Development Studies·Research Techniques · NSSCO 10.1
Planning a research project: topic, aims & data
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In Paper 3 you plan and carry out your own investigation, so it must begin with careful planning. This lesson teaches the first half of that skill: how to choose a good research topic (one that is interesting, relevant, ethical and specific), how to write the aim and objectives, how to tell a hypothesis apart from a research question, and how to choose between primary data that you collect yourself and secondary data that others have already collected. We build the ideas slowly around real Namibian investigations — water access and youth unemployment — and finish by writing a complete mini research plan.
What you'll learn in this lesson
By the end you should be able to (NSSCO Development Studies 10.1):
- Identify a research topic and explain how to choose one
- State the features of a good research topic: interest, relevancy, ethical, and specific (a defined area, time and date)
- Describe the aims and objectives of research (aim = the overall goal; objectives = the smaller specific steps to reach it)
- Differentiate between a hypothesis and a research question, with examples of each
- Differentiate between primary and secondary data with relevant examples
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