IRP- How long should it be? (2 Viewers)

[Focus is Key]

I've heard really differing thoughts about how long the Independant Research Project Report for CAFS should be. I've even been told that supposedly someone's last year was 80 pages long :O I really don't understand how people could go 50+ pages and I'm wondering from former/current CAFS students about the length of their IRP project.

What would be the approximate recomended length of the IRP?

 

[Kat92]

I've heard really differing thoughts about how long the Independant Research Project Report for CAFS should be. I've even been told that supposedly someone's last year was 80 pages long :O I really don't understand how people could go 50+ pages and I'm wondering from former/current CAFS students about the length of their IRP project.

What would be the approximate recomended length of the IRP?

Wow.. 80 pages? I personally do not find that figure to be correct. (I am thinking that perhaps they included the surveys in that count- no way could you write that much)

From memory, I think mine was around 25-30 pages and I received top marks. Remember it is quality not quantity!

 

[onedaysnotice]

Wow.. 80 pages? I personally do not find that figure to be correct. (I am thinking that perhaps they included the surveys in that count- no way could you write that much)

From memory, I think mine was around 25-30 pages and I received top marks. Remember it is quality not quantity!

lol. mine was 70-90 pages long not including surveys (but I did have lots of graphs). Got 51/55 =3= But I guess that's what happens when you do a third of it the day before (and morning of) the due date xD

 

[Kat92]

lol. mine was 70-90 pages long not including surveys (but I did have lots of graphs). Got 51/55 =3= But I guess that's what happens when you do a third of it the day before (and morning of) the due date xD

Wow... that's impressive! I am thinking it could very well depend on the school and marker as well- as to how many pages are required. I didn't include the graphs in my count- however that would certainly increase the number of pages.

Between congrats on your mark-- it seems that your hard work paid off!

 

[laurae94]

Mine was only 20 pages, got 49/50. Although a girl in my class had over 50 pages, and she was told by the teacher before the due date to cut it down because it was too long and didn't contain the relevant information. I guess it depends on your school and the marking guidelines.

 

[Focus is Key]

Finished it today I got to 60 pages (I included like 21 questionnaire responses at the teachers request and like 10 pages is the Appendix so more like 30 of quality work). I only did 4 graphs (2 Pies, 1 Bar and 1 Line) because three of my questions couldn't be graphed so instead I did a discussion for them. Hoping for 50+/55

 

[Drifting95]

Finished it today I got to 60 pages (I included like 21 questionnaire responses at the teachers request and like 10 pages is the Appendix so more like 30 of quality work). I only did 4 graphs (2 Pies, 1 Bar and 1 Line) because three of my questions couldn't be graphed so instead I did a discussion for them. Hoping for 50+/55

Excellent work mate ! By chance could you send me a copy so i can use it to assist mine? I'm currently still collecting some of my results back and would like to see the layout etc you used, my teacher was very unstructured about the whole process of completing the IRP.

 

[Kat92]

Excellent work mate ! By chance could you send me a copy so i can use it to assist mine? I'm currently still collecting some of my results back and would like to see the layout etc you used, my teacher was very unstructured about the whole process of completing the IRP.

@Drifting95- The sections you require are:

1) Table of Contents
2) Acknowledgements
3) Abstract
4) Introduction
5) Literature Review
6) Methodologies
7) Results
8) Discussion
9) Conclusion
10) Bibliography
11) Appendix

 

[Focus is Key]

@Drifting95- The sections you require are:

1) Table of Contents
2) Acknowledgements
3) Abstract
4) Introduction
5) Literature Review
6) Methodologies
7) Results
8) Discussion
9) Conclusion
10) Bibliography
11) Appendix

Yeah basically this order, except our teacher didn't require us to use an abstract and the analysis/results secttion was combined. Use the marking criteria if you have one to guide you, there are also heaps of full marks ones on the site (I used one of them as a structure base).

 

[strawberries122]

Hey, guys, just wondering if this is enough for the structure of the whole IRP.

Acknowledgements
Abstract
Definitions and Glossary of Key Terms
Introduction
Literature Review
Research Methodologies
Results, analysis and interpretation of results
Conclusions and recommendations
Bibliography
Appendix

This is what I have listed in the table of contents

 

[Drifting95]

@Drifting95- The sections you require are:

1) Table of Contents
2) Acknowledgements
3) Abstract
4) Introduction
5) Literature Review
6) Methodologies
7) Results
8) Discussion
9) Conclusion
10) Bibliography
11) Appendix

Yeah basically this order, except our teacher didn't require us to use an abstract and the analysis/results secttion was combined. Use the marking criteria if you have one to guide you, there are also heaps of full marks ones on the site (I used one of them as a structure base).

Thanks guys

 

[Kat92]

Hey, guys, just wondering if this is enough for the structure of the whole IRP.

Acknowledgements
Abstract
Definitions and Glossary of Key Terms
Introduction
Literature Review
Research Methodologies
Results, analysis and interpretation of results
Conclusions and recommendations
Bibliography
Appendix

This is what I have listed in the table of contents

Strawberries that is basically what I wrote above!

If anything, perhaps move the definitions further down towards the end otherwise it is perfect! In the first instance explain the term afterwards use the abbreviation.

 

[strawberries122]

What do you mean by that last sentence? Do you mean like

Facebook: An online social networking service....... FB (Abbreviation)

 

[Kat92]

What do you mean by that last sentence? Do you mean like

Facebook: An online social networking service....... FB (Abbreviation)

What I meant is move the section down further in you report when you do the glossary.

In regards to showing how to do it in a paragraph you would go:
Facebook (FB) is an online social networking service. It has been found that FB has many users from all around the World. -- As you can see in the second instance I can just use FB as it has already been defined.

Yep.. for the actual definitions section you would do what you have demonstrated above!

Merry Christmas!

 

[strawberries122]

Ok, thanks.
Just another question, what exactly needs to be included in the appendix? Does it need the questionnaire questions and the interview questions?

 

[Kat92]

Ok, thanks.
Just another question, what exactly needs to be included in the appendix? Does it need the questionnaire questions and the interview questions?

Anything that you deem to be too long to go in the actual body of the report.

So yes, the completed questionnaires will go in the appendix.

 

[strawberries122]

Just the questions, or the answers to those questions as well?

What about interviews, do we put just the questions, or the answers to them as well? I looked at one IRP in the resource section and in it's appendix, it had the questionnaire questions but no answers to them, and the interview questions with the answers.

 

[Kat92]

Just the questions, or the answers to those questions as well?

What about interviews, do we put just the questions, or the answers to them as well? I looked at one IRP in the resource section and in it's appendix, it had the questionnaire questions but no answers to them, and the interview questions with the answers.

That's odd! :S

I always put both and have been told-

If the appendix is "formal," it should contain a beginning, middle, and ending. For example, if the appendix contains tables of test data, the appendix should not only contain the tabular/survey data, but also formally introduce those tables/surveys, discuss why they have been included, and explain the unusual aspects that might confuse the reader.

Because of time constraints, you might be asked to include "informal" appendices with calculations and supplemental information.

For such "informal" situations, having a clear beginning, middle, and ending is not necessary. However, you should still title the appendix, place a heading on each table/survey, place a caption beneath each figure, and insert comments necessary for reader understanding.

Ultimately, it depends on how detailed you wish to go- as you can have separate sections for tables/figures, calculations and the surveys.

When I completed mine I choose the later "informal" and gained full marks. Although, I guess it depends upon who your marker is and the rubric criteria.

 

[strawberries122]

Ok, thanks.

What about the analysis part? What exactly are you required to do in an analysis? For example, in one of my questions, I had a question "Does social media limit the amount of time you have for outdoor recreational physical activity?" And the vast majority of respondents said no, so what would I be required to do in an analysis?

 

[Kat92]

Ok, thanks.

What about the analysis part? What exactly are you required to do in an analysis? For example, in one of my questions, I had a question "Does social media limit the amount of time you have for outdoor recreational physical activity?" And the vast majority of respondents said no, so what would I be required to do in an analysis?

The basic pattern is as follows: outline the data being analysed, statistical test should be named. After this the actual results in figures of the analysis are given, with a short verbal description:

For e.g. The amount of time for outdoor recreational physical actitvity was compared using ???? to see whether social media contributes to a spiralling descent. It can be noted that a significant difference between the two conditions of yes and no were found....., n=???, sd=??, number of females???, number of males???, yes??, no???. It is really up to you what statistics you wish to report here!

Once the statistics are reported, there should be a short statement of what the results mean for the hypothesis. Do they provide support for the experimental hypothesis?

Finally common errors can be linked into the analysis as well: e.g. making a note of possible sources of error and how they could possibly be overcome if the methodology was to be conducted again.


*n= number of people surveyed
* sd= standard deviation.