| Unit name | Creative Research Skills |
|---|---|
| Unit code | HUMSM0018 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Adrian Howkins |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
none |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
none |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
none |
| School/department | School of Humanities |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Why is this unit important?
Creative research is a feature of the environmental humanities, but how does it work in practice? This unit gives you the opportunity to explore and test creative methods, and consider what skills you need to develop your own research. The unit will showcase a range of creative methods delivered by experts from the Centre for Environmental Humanities. You will develop a theoretical and applied understanding of the role of methodology in research, with an emphasis on how creative practices have shaped the environmental humanities. This unit will support you in developing your dissertation plans.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study?
One of the distinguishing features of environmental humanities research is its engagement with a range of critical, creative practices. This unit will allow you to engage with subject-specific methodologies and skills specific to the rapidly evolving interdisciplinary field of the environmental humanities. It is an optional skills unit in TB2, the point in the programme where students are developing dissertation proposals and research plans. The unit will support students wishing to develop Practice-based and Collaborative Dissertation projects.
An overview of content
The unit will be run through a series of workshops that showcase a range of creative research methods and provide opportunities for students to engage in different creative practices; and reflective sessions that connect practice with scholarly literature.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit?
Through this unit, you will develop an understanding of how research ideas can be applied in creative ways to communicate scholarly ideas; and how creative skills can inform research. You will be more confident in identifying and articulating what research skills are – in others and in yourselves. This unit will prepare you for your major independent research project, the dissertation; and for communicating the value of environmental humanities approaches and ideas in the world of work beyond the university.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
The unit will be taught through a combination of practical workshops and reflective sessions which examine a different method applicable to the environmental humanities each week (e.g. archival research, working with creative arts, integrating AI and Digital Humanities, co-producing research with partners). Workshops will be tutor-led and provide opportunities to try new skills and methods. Reflective sessions will be student-led, and you will work within groups assigned at the beginning of the unit and in consultation with the seminar tutor to .
The second half of the unit will focus on student presentations of research proposal portfolios for formative assessment. Dates for these presentations will be assigned close to the beginning of the unit.
Tasks which do not count towards your unit mark but are required for credit (zero-weighted):
Presentation, 10 mins (0%, required for credit) [ILO 1 and 3]
You will prepare and deliver a 10 minute presentation on your developing research portfolio, receiving feedback and suggestions from your tutors and fellow students.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
Research Proposal Portfolio, up to 4,000 words (100%, pass/fail) [ILO1, 2 and 3]
The portfolio may comprise of
- Proposal (for dissertation)
- Annotated bibliography
- Methodological summary (including reflection on working with partners/collaborators)
- Project plan/suggested structure.
Students planning to do a practice-based dissertation should include a sample creative output (e.g. sample poem, outline exhibit sketch for a museum display, storyboard). This will be the equivalent of 2000 words, so students will also complete other parts of the portfolio up to 2000 words.
Students planning to do a collaborative dissertation are encouraged to work closely with potential project partners, but the research proposal portfolios will be assessed separately at this stage.
When assessment does not go to plan
When required by the Board of Examiners, you will normally complete reassessments in the same formats as those outlined above. However, the Board reserves the right to modify the form or number of reassessments required. Details of reassessments are normally confirmed by the School shortly after the notification of your results at the end of the academic year.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. HUMSM0018).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The assessment methods listed in this unit specification are designed to enable students to demonstrate the named learning outcomes (LOs). Where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, schools will make reasonable adjustments to support a student to demonstrate the LO by an alternative method or with additional resources.
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
