Research Methods & Skills
Being aware of current affairs and what is going on in the world both from a global and a local perspective is essential if your are to be successful in the Exploration's programme. However, with so much information out there it is often difficult to know where to start and even once you have found something, how do you know what you are reading is reliable. This session will focus on interpreting the news and understanding the different ways that information is presented.
YEAR 9
ACTIVITY 1: Teenagers & the News
In pairs you have 7 minutes to go through the newspapers on your table to find as many stories as you can that are connected with teenagers. Once you have found one, cut it out and ensure you can explain the connection to another pair after the designated timeframe. The pair with the most stories wins! |
ACTIVITY 2: How do we present information and research in an effective way?
Information can be presented in many ways and as such can be interpreted in a variety of ways also. For your IE Award, many of you will have taken on the role of either Information Designer or as a Title Developer and as such using graphics to display information will be vitally important also. Around the room you will find a series of infographics. You have 7 minutes to do a gallery walk around the room in silence reviewing the infographics that are on the boards. As you move around the room you need to answer these three questions on a post it note and attach it to one of the infographics.
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Click on the infographic above to find additional infographics to review
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At the end of the gallery walk go and stand next to an infographic that appeals to you the most. With the other students now have a discussion about how effective the infographic is in presenting the information/research - get one person from the group to feed back to the class.
ACTIVITY 3: How do we find information? What are some different methods that we can conduct research?
Both the Team Project and the IE Award requires you to undertake some form of cross cultural research in order to find the perspectives of others. Obviously the best way to find these perspectives is through Primary Research methods and getting out there in the real world and speaking to people. However, to understand the issue that you are investigating you will probably be undertaking a great deal of Secondary Research by searching the internet. If I ask you to go and research a topic or a question, the first thing that you will do is jump onto Goggle and type that topic name or question into the search engine! Am I right? There are obviously many other methods that you could use in order to find information online. Take five minutes to review the various methods below.
Both the Team Project and the IE Award requires you to undertake some form of cross cultural research in order to find the perspectives of others. Obviously the best way to find these perspectives is through Primary Research methods and getting out there in the real world and speaking to people. However, to understand the issue that you are investigating you will probably be undertaking a great deal of Secondary Research by searching the internet. If I ask you to go and research a topic or a question, the first thing that you will do is jump onto Goggle and type that topic name or question into the search engine! Am I right? There are obviously many other methods that you could use in order to find information online. Take five minutes to review the various methods below.
INTERNET |
RESEARCH |
METHODS |
Wikipedia Is a good starting point for your research. The most useful aspect of a Wikipedia page can be the links at the end. These can provide you with useful pages for additional research. Be sure to check that the page has detailed references so you can be sure of its reliability. |
‘Youth’ Using the term ‘Youth’ in your search terms or into the search bar of individual campaign sites can help you find pages that are dedicated to young campaigners or provide research on how young people are affected by the issues related to the campaign. |
Answer engines Answer engines provide specific answers to particular questions. They reduce the number of results that you might get but they also provide you with more specific information. For example, when searching for statistics www.wolframalpha.com provides very reliable scientific data. Typing the term ‘answer engines’ into a search engine will help you to see the different answer engines available. |
Comments pages and forums Comments pages and forums can help you to identify the different perspectives on an issue. Large newspaper websites will provide a broad spectrum of opinions on their comments pages. Make sure you record the type of news site or for you are using. |
Google New Search This is a really good way to get up to date information and interviews with real people about real life situations. |
Advanced search Try using the ‘advanced search’ or ‘show options’ as this can help you to find a more focused answer. Additionally, other google functions can help you find different types of information. These include google ‘trends’ and ‘google labs’. |
ACTIVITY 4: Using the internet & other research methods effectively to understand cross cultural perspectives - Map a story
Make a copy of the table below using this document and use the different methods of researching outlined above to find evidence for your cross cultural research. Try and use a different method for each question that you are find. Remember when collecting information from blogs, forums and comments pages you will have to question any facts that are presented for reliability or bias. However, these still offer a good source of opinion and demonstrate a variety of perspectives on the issue you are focusing on. |
Question |
Answer |
Research Method |
Link |
Find two fact about why your chosen topic is a Global Issue |
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Find two different opinions on your issue |
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Find three statistics relating to your issue. |
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Find evidence of your issue in Hong Kong. What perspective is presented on your issue? |
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Find evidence of your issue in another country. What perspective is presented on your issue? |
ACTIVITY 5: Reflection - finding and presenting information
At the end of the research task reflect on how you can use these research methods to contribute to the research aspect of your Team Project. You should complete the following questions in your Reflective Journal.
At the end of the research task reflect on how you can use these research methods to contribute to the research aspect of your Team Project. You should complete the following questions in your Reflective Journal.
- Which research methods do you think will be most useful to you in your team project? Why?
- Have you identified an opinions that were unexpected? How could you research this cultural perspective further?
- Why are infographics a useful way to convey information? How could you use this method of information display for your role in the IE Award?
- What information have you found that you feel is questionable in regards to its reliability? How could you determine whether this information is correct or not going forward?
- How might you evidence this planning and research as part of your IE Award?
YEAR 10 & 11
ACTIVITY 1: Fact or Opinion?
With a partner review the images of the flowers opposite. Do they provide strong evidence about the conditions near the Fukushima Daiichi Power Plant? Make sure that you are able to explain your reasoning. ACTIVITY 2: Analysis of the News - Command terms for Global Perspectives Read this news article (opinion piece). Once you have read through the article with a partner answer the questions below.
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EVALUATING WEBSITES
The Internet is a monster! It contains some extremely valuable, high-quality information sources, but it also contains some very unreliable, biased sources of misinformation. That is its nature; anybody can set up a website and publish anything they want which means information on the internet isn't always true! That puts a higher burden on you as a researcher to evaluate the quality of each website you use, whether it’s for a class assignment or your personal use. In order to determine the validity of a website you should go through the C.R.A.P method!
Currency
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ACTIVITY 3: Test the C.R.A.P. Method!
Find a news article linked to your research question from a news source or other online journal. Use the C.R.A.P method to evaluate the online article.
As you do so can you find examples of our Global Perspectives command terms - fact, opinion, prediction, value judgement or bias.
Find a news article linked to your research question from a news source or other online journal. Use the C.R.A.P method to evaluate the online article.
As you do so can you find examples of our Global Perspectives command terms - fact, opinion, prediction, value judgement or bias.
Global Perspectives Command Terms
Term |
Definition |
Example |
Opinion |
An opinion is generally defined as an individual’s point of view or belief which is not necessarily shared by others/supported by evidence. |
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Fact |
A fact is something which can be checked or proved; something that is true and which can be verified from experience and observation; a piece of information. |
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Value Judgement |
A value judgement is a particular type of opinion. It is a subjective assessment based on a code of values concerning what is right and wrong; a decision based on moral principles or beliefs; an opinion based on an individual’s beliefs or views of what is desirable, important or highly regarded and not upon facts which can be checked or proved. We can’t check if value judgements are true but we can think about whether they are reasonable and whether we accept them and why. |
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Bias |
Inclination or prejudice for or against one person or group, especially in a way considered to be unfair. |
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Vested Interest |
If you have a personal stake in something which causes you to be biased toward it, you have a vested interest in it. |
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Prediction |
A prediction is generally defined as a statement suggesting something which is likely to happen in the future. |
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INDEPENDENT vs. MAINSTREAM NEWS
Most newspapers, magazines, television programmes, films and books need to make money. They have to target their audiences and work out exactly how to sell to that scandal, crime, funny or shocking stories dominate many newspapers and television channels. These are the kinds of stories that most people want to consume. Independent media often have different priorities, but generally they do not exist primarily to make money. Of course, independent sites can have their own bias but this is often not hidden. They generally show their bias by focusing on stories that they believe are most important. These sites often cover stories that never make it to the mainstream news and will often focus on issues like the environment, human rights, corruption and grassroots movements.
Arguments FOR Independent Media
Independent media sites often open up a whole new approach to issues. They focus on stories that do not interest the mainstream media and encourage campaigning journalism. They are free from any corporate control. |
Arguments AGAINST Independent Media
Independent media sites are often highly critical of governments and corporations and as a result, their stories can create a sense that Governments and Corporations are in some way the 'enemy'. they often seek out stories that confirm that own worldview and ignore stories that appear in the mainstream media. |
ACTIVITY 4: Finding Perspectives in the News
In your team projects pairs you have 15 minutes to use the internet to look at the below mixture of independent and mainstream news sites. For each one note down the following:
In your team projects pairs you have 15 minutes to use the internet to look at the below mixture of independent and mainstream news sites. For each one note down the following:
- The main six stories on each site
- If any stories are covered by both mainstream and independent sites, note down the difference in the way they are reported.
- Find three news articles that relate to your Global Perspectives Team Project. Does the perspective of the independent sites differ that from those of the mainstream.