This project aimed to engage students in the process of experimental design and analysis at Level One. In groups of 4-5 students worked with a postgraduate tutor to develop a research question in the tutors area of expertise and write it up as a research proposal. In a follow-up session, students worked collaboratively to analyse a simulated dataset that could have been collected if they had conducted the study. They wrote up their analyses during the tutorial and submitted this as an assessed piece of coursework. Student feedback was positive about the enquiry based approach but reported some problems in group-work.

1. Inquiry based learning in Psychological Research Methods Richard Rowe, Pam McKinney & Jamie Wood University of Sheffield

3. The quantitative research process Topic choice Literature search Hypothesis generation Analysis Data Collection Experimental design Reporting Interpreting Write-up

5. The quantitative research process Topic choice Literature search Hypothesis generation Analysis Data Collection Experimental design Reporting Interpreting Write-up

8. Level One Information literacy activity Topic choice Literature search Hypothesis generation Analysis Data Collection Experimental design Reporting Interpreting Write-up

10. On-line tutorial

12. I feel more confident using the Web of Knowledge database 89% Agree

13. I feel I have improved my ability to evaluate the published literature 77% Agree

15. I enjoyed working collaboratively on-line with my group members 71% Agree

16. I enjoyed working collaboratively on-line with my group members 75% Agree

20. Level One Design and Analysis Topic choice Literature search Hypothesis generation Analysis Data Collection Experimental design Reporting Interpreting Write-up Literature search activity

24. I feel more able to formulate research questions 69% Agree

27. The group projects helped me develop my communication skills 71% Agree

28. The group projects helped me develop my negotiation skills 63% Agree

29. I feel more confident working collaboratively with others 51% Agree

30. I feel more confident studying independently 60% Agree

31. I feel the IBL activities encouraged me to take an active role in class 74% Agree

33. Level 2: Putting it all together Topic choice Literature search Hypothesis generation Analysis Data Collection Experimental design Reporting Interpreting Write-up

40. Inquiry based learning in Psychological Research Methods Richard Rowe, Pam McKinney & Jamie Wood University of Sheffield