This document provides guidance for students on their Module 3 professional inquiry project. It discusses defining a professional inquiry, reviewing the stages and steps of the inquiry process, and addressing where students currently are in their projects. The document offers advice on planning, analyzing findings from research and practitioner work, drafting the critical review, and developing the professional artifact. Key points covered include conducting a literature review, analyzing qualitative and quantitative data, and receiving formative feedback to guide work on the critical analysis and sample paragraphs.

1. (mainly) Module 3 WBS3760
Campus Session 1
2nd October 2013

2. Ideas for the session…

3. Three points to get out of the session
An idea about
what you
need to do in
terms of
planning, and
analysis
An idea about
what a
professional
inquiry is about
An idea of
how to plan
Module 3
work

4. What is an inquiry?

5. Professional Inquiry 7a
What is your definition of a Professional Inquiry?
Spend 3 minutes thinking up and jotting key words of your
own definition. You might use a picture to help you do
this (in the campus session there are some images on hand).
I think that a professional inquiry is…

6. Examples and discussion

7. Professional Inquiry
A process of
preparation, scheduling, doing, evalu
ating, putting back into practice, and
reflecting on the process with others
in mind…
http://www.london2012.com/news/articles/double-gold-delight-for-farah.html
Drafting
and editing
Structure your thinking
Cross the finishing line!
Make your points
Explain your thinking

8. Professional Inquiry 7a
Paula’s attempt at a definition…
The professional inquiry is a learning approach that develops
knowledge and understanding about a topic area that is
contextualised by your experience and your professional practice.
This process uses steps and stages to allow inquiry questions to
evolve responses or solutions & develop valuable expertise in particular
subject areas. The process uses literature and through practitioner
research to gather information & data, and allows you to think about
the meaning of these issues and interventions that interface with
your work. The artefact demonstrates some of this understanding.
It involves a professional and a personal dimension. There is a
progression in the ability to think through issues and problems using
analysis and interpretation, academic argument (convincing
someone of your point of view using evidence) and critical reflection.

9. Professional Inquiry stages and steps
Where are you now in your process? You could be in several places at once now!

10. Sometimes people can feel manic in this final module
because things seems to be standing still even though
they are very busy!
So it is good to find ways and peers to help you manage
the stress levels.
This bbc video (click on link) is about stress is for when
you need it…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnpQrMqDoqE
Working to your plan

11. http://blog.iqmatrix.com/stress-less

12. Advice
Update your adviser is a way of organising thinking about your
inquiry
Continue to blog as a way of communication with the BAPP
(Arts) network/SIGs
Communicate with your adviser in a meaningful way – use the
formative feedback throughout the study period
Begin the drafting process by verbally explaining your inquiry
and using the update to start the writing process

13. Look at feedback and discuss
Locate where you are in an update – identify milestones and actions.

14. Formative Feedback
Week 1: Task for &a
After looking at your adviser feedback from Module 2 -
students send a 1 page summary to your adviser with
your inquiry title, your research/inquiry questions and
ideas, ethical issues, literature review up to this
point, changes to your plan, ideas for your artefact, and
any questions or issues that might have arisen for the
module after reading the Module 3 Handbook.

15. 1st Group Exercise
Reviewing your plan… 5 minutes each way
Where are you now? Use KEY WORDS
Discuss with the others in your group:
1) Your topic area & inquiry questions
2) Ethical issues that are involved in the
inquiry
3) What you have done so far in terms of
researching literature
4) What you have done so far in terms of
gathering data
REMEMBER you can use diagrams to and concept mapping to do this.

16. Something to do for you update…
Action:
Action:
Action:
Updating your planning… 5 minutes
Using the earlier discussion, spend some time
clarifying what you need to do, and establish some
action points that can be discussed with your adviser
(write them down).

17. Module 3 Assessment – 3 main parts
Part 1: The Critical Review
It is primarily written but can contain visual or audio visual
elements showing the process of investigating a topic
(practitioner research) with analysis that has implications for
your practice.
Part 2: The Professional Artefact
a product or a work in progress that is created - it can be a
document, an event, or an activity - it can be something that
informs others in your community of practice or workplace -
the artefact should emerge from the inquiry
Part 3: The Oral Presentation
an in person/ audio-visual demonstration that shows that you
have progressed in your ability to show knowledge and
understanding that is based on your ‘inquiry’

20. Formative Feedback Analysis
Week 4: Send adviser 1-2 paragraphs as a sample of your inquiry
analysis. Formative feedback will be given on the structure, the
quality of the arguments and the quality of the supporting
evidence discussed.
Analysis of practitioner
research and literature
(what have you found
out and what does it
mean?)
Analysis of inquiry
activity and critical
reflection (how do your
findings relate to your
larger inquiry question
and your work?

21. Using ideas for analysis
Literature can to ground your understanding in the expertise of others.
Literature can help you analyse what people have said to you through
your practitioner research (your findings).
Literature about your
topic area - to review
expertise and
analyse where your
research fits in with
the knowledge and
experience of others
Literature that informs
your inquiry process –
earlier theory from the
Readers (e.g.
networking theories)
or books about
research (e.g.Bell)

22. How do you carry out a literature review?
The literature review for the inquiry is more comprehensive than
Module 2 - which showed you how to find and review individual
pieces of literature – look at Reader 7.
Carry out a literature review for your topic and discuss
how the literature and professional sources have
provided theories and concepts that inform the inquiry
you have undertaken.
Remember digital resources are available under the
Reading Lists tab on Libguide
http://readinglists.mdx.ac.uk/index.html

23. How do you carry out a literature review?
Jo and Ahmet and Paula suggest criteria:
1. Relevance
2. Time and place written (currency)
3. Level and expertise

24. How do you analyse practitioner research?
Observation, survey, interview, focus group, literature (includes
documents that you find during your practitioner research)
Review Reader 6 Tools
Qualitative QuantitativeMixed
Findings are the result of your ‘coding’ the data (the evidence from
what people said) to find common or ‘significant’ themes. What
were you trying to find out? What did your participants say in
response to your questions? This is your interpretation and
analysis of the findings.

25. A good exercise for your SIG
Discuss one of your emerging findings
from your inquiry practitioner research
and discuss what it means and how it
relates to your practice.
What did your
participant say and
how does this
compare to your
expectations or
literature?
How does this finding
relate to your larger
inquiry question and your
work?

26. Blog topics
• Updates on inquiry progress and sharing discoveries
• Reviews of campus sessions
• Commentary on discussions with your peers and SIGs
• Reflections on working collaboratively
• A conversation with professional externals to the BAPP
(Arts) network – put up their thoughts or have them
comment
• Thoughts about your artefact – what is it and who is your
audience – is it a product or a work in progress? …

27. Points to take away from this session
A good sense of
analysis and how
to use others to
enhance critical
thinking.
A good sense of
direction for what
you need
A good sense of
to do and the
feeling that the
job is achievable.

28. Next campus sessions…
More on writing
up the Critical
Review
More on the
Professional
Artefact
More on working
with others
about your ideas