Overview
Research Project 2 is the second and final stage of the final year research project which builds upon the successful completion of Research Project 1. In this unit, you will complete an investigative study. Continuing with the research progress you started in Research Project 1, you will analyse and critique an area of your professional practice. You will also be required to incorporate critical reflection. This project will enable you to contribute to the body of knowledge for your discipline.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Prerequisites: PPMP20019 Research Project 1
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 2 - 2018
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 12-credit Postgraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 25 hours of study per week, making a total of 300 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University’s Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback – Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Student Emails
The support and guidance from the supervisor made the research journey more interesting and manageable.
Continue with current teaching and learning practices.
Feedback from Student Evaluations in Moodle
More support on statistical analysis is needed.
Moodle resources should be updated to provide further materials on applicable statistical tools that are appropriate for PG students.
Feedback from Teaching team
The actual student intake is below the expected target (e.g. 10-15 students).
High achieving students should be encouraged to select the research stream. Approaches may include a webinar by the unit coordinator upon the end of the term to stimulate interest from prospective students.
- Apply project management processes, tools and techniques in executing the research project
- Use appropriate tools and techniques in undertaking a research inquiry, and collecting and analysing data
- Interpret results and draw conclusions that address the research question and objectives being investigated
- Apply ethical practices in collecting research data, analyzing results and reporting research findings
- Communicate and orally present a well constructed scholarly paper of a publication standard.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Research Assignment - 80% | |||||
| 2 - Presentation - 20% | |||||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Knowledge | |||||
| 2 - Communication | |||||
| 3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills | |||||
| 4 - Research | |||||
| 5 - Self-management | |||||
| 6 - Ethical and Professional Responsibility | |||||
| 7 - Leadership | |||||
| 8 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | |||||
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | |
| 1 - Research Assignment - 80% | ||||||||
| 2 - Presentation - 20% | ||||||||
Textbooks
There are no required textbooks.
Additional Textbook Information
NA
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- Endnote (available through Library - see Moodle link)
- computer lab
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: Harvard (author-date)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
s.skaik@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
- Discuss PPMP20015 proposal with your Supervisor to agree on the way forward.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Kick off meeting with the Supervisor (Compulsory)
Module/Topic
- Refine proposal as discussed with your supersvisor
- Develop baseline schedule including all milestones and key activities of the execution and closing phases of research project.
- Conduct focused literature review.
- Update research questions & hypothesis if necessary.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Milestone:
- Submit refined research proposal for review
- Submit baseline schedule of execution and closing phases for approval
Module/Topic
- Continue with the focused literature review.
- Finalise the data collection instrument
- Prepare necessary documentation for Ethics clearance (if applicable).
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Progress meeting with the Supervisor (Week 3)
Milestone:
- Submit data collection instrument for review.
- Submit Ethics application for review. (if applicable)
Module/Topic
- Finalise critical literature review section
- Finalise the sampling plan and identify potential participants (if applicable)
- Proceed with pilot study (if applicable)
- Update/refine data collection instrument (if applicable).
Chapter
Review the online resources within the relevant section of this week in Moodle site.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Progress meeting with the Supervisor (Compulsory)
Milestone: Complete literature literature review section
Module/Topic
You have done a good progress and you would need a well deserved break. Love yourself and enjoy every moment in your break.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
- Proceed with data collection in accordance with the approved Ethics protocol.
- Write the methodology section.
Chapter
Review the online resources within the relevant section of this week in Moodle site.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Progress meeting with the Supervisor (Week 6)
Milestone:
- Methodology section complete.
Module/Topic
- Analyse and interpret collected data.
- Write results section.
- Complete analysis section.
Chapter
Review the online resources within the relevant section of this week in Moodle site.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Progress meeting with the Supervisor (Week 8) (Compulsory)
Milestone:
- Analysis section complete.
- Results section complete.
Module/Topic
- Discuss findings and make links between objectives, findings and literature.
- Complete the conclusion section which summarises major findings, limitations, implications and directions for future research.
- Identify any gap where extra work or reading is necessary.
- Finalise abstract and introduction.
Chapter
Review the online resources within the relevant section of this week in Moodle site.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Progress meeting with the Supervisor (Compulsory)
Module/Topic
- Finalise your draft paper
- Proceed with the peer assessment in the Workshop platform in Moodle site.
- Self-assess your draft paper.
Chapter
Review the online resources within the relevant section of this week in Moodle site.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Milestone:
Draft Research Paper Due: Week 11 Wednesday (26 Sept 2018) 17:00 pm AEST
Self and Peer Assessment of Draft Research Paper Due: Week 11 Sunday (30 Sept 2018) 17:00 pm AEST
Module/Topic
- Present project findings via an oral presentation in the PM Research Seminar.
- Consider the feedback received on draft paper and oral presentations in improving the final paper.
- Improve the language and formatting of paper and include all appendices as per the requirements.
- Go through the given checklist and ensure you tick all boxes before submission.
- Prepare PM closing report.
Chapter
Review the online resources within the relevant section of this week in Moodle site.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Closing meeting with the Supervisor (Compulsory)
Milestone:
Oral Presentation Due: Week 12 Wednesday (3 Oct 2018) 11:00 am AEST
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Milestone:
PM Closing Report Due: Week 13 Friday (12 Oct 2018) 23:55 pm AEST
Research Paper Due: Review/Exam Week Wednesday (10 Oct 2018) 11:55 pm AEST
This term, the new course structure will be implemented where a research stream is introduced comprising of two unit: Research Project 1 (PPMP20019) and Research Project 2 (PPMP2016). As part of the transition plan into the new course, you are entitled to enrol directly in this unit "Research Project 2" if you meet the pre-requisites to enrol in PPMP20019. During this term, you must attend all compulsory progress meetings with your supervisor as planned in the unit schedule during Week 1, 5, 8, 10 and 12. You must also apply project management competencies throughout the execution and closing phases of your research project.
1 Research Assignment
Overview:
This assignment requires you to work independently and execute the research proposal developed in PPMP20015 as refined following your supervisor's requirements. Your work will be overseen by a supervisor who is an academic member of staff. You will work with the supervisor for the duration of the research project. The onus is on you to make contact with the supervisor and to arrange and adhere to a programme of regular meetings thereafter. The supervisor is not obliged to chase you in order to check on your work progress. The supervisor should advise on the structure and suitability of the paper, guide you through the entire process and warn you if the work is not thought to be of a satisfactory standard. You should maintain contact with your supervisor throughout the preparation of your paper. A common pitfall is to go long periods of time without making any contact with the supervisor. You must attend the five compulsory meetings with your supervisor as scheduled in the unit profile. You must also apply project management competencies in completing the execution and closing phases fo your research project.
The task
Your task is to conduct a systematic methodology to collect and analyse data then report your findings via a research paper format. The task requires you to demonstrate that you can conduct a piece of rigorous research in your chosen field and involves critical thinking and reasoning. The task also requires you to apply project management competencies throughout the project lifecycle. You are expected to demonstrate a high level of project management and leadership competencies in this unit by meeting the given milestones, effectively tracking and updating your work progress and mitigating risks or delays. Your supervisor will keep a regular diary of your activities for comparison with your closing report for validation and assessment purposes. This assignment consists of three main deliverables or parts per the following table:
| Assessment item | Weight |
| Part 1A: Draft research paper | 15% |
| Part 1B: Final research paper | 55% |
| Part 1C: Project closing report | 10% |
Part 1A: Draft Research Paper
Follow same overall instructions as Part 1B for preparing the draft paper. In addition, you must submit a screenshot of Turnitin similarity report at the end of your draft submission. You must also get the paper reviewed by Studiosity for proofreading. This assessment aims to help you meet the expectations and achieve the highest possible quality in writing your research paper, and it has two stages:
Stage 1 (Draft submission):
Submit your draft paper in the Workshop platform in Moodle. You will then receive a mark for the quality of your submission. The mark will be the average of the marks given by yourself, teaching staff and your peer reviewers.
Stage 2 (Draft Self and Peer Assessment):
You will assess your draft paper as well as one submission of your peers (allocating to you randomly) according to the assessment criteria of the final paper. You will receive marks for the quality of assessing yourself and assessing the other submission. Further details about self and peer assessment process will be provided in Moodle site. Your unit coordinator will monitor the peer assessment for quality assurance.
Marking allocation for the two stages will be as follows:
| Assignment tasks | Mark allocation |
| Stage 1: Draft submission as assessed by yourself and peers | 10% |
| Stage 2: Self and Peer Assessment of draft submissions | 5% |
Part 1B: Final Research Paper
This part requires you to submit a scholarly research paper of publication standards. The sections/components of the research paper should appear in the following order. A research paper template with clear guidelines on how to write each section is available in Moodle for your use.
- Cover page
- Abstract
- Introduction
- Rationale including research questions.
- Literature review
- Research Methodology
- Results and analysis
- Discussion
- Conclusion, implications and limitations
- References
- Appendices (Ethics application, data collection instrument, figures, tables, research data, supplementary information, etc.)
For guidance, the research paper should be 10,000 to 12,000 words in length including references but excluding appendices. Moodle site includes useful resources to help you complete your research. More details of the research paper formatting and submission checklist are provided in Moodle site.
Part 1C: Project Closing Report
As a project manager of the research project, you must track your progress by submitting fortnightly records including supervisory meeting records and updated project schedule to your supervisor. At the end of the project, you will submit all the accumulated documents in one zip file for assessment. Mainly, you must provide the following records:
- Final ethics report following Ethics Office requirements.
- Supervisory meeting records (a minimum of four records)
- Fortnightly updated baseline schedule showing actual dates, planned dated and actual variance. (a minimum of four progress reports)
- Reflective statement (200-300 words): summarising your experiences, feelings, reactions towards practising research project management in completing your paper and approaches to deal with incurred risks or delays and what resources or feedback you found to be helpful or unhelpful in managing your research project.
Review/Exam Week Wednesday (10 Oct 2018) 11:55 pm AEST
Exam Week Friday (19 Oct 2018)
Provisional results will be released within 10 days of the submission.
Part 1A: Draft Research paper
For assessing the draft submission, the same criteria of Part 1B will be followed. Your mark for submission stage will be the average mark received by all reviewers of the draft submission. For the quality of your assessment, Moodle will compare your assessment with the assessment of your peers and academic staff. Based on how close your assessment is to the best assessment of the submission, you will receive a score for the quality of your assessments. The system picks one of the assessments to be the best assessment that is closest to the mean of all assessments - and gives it a grade of 100%. Then it measures the 'distance' of your assessments from this best one and gives them lower grades depending on how different they are from the best assessment (given that the best one represents a consensus of the majority of assessors).Part 1B: Final Research paper
| Grade | Criteria |
| HD | As in the D category, but in addition, displaying a very high ability to comprehend the subject matter within the wider context and demonstrating considerable originality. The highest level of structure and presentation. |
| D | An extremely thorough, distinction level piece of research. Thorough understanding of the subject and issues. Demonstrates a high degree of critical appraisal analysis, clearability to formulate/construct hypotheses and excellent understanding and application of research methods. Conclusions are well supported by the content. Very well structured and presented. |
| C | A good understanding of the subject and issues. Demonstrates a clear ability to ask the right questions and formulate/construct hypotheses to address the issues. Good understanding and application of research methods. Critical appraisal is demonstrated and conclusions and recommendations are supported. Fairly structured and presented paper over and above the basic standard. |
| P | A reasonable understanding of the subject and issues, which asks questions and addresses potential answers, supported by a reasonable degree of analysis and critique. Acceptable consideration of research methods. Conclusions are reasonably formed and recommendations are generally supported by the work undertaken. Basic structure and presentation of the paper. |
| F | Does not meet academic standards for a scholarly paper. A basic piece of work which demonstrates limited knowledge/effort and understanding, supported by only little analysis and minimal review. Poor or non-existent consideration of research methods. Inadequate discussion with very poorly or unsupported conclusions. Poorly structured and presented paper. |
Part 1C: Project closing report
| Grade | Criteria |
| HD | As in the D category, but in addition, displaying the highest level of effective project management throughout the project lifecycle by taking the lead in identifying risks and taking effective corrective measures to keep the project on track. |
| D | Excellent demonstration of project management skills throughout the project lifecycle which is evident via meeting all the given milestones, attending supervisory progress meetings, taking timely actions, mitigating risks, monitoring progress and updating project documentation. |
| C | Good project management skills throughout the project lifecycle with some slippage in meeting deadlines, missing some supervisory progress meeting, fair dealing with risks and keeping some of the project records. |
| P | Reasonable project management skills throughout the project lifecycle with many delayed milestones, lack of engagement with the supervisor, failure to meet key milestones such as ethics clearance, limited ability to deal with project risks and inconsistent tracking of project records. |
| F | Poor project management skills evidenced by failure to meet most of the milestones, lack of engagement with the supervisor and superficial reporting and monitoring. |
- Apply project management processes, tools and techniques in executing the research project
- Use appropriate tools and techniques in undertaking a research inquiry, and collecting and analysing data
- Interpret results and draw conclusions that address the research question and objectives being investigated
- Communicate and orally present a well constructed scholarly paper of a publication standard.
- Knowledge
- Communication
- Cognitive, technical and creative skills
- Research
- Self-management
- Ethical and Professional Responsibility
- Leadership
2 Presentation
- Rationale
- Research questions
- Key arguments/concepts from the literature review
- Research gap/problem statement
- Research design and method
- Results and analysis
- Discussion
- Conclusion and implication
- Reference list
Week 12 Wednesday (3 Oct 2018) 11:00 am AEST
Oral presentations
Review/Exam Week Monday (8 Oct 2018)
| Assessment Criteria | Weight |
Technical Content
|
40% |
Delivery of presentation
|
40% |
Handling of Questions and Discussion
|
20% |
- Apply project management processes, tools and techniques in executing the research project
- Interpret results and draw conclusions that address the research question and objectives being investigated
- Communicate and orally present a well constructed scholarly paper of a publication standard.
- Knowledge
- Communication
- Cognitive, technical and creative skills
- Self-management
- Ethical and Professional Responsibility
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
