32144 Technology Research Preparation
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Subject handbook information prior to 2025 is available in the Archives.
Credit points: 6 cp
Subject level:
Postgraduate
Result type: Grade and marksThere are course requisites for this subject. See access conditions.
Description
This subject provides postgraduate technology students with professional communication skills appropriate to their course. The subject begins with the techniques necessary to develop a literature review and professional ethics is taught in the research context. Students produce a project proposal, suitable for implementation in a research project.
Subject learning objectives (SLOs)
Upon successful completion of this subject students should be able to:
| 1. | Demonstrate critical analysis of technology research and the codes of conduct/ethical practices when working with and for Indigenous peoples. (A.1) |
|---|---|
| 2. | Integrate academic integrity and critical evaluation of sources and perspectives into a research report. (B.1) |
| 3. | Synthesize review of the literature by critically evaluating textual sources of information to inform research argument. (C.1) |
| 4. | Communicate research argument to a range of audiences. (E.1) |
Course intended learning outcomes (CILOs)
This subject also contributes specifically to the development of the following Course Intended Learning Outcomes (CILOs):
- Indigenous Professional Capability: FEIT graduates are culturally and historically well informed, able to co-design projects as respectful professionals when working in and with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. (A.1)
- Socially Responsible: FEIT graduates identify, engage, and influence stakeholders, and apply expert judgment establishing and managing constraints, conflicts and uncertainties within a hazards and risk framework to define system requirements and interactivity. (B.1)
- Design Oriented: FEIT graduates apply problem solving, design thinking and decision-making methodologies in new contexts or to novel problems, to explore, test, analyse and synthesise complex ideas, theories or concepts. (C.1)
- Collaborative and Communicative: FEIT graduates work as an effective member or leader of diverse teams, communicating effectively and operating autonomously within cross-disciplinary and cross-cultural contexts in the workplace. (E.1)
Teaching and learning strategies
An aim of this subject is to help you develop academic and professional language and communication skills in order to succeed at university and in the workplace.
Each student will attend between eight and eleven one-and-a half-hour lectures depending on the student’s stream, and between eight and eleven one-and-a half-hour tutorials, which will include a session with the UTS Library.
Each tutorial will focus on work either prepared beforehand by students or completed in class, using concepts taught in the previous lecture.
Self-study: Students will be expected to produce written work each week, for tutorials, based upon their reading and searching.
OPELA: An aim of this subject is to help you develop academic and professional language and communication skills in order to succeed at university and in the workplace. To determine your current academic language proficiency, you are required to complete an online language screening task, OPELA. If you receive a Basic grade for OPELA, you must attend additional Language Development Tutorials (each week from weeks 4 to 12) in order to pass this subject. The development of these tutorials is a new university-wide initiative designed to provide personalised support and enhance students’ English language skills. They will focus on developing your communication skills (reading, writing, speaking, listening) and your independent learning skills, which will help you to prepare for the subject assessment tasks and for professional workplace communication tasks. If you have any questions about the OPEL program, then contact OPELA@uts.edu.au (not to the subject coordinator or teaching staff).
Marking criteria for each assessment task will be available on Canvas.
For Pass/Fail subjects and marking criteria, find more details from a section “Assessment: faculty procedures and advice”.
Content (topics)
The various aspects of Engineering and IT industries or scholarly reading and writing will be integrated into the creation of a literature review. Topics include: search strategies; evaluating sources of information; reading critically; reference lists and citation; writing critically and making an argument; producing a literature review; and research ethics.
The subject will also cover development of a research proposal, encompassing project aims; background; significance; methodology; editing; and proposal integrity (or consistency of the various parts of the proposal).
Assessment
Assessment task 1: Task 1 - Building Research Skills
| Intent: | To become an independent researcher. To develop the skills of working collaboratively and talking informally about research. |
|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses the following subject learning objectives (SLOs): 1, 2 and 4 This assessment task contributes to the development of the following Course Intended Learning Outcomes (CILOs): A.1, B.1 and E.1 |
| Type: | Exercises |
| Groupwork: | Individual |
| Weight: | 15% |
| Length: | In-class exercises vary in length each week according to the nature of the topic and type of activity. The scope of the exercises undertaken range from short written responses (e.g., 100-200 words per question) to the completion of structured worksheets (e.g., 250-500 words). |
Assessment task 2: Literature Review
| Intent: | To establish search skills and the ability to evaluate the appropriateness of the articles chosen. To develop the skills of critical analysis and synthesis, direct and indirect citation, referencing and the writing of a complete report. |
|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses the following subject learning objectives (SLOs): 1, 2, 3 and 4 This assessment task contributes to the development of the following Course Intended Learning Outcomes (CILOs): A.1, B.1, C.1 and E.1 |
| Type: | Literature review |
| Groupwork: | Individual |
| Weight: | 45% |
| Length: | 3000-4000 words – not including table of contents, reference list or appendix. |
Assessment task 3: Project Proposal
| Intent: | To identify a significant research problem applicable to the industry context, to add depth to their knowledge and understanding of a field in which they are interested, and to design a method for addressing the question. |
|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses the following subject learning objectives (SLOs): 1, 2, 3 and 4 This assessment task contributes to the development of the following Course Intended Learning Outcomes (CILOs): A.1, B.1, C.1 and E.1 |
| Type: | Report |
| Groupwork: | Group, individually assessed |
| Weight: | 40% |
| Length: | 3000-5000 words – not including table of contents, reference list or appendix. |
Minimum requirements
In order to pass the subject, a student must achieve an overall mark of 50% or more.
It is a requirement of this subject that all students complete OPELA. Students who received a Basic grade in the OPELA test are required to attend 80% of the Language Development Tutorials in order to pass the subject. Please see the UTS Student Rules Section 3.8.
Students who do not complete OPELA and/or do not attend 80% of the Language Development Tutorials will receive a Fail X grade.
References
Hart, C. (2018). Doing a literature review: Releasing the research imagination (2nd ed.). London: Sage. (UTS Library Open Reserve)
Rugg, G., & Petre, M. (2020). The unwritten rules of PhD research (3rd ed.). London: Open University Press. (UTS Library online)
Zobel, J. (2014). Writing for computer science (3rd ed.). London: Springer-Verlag. (UTS Library Open Reserve)
Other resources
Useful links and resources are available on the subject's Canvas site. Other learning materials will be provided in class.