Research as Inquiry

Introduction: 

A group of first year students were given a research project whereby they have to investigate AOD abuse and risky sexual behaviour and decide whether or not there is a link between the two.

Outcomes:

At the end of the lesson students must be able to...

• Formulate research questions based on gaps in existing research
• Use various research methods to find relevant information
• Draw reasonable conclusions based on the information they have gathered

Activities:

1. Students are given a preliminary list of 5 sources on AOD abuse and risky sexual behaviour to begin their research with. They are then required to critically examine these sources and identify gaps or under-researched areas of investigation. Once that has been done, they will need to formulate at least two research questions as possible areas of investigation for their projects.
2. Students are required to construct and administer 20 surveys to an age group of their choice. They will also be required to interview a minimum of 5 people and transcribe the interviews. Both surveys and interview questions will be around substance abuse and risky sexual behaviour, to access the possibility of a link between the two.
3. Students are then to write an essay whereby they express their opinion on the given research topic.

Relation to Knowledge Practices:

1. Activity 1 helps students to critically examine existing research and identify gaps and weaknesses that exist, which will help them identify areas of investigation for their own research and formulate a research question therefrom. 
2. Students will become familiar with various research methods and the valuable information they each offer. Mind mapping also allows students to organise their thoughts and ideas, and information.
3. Activity 3 helps students to examine information they have and draw their own conclusions and form their own opinions. 

Dispositions:

Through the various activities students students will learn think about research as an open-ended engagement with information. Through activity one, students will be able to thoroughly and critically examine existing information, so as to identify gaps or weaknesses that exist. This will also help them formulate their own ideas as to what areas can be investigated. Activities two will also help students identify their own intellectual limitations and also explore various research methods and become familiar with the limitations or restrictions (ethics and regulations) that may sometimes govern these sources, for example, consent for surveys and special conditions around live interviews. Lastly, activity 1-3 will help students appreciate their own intellectual abilities through being able to critique the work of others and also make their own meaningful contributions to the intellectual world.