| CODE | LIN5011 | ||||||||||||||||
| TITLE | Advanced Research Methods in Linguistics 1 | ||||||||||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 05 - Postgraduate Modular Diploma or Degree Course | ||||||||||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 7 | ||||||||||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 6 | ||||||||||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Institute of Linguistics and Language Technology | ||||||||||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | The unit will primarily be conducted through seminars and independent study to be arranged between each student and their supervisor. Seminars will be held covering topics such as the following: 1. The when and why of research questions, the relevance of a literature review and the relationship between a question and the choice of methodology; 2. Theoretical vs empirical research methods; 3. The native speaker as a source of linguistic data; 4. Data collection; 5. Developing and formulating a rationale; 6. Statistics for the study of language; 7. Developing a critical approach to research; 8. Transcription methods; 9. Collection and annotation of spoken data; 10. Quantitative methods and experimental design; 11. Statistical analysis and hypothesis testing; 12. Qualitative methods, validity, reliability and generalisability; 13. Interviewing techniques; 14. Ethical issues in research design and experimentation. The actual selection of topics may vary as a function of the students' research focus, the primary aim being to give the students the tools they need to successfully complete their dissertation through independent study. Throughout the unit, students will also be encouraged to pursue a review of the literature relevant to their research area, culminating in a report that lays out the research questions that will be addressed in their dissertation, based on relevant literature. Students will then give a presentation about their proposal and research questions. This presentation will be open to fellow postgraduate and undergraduate students and members of the IoL staff. Study-unit Aims The unit will give Masters students a grounding in research methods for Linguistics, and will also help them to focus on their research topic by formulating precise research questions related to their chosen topic, through an extensive review of the literature. Learning Outcomes 1. Knowledge & Understanding: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Formulate precise research questions against the background of existing literature; - Identify the rationale for the research questions; - Select the right research methods to address the questions. 2. Skills: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Critically evaluate theories and empirical results from previous studies; - Formulate questions and select the right methodology to address them; - Formulate the rationale for a set of research questions; - Present research proposals to others. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings Texts and readings will depend on the student's chosen research focus, and will need to be determined through discussions with the supervisor. The following texts are relevant to the various research topics listed under the Section 'Learning Outcomes': - Kumar, Ranjit (2005). Research Methodology: A Step-by-Step Guide for Beginners. London: Sage. - Fink, A. (1995). How to ask survey questions. London: Sage. - Gillham, B. (2000). Case study research methods. London: Continuum. - Stewart, C. J., & Cash, W. B. (2008). Interviewing: Principles and practices (12th ed.). Boston: McGraw Hill. - Davies, Alan (2003) The Native Speaker: Myth and Reality. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters - Woods, A., P. Fletcher and A. Hughes (1986). Statistics in language studies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press - Silverman, D. (2009). Doing qualitative research: A practical handbook. London: Sage. - Sudoff, S. (2006). Methods in Empirical Prosody Research. Berlin: de Gruyter |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Independent Study and Tutorial | ||||||||||||||||
| METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
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| LECTURER/S | Jessica Nieder Sarah Grech Stavros Assimakopoulos |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2024/5. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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