STAGE 1: Identifying a Research Problem

Embarking on your research process starts off with identifying a problem. Oftentimes it could be something out of your own curiosity, or the recognition of a gap in knowledge – this problem eventually defines the goal of your research.

Upon recognising the research problem that you want to focus on, it is important to reflect on it. This allows you to establish its relevance and significance, as well as be clear and precise in articulating the problem, all of which helps later in refining your research question and hypotheses.

We can approach this initial stage with the scholarship of teaching and learning (SOTL) in mind. It involves three main aspects of teaching knowledge:

1. Curricular knowledge: Knowledge about the goals and purposes of our teaching
2. Pedagogical/ psychological knowledge: Knowledge about how students learn
3. Instructional knowledge: Knowledge about instructional design and the instructional process

Reflection is the backbone of assessing learning needs, and we can understand reflection more in depth with Mezirow's three levels of reflection: content, process, and premise (Gibson & Hart, 2008). These reflection levels can be applied to construct various forms of teaching knowledge.

You are ready to move on to the next research stage when you can provide clear answers to these questions:

• What is the aim of the research?
• Why does exploring the topic matter to you and others?
• What are the specific outcomes or contributions you plan to achieve? Are you planning to explore a phenomenon, evaluate something, solve a practical problem, or develop a theory?