Welcome to Research
Methods! This course is required for all MA English Language and Literature in
English students. We assume that some of you have done a similar course in your
previous studies. The aim of this course is to consider some of the initial
stages involved in producing a dissertation at masters' level. Producing a
research proposal is an important first step, so the course will take you
through different stages in addressing this--formulating a question, conducting
a literature review, developing a research design and some preliminary
engagement with data collection and analysis. The focus is on establishing
coherence between the different facets of the research design.
By the end of this course you should be able to...
1. write a meaningful research proposal that will clearly articulate your research questions, your intentions and form the blueprint for your eventual dissertation.
2. draw up a research design that will clearly map out the research process, including your source(s) of data, your data collection tools and techniques, your tools for data analysis and related issues.
3. be familiar with how to do an informative literature review that is related to your chosen topic.
4. demonstrate a keen awareness and understanding of the basic epistemological assumptions of educational research and the construction of knowledge
Language is intrinsically linked with people as they coexist in societies and as they use language to communicate amongst themselves. There are also social factors that determine how language is spoken in any given society. Sociolinguistics as a course is therefore interested in determining the interconnectedness and attendant effects that come about as a result of the link between language and society.
Applied linguistics is an interdisciplinary field of linguistics which identifies, investigates, and offers solutions to language-related real-life problems. In many ways, it is a fusion of many of the language courses you have studied, so it adopts perspectives on language in use spanning critical discourse analysis, linguistic ethnography, sociocultural theories, literacy, stylistics and sociolinguistics. The course is designed to be primarily exploratory, providing a fitful panoramic view of ways in which linguistics can be applied. But it is also intended to provide participants with an opportunity to engage with at least one real-life issue within their context, using the principles of applied linguistics. In this second sense, participants will have the opportunity to bridge the gap between theory and practice.