Overview

Skills for Geographers is here to help you develop your research skills. It will enable you to consider and enhance skills that you are learning through your modules and broader university life, and teach you new research skills to undertake critical real-world enquiry in human and physical geography.

Aims

Enable students to recognise and enhance the skills that they have as Geographers;

Improve skills in oral and written communication, critical thinking and reflection;

Develop geographical research skills in quantitative and qualitative data gathering and interpretation;

Provide training in practical skills and methodologies that are needed to develop a critical and organised approach to the execution and writing up of research project or dissertation.

Syllabus

Geographical research and methods training, including statistics. Specific syllabus depends on student selection from range of geographical methods workshops. The module begins with an introduction to research design, outlining the key principles of physical and human geography research. There are then a series of workshops that cover key research methodologies.

For all students:

Quantitative analysis

Students select 2 additional workshops:

Visual methods

Discourse analysis

Ethnography and observation

Interviews

Spatial data

Visualising geographical data

Environmental monitoring

Environmental reconstruction

Surveys and Questionnaires

Teaching and learning methods

This is a practical and varied course unit. There will be a mix of lectures, interactive discussions, and workshops on data analysis and presentation. Extensive material will be available on a virtual learning environment (VLE) including lecture slides selected reading material, reading lists, and information relating to the assessments

Knowledge and understanding

• Understand the key methodological requirements of a successful research project / dissertation.

• Plan and execute two independent pieces of work relating to specialist research methods in physical and / or human geography;

Intellectual skills

• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of specialist research methods in physical and / or human geography;

• The ability to gather, synthesise, discuss, interpret and analyse data;

Practical skills

• Work effectively with quantitative datasets and understand key statistical concepts, including describing and displaying quantitative data, carrying out and interpreting the results of appropriate statistical tests

• The ability to use research skills to solve real world issues.

Transferable skills and personal qualities

• The ability to work independently;

• The ability to communicate proficiently in oral and written format;

Recommended reading

Reading will be supplied depending upon the workshops selected by studends