You should undertake a literature review, using systematic techniques for searching databases for journal articles, to establish a rationale for a research study. You will have opportunity in Term 1...

You should undertake a literature review, using systematic techniques for searching databases for journal articles, to establish a rationale for a research study.
You will have opportunity in Term 1 to think about and settle on a research topic of interest and develop a workable research question. You will also learn techniques for searching for literature in DISCOVER, other individual databases, and Google Scholar. Steps involved:
1)    Think about a topic of interest to you (speak to the unit coordinator or one your other tutors if you are struggling with this)
2)    Develop a focussed and clear research question (as you are trying to do this, you should be doing some preliminary searching which may help you to narrow and focus your question)
3)    Begin your search applying the techniques you learn in Term 1. You should be using the advanced search function in DISCOVER and utilising appropriate and comprehensive search terms.  You may also limit your searches by year, geography, and language.  You should be identifying peer reviewed articles which report on primary and/or secondary research on your topic area. The scale of this assessment means that you should be reviewing somewhere between 5 and 20 articles (If you are struggling to find enough research, or you have found too much, speak to your tutor in seminars so that they can help you think about ways to overcome the problem Alternately, make an appointment with Keith Daniels, the subject librarian who can also help.

4)    When you have identified all of your materials, you should read them carefully and undertake a critical appraisal. This will help you to make your own assessment of the research, and will help you to compare and contrast other pieces of research. You should aim to move beyond description and be analytical in your review.