Module ERPM001 for 2021/2
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Postgraduate Module Descriptor
ERPM001: Interpretive Methodologies
This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.
Module Aims
This module focuses on the nature, planning and execution of interpretive research. It requires students to confront questions of methodology while attending, also, to those of method: research design, data collection, analysis and generation of theory. It aims to ensure that students develop a keen awareness of the centrality of the researcher in the processes of research design, data collection and analysis, and of ethical issues in interpretive enquiry. While the module aims to enable students to acquire a high level of competence in working with qualitative data in particular, it will require, also, that they become familiar with the ways in which other forms of data can serve interpretive research. The module also aims to enable students to develop understanding of and to make informed evaluation of relevant computer software for data analysis.
On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
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Module-Specific Skills | 1. demonstrate a knowledge of the nature of interpretivist research; 2. demonstrate a knowledge of appropriate methods of data collection, analysis and theory generation for use in interpretivist research; 3. demonstrate a critical awareness of the place of qualitative and quantitative data in interpretive research; 4. demonstrate a critical awareness of the central place of the researcher in interpretive research, and notions of subjectivity and reflexivity; 5. identify ethical concerns in relation to different interpretive approaches; |
Discipline-Specific Skills | 6. design and conduct a research project with due regard to the opportunities and limitations afforded by the methods utilised; 7. demonstrate understanding of methodological principles through choice of appropriate research techniques in the light of complex problems; 8. read, understand and produce a critique of research papers and reports that have used qualitative approaches; 9. critically reflect on and evaluate your own research in order to improve it; |
Personal and Key Skills | 10. demonstrate skills in self-management - in particular the management of time, tasks and evaluation of own learning; 11. demonstrate skills in personal judgement - particularly in respect of ethically sensitive issues; 12. demonstrate the ability to communicate and present ideas when writing and speaking and to listen effectively and persuade rationally; 13. demonstrate the ability to use ICT effectively - the use of electronic data bases in the library, email, word processing, the internet. |
Module Content
Syllabus Plan
Whilst the module’s precise content may vary over time, it is envisaged that the syllabus will consider a range of issues that relate to interpretive approaches to research. The content is likely to include:
Methodology and ethics:
- Interpretive methodologies and practical concerns relating to research design
- Criteria of judgment in interpretive research such as credibility, confirmability, coherence, completeness, trustworthiness and transferability
- The place of qualitative and quantitative data in interpretive research
- The central place of the researcher in interpretive research, and notions of subjectivity and reflexivity
- Ethical concerns in different interpretive approaches
Techniques and sources:
- Interviewing – ways of asking, listening and recording
- Observation – ways of looking, seeing and recording
- Visual methods – ways of seeing, viewing, creating and recording
Analysis and critique:
- Different approaches to qualitative data analysis, including grounded theory, discourse analysis, narrative analysis and thematic analysis
- Processes of theory generation
- Uses and limitations of data analysis software such as NVivo
Learning and Teaching
This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:
Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
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30 | 270 | 0 |
...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:
Category | Hours of study time | Description |
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Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | 30 | 10x3 hour teaching sessions (lectures, workshops and seminars), including on campus teaching and recorded sessions |
Guided Independent Study | 70 | Collaborative group work |
Guided Independent Study | 100 | Reading and assignment preparation |
Guided Independent Study | 100 | Writing summative assignment |
Online Resources
This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).
Other Learning Resources
Suggested journals:
Qualitative Research
International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education
Qualitative Inquiry
How this Module is Assessed
In the tables below, you will see reference to 'ILO's. An ILO is an Intended Learning Outcome - see Aims and Learning Outcomes for details of the ILOs for this module.
Formative Assessment
A formative assessment is designed to give you feedback on your understanding of the module content but it will not count towards your mark for the module.
Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
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Written task | Equivalent to 250 words | 1, 6, 12, 13 | Written |
Written assignment | 1250 words | 1, 4, 6, 7, 10, 12, 13 | Written |
Summative Assessment
A summative assessment counts towards your mark for the module. The table below tells you what percentage of your mark will come from which type of assessment.
Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
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100 | 0 | 0 |
...and this table provides further details on the summative assessments for this module.
Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
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Written Assignment: Reflective journal and essay | 100 | 5,000 words in total, 3,500 word essay and reflective journal equivalent to 1,500 words | 1-13 | Written and grade |
Re-assessment
Re-assessment takes place when the summative assessment has not been completed by the original deadline, and the student has been allowed to refer or defer it to a later date (this only happens following certain criteria and is always subject to exam board approval). For obvious reasons, re-assessments cannot be the same as the original assessment and so these alternatives are set. In cases where the form of assessment is the same, the content will nevertheless be different.
Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
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Written Assignment | Written Assignment: Reflective journal and essay (As above) | 1-13 | 6 weeks from notification of failure or re-entry onto programme |
Indicative Reading List
This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.
Atkins, L. and Wallace, S. (2016) Qualitative Research in Education. London: Sage.
Brinkman, S. and Kvale, S. (2018) Doing Interviews. 2nd Edition. London: Sage.
Cresswell, J.W. (2005) Educational Research: planning, conducting and evaluating quantitative and qualitative research (2nd edition), Upper Saddle River, NJ, Pearson.
Cresswell, J.W. (2007) Qualitative Enquiry and Research design: choosing among five approaches, London, Sage.
Cresswell, J.W. (2008) Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Method Approaches, London, Sage.
Denzin, N. K., Lincoln, Y. S. (eds) (2018) The SAGE Handbook of Qualitative Research. 5th edition, Thousand Oaks, Sage.
Denzin, N. K., Lincoln, Y. S. (2003) Collecting and Interpreting Qualitative Materials. London, Sage.
Edwards, R. and Hollan, J. (2014) What is Qualitative Interviewing? London: Bloomsbury.
Flick, U. (2009) An Introduction to Qualitative Research, London, Sage 4th edition.
Gubrium, J., Holstein, J.A., Marvasti, A.B., and McKinney, K.D. (2012) The Sage Handbook of Interview Research: The Complexity of the Craft. 2nd Edition, London, Sage.
Hammersley, M. (2008) Questioning Qualitative Enquiry: Critical Essays, London, Sage.
Haw, K. & Hadfield, M. (2011) Video in social science research, functions and forms. London, Routledge
Koro-Ljungberg, M., Loytonen, T., and Teser, M. (2017) Disrupting Data in Qualitative Inquiry: Engagements with the Post-Critical and Post-Anthpropcentric. Oxford, Peter Lang.
May, T. (2002) Qualitative Research in Action. London, Sage.
Peshkin, A. (2000) ‘The Nature of Interpretation in Qualitative Research, Educational Researcher 29 (9) pp 5-9.
Silverman, D. (2016) Doing Qualitative Research: a practical handbook. 4th edition, London, Sage. Silverman, D. (2006) Interpreting Qualitiative Data. 3rd edition, London, Sage.
Wyse, D., Selwyn, N., Smith, E., and Suter, L.E. (2017) The BERA/SAGE Handbook of Educational Research. London, Sage.