Facilitation and carrying out of a research project which allows independent investigation into a relevant area of Environmental Health followed by compilation of a research project. Module Aims To allow students the opportunity to apply literature search skills, scientific principles, a methodical approach and analytical/technical skills to the investigation of a particular area or problem relevant to the EH programme. To help develop in students the ability to write a comprehensive treatise on the chosen subject in the style of a formal scientific communication. To give students the ability to collect, evaluate and draw conclusions from information collected, using statistical techniques EH project classes delivered in Sem 1 of Stage 3. Students also have meetings with the Director of Undergraduate Research and supervisor in Sem 1 Stage 3 when the project proposal is formulated. A list of topics from Supervisors and Environmental Health Practitioners is also available to students. The fieldwork is normally carried out during the placement period. Additional class tuition is received in Semester 1 of Level 4.
Introduction to environmental health and research methodology. Introduction to the preparation of an undergraduate research project. Choice of research topic and writing an environmental health research proposal. Contacting supervisor. Literature surveying and information accessing. Familiarisation with DIT Library Services and Policies on Plagiarism. Literature review, methodology, results, discussion, conclusions and recommendation chapters Appendices and supporting material Introduction to research laboratory/product development facilities and protocols where applicable. Compilation and submission of progress report. Writing an Abstract and overview of published abstracts. Project management, time management, record keeping Management and completion of fieldwork Responsible research, research and ethics, research and risk assessment EH Project Regulations Statistical Analysis of generated data and probability testing to provide meaningful results. Use SPSS to perform: Measures of Central Tendency and Variation: sampling, frequency distributions, graphical representation, modes, median, arithmetic mean, variance, standard deviation. Test of Hypotheses such as t-tests and f-tests. Analysis of Variation one way Anova and Two-way Anova. Contingency tables and chi-squared analysis
The primary teaching/learning vehicle will consist of 12 formal lectures in class and 12 in a computer laboratory. Tutorials will be made available based on need.
| Module Content & Assessment | |
|---|---|
| Assessment Breakdown | % |
| Other Assessment(s) | 100 |