Choosing an Area and Topic for Research
Choosing an area and topic for research.
1. Identify a research area based on your interest and need. Your need and interest should match. E.g. Do you need the research to help you improve your work? Are you interested in conducting such a research? E.g. you are interested in finding out why your students cannot write a composition in English correctly. You want to analyse the errors they make in their compositions. You need this research so that you can help your students realize the errors they make and why they make such errors. You can help them improve their compositions.
2. You need to have some knowledge of the area of study or experience in that area. Have you any experience in this area? Have you read enough about it? Do not choose an area which you know nothing about. You may have problems in providing support for your study. E.g. The perceptions of Form One students towards the learning of literature in English. If you are not teaching literature, then you may not have enough knowledge to ask the proper questions and to provide explanation.
3. Narrow the area sufficiently so that it is not too broad nor to narrow. If it is too broad you may not have enough time to conduct it or the results can become very unwieldy. If it is too narrow, it may not yield any benefit to anyone. It may not solve the problems that you want to solve. E.g. Factors that affect the teaching and learning of English in Malaysia. The area is too broad. There are several factors which affect teaching and there are also several factors that affect learning. Furthermore, there are various cultural and ethnic groups in Malaysia. The factors affecting each group are different.
4. Identify an area in which you can get help easily i.e. from your supervisor or reference materials. Getting your supervisor who has an interest in the area you want to study will be a great help. Apart from that, you must make sure that there are enough reading materials for you to access. Sufficient
1. Identify a research area based on your interest and need. Your need and interest should match. E.g. Do you need the research to help you improve your work? Are you interested in conducting such a research? E.g. you are interested in finding out why your students cannot write a composition in English correctly. You want to analyse the errors they make in their compositions. You need this research so that you can help your students realize the errors they make and why they make such errors. You can help them improve their compositions.
2. You need to have some knowledge of the area of study or experience in that area. Have you any experience in this area? Have you read enough about it? Do not choose an area which you know nothing about. You may have problems in providing support for your study. E.g. The perceptions of Form One students towards the learning of literature in English. If you are not teaching literature, then you may not have enough knowledge to ask the proper questions and to provide explanation.
3. Narrow the area sufficiently so that it is not too broad nor to narrow. If it is too broad you may not have enough time to conduct it or the results can become very unwieldy. If it is too narrow, it may not yield any benefit to anyone. It may not solve the problems that you want to solve. E.g. Factors that affect the teaching and learning of English in Malaysia. The area is too broad. There are several factors which affect teaching and there are also several factors that affect learning. Furthermore, there are various cultural and ethnic groups in Malaysia. The factors affecting each group are different.
4. Identify an area in which you can get help easily i.e. from your supervisor or reference materials. Getting your supervisor who has an interest in the area you want to study will be a great help. Apart from that, you must make sure that there are enough reading materials for you to access. Sufficient