Course of study M. Ed. 2nd part : Thesis Writing

Course title: Thesis Wiritng                                                                                 Full marks: 50

Course No.: Eng. Ed. 598                                                                                      Pass marks: 25 

Nature of the course: Practical

Year: Second

Level: M.Ed.                                                                                                                               

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1. Course Description

This course aims at helping the students to write a language related thesis. It consists of specific activities for three successive phases of a research. In the first phase the students begin with the background reading, formulating a research problem and developing a proposal. In the second phase the students carry out a research and in the third phase they produce the thesis.

2. Course Objectives

The objectives of course are as follows:

• To help the students formulate a research problem and identify appropriate research design.
• To enable the students carry out a language research.
• To support the students analyze the data and produce a research report in the form of a thesis.

3. Specific Objectives and Contents

Specific Objectives	Contents
·   Identify specific research problems and formulate an appropriate research design. ·   Specify sample size. ·   Write a language related research proposal.	Stage I: Pre-research Phase 1.1  Formulating a research problem 1.1.1             Identifying the general areas and specifying the area of interest 1.1.2             Background reading on the specific area 1.1.3             Identifying the issues/questions/problems 1.1.4             Identifying and reviewing related literature (especially previous researches) 1.1.5             Specifying a research problem for the study 1.1.6             Postulating  hypothesis (if any) 1.1.7             Formulating objectives/research questions 1.1.8             Conceptualizing theoretical framework 1.1.9             Justifying the rationale or significance of the study (with more readings) 1.2  Conceptualizing research design 1.2.1             Qualitative or quantitative or mixed method of study 1.2.2             Experimental or quasi-experimental 1.2.3             Action research 1.2.4             Conversational analysis 1.2.5             Discourse or text analysis 1.2.6             Classroom research 1.2.7             Ethnography/auto-ethnography 1.2.8             Critical ethnography 1.2.9             Case studies 1.2.10         Library research 1.2.11         Narrative enquiry 1.3  Specifying Population and Sample 1.3.1       Identify population 1.3.2       Specify sample size 1.3.3       Identify sampling procedure 1.4  Writing a Research Proposal 1.4.1 Follow the format of the proposal as mentioned in the course  entitled Research Methodology in Language Education 1.4.2  Follow the convention of academic writing
·   Prepare and pilot the research tools. ·   Collect, process and analyze the data. ·   Present the finding and recommendations. ·   Write a thesis following the APA format. ·   Edit and proof-read drafts of thesis following the APA style.	Stage II: Research Phase 2.1 Preparing/piloting the tools 2.2 Going to the field for data collection 2.3 Collecting the data 2.4 Processing data 2.5 Presenting and analyzing data 2.6 Presenting the findings and their discussions     2.5 Recommendations or  implications Mechanics and Procedures for Writing a Thesis Preparing the first draft of the thesis  Printing, editing, proofreading and finalizing the thesis Detail information about format: Please follow American Psychological Association (APA 6th edition) manual    Minimum pages for chapters   -       First Chapter (Introduction): 15 -        Second chapter (methodology): 4 -       Third chapter: presentation and analysis of data, (10 – 15) -        Fourth chapter: Findings and discussion (5) and recommendations (1-2). Sample size (minimum) -          Experimental research: 40 (including both experimental and control group), and lesson plans: 28 -          Survey research (questionnaire): 50 -          Qualitative research (Interview and narrative):  Sample size varies according to the nature of the study -          Discourse analysis: 3 journal articles with minimum 25 pages, newspaper articles: 40-50, classroom discourse: 20 class recordings or any other type of observation.) -          Action Research: lesson plans-28 -          Case studies: short-term for 1-2 months: 4 cases and long-term for 3-6 months: 1 case Margin: Top, bottom and right 1 inch and left 1½ inch. Follow the APA style (sixth edition) for citing and listing the references and spacing
·   Present and defend research work	Stage III : Post-research Phase 3.1 Submitting the thesis to the department 3.2 Attending viva voce to defend the research work

4. Recommended Books

American Psychological Association. (2010). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (6^th Ed.). Washington, DC: APA. (For all stages)

Bitchener, J. (2010). Writing an applied linguistics thesis or dissertation. London: Palgrave Macmillan. (For all stages)

Murray, R. (2006). How to write a thesis. England: Open University Press. (For all stages)