Module Catalogue 2025/26

Pre Requisite Comment

N/A

Co Requisite Comment

N/A

Aims

The module engages the students in a variety of the research-based teaching and learning activities in the School of Geography, Politics and Sociology. The primary aim of the module is to help students develop a viable dissertation topic, and to do this within the context of teaching and learning about wider practices in social research. Students will attend GPS Research Seminars, usually involving a combination of internal and external speakers, and will also have the opportunity of identifying online research events beyond the University to attend.

The module aims to:

-enable students to place their ideas within wider debates and literatures of the social sciences.
-enable collaborative learning opportunities.
-develop student awareness of the wider practice of social research, including the choice of research methodologies and techniques, the use of academic research in wider academic contexts, and the dissemination of research findings.
-expand student knowledge of knowledge cultures and environments beyond the academy, including the private, public, and voluntary sectors, and to develop awareness of research dissemination issues.

Outline Of Syllabus

The module has two interlinked components:

1. Participation in GPS Research Seminar Series and/or externally hosted seminars.

2. Individual tutorials with Module Leader and/or Personal Tutor to discuss research, assessments, and dissertation ideas.

Structured around participation in research seminars in Semester 1, students will become involved in the wider research culture and research environment at Newcastle University's School of Geography, Politics and Sociology; and they will have to opportunity to build and expand their knowledge networks. This will in turn help develop students' research skills and interests, while introducing them to the diversity that research and research communication can take.

The individual tutorials will further support students' own development of their ideas and research plans, building on what they have experienced in seminars and allowing further reflection.

Intended Knowledge Outcomes

•       A critical understanding of the process of research planning and presentation in social research.
•       A critical awareness of the range of possible approaches towards the solution of research problems.
•       A critical engagement with leading-edge debates in contemporary social science research.
•       A critical awareness of the application of contemporary social research findings within both academic and non-academic contexts.

Intended Skill Outcomes

••       The ability to engage with research practice and findings at a high level.
•       The development of analytical skills to assess and review social research.
•       The development of advanced communication skills.
•       The capacity for critical self-reflection and review of individual practice.
•       The capacity for critical analysis of the wider use of research findings, within and beyond the academy.

Teaching Rationale And Relationship

This module will facilitate students’ thinking about their own research interests and choices, leading towards the development of a dissertation idea later in their degree.

Research seminars will help students structure their thinking around research projects such as the dissertation in terms of identifying a suitable topic or theme for research, identifying relevant literatures and conceptual approaches, identifying suitable methodologies and data, and identifying suitable analytic frameworks for data analysis. Drop-in sessions will operate like supervision sessions and help students think through the refinement of their dissertation project ideas and assessment preparation process.

Assessment Rationale And Relationship

Students will be assessed through one 15 minute presentation, which asks them to reflect on learning from their engagement with the research seminars attended, and to provide detail as to how this has helped inform their own project ideas.

The module will also include a formative assessment component. Students will be asked to submit a summary document of seminars attended and include brief reflections.

Rationale:

The formative text will assess understanding of the research planning process and written communication skills, and it will help students in the process of developing their summative assessment.

The recorded PowerPoint presentation will assess comprehension of the research planning process and practice, and oral communication and presentation skills.

General Notes

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