Yr 11 Research Investigation Scaffold

Purpose

To evaluate a claim by researching, analysing, and interpreting secondary evidence from scientific text to form the bases for a justified conclusion about the claim.

(Highlight important points in the purpose and task of the Chemistry research investigation)

Task

In this task students gather secondary evidence related to a research question in order to evaluate the claim. The students develop their research question based on one of the claims below.

The response must be presented using an appropriate scientific genre (i.e. empirical essay) and contain:

o a claimo a research questiono Rationale – clear statement of the topic area explaining clearly how the research

question was developed from the claimo justified scientific arguments using evidence – a range of information, not just the

good, emphasising effective analysis of data from a variety of sources o a conclusion to the research question based on the interpretation of the evidenceo evaluation of the claim and suggestions of improvements and extensions to the

investigation in the futureo Reference list.

Claims

Examples in evaluating a claim :

Example 1:

Example 2:

Identify the key terms in each given claim1)2)3)4)5)

Research these key terms and provide a description/explanation of what they are.

Research Question Your research question will focus your investigation, making it necessary to gather

evidence so that you can evaluate the claim.

Some guidelines to help form a question are:- finding a dependent variable or refining it by rephrasing it into something

measurable- choosing an element of the claim to become the independent variable, or

identifying it in the material- phrasing a question to ask if the independent variable will influence, cause or

correlate with the dependent variable- writing a few different questions. - Usually the questions improve as you write more, which allows the

formulation of a more developed research question.

Examples of original research questions:

Examples of refined research questions:

Guide: Writing a Research Question 

Refining the Research Question (Example)

   

Step Description Example

1 Break down the claimIdentify the key terms of the claim

Claim: Lollies make people happy.Key terms: lollies, people, happy

2 Question the key elements of the claim.Generate questions that help clarify the key terms as they relate to the unit of study

Which lollies are being eaten? Who are the people eating the lollies? In what situation are the lollies being eaten? How is happiness being measured? Or how is

happiness being defined?

 3

Pose possible research questions. Extend the questions from step 2 to ask how the key terms could be linked.

Does providing workers with jellybeans increase productivity?

 4

Critique the questions.Examine the possible research questions for their suitability to the task:

Do they only consider one independent variable?

Do they include an element that can be measured using data?

Is the scope suitable to allow for a detailed 1500-2000 word answer?

 Does providing workers with jellybeans increase productivity?

“workers” too broad, who is working? Productivity not measurable data

 

5 Finalise the research question. Use the results of the critique to select and finalise the research question.

 Does providing students at Marymount College with jellybeans increase their productivity by reducing the amount of extra study hours they need to complete work?

Watch One note video on Developing a research question.

Provide possible research questions for each of the claims given:

 

Choosing a claim

Select a claim that is of most interest to you and investigate further (this may change after research).

Finding suitable resources

When you gather scientific evidence for the research investigation, source it from reputable publications including:

- scientific journals: research papers and scientific reviews- scientific articles written by organisations who apply scientific research

to their industry- commercial articles such as science magazines, newspapers and also

websites.

Primary sources

A primary source is written by the observer/witness of an event or the scientistwho conducted the research.

The information has only been processed by the originalobserver, so it is the least biased of all available sources of information.

However,even primary sources may be biased, because the observer or researcher had to

make choices related to the observation,

Secondary sources

Secondary sources of information are not eye-witness accounts but interpretationsof events by other people.

As second-hand information, their accuracy and reliabilitymay be reduced, and events may be interpreted through the writer’s perception and bias.

You should aim to use a wide range of data sources when using secondarydata , to cross-check for accuracy, reliability and validity of information.

When searching for information and evidence, follow these guidelines.

1. Determine if it is a primary or secondary resource.2. Confirm it is valid.

- Check that it contains information that is specifically related to the claim.- Check that the evidence and information is pertinent to the variables in the

research question.3. Assess its reliability.

- Is it current/recent information?- Is it up to date in its understanding of relationships?- Is the evidence equivalent to other sources?- Check its credibility—consider who the author is, their qualifications and

expertise.- Evaluate the methodology, including what variables were controlled or

measured.

Rationale

A rationale is an explanation of how and why you have developed your research question, and critically, it should predict outcomes of the Research Investigation - whether or not you believe your Claim will be substantiated (supported) or not. 

Provide context to your research- what is your topic- why is it relevant- why is it important- was your research question refined?

Background Background information for your topic

- who, what, when, where? 

Information taken from a source should be re-written or summarised in your ownwords.

- Avoid copying information verbatim so you are not tempted to plagiarise when you write up the research investigation.

- It can be difficult sometimes to reword sources into your own words, especially if it is already expressed well and concisely. Before you write and record the research information, read the material and grasp its understanding.

Ensure that your report is presented as paragraphs that flow on in a logical development of ideas

Evidence

Present evidence available to support/reject your research focus- ensure you reference. Analyse the information and identify the trends, patterns or relationships in the evidence 

Trends and patterns in the EVIDENCE. For example, if there is a linear trend, clearly identify this trend and discuss whether or not this was an expected trend for the research investigation. To do this effectively, comparisons with the background theory should be discussed.

Uncertainties within the EVIDENCE, particularly for evidence gathered from SECONDARY SOURCES/EXPERIMENTS.

Interpret the evidence (your research) to construct justified scientific arguments. In this section you are required to use your knowledge (see sections 1 & 2) to draw justified conclusions about whether or not the Evidence gathered SUPPORTS your Research Question.

A thorough analysis requires complete attention to every detail. Therefore, the research should include analysis and synthesis from different sources.

- It should identify patterns, trends and relationships that are related to the investigation.

- Also, it should be explicitly connected to the research question as well as clarify where the sources agree and disagree.

In presenting your evidence, causality is more substantial than correlation. 

MAKING LINKSIt is very important to make the links between the claim, argument and evidence very apparent to your reader.

How to make links: Refer to the same pieces of evidence/data in different sections of your essay/report. Refer to the same concepts, theories or models in different sections of your

essay/report.

Evaluation

This is made up of: Limitations & suggested improvements & extensions

Limitations

Discuss the quality of the evidence – ie analyse the evidence to identify limitations  Is there sufficient and relevant evidence 

- what information is available- how old is it- how specific to your research question- do various sources support each other etc

In presenting your evidence, causality is more substantial than correlation. 

MAKING LINKSIt is very important to make the links between the claim, argument and evidence very apparent to your reader.

How to make links: Refer to the same pieces of evidence/data in different sections of your

essay/report. Refer to the same concepts, theories or models in different sections of your

essay/report.

Suggested improvements & extensions

Evaluation of the claim and suggestions of improvements and extensions to the investigation

In the discussion, you should recommend improvements to the investigation that are linked to the evidence and would address the limitations and gaps in knowledge that have been identified during the research investigation.

Conclusion

This section is where you are required to SUMMARISE all of the information and then write an overall justified conclusion as to whether or not the original claim has been SUPPORTED

References

See your Student Diary for guidance on how to reference properly If you use a table or image, make sure it is referred to in your report, it should

be relevant and needs to be labelled correctly and sourcedInclude in-text references throughout

N.B. As per all sections of the Research Investigation, this section should be written in 3rd-person (ie: no personal pronouns) and in past-tense.