April Entry Project: Writing research questions

Writing Research Questions

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• Caption: Source:https://pixabay.com/en/writing-write-person-paperwork-828911/ Licensed under CC0
• In this resource you will learn how to write research questions.
• You will review some example research questions, and try to write your own.
• R. Elmslie & O. Campbell-Thomson 2016

What are research questions?

• A good project needs good research questions.
• They help you to focus on what you're trying to find, and from this, help you to identify:
• the background information that you need to read
• the research method that you will use
• who or what you're going to sample: e.g. who you will give a questionnaire to
• what you will ask them

Slide 3

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• Your research questions ask 2 or 3 very specific questions. These show exactly what you want to investigate in your project
• Everything you do in your research should provide answers to your research questions.
• If the information you collect doesn't answer your research questions, you probably don't need it.

Example research questions

• A research question often starts with words such as “what” or “how”. For example:
• What factors contribute to students’ satisfaction with a study space?
• How does the McCune Smith Building reduce energy use?
• What has the university done in its new buildings to help students work together?
• How do students use the McCune Smith Building?
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Good research questions

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• Caption: Image source: https://pixabay.com/images/id-2941951/
• Good research questions should be:
• focused = clear and specific
• researchable - you must be able to get the information you need to answer them
• limited - this is only a small project
• analytical, rather than descriptive - they will allow you to analyse and be critical about an issue, not just describe it in simple words or numbers
• (adapted from: https://www.monash.edu/library/help/assignments-research/developing-research-questions)

Common mistakes with research questions

• Avoid writing questions that:
• are too broad eg What do Scottish people think of the University's development plans? Are you going to ask everyone in Scotland? Can you find a sample of people which is big and accurate enough to represent the Scottish public? No, so this is a bad research question.
• are too narrow eg How many of the students in April Entry feel inspired by the new University buildings ? This only gives you a number: it doesn't explain anything, show why this number is important or provide sufficient information to develop into a presentation/report.
• you can answer with yes or no eg Do students like the food on campus? Too narrow again: you can't develop this into a meaningful presentation or report. Also, might a more abstract, less mundane topic help you to develop your academic language and cope with your future academic studies?
• you will find it difficult to research eg To what extent does demolishing old buildings contradict the University's stated sustainability goals? Good question and excellent critical thinking - but can you get the information to answer it?

Now do the practice exercises.

• Now try the practice exercises about good and bad research questions. The quiz may open in a new window, depending on your device.
• Remember to review the answers at the end of the quiz to see the explanations.
• After you finish, try to write 2-3 research questions for your project. Bring them to your next project tutorial.
• Practice: writing research questions