Syllabus

Credits: 6

Schedule: 29.10.2018 - 03.12.2018

Teacher in charge (valid 01.08.2018-31.07.2020): 

Saija Katila

Contact information for the course (applies in this implementation): 

saija.katila@aalto.fi

ines.peixoto@aalto.fi

Teaching Period (valid 01.08.2018-31.07.2020): 

Period II, Töölö Campus and IV Otaniemi Campus (2018-2019) Period II and IV (2019-2020) Otaniemi Campus

Learning Outcomes (valid 01.08.2018-31.07.2020): 

Students will demonstrate knowledge of:
• The basic epistemological underpinnings of qualitative research.
• A range of qualitative methodologies (ethnography, action research, case study etc.).
• A range of qualitative methods of data collection (interview, field notes etc.) and analysis (thematic analysis, narrative analysis etc.).
• The practical challenges of undertaking fieldwork.
Students will develop the following skills:
• The ability to design qualitative research and argue for the choices made
• The competence to collect qualitative data ‘in the field’.
• The aptitude to analyze qualitative data manually.
• The capacity to critically reflect on both the content and process of a research project and to identify potential ethical issues.
• The proficiency to discuss and write about qualitative research in a clear and concise manner.

Content (valid 01.08.2018-31.07.2020): 

The course covers the basic epistemological underpinnings of qualitative research as well as a range of qualitative methodologies (ethnography, action research, case study etc.). The course focuses on the process of doing qualitative research starting from defining the research questions and proceeding to designing the study i.e. which qualitative methodologies as well as data gathering and analysis methods fit with the research question.

Details on the course content (applies in this implementation): 

 

Time	Topic	Readings and Assignments
Mon 29.10.	Introduction to qualitative research & Types of research questions	Required readings: Course book chapters 1 (Introduction), 2 (Research Philosophy), and 3 (Research design and process)
Wed 31.10.	Qualitative research materials	Required readings: Course book chapters 4 (Focus and Frame), 5 (Access and Relationships), 7 (Qualitative Research Materials) and 8 (Electronic Research) Turn in assignment 1 by 9.00 in MyCourses and bring a copy to class.
Mon 5.11.	Ethnography and Action Research	Required readings: Course book chapters 10 (Ethnographic Research) and 13 (Action Research)
Wed 7.11.	Narrative Analysis and Discourse Analysis	Required readings: Course book chapters 14 (Narrative Research) and 15 (Discourse analysis)
Mon 12.11.	Case study research Workshop: Designing case study Signing in for tutoring in the end of the class (no e-mail signing)	Required readings: Course book chapter 9 (Case Study Research)
Mon 19.11.	Conducting interviews Signing in for tutoring in the end of the class (no e-mail signing)	Required readings: Course book chapters  7 (Qualitative Research Materials) 12 (Focus Group Research)
Wed 21.11.	Analyzing qualitative data Workshop: Data analysis
Mon 26.11.	Workshop: Improving interview guides   Writing and assessing qualitative research	Required readings: Course book chapters 18 (Writing Process) and 19 (Qualitative Research Evaluation)   Turn in Assignment 2 by 9.00 in MyCourses and bring a copy to class.
Wed 28.11.	Individual Tutoring (Voluntary)	Possibility to discuss about your final paper with the teacher. Please reserve a time.
Mon 3.12.	Individual Tutoring (Voluntary)	Possibility to discuss about your final paper with the teacher. Please reserve a time.
Mon 10.12.		Turn in Assignment 3 by 9.00 in MyCourses.
Mon 17.12.	Final paper	Turn in the final paper in Turnitin return box in MyCourses by 18.00.

 

Assessment Methods and Criteria (valid 01.08.2018-31.07.2020): 

100% assignments

Elaboration of the evaluation criteria and methods, and acquainting students with the evaluation (applies in this implementation): 

• In order to pass the course the participants are
  required to contribute actively to the variety of learning activities. Attendance and active participation in5/8 lectures.
• Readings
  (Come to class prepared i.e. read the chapters that are assigned to each class)

Assignments
and evaluation

• Assignment
  1 – 3, 20 % of course work.
• Evaluation:
  pass/failed. No possibility to redo.
• Note: All the assignments have to be done in time
  even if you do not attend class. 
• Final
  Paper 100 %  of course grade
• In
  order to pass the course, the student will have to gain a ‘pass’ from all
  assignments. All late submissions are failed.

Workload (valid 01.08.2018-31.07.2020): 

Contact teaching 24 h
Independent work 136 h
Total 160 h

Details on calculating the workload (applies in this implementation): 

Please see above!

Study Material (valid 01.08.2018-31.07.2020): 

Material and readings provided by the teacher.

Eriksson, Päivi & Kovalainen, Anne (2008) Qualitative methods in business research. ISBN 978-1-4129-0316-5 Availability

Substitutes for Courses (valid 01.08.2018-31.07.2020): 

This course can be substituted with 80E80100 Business Research Methods.

Course Homepage (valid 01.08.2018-31.07.2020): 

https://mycourses.aalto.fi/course/search.php?search=21E00011

Prerequisites (valid 01.08.2018-31.07.2020): 

The course is designed for students who are working on / starting to work on their thesis. Please DO NOT register for the course if you are not ready to work on your thesis.

Grading Scale (valid 01.08.2018-31.07.2020): 

0-5

Registration for Courses (valid 01.08.2018-31.07.2020): 

WebOodi

Further Information (valid 01.08.2018-31.07.2020): 

Compulsory active participation in class (5/8)

The course is designed to facilitate students’ master’s thesis processes, therefore it is recommended that the participants have a preliminary thesis topic when registering for the course.

The course is open only to the students of the department of Management.

The course is not open for exchange students.

Details on the schedule (applies in this implementation): 

 Please see section on course content!

 

Description

Registration and further information