Lecture 5(writing Research proposal).ppt
- 2. Content ●What is a proposal? ●Preparation ●Structure of a proposal ●Why research proposal unsuccessful?
- 3. In the early stage ●Identifying Research problem ●Formulating Research Question ●Formulating Research Objectives ●Literature review ●Experimental Design
- 4. The Road to Research The Problem Measure Analyse Conclude Design Sample
- 5. Purpose of research proposal ●To make the reader to understand :- ●What you are going to do ●Rational of the research ●Objectives of the research ●Methodology ●Expected output
- 6. What is a proposal ? ●A good proposal should consists of the first three chapters of the thesis ●It should :- ●begin with a statement of the problem/background information (Chapter 1) ●A review of the literature (Chapter 2) ●Defining of the research methodology (Chapter 3)
- 7. A well thought proposal would help a student to go through his/her research
- 8. PhD Research ●More algorithmic ●Development of new technique ●Extension of existing new techniques ●Novel application
- 9. Preparation ● Think about it ● Generate ideas ● Background reading ● Ask yourself ●Am I familiar with other research that has been conducted in areas related to my research project? ●Do I have a clear understanding of the steps that I will use in conducting my research? ●Do I have the ability to go through each step?
- 10. Structure ● Title ● Background to the problem or study ● Problem statement ● Objectives of research ● Scope and limitation of study ● Literature review ● Methodology ● Proposed schedule ● Significance of study ● References
- 11. Title ●A good proposal has a good title ●It is the first thing that help the reader begin to understand the nature of work ●Focused ●Highlighting the main contribution of the research work ●Use the keywords ●Avoid ambiguous or confusing word
- 12. Introduction ●Background study ●Problem statement ●Research questions ●Statement of research objectives ●Definition of terms
- 13. Background study A general review of the area of research
- 14. Problem Statement ● Start with a general statement of the problem or issues ● Make sure the problem is restricted in scope ● Make sure the context of the problem is clear ● Cite the references from which the problem was stated previously. ● Provide justification for the research to be conducted ● Motivates to conduct the proposed research ● Highlight the problems/demerits of the available techniques
- 15. Research questions ●Research questions would guide the proposed research into the perspective of the other research. ●The questions serve to establish the link between the proposed research with previous research. ●The research questions should show clearly the relationship of the proposed research with the field of study.
- 16. Normally…. ● Students want to do a project that is: '…something about…' ● You must turn that 'something about' into a question. ● Distinguish between your 'research question' and what it is that you will research.
- 17. A strong research idea should pass the “so what” test. Think about the potential impact of the research you are proposing. What is the benefit of answering your research question? Who will it help (and how)?
- 18. ● Be specific enough that operational definitions may be formulated later or the methodology, independent and dependent variables may be identified. ● Make sure the research questions provide a framework for reporting the results and discussion later ● Is it clear to the reader how the research questions arise from the issues and findings reported in the problem statement and later in the literature review?
- 19. ●A good research question:- ●Involves the search for relationships between two or more variables. ●Is well defined and focused on specifics ●Should be able to tell the reader what actually you are looking in particular.
- 20. Literature Review ●Selecting Sources √Select literature that is relevant or closely related to the problem and purpose √Emphasize the primary sources √Use secondary sources selectively √Concentrate on scholarly research articles √Discuss your criteria for inclusion of articles
- 21. Writing The Literature ●The literature should have an introduction, body and conclusion ●The introduction defines the framework of the review, the body that evaluates the literature and the conclusion summarizes the current state of knowledge on the problem
- 22. ●Organize the review by topics or ideas, not by author ●Organize the review logically (least to most relevant – evolution of topic –by key variables) ●Discuss major studies/theories individually and minor studies with similar results or limitation as a group
- 23. ●Adequately criticize the design and methodology of important studies so readers can draw their own conclusions ●Compare and contrast studies. ●Note for conflicting and inconclusive results ●Explicitly show the relevance of each to the problem statement
- 24. ● Summary including a restatement of the relationships between the important variables under consideration and how these relationships are important to the hypothesis proposed in the introduction ● Identify the gaps in the current techniques that would be filled in by the proposed technique. ● Highlight the novelty of the proposed technique as compared to other existing techniques.
- 25. Significant of research ● From the literature review, gap analysis can be conducted in order to see how the propose research would fill in the gap in the area of research. ● How does the proposed research relate to the existing knowledge in the area. ● Explicitly state the significance of your purpose or the rationale for your study. A significant research is one that: √ Develops knowledge of an existing practise √ Develops theory √ Expands the current knowledge or theory base √ Advances current research methodology √ Related to a current technological issue √ Exploratory research on an unexamined issue
- 26. Scope and Limitation ●Provide the area/scope that will be considered in the proposed research and justification why it is being considered.
- 27. Methodology ● Must related to the research objectives ● Highlight the breadth and depth of research ● Identify variables ● Research design – it would be good to put it into a flow chart ● Data collection plan ● Give a detailed sampling plan – the target population characteristics, specific sampling plan, target sample size
- 28. Instrument ●Describe the instruments will be used to gather data (tests, techniques, surveys, etc) ●Provide reliability and validity information to show techniques are valid for the study ●Describe how the variables will be measured
- 29. ●Provide justification for selection of instruments based on theory, research question, subject characteristics, etc. ●Provide published reliability of instrument and plan to establish reliability
- 30. Procedure ●Describe how the study will be conducted ●When, how, where and by whom the data will be collected ●Describe the design of the test will be conducted or statistical test will be selected in this section.
- 31. Anticipated Results ●Describe your anticipated results based on the literature review and theory based ●Write your conclusions if your research questions would be supported ●Write your tentative conclusions if your research questions would not be supported
- 32. Reasons Why Research Proposal Are Unsuccessful ●The problem is of insufficient importance ●Purpose or demonstrated need is vague ●Problem is more complex than the propose realizes ●Research is based on hypothesis that is doubtful or unsound ●Proposed research based on conclusions that may be unwarranted
- 33. ●Assumptions are questionable; evidence for procedures is questionable ●Approach is not rigorous enough, too naïve, too uncritical. ●Approach is not objective enough ●Validity is questionable, criterion for evaluation are weak or missing ●Approach is poorly thought out; methods poorly demonstrated
- 34. ●Application is poorly prepared or poorly formulated ●Proposal is not explicit enough, lack of details, too vague or too general ●Rationale is poorly presented, logical processes not followed ●Methods or procedures unsuited to stated objectives
- 35. ●The design is too ambitious or otherwise inappropriate ●Some administrative or practical problems are unsolved ●Unethical or hazardous procedure will be used ●The procedure is not well enough organized, coordinated or planned
- 36. ● The overall design is unsound or some techniques are unrealistic ● The results will be confusing, difficult to interpret or meaningless ● Results from previous research are inadequate ● Proposer’s knowledge or judgement of the scientific literature is poor
- 37. Evaluation of Research Proposal ●Evaluation = Process of judging the merit or worth of something ●Research ● application of scientific methods to answer questions ●controlled inquiry directed at increasing knowledge/establishing truth ●Evaluation Research - combine the two
- 38. Process -- Steps Research define problem objectives/hypotheses literature review research methods gather data/analysis conclusions Evaluation describe program evaluation criteria program scoping evaluation methods gather data/analysis conclusions
- 39. Evaluation Criteria ●Effort - qnty and qlty of inputs ●Performance - qnty and qlty of outputs ●Adequacy - meet needs? ●Efficiency - benefits/costs ●Equity - fairness
- 40. Research Process Define Problem, Research Objectives HOW? Overall Method •Survey •Experiment •Case Study •Secondary Data What? •Concepts •Variables •Measures Who? •Population •Sampling Data Gathering Analysis Application
- 41. Proposal Format 1. Problem Statement - define program to be evaluated/problem to be studied, users & uses of results. Justify importance of the problem/study. 2. Objectives : Concise listing . In evaluation studies, the objectives usually focus on the key elements of program to be evaluated & the evaluation criteria. These are the study objectives NOT the program objectives. 3. Background/Literature Review - place for more extensive history/structure of program. Focus on aspects most relevant to proposed evaluation. Discuss previous studies or the relevant methods. 4. Methods - details on procedures for achieving objectives - data gathering and analysis, population, sampling, measures, etc. Who will do what to whom, when, where, how and why? 5. Attachments - budget, timeline, measurement instruments, etc. NOTE: Most “programs” must be narrowed to specific components to be evaluated. Think of a “Program of studies” rather than a single evaluation study. The proposal should define this specific study & how it fits into a broader program of studies.
- 42. Sample Objectives 1. Estimate benefits and costs of program 2. Estimate economic impacts of program on local community (social, environmental, fiscal). 3. Determine effects of program on target population. 4. Describe users and non-users of program 5. Assess community recreation needs, preferences 6. Determine market/financial feasibility of program 7. Evaluate adequacy or performance of program
- 43. THANK YOU