Units

---

Sample subject outline - Semester 2 2013

Note: Subject outlines often change before the semester begins. Below is a sample outline.

Rationale

Research skills are an important element of graduate capabilities, applicable to scholarly work at Honours and higher degree level, and also to professional practice. This unit makes available at the Bachelor level the internationally recognised expertise of world-leading research active staff within the creative industries faculty. It will enable you to explore the possibilities of academic research, design a project, and acquire data gathering, analysis and presentation skills of value to subsequent study and employment.

Aims

This unit aims to introduce you to a range of research methodologies and techniques used in the creative industries disciplines, and to prepare you to apply this knowledge to the design and delivery of a modest project. The unit aims to prepare you for scholarly and practice-led research at Honours, Masters and Doctoral level. In this unit, you will coordinate and develop research skills and knowledge acquired in years one and two of the course.

Objectives

On completion of this unit you should be able to:
1. Apply selected research methods and techniques employed in the scholarly study of the creative industries to the design and execution of a research project.
2. Engage in debates around the appropriateness and suitability of various methodologies to different kinds of research topic.
3. Demonstrate an applied understanding of the variety of approaches available to researchers in the creative industries.
4. Demonstrate applied understanding of the importance of ethics in creative industries research.
5. Demonstrate written, verbal and visual communication skills in the presentation of a research report.

Content

This unit will contain advanced material addressing key research methodologies related to the scholarly study of journalism and media and communication. The following questions will inform content selection and be based upon a number of existing research projects from these fields of study.

- what are the main methodological approaches to the production of scholarly knowledge in the study of journalism, media and communication?

- how do we select an appropriate research topic, and the appropriate methods to study it?

- what are the ethical challenges posed by research in journalism, media and communication?

- what are the main stages and milestones involved in designing, executing and presenting research?

Throughout this unit, you will further develop knowledge and skills relevant to doing research in these disciplines. These skills will be applicable to Honours and higher degree study. Content will draw on existing research projects and existing research expertise held by the academic staff of discipline.

Approaches to Teaching and Learning

Key concepts and approaches will be introduced and illustrated in workshops delivered during the first part of the unit (five weeks). Workshops will cover such themes as research ethics, writing research proposal and literature reviews. These sessions will be followed by one-on-one supervision of student projects by suitably qualified academic staff.

Assessment

Late assignments

An assignment submitted after the due date without an approved extension will not be marked. If you are unable to complete your assignment on time, you should submit on time whatever work you have done.

Faculty Assessment information

To access the Creative Industries Faculty Assessment Information see the Blackboard site for this unit.You will receive formative feedback on your progress in this unit during workshops and supervisions through the semester. You will receive written formative feedback on the unit's assignments.

Assessment name: Presentation
Description: You will select a research topic and prepare a short presentation on why you have chosen this question, what you hope to find out, and how you intend to conduct the research.
Relates to objectives: 2,5
Weight: 10%
Internal or external: Internal
Group or individual: Individual
Due date: Early Semester

Assessment name: Research Proposal
Description: You will prepare a research proposal identifying the research questions you intend to pursue, the methodology you intend to adopt, and explaining why these choices have been made.
Relates to objectives: 1,2,4,5
Weight: 30%
Internal or external: Internal
Group or individual: Individual
Due date: Mid Semester

Assessment name: Research Report
Description: You will prepare a report on an original research proposal you have undertaken, containing detailed accounts of the secondary literature used, the new empirical data gathered, and the findings reached.
Relates to objectives: 1,2,3,5
Weight: 60%
Internal or external: Internal
Group or individual: Individual
Due date: Late Semester

Academic Honesty

QUT is committed to maintaining high academic standards to protect the value of its qualifications. To assist you in assuring the academic integrity of your assessment you are encouraged to make use of the support materials and services available to help you consider and check your assessment items. Important information about the university's approach to academic integrity of assessment is on your unit Blackboard site.

A breach of academic integrity is regarded as Student Misconduct and can lead to the imposition of penalties.

Resource materials

There will be no set text for this unit. The following illustrate suggested readings:

Doing Media Research: an introduction, Susanna Hornig Priest, Sage, 2010
A Handbook of Qualitative Methodologies for Mass Communication Research, K.B. Jensen and N.W. Jankowski, Routledge, 1991
Mass Communication Research Methods, A. Hansen et al, Palgrave, 1998.

Risk assessment statement

There are no out of the ordinary risks associated with this unit.

Disclaimer - Offer of some units is subject to viability, and information in these Unit Outlines is subject to change prior to commencement of semester.

Last modified: 28-Mar-2013