ASIA3039 Research Project in Asian and Pacific Studies provides students with an opportunity to conduct an in-depth review of the literature on a topic of their interest in the Humanities and Social Sciences, with an Asia Pacific focus. Students develop their research paper along with a select cohort of peers. Each student receives close guidance from the program convenor and professional academic skills advisers as well as structured peer input; students also learn to formulate and provide constructive criticism of others’ work and to edit their own work. This systematic approach helps to appropriately frame the research questions, define the literature to be reviewed, and structure the paper. As the first of an optional two-part undergraduate research sequence in Majors associated with the Bachelor of Asian Studies, ASIA3039 will help to provide a foundation for the subsequent ASIA3012, as well as avenues to and skills for to independent research with guidance from an academic supervisor in Work-Integrated-Learning and/or Honours research.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
- Discover and critically review scholarly literature pertaining to a specific region, key debate, or outstanding research problem.
- Systematically evaluate the available evidence—whether numerical, textual, aural, or visual—and the strength of analyses and arguments based on this evidence.
- Assess, articulate, and extend the limits of their own agency in the research process.
- Provide an effective sounding board for peers' self reflection and research scoping, as well as critical developmental feedback on peers' work.
- Understand and apply ethical standards of conduct in the collection and evaluation of data and other resources.
- Communicate research concepts clearly and effectively both orally and in writing—using appropriate structure, organisation, and writing style for a literature review.
Indicative Assessment
- Assessment will be based on a literature review paper of 4500 words, including notes but not including bibliography, plus a presentation of findings to peers and academic supervisors. The disciplinary area and topic of the review will be decided by the student and PhB convenor in consultation. (80) [LO 1,2,3,5,6]
- Active participation in unstructured in-class discussion is expected and constitutes 10% of the final grade. (10) [LO 3,6]
- Active participation in structured prompting and peer feedback, both online and in face-to-face group work, is expected and constitutes 10% of the final grade. (10) [LO 3,4,6]
The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.
Workload
This course requires a total of 130 hours of work on the following activities: 36 hours of contact over 12 weeks and 94 hours of independent student research, reading and writing.
Requisite and Incompatibility
Prescribed Texts
Textbook #1: Efron (2018).
Efron, Sara Efrat, and Ruth Ravid. 2019. Writing the Literature Review: A Practical Guide. New York: Guilford Press.
https://anu.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/61ANU_INST/1b9evlp/alma991002065819707631
Textbook #2: Mullaney & Rea (2022).
Mullaney, Thomas S., and Christopher G. Rea. 2022. Where Research Begins: Choosing a Research Project That Matters to You (and the World). Chicago Guides to Writing, Editing, and Publishing. Chicago, Illinois. The University of Chicago Press.
https://anu.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/61ANU_INST/auraal/alma991026996442507631
Preliminary Reading
ANU. 2021. 'Key Ethical Concerns: Human Research Ethics Committee', Accessed December 13. https://services.anu.edu.au/research-support/ethics-integrity/key-ethical-concerns.
Braudel, Fernand. 2009 [1958]. 'History and the Social Sciences: the Longue Duree', Review, XXXII 171-203.
Dietz, Thomas, Rachael L. Shwom, and Cameron T. Whitley. 2020. 'Climate Change and Society', Annual Review of Sociology, 46: 135-58.
Dooly, Melinda, Emilee Moore, and Claudia Vallejo. 2017. 'Research Ethics.' in Melinda Dooly, Emilee Moore and Claudia Vallejo (eds.), Qualitative Approaches to Research on Plurilingual Education (Research-publishing.net).
Efron, Sara Efrat, and Ruth Ravid. 2019. Writing the literature review: A practical guide (Guilford Press: New York).
George, Alexander, and Andrew Bennett. 2005. Case Studies and Theory Development in the Social Sciences (MIT Press: Cambridge).
Klinenberg, Eric, Malcolm Araos, and Liz Koslov. 2020. 'Sociology and the Climate Crisis', Annual Review of Sociology, 46: 649-69.
Lawrence, Roderick J. 2015. 'Advances in transdisciplinarity: Epistemologies, methodologies and processes', Futures, 65
Le Guin, Ursula. 1973. The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas (https://www.worldcat.org/title/ones-who-walk-away-from-omelas/oclc/25282554/editions?referer=di&editionsView=true).
Mullaney, Thomas S., and Christopher G. Rea. 2022. Where research begins : choosing a research project that matters to you (and the world) (The University of Chicago Press: Chicago, Illinois ;).
Randolph, Justus. 2009. 'A Guide to Writing the Dissertation Literature Review', Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation, 14: 13.
Smith, Deborah. 2003. 'Five Principles for Research Ethics: Cover Your Bases with These Ethical Strategies', Monitor: The American Psychological Association, 34: 56.
Stember, Marilyn. 1991. 'Advancing the social sciences through the interdisciplinary enterprise', The Social Science Journal, 28: 1-14.
Fees
Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.
Commonwealth Support (CSP) Students
If you have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). More information about your student contribution amount for each course at Fees.
- Student Contribution Band:
- 14
- Unit value:
- 6 units
If you are a domestic graduate coursework student with a Domestic Tuition Fee (DTF) place or international student you will be required to pay course tuition fees (see below). Course tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.
Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.
| Units | EFTSL |
|---|---|
| 6.00 | 0.12500 |
Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links
ANU utilises MyTimetable to enable students to view the timetable for their enrolled courses, browse, then self-allocate to small teaching activities / tutorials so they can better plan their time. Find out more on the Timetable webpage.
Class summaries, if available, can be accessed by clicking on the View link for the relevant class number.
Second Semester
| Class number | Class start date | Last day to enrol | Census date | Class end date | Mode Of Delivery | Class Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8564 | 27 Jul 2026 | 03 Aug 2026 | 31 Aug 2026 | 30 Oct 2026 | In Person | N/A |