Module THEO50230: Resources, Methods and Interpretation for Integrated PhD

Department: Theology and Religion

THEO50230: Resources, Methods and Interpretation for Integrated PhD

Prerequisites

• None

Corequisites

• None

Excluded Combination of Modules

• None

Aims

• To develop students’ skills in documentary and social-scientific sourcing, bibliography and referencing, research analysis, synthesis and writing.
• To encourage students’ awareness of, and engagement with, appropriate research methods and approaches in the study of theology and religion.
• To encourage intradisciplinary dialogue between students on different approaches to research in theology and religion.
• To equip students to conceive and design a research project with the potential to make a substantial original contribution to knowledge

Content

• Seminars will focus on resources, methods and interpretation in theology and religion. There will be a number of seminars on resources and methods, covering such topics as library and archival resources, IT usage, bibliography and referencing for dissertations and research projects, developing a dissertation topic and research funding.
• Other seminars will focus on particular areas and approaches in the study of theology and religion, such as biblical hermeneutics, philosophical and psychoanalytical approaches, and historical and social-scientific methods.
• The plagiarism test assesses students' understanding of this key area of professional ethics.
• The Research Programme and Literature Review assess students’ research skills, their ability to determine a research area; define methods and approaches; comprehend and synthesize appropriate material; and analyse and present arguments. The assessment also focuses on preparation for the short dissertation, with tutorials serving to determine and refine students’ research projects. The Research Proposal and Literature Review will normally be submitted by or on the first day of Epiphany Term.
• The Doctoral Research Proposal assesses students' readiness to embark on a doctoral research project with the potential to make a substantial original contribution to knowledge. Tutorial support assists with the development and refinement of this proposal. It is normally submitted on or before the last day of February.
• Detailed guidelines for format, procedures and deadlines will be made available in the relevant departmental handbook.

Learning Outcomes

• By the end of the module, students should understand the significance of the range of research approaches to the development of the discipline in Theology and Religion

• By the end of the module students should:
• be able to use appropriate printed and electronic resources competently in their research and learning;
• be able to reference those resources and produce a corresponding bibliography that follows prescribed conventions
• be able to identify a cogent research topic
• be able to analyse and utilise relevant research methods and approaches
• be able to write concise research proposals and literature reviews which show readiness to work at doctoral level

• By the end of the module students should have acquired:
• advanced research skills, including the ability to locate, summarise and evaluate key sources, both in print and online, and be able to cite them in a professional and academic manner.
• advanced communication skills, including the ability to construct well-supported and sophisticated arguments, presented in clear, concise and convincing prose

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• Seminars allow for the presentation of resources and for the teaching and learning of research methods and skills, as well of approaches in the study of theology and religion. Students will learn, not least through the sessions provided by the University Library, how to find, order and present the array of resources now available; as well as how to use their findings in the service of academic argument within their chosen subject area. A repeatable online plagiarism test helps students to refine some of these skills. Guided by the Course Director and dissertation supervisors (identified in the course of Michaelmas Term) students will be able to demonstrate these skills in the other summative assignments: the Research Programme and Literature Review (submitted at the beginning of Epiphany term) and the Doctoral Research Proposal (submitted by the end of February).

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment:

Tutorials

■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University