These slides are appropriate for Masters and Doctoral Students and the corresponding webinar will soon be available on the DoctoralNet Youtube channel.

1. Exploiting Rapid
Change in Technology
Enhanced Learning
… for Post Graduate Education
Designing Your Research Series:
Topic Ideas - Resources and Processes

2. Goals
1. One of the more difficult parts of the research process
can be finding and refining a topic
2. Librarians and others can help you through the process
of brainstorming, exploring, and narrowing/broadening
your topic!
3. You are developing an argument, best to understand
the parts you need to put together
4. Your topic intersects with other portions of your
research – understand those connections as well

3. Agenda
1. What makes it difficult?
2. The process of topic brainstorming, exploring, and
narrowing/broadening your topic!
3. What makes an argument?
4. How your topic relates to the rest of your research

4. What makes it difficult?

5. Ambiguous or
conflicting criteria
Raise your hand if…
1. You don’t know quite what is
required in a topic?

6. Ambiguous or
conflicting criteria
1. A topic:
1. Should interest you
2. Should be able to be measured
3. Should be current in your field
2. When you read…
1. Try major journals in your field in the last year
2. Scan for topics that are of interest
3. Before you settle scan recent dissertations for the same keywords
https://pqdtopen.proquest.com/search.html
4. Look at what they suggest in recommendations for future study
5. Talk your ideas out with others – the most important thing is that
the ideas you like CAN BE MEASURED
3. You have shown others ideas only to have them dismissed but
you didn’t quite understand why?
1. Go to your mastersnet or doctoralnet portal and do the self
assessment for topic – go through all the criteria – then print the pdf
and show it to the person who dismissed your ideas – it will help
them be clear on the issues they think you are missing.

7. Criteria to consider
1. Is it interesting to others?
2. Does it generate theoretical contributions?
3. Does it generate practical contributions?
4. Is it clear who is associated to the topic?
5. Is it clear what specific aspect of the topic interests you?
6. Is it clear what location is associated to the topic?
7. Do you know what impact the topic may have?
8. Is it a hot topic in your field of study?
9. Can you identify a research method?
10. Can you identify a type of data for the topic?
11. Could you think of more than one possible result?
12. Do you have a strong background in the topic?
13. Can you study this topic within your own environment?
14. Do you need to get funds to complete this study?
15. Can the topic be measured/evaluated?
16. Are you sure the topic really interests you?

8. https://.................doctoralnet.com//how-to-choose-a-topic.html
Tools

9. The process

10. Ambiguous or
conflicting criteria
1. You have shown others ideas
only to have them dismissed
but you didn’t quite
understand why?
2. You don’t know what to look
for when you read?

12. https://............doctoralnet.com/phase-1/1-2-phd-research-topic-selected.html
https://.............doctoralnet.com/home/coaching-from-kat.html
Tools

13. Argumentation

14. Learn how to build an
argument
Has four parts:
1. Your claim
2. The evidence you have
that this claim is true
3. The warrant or connection
between the evidence and
the claim
4. Your conclusion that
because of all these your
topic wil work

15. Criteria to consider
1. Is it interesting to others?
2. Does it generate theoretical contributions?
3. Does it generate practical contributions?
4. Is it clear who is associated to the topic?
5. Is it clear what specific aspect of the topic interests you?
6. Is it clear what location is associated to the topic?
7. Do you know what impact the topic may have?
8. Is it a hot topic in your field of study?
9. Can you identify a research method?
10. Can you identify a type of data for the topic?
11. Could you think of more than one possible result?
12. Do you have a strong background in the topic?
13. Can you study this topic within your own environment?
14. Do you need to get funds to complete this study?
15. Can the topic be measured/evaluated?
16. Are you sure the topic really interests you?

16. Resources to help you get across the chasm

17. Discussion….

18. Outside Resources
Very basic but comfortingly simple:
https://library.macewan.ca/research-how-tos/video-
tutorials/history/finding_your_topic
Like #4 on this list best – worth reading over to keep yourself going…
http://www.mastersportal.eu/articles/996/fool-proof-tips-for-finding-
phd-research-topics.html