The Personal Interest Project [PIP]

Concepts

• Your idea that eventually develops into a PIP needs to be connected to Society and Culture.

• The key is to select appropriate concepts that establish the relationships of your topic to the course and ensure that you use these in your writing.

• What is my topic?• Can I relate my topic to these fundamental

concepts of Society and Culture: persons, society, culture, environment and time.

• Which key concepts of a depth study can I use to help unlock my topic and keep my PIP tightly related to the course?

• When I’m writing sections of my PIP, am I integrating the concept I have chosen smoothly and with understanding?

• Am I demonstrating social and cultural literacy?

The Nature of the PIP

• Synthesis of personal experience and public knowledge.

• It should integrate the micro and macro worlds and be the result of appropriate research methodologies.

• Flexibility and a willingness to take constructive advice.

Getting started

• ‘Where can I get a good idea for a topic?’

• Passion needs to evolve as a driving force behind your research.– you could find yourself developing a real

interest in a topic as you research it;– research into the topic could lead you to

discover a fresh direction or an entirely different idea;

– keep researching!

Sources and ideas

• Use these sources to help you with ideas:– personal world;– an issue that strikes you;– social issues raised in the Preliminary course;– social issues arising from films, novels, TV shows,

magazines and/or newspapers;– inspiration from past PIPs;– community issues and/or events;– interests and hobbies;– future career ideas.

Ethical research

• Research into some topic areas may involve you in situations that either put your safety at risk, or expose you to information that is offensive and antisocial.

• Objectivity means understanding your research topic from a viewpoint that disregards your own values and perspectives [avoid bias].

• Primary research methodologies require personal involvement with real people, not individuals described in books or journals.

• Social researchers face ethical issues and an important one that you will encounter is privacy [knowledge and consent].

Cross-cultural content

• To achieve the Society and Culture goal of becoming socially and culturally literate, you must incorporate a cross-cultural component. This means that you should show some knowledge and understanding of viewpoints other than your own.

• The cross-cultural perspective needs to be integrated into the central material of the project, not just outlined in your PIP introduction.

• Some examples:– socioeconomics– gender– ethnicity– location– culture– belief systems

Putting together your PIP

• The process of putting together your PIP should be documented in a diary or journal.

• Buy one NOW!

A ‘GOOD’ PIP

The next step…

1. Defining: what do you want to find out?2. Locating: where can you find out what you

need to know?3. Selecting: is all the information you have

collected useful?4. Synthesising: how can you best use your

information?5. Presenting: within the prescribed format of the

PIP, how can you best convey your information?6. Evaluating: What have you learned from your

PIP?