Assignment Task
Locate, gather, and organise a range of practice and theory-based literature in your chosen field, then analyse and evaluate their interconnected topics, ideas, relationships and relevance, to develop a skeletal framework for a proposed literature review and annotated bibliography.
Context
A literature review is a multi-stage process. The researcher is required to scan the available information; meticulously take notes; evaluate, synthesize, and structure the information; write a critical review of the literature; and build the list of references. The more complex the research, the more demanding the literature review process becomes. Several steps precede the task of writing the review, and several different approaches to organising the body of the literature review exist. Before embarking on a full-length literature review, it is prudent to determine the approach, or combination of approaches, to take. Encountering the messy nature of knowledge while working towards the literature review can be intimidating. Concept maps can help to make sense of gathered information by visually connecting ideas across the literature or research area. They can be used as a tool to identify additional search terms during the literature search and clarify thinking about the structure of the literature review. They enable the researcher to better understand the theory, concepts and the relationships between concepts.
1. Concept Map (visual) Concept Maps are graphic representations of topics, ideas, and their relationships. They allow users to group information (such as research sources) in related modules so that the connections between and among the literature become more readily apparent than they might from an examination of a list.
Follow the steps below to complete this part (1) of the Assessment.
I. Identify an area of research that interests you, which you would like to explore further. This could be inspired by an existing problem or simply be driven by a curiosity and desire to contribute to the existing body of knowledge in the field.
II. Locate and gather a range of practice and theory-based literature focussed around your selected area of research.
III. Evaluate the literature sources for their relevance to your area of research.
IV. Conduct an analysis of the literature, to understand the interconnected topics, ideas and relationships. You may use tools such as excel, bibliometrics, drawings and keyword analysis to assist you with this analysis
V. Determine an appropriate approach, or combination of approaches, for organising the literature to highlight key concepts.
VI. Create a concept map of the literature that logically visualises the connection between topics and ideas, and relationships; and highlights the important themes, potential debates and existing gaps in the body of knowledge.
