Dissertation dilemmas: teaching research methods to atypical students
Dr. Bríd Quinn, Department of Politics &
Public Administration, University of Limerick.
Brid.Quinn@ul.ie
Abstract
Within third-level education there is a
growing emphasis on research skills but usually not enough emphasis on the
processes of developing and implementing those skills. This paper chronicles a process developed to
support and structure the research endeavours of non-traditional students while
enhancing their knowledge, research skills and research capacity as well as
generating research that is applicable and useful in their non-academic work.
The study situates the process in the wider contexts of adult learning, student
engagement, the practitioner-academic nexus and the changing demands on faculty
and institutions. It also provides a
framework for guiding research,
teaching the necessary skills and techniques and enabling students to
acquire a comprehensive and realistic understanding of research. The experience
of teaching research in this manner reveals that the approach, which is
situated mid-way between the didactic and discovery methods, elicits a positive
response from adult learners and achieves institutional and individual aims.