M506_Assessment-brief-2025 (1)

Module

M506 Research Methods and Scientific Work

Term

2025

Primary Assignment Title

Mini Research Paper

Weighting

70%

Distributed on:

January 2025

To be submitted on:

March 2025

Submission Method

The Research Paper must be submitted electronically to the submission folder indicated on Canvas.

You must submit your work accompanied by an Assessment Submission Form, which must be completed in full. The assignment will not be accepted by the Registry unless the form is completed correctly.

Length

The submitted essay should have 3,000 words with +/- 10%

Additional Assessment Components

GISMA University reward a) in class attendance and b) engagement with asynchronous content together at a rate of 30% per module.

a) Students attending ≥ 80% (factoring on possible extenuating circumstances) of their synchronous classes as per their due mode of delivery, will gain 15% towards their final module mark. This implies that grades of student who do not achieve at least 80% attendance will be capped at 85%.

b) Students successfully completing all summative assessments in the asynchronous environment (Online Quizzes Week 3 –5 Week 8), can additionally gain up to 15% towards their final module mark.

The online quizzes must be completed by the end of each week (for each week until Sundays 11:59 pm). Do note that all tasks must be completed by the indicated deadline to count into the final grade.

Each student has five attempts to complete each quiz. The average grade of the attempts taken will count into the overall module grade with a weight of 15%.

Assessment Topic

Students need to submit a Mini Research Paper which is a research paper in the academic tradition, but in miniature i.e., smaller in scope, a more specific topic, fewer words (max. 3,000 +/- 10%), therefore fewer pages.

Overview:

For this assignment, you will conduct an individual mini research study and submit a research proposal on a topic of your choice related to your field of study. Choose a topic that is of interest to you and is relevant to your field of study. The topic should be narrow enough to allow for a mini research study, but broad enough to provide opportunities for exploration and analysis.

You will be required to submit a research paper that outlines the following three sections/chapters:

Requirements:

• Cover letter

• Table of contents

Section 1. Introduction

• Provide a clear background of the research

• Highlight the specific research problem

• research questions,

• objectives

• Hypothesis of your research, Conceptual framework. • rationale justify why the research is important

Section 2. Literature Review

• Review relevant literature and provide context for your research.

• Discuss key theories and concepts related to the

topic.

• Summarise the theoretical framework for answering your questions.

Section 3. Methodology and Method

• Describe the research approach (quantitative,

qualitative or mixed method) and their

appropriateness, and the conceptual framework of

your research

• Describe the specific research method to collect and analyse your data.

• Ensure validity, reliability and feasibility of the

method

Section 4. Results and Conclusion

• Analyse the data and represent the results through the tables or graphs or bar charts ,…etc

• Summarise the outcome of the research

(Analysing the data & REPRESENTING THE RESULTS will give you the opportunity to score the better grad, and it’s not mandatory, If you are not willing to analyze the data, then you should include a paragraph on the expected results based on findings from previous research papers relevant to your study.)

Assessment

Guidelines

Students should draw from the knowledge gain in the lectures and content from the module and other academic sources (in EBSCO, Google Scholar etc.) and your own research from the internet to prepare the mini research paper.

Use Harvard reference system to cite and reference your work. This should be an original piece of work and ensure that you do not plagiaries other’s work.

Links to module

intended learning

outcomes

The assignment relates to the following intended learning outcomes for the module:

LO.1: Critically analyse research-based concepts and methods relating to business and related disciplines

LO.2: Specify problem areas that are relevant to organisations and develop a meaningful problem statement and research proposal.

LO.3: Demonstrate ability to compose a research design and apply research skills in order to evaluate, inform and advance business management

LO.4: Deploy techniques of analysis and enquiry in order to critically evaluate research strategies and findings

LO.5: Produce a research proposal, and plan and execute a piece of independent research using primary and/or secondary data sources

Special Instructions

The timely and consistent participation throughout this module with the asynchronous and synchronous tasks is essential for the successful completion of this module, due to the project-driven approach to teaching and learning in this module (“flipped classroom”).

Submission Guide:

• Your assessment should be submitted as a single Word (MS Word) or PDF file. For more information, please see the

GISMA assignment guide.

• You must ensure that the submitted assignment is your own work and that all sources used are correctly

attributed.

• Submit your work on the GISMA portal within the

submission deadline.

Your work will not be graded and you will receive a zero grade if you submit your assignment after the submission deadline, case of academic unfair practice is found or your work is not submitted in MS word or PDF file.

Your mini research paper will be assessed based on the following criteria:

• Clarity and coherence of writing

• Relevance and significance of research question

• Appropriateness of research design and methodology • Quality of research

• Appropriateness of conclusions and implications

Additional Assessment Components

GISMA University rewards in class attendance, and engagement with asynchronous content, at a rate of 30% per module.

Students attending ≥ 80% (factoring on possible extenuating circumstances) of their synchronous classes as per their due mode of delivery, will gain 15% towards their final module mark.

Students successfully engaging with asynchronous material on the gamification/microlearning path and completing all summative assessments in the asynchronous environment, will equally gain 15% towards their final module mark.

The above also entail that, students falling below 80% of attendance, although they will be still allowed to submit, they will have their final mark capped at 85/100. Equally, if they fail to engage with the asynchronous material and complete the short summative assessments included in

specific checkpoints during each term (usually 4), their module mark, irrespective of their engagement and participation in synchronous delivery, will drop by a maximum rate of 15%.

Mark

Weight

100%

Fail

(0 – 49%)

5,0

Sufficient

(50 – 59%)

4,0 – 3,7

Satisfactory

(60 – 74%)

2,7-3,3

Good

(75-89%)

1,7-2,3

Very Good

(90-100%)

1,0-1,3

Marking Criteria

Does not fulfil the requirements of the assessment.

Demonstrates

acceptable

knowledge and understanding of the subject-matter and achievement of learning

outcomes at low to average

level of performance.

Demonstrates

substantial knowledge and understanding of the subject-matter and achievement of learning

outcomes at average to above average performance levels.

Demonstrates a comprehensive

knowledge and understanding of the subject-matter and achievement of learning

outcomes at well

above average levels of performance.

Demonstrates a comprehensive

knowledge and understanding of the subject-matter

and achievement of learning outcomes at high (highest) levels

of performance.

Assessment Criteria

Your written essay will be assessed based on the following criteria: • Depth of analysis and description of issue or problem to be researched (20%).

• The quality of your literature review and development of the appropriate conceptual model for the research (25%)

• Clear outline of the research approach and method relevant for answering your research questions (25%).

Notes about

Marking

Marking will be based on the originality of the individual work submitted

Answer the Question

It may seem obvious, but make sure you are answering the question you have been set, not the question you would prefer to answer. If the brief has a number of tasks or parts, answer all of them. Parts that involve evaluation or analysis are usually longer and worth more marks than parts that ask for description or explanation. Keep the brief in front of you and check it regularly.

How to use

Assessment Criteria

The assessment criteria document is not usually a guide to the structure of your assignment. Each section of the criteria is not a separate paragraph in your assignment, but qualities that you need to demonstrate throughout. Treat the assessment criteria as a checklist at the end not as a plan at the beginning. Also, the criteria document often tells you what to demonstrate (e.g., critical analysis) but not

necessarily how to do it. For how to do it, look back at the skills and activities you have covered in the rest of the module.

Above all, remember this is not a test of how much you know or how much you have read about the topic. It is a test of how well you can use your knowledge to answer the specific question set.

Planning and

Preparation

Make sure you attend the lectures where we will be ‘unpacking’ this assignment in greater detail.

Start thinking about your assignment and prepare early. Do clarify any doubt you have with your tutor.

We recommend that you spend approximately 40 hours researching, writing, proofing and editing this assignment.

Referencing

GISMA University requires that students use Harvard Referencing.

Plagiarism and

Cheating

Your attention is drawn to the University’s stated position on plagiarism. THE WORK OF OTHERS THAT IS INCLUDED IN THE ASSIGNMENT MUST BE ATTRIBUTED TO ITS SOURCE (a list of references and bibliography must be submitted).

Please note that this is intended to be an individual piece of work. Ensure that you read through your work prior to submission. Action will be taken where a student is suspected of having cheated or engaged in any dishonest practice. Students are referred to the University regulations on plagiarism and other forms of academic misconduct. Students must not copy or collude with one another or present any information that they themselves have not generated.

For more information on Plagiarism, please see the relevant section in your Program Handbook.