Lesson Report:
### Lesson Report
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**Title:** Research Proposal Preparation: Structuring Questions and Research Design
*Synopsis:*
In this session, we began in-depth preparation for the upcoming midterm research proposal, scheduled for October 29th. The class covered essential components of the proposal, including the research question, theoretical framework, literature review, and research methodology. The lecture also introduced two broad research design types—variable-oriented and process-oriented approaches—explaining their uses and how students can decide which aligns best with their specific thesis projects.
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**Attendance:**
– Absent: Rashad, Amira
– Present via Zoom: Most students; some technical issues noted. Several students needed to keep their cameras on for attendance.
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**Topics Covered:**
1. **Midterm Research Proposal Requirements**
– The instructor began by outlining the goals and structure of the research proposal, which is a critical assignment due on **October 29th, 11:59 PM**.
– The proposal should be 2,000-2,500 words, providing a roadmap for the final thesis.
– Main Components Discussed:
– **Introduction**: Present your research question, explain its importance, and define the scope.
– **Theoretical Framework**: Identify key theories and concepts underpinning your research.
– **Literature Review**: Review at least five scholarly sources, highlighting common themes, debates, and gaps in current knowledge.
– **Historical Background**: Provide necessary context but keep it concise.
– Advice for strong proposals:
– Ensure the research question contributes something novel to the academic conversation.
– Don’t let the historical background dominate your paper.
– Continuously work on gathering and summarizing academic literature tied to your topic.
2. **Conceptualization & Operationalization (Recap)**
– The process of defining key terms (conceptualization) and determining how they will be measured in the research (operationalization).
– Students were encouraged to verify that they had clear definitions and measures for their research questions.
3. **Introduction to Research Designs**
– **Variable-Oriented Approach**:
– Focuses on establishing measurable relationships between different variables and can be generalized to broader contexts.
– Emphasizes quantitative data (e.g., surveys, statistical datasets).
– Useful if the research question involves identifying patterns and relationships across a large number of cases.
– Example research question: *“How do higher education levels affect voting behavior across CIS countries?”*
– **Process-Oriented Approach**:
– Examines the dynamics of specific processes in-depth, often within a single or very limited number of cases.
– Relies on qualitative data (e.g., interviews, ethnographies).
– Suitable for case studies where the focus is on the complexity of events or processes rather than generalizable patterns.
– Example research question: *”How have rural populations in Kyrgyzstan adapted to reduced water levels?”*
4. **Peer Discussion on Research Designs**
– Students partnered up to share their research questions and discuss whether their projects are better suited for a variable-oriented or process-oriented approach. The goal was to have clarity on which approach to use by the end of the session.
– Some examples of discussions:
– **Masiha**: Decided on a variable-oriented approach for measuring how the US withdrawal from Afghanistan affected stability and governance.
– **Tuba’s Question**: Focused on human rights decline in Afghanistan and regional security. While both design approaches are possible, they need more clarification depending on data types.
– **Bober**: Process-oriented approach to studying Turkey’s public diplomacy towards Uzbekistan, involving qualitative interviews.
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**Actionable Items:**
**Midterm Research Proposal:**
– **Urgent**
– Students must have their research questions finalized and sent to the instructor’s and their supervisors’ review as soon as possible. This should already have been done by now.
– Focus on completing all proposal sections: research question, theoretical framework, literature review, and methodology.
– Reminder: Proposal is due on October 29th, before midnight.
**Preparation for Methodology:**
– **Moderate Urgency**
– Students should identify which research design (variable or process-oriented) works best for their proposals and adjust research questions/methodologies accordingly.
– Continue gathering scholarly sources for literature reviews (recommendation: read 1 new related text per week).
**Communication:**
– **Low Urgency**
– A Telegram group was created for easier communication and resource sharing. Students who haven’t joined yet are reminded to do so [via the shared link].
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Homework Instructions:
NO HOMEWORK
Justification: Throughout the transcript, the professor repeatedly discusses components of the midterm research proposal, including detailed explanations of what needs to be included. However, no specific new homework or task to be completed before the next class is mentioned. Instead, the focus is more on reviewing progress on the research proposal, which has already been assigned previously (due on October 29th). This is clear from the lines discussing the proposal deadline and content, such as: “Please keep in mind that on the syllabus the proposal is going to be due on the 29th of October.” and “Once again, does anybody have any specific questions about the thesis proposal so far?”