Course Title: Research Strategies - Design/Creative Arts

Part A: Course Overview

Course Title: Research Strategies - Design/Creative Arts

Credit Points: 12.00

Terms

Course Code

Campus

Career

School

Learning Mode

Teaching Period(s)

COMM2068

City Campus

Postgraduate

345H Media and Communication

Face-to-Face

 Sem 1 2006,
Sem 2 2006,
Sem 1 2007,
Sem 1 2008,
Sem 2 2008,
Sem 1 2009,
Sem 2 2009,
Sem 1 2010,
Sem 2 2011

COMM2095

City Campus

Research

345H Media and Communication

Distance / Correspondence or Face-to-Face

 Sem 1 2007,
Sem 1 2008,
Sem 1 2010,
Sem 1 2011

COMM2095

City Campus

Research

345H Media and Communication

Face-to-Face

 Sem 1 2006,
Sem 2 2006

COMM2353

City Campus

Undergraduate

345H Media and Communication

Face-to-Face

 Sem 1 2008,
Sem 1 2009,
Sem 2 2009,
Sem 1 2010,
Sem 1 2011,
Sem 1 2017,
Sem 1 2019,
Sem 1 2020,
Sem 1 2021,
Sem 1 2022,
Sem 1 2023,
Sem 1 2024

Course Coordinator: Dr Melody Ellis

Course Coordinator Phone: +61 3 9925 1152

Course Coordinator Email: melody.ellis@rmit.edu.au

Course Coordinator Location: 009.05.28

Course Coordinator Availability: Please email for an appointment


Pre-requisite Courses and Assumed Knowledge and Capabilities

None


Course Description

This course is only available to Honours students enrolled in BH066 Bachelor of Media and Communication (Honours).

Research Strategies provides you with training in the principal considerations of conducting research at an Honours level.  

You will develop the following essential research skills:

  • Understand best practice and sound research principles.
  • Develop a robust and feasible research problem.
  • Identify ethical issues pertinent to your project.
  • Learn to scaffold your ideas within a broader disciplinary specific context.
  • Develop practical research skills including using technology and library resources e.g. database searches.
  • Locate your Honours research within the context of your chosen field.

Throughout the course, you will be presented with examples of high-quality research and a range of research paradigms and techniques. This training will contribute to the development of your own research proposal and project.

If you are enrolled in this course as a component of your Bachelor Honours Program, your overall mark will contribute to the calculation of the weighted average mark (WAM). 
See the WAM information web page for more information.


Objectives/Learning Outcomes/Capability Development

The following program learning outcomes are developed and assessed in this course:

  • creatively and critically develop meaningful problems within media and communication in local and global contexts
  • evaluate the strengths and contributions of your own discipline and the value of other disciplines to research.


On successful completion of this course, you will be able to:

  • select appropriate research methods, locate resources, and gather information and data for your ongoing independent Honours research;
  • identify and communicate the scholarly underpinning of projects and locate your research topic within specific disciplinary terms;
  • further develop your existing critical thinking skills and apply them to your own project; and
  • understand the core principles of both traditional thesis-based research and practice led research.


Overview of Learning Activities

Research Strategies offers hands-on practical support on the ‘what’, ‘why’ and ‘how’ of research practice. Weekly seminars will provide an opportunity for you to develop research techniques and strategies that will assist in the production of your final Honours thesis/exegesis.

You will be encouraged to communicate your work and research interests through seminar discussion with peers, including peer feedback. This is an important part of academic training and lays the foundations for the development of broader research capabilities. Guest researchers will present examples of research within specific disciplinary fields.


Overview of Learning Resources

A list of recommended resources will be provided and may include books, essays, articles and web resources. You will be expected to find additional resources that are relevant to your own focus, with an emphasis on utilising the research tools available via the library.


Overview of Assessment

Throughout the course, you will be encouraged to focus your learning around your specific research topics and interests, leading to the development of a research proposal. 

You will be assessed on how well you meet the course’s learning outcomes and on your development against the program learning outcomes. 

Assessment Tasks

Assessment Task 1: Draft research Question 25% [Linked course learning outcomes: 2, 3, 4]

Assessment Task 2: Annotated Bibliography 30% [Linked course learning outcomes: 1, 2, 3]

Assessment Task 3: Final Research Proposal 45% [Linked course learning outcomes: 1, 2, 3, 4]

Feedback will be given on all assessment tasks.

If you have a long term medical condition and/or disability it may be possible to negotiate to vary aspects of the learning or assessment methods. You can contact the program coordinator or Equitable Learning Services if you would like to find out more.

Your course assessment conforms to RMIT assessment principles, regulations, policies, procedures and instructions.