Course No. MPD 171 Course title: Research Methods 1: Needs Assessment and Project Planning Number of credits: 3 No. of lectures-tutorial-practical: 19-20-23 Course coordinators Dr Smriti Das and Dr Mala N Reddy Course outline To equip the participants with an understanding of various methods in social research and tools for data collection to enable them to undertake independent research for needs assessment. Learning outcome: a) To be able to carry out analysis of the existing resources, actors, activities, strategies and needs in an area or pertaining to any specific issue b) To be able to adopt various methods/tools to identify and prioritize needs c) To be able to design a project (develop/write proposals) for an area based on needs analysis d) To be able to develop comprehensive and appropriate interventions using participatory methods/planning The first part of the outline covering Days 1-5, addresses the first two learning outcomes. The second part covering Days 6-10 pertain to the last two learning outcomes Evaluation procedure Considering that the course offers a mix of knowledge and skill sets and is offered in a workshop mode (with visiting faculty), we have two major evaluation components: Short assignments: During both the parts of the course two assignments each will be given to the students. They will be evaluated by the concerned faculty and also given feedback on improvement Major exam: This will be conducted in December and will assess the students for their research ability and project design skills. The weightages for different components will be: Short assignments: 80% Major exam: 20% Details of course contents and allotted time Day Topic 1 Foundations of social research Understanding its epistemological roots and methodological options (will include choice of Allotted time (hours) Lectures Tutorials Practica (Group l discussion) 2 2 2.5
Day Topic approaches and questions of sampling) Dealing with ethical concerns What is needs assessment? Whose needs and priorities (community, providers, donors)?: Undertaking a situational analysis and identifying frameworks for doing needs assessment. Allotted time (hours) Lectures Tutorials Practica (Group l discussion) 2 Methods in social science research 1 2.5 3 Participatory methods and power relations Participatory tools: social mapping, wealth ranking, preference ranking, community action planning techniques. Challenges in implementation, inequality and cooptation 3 Ethnographic approaches 1 2.5 3 Ethnographic approaches: interviews (including life histories), focus group discussions and observation Process and practice of the above methods, strengths and weaknesses and its relevance and application to needs assessment process 4 Survey methods 1 2.5 3 Collection of background data and generalizations about population 5 Analysing data 1 2.5 3 Making sense of multiple perspectives: approaches and techniques for analysis of qualitative data (will use data and transcript from their own exercise) Identifying needs and policy priorities 6 Project planning concepts 4 5 Project, project cycle, project design Context/ situation/ gap analysis Appreciative inquiry, need/ project identification, PRA 7 PRA Field Exercises 8
Day Topic Transect walk, time lines, chapatti diagram, resource mapping, institution & stakeholder mapping engaging in appreciative inquiry Allotted time (hours) Lectures Tutorials Practica (Group l discussion) 8 Project planning/ design 9 3 3 Fieldwork debriefing, detailing the project, assessing the project, developing an implementation plan and results-based monitoring system Total 19 20 23 The course is reviewed and commented by the following experts. 1. Dr Steve Russell, Senior Lecturer in Health Policy and Social Development, School of Development Studies, University of East Anglia 2. Dr Kajri Mishra, Consultant-Advisor, Research projects, Institute of Rural Management, Anand (IRMA) Suggested readings: General texts on social research: Bryman, A., 2008, Social research methods, 3 rd edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press. Desai, V. and Potter, R. B., 2006, eds., Doing Development Research, London: Sage. May T., 1997, Social research: Issues, methods and process, Milton Keynes: Open University Press. Robson C., 1993, Real world research: A resource for social scientists and practitionerresearchers. Oxford: Blackwell. Scheyvens R. and Storey, D., 2003, eds., Development fieldwork: A practical guide, London: Sage. Session 1: Foundations of social research Scheyvens R. and Storey, D., 2003, eds., Development fieldwork: A practical guide, London: Sage (chapters 8 and 9). White, H., 2002, Combining quantitative and qualitative approaches in poverty analysis, World Development, 30(3): 511-522.
Session 2: Participatory methods Cooke, B. and Kothari, U., 2001, eds, Participation: The New Tyranny? London: Zed Books (chapters 1 and 9). Mikkelsen, B., 2005, Methods for development work and research: A new guide for practitioners, 2nd edition, New Delhi and London: Sage (chapters 2 and 3) Mosse, D., 1994, Authority, gender and knowledge: Theoretical reflections on the practice of participatory rural appraisal, Development and Change, 25(3): 497-526. Session 3: Ethnographic approaches Hammersley, M., 1992, What s wrong with ethnography? London: Routledge. Scheyvens R. and Storey, D., 2003, eds., Development fieldwork: A practical guide, London: Sage (chapter 4). Thapar-Björkert, S. and Henry, M., 2004, Reassessing the research relationship: Location, position and power in fieldwork accounts, International Journal of Social Research Methodology 7(5): 363-381. Session 4: Survey methods Czaja, R. and Blair, J., 2005, Designing surveys: A guide to decisions and procedures, 2nd edition, Thousand Oaks and London: Pine Forge. Grosh, M. and Glewwe, P., 2000, eds., Designing household survey questionnaires for developing countries: Lessons from 15 years of the living standards measurement study. Washington, D.C.: World Bank. Groves, R. M. et al, 2009, Survey methodology, 2nd edition, Hoboken: Wiley. Session 5: Analysing data Coffey, A. and Atkinson, P., 1996, Making sense of qualitative data: Complementary research strategies, Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage (particularly chapters 1 and 2). Robson C., 1993, Real world research: A resource for social scientists and practitionerresearchers. Oxford: Blackwell (chapter on analysing qualitative data). Silverman D. 2006, Interpreting qualitative data: Methods for analysing talk, text and interaction, 3rd edition, London: Sage (sections in part two).
In order to further elaborate on the activities and outcomes for each day we have the following course description. Course Description: Day 1 Part 1: The foundations of social research a) Understanding its epistemological roots and methodological options b) Dealing with ethical concerns c) What is needs assessment? Whose needs and priorities (community, providers, donors)?: Undertaking a situational analysis and identifying frameworks for doing needs assessment. This component will involve two one-hour lectures, practical exercises on ethical issues and needs assessment as well as group discussions. The lectures start with a broad understanding of approaches to knowledge generation and ethical issues involved in any social science research, before moving on to cover the broad landscape of different types of research design developed to answer research questions, particularly the choice of qualitative and qualitative approaches, and questions of sampling. It will raise issues of truth and validity and bring out the dilemmas of contending with power relations in the process of research. The study of events and situations is one of the main ways of analyzing processes of development and change in a given context. The quality of the situational analysis depends on a range of factors and as a research approach requires a range of methods. A discussion of needs will offer us the opportunity to question the relationship between inductive and deductive thinking in our construction of social analyses. Day 2-4 Part 2: Methods in social science research a) Participatory methods and power relations b) Ethnographic approaches: interviews (including life histories), focus group discussions and observation c) Survey methods This component will involve, each day, an hour's lecture followed by a practical exercise carried out in small groups. The practical exercise(s) will be discussed during a session with the whole group in the afternoons of days 2-4. Participatory approaches are important in development work. There are instrumental and empowerment rationales for the use of participatory methods. This session looks at a range of arguments for and against the use of participatory approaches and details a range of participatory tools (such as social mapping, wealth ranking, preference ranking, community action planning techniques). The challenges of implementation, inequality and co-optation are also examined. Ethnographic fieldwork practices such as participant observation, and semi-structured interviews (individual and group interviews), and life histories, developed in social anthropology as the key
methodological instruments used in the production of ethnographic data, are helpful in deepening understandings of the way people make decisions and act. We will reflect on the process and practice of doing ethnographic fieldwork, its strengths and weaknesses, its relevance and application to needs assessment processes, as well as the implications of the anthropologist as author with the power to represent others, based again on practical exercises of interviewing and observation. Surveys are useful for collecting a range of background data that could be used for making generalizations about a given population and for understanding the context. They are equally helpful for identifying differences within a community that can enable the process of stratification of the population and careful sampling for further in-depth work. Day 5 Part 3: Analysing qualitative data a) Making sense of multiple perspectives b) Identifying needs and policy priorities We look in this session at approaches and techniques for the analysis of qualitative data. The lecture will go through the principles, stages of data management, and some techniques, which will be practiced in the workshop. The textual data we can analyse using these techniques can come from interviews, field diaries, qualitative surveys, images, tapes, and other data sources, in this case we will use a transcript developed from their own interview exercises. The lecture will, briefly, discuss the use of computer software as well as manual methods, while the focus of the exercise will be on ways of using methods and analysis to identify needs. How do we intend to deliver? A combination of methods will be used including lectures, key readings, practical exercises and group discussions. Detailed timetable (for Days 1 to 5) Day Activity People 1: Foundations of social research 9:00-10:00 Lecture on epistemology, methodology and ethics 10:00-10:30 Group discussion 10:45-11:45 Ethics Practical 11:45-12:15 Group discussion Lunch 13:15-14:15 Lecture on Needs Assessment 14:15-15:45 Needs Assessment Practical Nitya Rao Smriti Das Plus Assistant?
16:00-17:00 Group discussion and review 2: Participatory methods 3: Ethnographic approaches 4: Survey methods 5: Analysing data 9:00-10:00 Lecture on participatory approaches 10:00-10:30 Group discussion 10:45-12:15 Participatory methods practical (Part 1) Lunch 13:15-14:45 Participatory methods practical (Part 2) 15:00-17:00 Group discussion and review 9:00-10:00 Lecture on ethnographic approaches 10:00-10:30 Group discussion 10:45-12:15 Ethnographic fieldwork practical (Part 1) Lunch 13:15-14:45 Ethnographic fieldwork practical (Part 2) 15:00-17:00 Group discussion and review 9:00-10:00 Lecture on survey methods 10:00-10:30 Group discussion 10:45-12:15 Survey methods practical (Part 1) Lunch 13:15-14:45 Survey methods practical (Part 2) 15:00-17:00 Group discussion and review 9:00-10:00 Lecture on qualitative data analysis 10:00-10:30 Group discussion 10:45-12:15 Data analysis practical (Part 1) Lunch 13:15-14:45 Data analysis practical (Part 2)
15:00-17:00 Group discussion and review Outline of practical (for Days 1 to 5) Ethics: Groups of participants will be given particular research topics/questions and have to identify the different ethical concerns relating to this research. They also need to identify strategies /approaches for dealing with these concerns. Needs assessment practical: Tbc Participatory methods practical: The participants will be divided into groups and each group will facilitate a participatory methods exercise (e.g. ranking, mapping, daily time use analysis) with the members of the other groups. After some brief preparation, the facilitators are given 40-50min to run their exercise. During the group discussion session in the afternoon, the participants will be able to reflect on the lessons they have learned from the exercises in terms of the strengths and weaknesses of the methods. Ethnographic fieldwork practical: This practical will focus on planning and conducting a semistructured interview. Participants will be divided into small groups and are given a topic and a suggested respondent. One group member will act as the respondent and will prepare separately based on a briefing note. The rest of the group will come up with a list of interview questions. One of them will then interview the respondent, with the other group members acting as observers and taking notes. The group members then have to reflect on the exercise and the issues they would have to consider in a real life interview. Survey methods: This practical would involve conducting a small survey with a class of postgraduate students about the quality of facilities on the campus, their previous experience and expectations. Data analysis practical: We will use some of the material collected in the previous practical sessions to identify key emergent themes and making sense of them.
Course Description: Project Planning- Days 5-10 Day 6: Part 4: Project planning concepts a) Project, project cycle and project design b) Context/ situation/ gap analysis c) Appreciative enquiry and need/ project identification through Participatory Appraisal This component will involve four lectures of one hour each. The lectures will be followed by illustrative exercises as a preparation for fieldwork for PRA. The concepts of project and project cycles will be introduced. Elements of the project cycle such as identification, preparation and analysis, appraisal, implementation and monitoring and evaluation will be discussed. The second and third lectures will build on participatory methods dealt with in Part 2 and demonstrate use of such methods for understanding the context, grasping the situation and gap analysis as a prelude to need/ project identification. A major effort in this would be also to examine the already existing interventions, their strengths and shortcomings, so as to enable participants to take a slightly more strategic view of project identification. The fourth lecture will introduce participants to the perspective of appreciative inquiry as an alternative or conjunctive method of project identification. The practical sessions will illustrate the methods and techniques useful for the purpose. They will also orient the participants for the PRA field exercises planned over the next two days. Days 7-8 Part 5: PRA Field Exercises a) Transect walk, time lines, chapatti diagram, resource mapping b) institutional & stakeholder mapping, engaging stakeholders in appreciative inquiry in a field location to explore what has worked and what has been beneficial This part will be conducted in a field setting. Adequate preparations will be made to demonstrate the conduct of various PRA tools and assist participants engage with them. The concept of appreciative inquiry will be conjunctively used for determining the strengths of the context and exploring project ideas that could build on them Days 9-10 Part 6: Project Planning/ Design a) Fieldwork debriefing b) Detailing the project a. Setting broad goals and specific objectives b. Clarifying the stakeholders needs and expectations
c. Mapping the project elements outputs, activities, and resources (inputs) using the Logical Framework (LFA) c) Assessing the project a. Technical analysis identifying the knowledge/ skills for conversion of inputs into outputs through activities b. Market analysis segmentation, targeting and positioning of the project/ outputs c. Financial/ resource analysis estimating the resource requirements, concept of historical and opportunity costs, projecting financial flows for estimating the net present values d. Organisational analysis d) Developing an implementation plan and results-based monitoring system This part will consist of about 9 one hour classroom sessions. The first session will be devoted to de-briefing about the fieldwork experience and observations. This will also gather together the results of the needs and stakes identified during the field exercises. The next three sessions will deal with the sub-elements of detailing the project. The first session will facilitate participants to setting goals and then identifying specific objectives that the project would seek to address within a particular time horizon. These will directly address the needs already identified. The next session will discuss the stakeholder mapping concepts and build on the observations on the topic gathered from the field exercise. The fourth session will introduce the Logical Framework and lead the participants through its components to detail the project design. The 5 th and 6 th classroom sessions will discuss the techniques of project assessment involving technical, market, financial and organisational assessments. The 7 th session will introduce the participants to techniques of time and task planning as a part of implementation. The last two sessions will introduce the concepts and practice of results-based monitoring system. Live examples of project proposals will be used to illustrate all aspects of these 9 sessions.