 * Research questions/hypothesis
 * Research Methods
 * How you will analyse the data
 * Introduction [Background]
 * Why you chose the topic
 * Links to previous research
 * Why this is different or unique
 * Research objectives, questions or hypothesis
 * Justify why the research you are proposing is important or significant
 * Literature Review
 * Literature that supports the research question. Identify areas for further research from the current literature
 * Research Methodology
 * Paradigm and epistemology
 * Show how you used the lit review to create your own methodology
 * Research Design and Method / Findings
 * data gathered
 * Sample
 * process
 * constructs
 * Exogenous Variables
 * reliability and validity
 * construct validity
 * strengths and weaknesses of the method
 * Analysis and Discussion
 * Limitations of the study
 * Ethical Considerations
 * Conclusion
 * References

Resources
List here possible papers that can be used as exemplars (remember they need to be short and in themselves demonstrate good citing and referencing. Also they need to be available in open journals.
 * Keep articles small (abridge if necessary)
 * Make sure they have correct citing and referencing
 * Try for good short exemplars

(Any teaching resources associated should also be correctly referenced, plus structured (intro & conclusion) - I think that lecturers in their presentations should demonstrate good research practice)

2012 Social Media
On the CITRENZ web site find the Proceedings for 2012
 * Nesbit, T., & Martin, A. (2012) Enhancing Engagement in Large Course: The Facebook Experiment. In M. Lopez & M. Verhaart (Eds.) ''Proceedings of the e 3rd annual conference of Computing and Information Technology Research and Education New Zealand (CITRENZ2012) incorporating the 25th Annual Conference of the National Advisory Committee on Computing Qualifications, Christchurch, New Zealand, October 8-10, 2012. ( http://www.citrenz.ac.nz ).

Possible research questions

 * 1) What are the advantages of using Facebook to enhance tertiary learning?

2011 Christchurch Earthquake
On the CITRENZ web site find the Proceedings for 2011 There are two research papers using the Christchurch earthquake as a context.
 * McCarthy, D. P., & McCarthy, C. (2011) The Christchurch Quake: Social Networking as Student Support in Disaster Recovery. In S. Mann & M. Verhaart (Eds.) Proceedings of the 2nd Annual Conference of the Computing and Information Technology Research and Education of New Zealand Conference (Incorporating the 24th National Advisory Committee on Computing Qualifications Conference), Rotorua, New Zealand, July 5-8. pp.129-154. ( http://www.citrenz.ac.nz ).
 * Nesbit, T., & Martin, A. (2011) eLearning: A Solution in a Crisis: Don’t Forget the Pedagogy. In S. Mann & M. Verhaart (Eds.) Proceedings of the 2nd Annual Conference of the Computing and Information Technology Research and Education of New Zealand Conference (Incorporating the 24th National Advisory Committee on Computing Qualifications Conference), Rotorua, New Zealand, July 5-8. pp.197-211. ( http://www.citrenz.ac.nz ).

Scan the two papers and choose one that interests you (read the abstract, introduction and conclusion).

Possible research questions

 * 1) What eLearning support systems should be in place to lessen the impact of a Natural disaster?
 * 2) What things should be included in an educational institutes educational support procedures to prepare for a Natural disaster?