General description

The course is offered at the University of Tampere. The course aims at giving students knowledge of academic writing and social science research at introductory level. The module consists of four units: Unit 1: Practices of academic writing, Unit 2: Introduction: managing the research process, Unit 3: Research methods: qualitative perspective and Unit 4: Comparative Methods

Learning outcomes

The student will know how to write in an academic manner. The student understands the research project as a practical process of making well grounded choices and combining the subject and the process in a systematic, transparent manner and understands qualitative interviewing as a process. The student understands typologies of comparative methods, conceptualization, measurement and analysis, the idea of survey analysis and data collection

Contents

Unit 1 prepares the students for the writing of the Master’s thesis by presenting the practices of academic writing, such as the use of language, quotations and references and word processing practices. The topics of Higher Education Research and instructions for the thesis proposal are also given. Unit 2 introduces the concept and the meaning of science, paradigms, theories and research process. Unit 3 prepares the students for the interview, sharing meanings as a process of interaction, interpreting meanings systematically. Unit 4 support students to prepare systematic research based on data using qualitative or quantitative analysis.

Teaching methods

Teaching method	Contact	Online
Lectures	55 h	0 h
Seminar	7 h	0 h

Teaching language

English

Evaluation

Numeric 1-5.

Recommended year of study

1. year spring

Study materials

All students have to study a compendium consisting of the core literature for the units (about 900 pages in total).

Belongs to following study modules