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EDPS0249 Engineering and Education
1 Overview and Aim of the Module
All master’s-level students are required to submit a dissertation or a report at the end of their
final year. Typically, dissertations and reports are long and in-depth pieces of work that offer
a critical exploration of a subject matter relevant to a specific educational programme. To
successfully complete these assignments students are required to conduct extensive and
largely independent research involving the collection of primary and/or secondary data. They
should demonstrate abilities in research topic design, execution and presentation and a
capacity for in-depth critical thinking in their chosen area of study.
For the MSc Engineering and Education students, in particular, dissertations and
reports represent an opportunity to develop their research skills and investigate a topic of
interested in the field of engineering education. These pieces of academic writing are the
culmination of the MSc Engineering and Education Programme, the students' chance to
synthesise and use the knowledge gained during the year and demonstrate their expertise in
this field with the view to launching the next stage of their career.
Although dissertations and reports involve largely student-driven activities, a full
package of support is offered to the MSc Engineering and Education students, including
lectures and tutorials. In this regard, the EDPS0224 (Dissertation) and EDPS0249 (Report)
modules aim to guide the students through all the steps needed to successfully complete a
large-scale individual research project at master's level and help them develop all the
necessary skills and capabilities required to prepare this substantial piece of work.
EDPS0224 and EDPS0249 are coupled together in a single 'module' that run across Terms
1, 2 and 3 with the view to assisting students during the different stages of the dissertation
(EDPS0224) or report (EDPS0249) process. Furthermore, individual tailored support to each
student is also provided through an allocated dissertation or report supervisor.
This present guide provides an outline of the EDPS0249 (Report) module in terms of
intended learning outcomes, content and structure, nature of assessments and indicative
reading. It also offers guidance regarding the expected report timeline and details the
support available to students. Further information can be found on the course's Moodle
page.
2 What is a Report?
Dissertations and reports are an opportunity for a critical exploration of a field of study in
engineering education on a topic of direct interest to the student, which must be approved by
the student’s supervisor.
The number of credits assigned to the module, the word length of the assignment
and the scope of the study are the major differences between dissertations and reports. As
illustrated in Table 1, the Report module is worth 30 credits of the 180 credit MSc degree.
The main output of this module is a written report with a word limit of 10,000 words, plus or
minus 10% (1,000 words), excluding references and appendices. Compared with a
dissertation, a report represents a more focused and narrowly-defined study of a topic
relevant to engineering education. It is anticipated that this investigation can be based either
on
a) Secondary information obtained from the analysis of the existing literature on a
particular topic; or
b) Secondary information derived from the literature review supplemented with a limited
amount of primary data collection.
The choice between type A and type B reports will be dictated by the specific
students’ inclinations and needs and the research topic under investigation, and will be taken
by the students after discussion with their supervisors.
Table 1 - Main differences between dissertations and reports.
Dissertation Report
A study of a specified topic based on the
gathering and analysis of primary and secondary
data.
An investigation of a narrowly defined topic
based on:
a) A review of the literature; or
b) A review of the literature
supplemented with a limited amount
of primary data collection.
60 credits – 20,000 words 30 credits – 10,000 words
Starting Point: Identification of a research gap,
and/or an area of conflict or controversy
Starting point:
a) A clear rationale for conducting the
research; or
b) Identification of a research gap, and/or
an area of conflict or controversy.
Aim: to generate new knowledge on a topic
(relevant to engineering education).
Aim:
a) To examine and present the state of
the art of the literature on a topic
(relevant to engineering education); or
b) To generate some new knowledge on
a topic (relevant to engineering
education).
Data: secondary data as well as a sufficient
amount of primary data (an Ethics Application is
required).
Data needed:
a) Secondary data only (an Ethics
Application is not required); or
b) Secondary data and a small amount of
primary data (an Ethics Application is
required).
Students need to be aware that type A and type B reports have different features and
expectations. In particular, type A reports (i.e., reports based on secondary information) are
expected to offer:
An identification of a research topic of particular interest (which must be relevant to
engineering education) based on the student's reflections on the wide range of
themes covered in the other taught modules, and discussions with their supervisor
and other members of the MSc Engineering and Education team.
Module Guide 2023-24 for EDPS0249 Engineering and Education: Report (v. 9-1-24)
A thorough examination of what is already known about a problem or issue through a
comprehensive literature review, which must make use of materials and references
provided as part of the MSc Engineering and Education Programme.
A critical discussion of the literature review findings where strengths and weaknesses
of previous studies are exposed, different authors' views are compared and perhaps
combined with the view to developing new theoretical frames and generating new
ways for understanding a particular problem, and research gaps and under-
researched areas are highlighted so as to pave the way for further primary research
studies.
By comparison, key features and expectations of type B reports (i.e., reports based
on secondary information and a small amount of primary data) include:
An identification of a research topic of particular interest (which must be relevant to
engineering education) based on the student's reflections on the wide range of
themes covered in the other taught modules, and discussions with the supervisor and
other members of the MSc Engineering and Education team.
An examination of what is already known about a problem or issue through a rather
synthetic and focused literature review, which must make use of materials and
references provided as part of the MSc Engineering and Education Programme.
The recognition of a very specific and a narrowly-defined research gap that warrants
further investigation through primary research studies.
The collection of (a limited amount of) primary data about that problem or issue
through fieldwork and data collection methods such as interviews and surveys with
the view to generating new knowledge about the chosen topic.
Appropriate consideration of research ethics and data protection issues arising from
research and primary data collection activities.
The analysis and discussion of the research findings as well as the exploration of
some new (or partially new) ideas about a problem or issue that can potentially have
some important implications for policy, practice and/or future research.
3 Learning Outcomes
Reports are student-driven exercises that should draw from and allow students to reflect on
the range of subject-matters covered in the taught modules. The purpose of undertaking a
report is to enable the student to apply the knowledge and skills acquired from their broader
programme to an investigation of a narrowly defined topic, thereby demonstrating a
capability to apply theory to the analysis of a topic and demonstrating the capacity to design
and execute an appropriate programme of research. More specifically, with the report
students should convey the ability to:
1. Identify a topic for original research.
2. Establish and address clearly focused and fundamental research questions.
Module Guide 2023-24 for EDPS0249 Engineering and Education: Report (v. 9-1-24)
3. Critically analyse relevant theory and literature.
4. Supplement the literature review by gathering and analysing relevant primary
research data and information, thus making an original contribution to the field (only
for type B reports).
5. Conduct research safely and in a reflective manner, with suitable consideration of
ethical issues and data protection requirements (only for type B reports).
6. Write clearly and concisely in a manner that logically presents research findings and
evidence, and draws clear research conclusions and insight.
4 Teaching and Learning Methods
The overall package of support provided for dissertations and reports include a series of
lectures and drop-in classes, and some tutorials with the supervisors.
EDPS0224 and EDPS0249 run together across the three terms of the academic year
to guide students progressively through the different stages of the dissertation and report
process. EDPS0224 and EDPS0249 comprise 13 lectures, which examine the key elements
of a research project (i.e., research topic and aim, literature review, research methodology
and ethics, data collection and analysis methods, presentation of research findings), and 5
drop-in classes, which students can attend to further discuss the lecture materials and clarify
their doubts. Most of the lectures are compulsory and will be delivered in the classroom,
whilst drop-in classes are optional and may take place online or face-to-face. All lecture
notes and teaching materials will be uploaded to the course's Moodle page.
In addition to these compulsory and optional sessions throughout Terms 1, 2 and 3,
students will be also allocated a supervisor by Marco Dean, the Module Leader, in
consultation with other members of the MSc Engineering and Education team. Ideally, this
allocation will be based on the preliminary research topic chosen by the students and the
research interests of the supervisors. Supervisors can offer up to four hours of supervision
for reports, usually over the second and third term of the year. This may combine group and
individual tutorials, which can take place in person or online, and email support. A Microsoft
Teams group will be set up to facilitate communication between the students, the
supervisors and the Module Leader.
Individual reading and independent research are an essential and substantial
component of the Report module. The total workload to complete the report (including
lectures, drop-in classes and tutorials, student-driven reading and research; data collection
and analysis, and report writing and editing) is about 300 hours (1 Credit = 10 notional
learning hours).
5 Module Structure
As illustrated in Table 2, EDPS0224 and EDPS0249 start towards the end of the first term
with an introductory session that explains the features and the general expectations for the
modules. The lectures and drop-in classes in Term 2 are expressly designed to assist
students in writing their research proposals and preparing their ethics applications (only for
students who are planning to collect primary data), whereas the lectures in Term 3 are
Module Guide 2023-24 for EDPS0249 Engineering and Education: Report (v. 9-1-24)
aimed at helping students with the application of the chosen data collection and analysis
methods. Whilst the plan is to have 13 lectures and 5 drop-in classes, the number and order
of sessions might vary depending on students' needs and specific circumstances.