HISTORY DEPARTMENT
CARIBBEAN STUDIES
INTERNAL ASSESSMENT GUIDELINES
The Caribbean Studies Internal Assessment is a pivotal aspect of assessing students’ competence in research
methodology, that is, equipping students with the knowledge and skills in conducting and drafting a research. It
is designed to assist students in garnering knowledge, skills and attitudes as well to develop their critical
thinking and reasoning abilities that are important in advanced studies at the College and University level.
The assessment values 40 % of the final score. The project should be 1500 words, not including appendix,
bibliography, diagrams, quotations, tables. Any study over the word limit will attract a 10% penalty.
The project will be marked out of a total of 60 marks and the structure should be as follows:
Cover pageAcknowledgement
Table of Contents
Introduction
Literature Review
Data Collection Sources
Presentation and Analysis of Data
Presentation of Data
8 marks
Analysis of Data
10 marks
Discussion of Findings
Conclusion (2), Limitations (2) and Recommendations (4)
Bibliography
Appendices
Overall Presentation
Writing Skills
Total
5 marks
8 marks
4 marks
12 marks
8 marks
2 marks
3 marks
60 marks
Presentation will take into considerationCover page: which should have the theme, topic, title of the project, name of candidate, candidate's number,
date of submission (for final copy), name of school, centre #, territory, year of exam, unit/subject and teacher’s
name.
Acknowledgements,
Table of Content,
Bibliography and
Appendices: A copy of the questionnaire must be placed here and any other information relevant to the study
can be included.
Writing will consider organisation of ideas, vocabulary and use of language, paragraphing, grammar and
spelling.
YOU ARE EXPECTED TO WRITE EACH MAJOR ELEMENT OF THE PROJECT ON A NEW
PAGE.
INTRODUCTION (1 ½ pages):
Should be structured with the following information, under the relevant sub-headings:
a brief Background to the problem (Statement of the Problem). What have you observed about the problem
among the target group?
the Problem Statement (area of research, written in a statement or question format). The Problem statement
must have at least one dependent and one independent variable
the Purpose of the research; an explanation as to why you have chosen this area of research, among your
target population i.e what you hope to accomplish.
the Educational value of the research (how it would benefit another organization, institution, society or a group
of persons). How do you feel that your research can contribute to the academic community, further study, and
its potential for a better understanding of the Caribbean and its people? You must identify a specific group,
organization or community that could benefit from the research.
3 Research Questions or Objectives guided by your purpose that should be specific to the target group.
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HISTORY DEPARTMENT
CARIBBEAN STUDIES
INTERNAL ASSESSMENT GUIDELINES
Definition of keys terms in the study: all term technical terms that will be used in the study must be clearly
defined. Place in alphabetical order.
LITERATURE REVIEW (1 ½ to 2 pages):
You are expected to provide a comprehensive review of the literature or previous research relating to your area
of investigation. You are expected to use 4 different sources, not from the same author and they can be from
both local and international sources. Sources MUST relate to the topic and objectives of your research.
You need to show how the identified sources will relate to your research and whether there are any gaps in the
previous research that you will address in your research.
A literature review is a critical summary and assessment of the range of existing materials in your area of
research. The literature review provides a context for your study while at the same time demonstrating your
awareness and understanding of the current knowledge on the subject. This is to be an analytical argument of
various authors’ views, theories and perspectives on the issue(s) rather than a narrative of details.
You have shown connections among the sources. Are the authors presenting similar or different views?
You’ve identified gaps/limitations in these sources that you can utilize in your research.
You’ve specifically identified how these sources will assist your research/study.
Utilize: According to …. As compared to …. Contradicted by ….. Corroborated by ……when comparing the
views of the authors.
Ways in which you can organize the literature are to:
▪ a) Introduce the ideas by themes rather than by listing different author’s viewpoints
▪ b) Introduce each theme and explain what that particular theme is. Then present the evidence from your
readings, both agreements and disagreements between experts
Proper use of APA in-text citations to credit the author’s ideas/claims. If making a general reference to a source without
direct quotations, the in-text citation includes the Author and Year of Publication in brackets; for eg. Brown (1999)
However, to cite a specific part of a source (always necessary for quotations), include the page number (with appropriate
abbreviations) in the in-text citation.
De Waal (1996) overstated the case when he asserted that "we seem to be reaching ... from the hands of philosophers" (p.
218).
If page numbers are not included in electronic sources (such as Web-based journals), provide the paragraph number
preceded by the abbreviation "para." or the heading and the following paragraph.
DATA COLLECTION SOURCES (1 page):
Paragraph structure; no sub-section(s)
Describe how you collected data using primary sources - In a new paragraph.
You MUST state that primary data was collected from ‘X’ number of persons. Note: If the population is small
use the entire population; if the population is large use a sample (Not less than 30).
State HOW the sample was chosen (sampling method)
State WHY the participants were selected (ie. what knowledge would they contribute to the research).
State the relevance of the research instrument (e.g. Questionnaire).
How did you ensure the confidentiality of the respondents and Why?
Describe the secondary sources – in a new paragraph.
Since you already wrote the Literature Review you MUST have used secondary sources. Therefore, describe how
you used each of them. Describe how the use of the secondary sources was relevant and contributed to a better
understanding of the area being researched (topic, problem).
Provide a succinct commentary on how you ensured that the secondary data collected satisfied the trustworthiness
criteria i.e. reliability and validity.
Criteria for Validity (is the data true): When was the data published? Is the information relevant to your specific
circumstances? Was the information replicated in other sources?
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HISTORY DEPARTMENT
CARIBBEAN STUDIES
INTERNAL ASSESSMENT GUIDELINES
Criteria for Reliability (can the source provide the data): Who is the author? What are the author’s professional
credentials? Who is the publisher? Is the publisher reputable?
PRESENTATION OF DATA:
You are to use various methods of presentation, at least 4 different types that can be replicated and must not
be less than a total of 10. The presentation is not about being colourful it is for conveying the information that
you have collected. Please ensure the diagram chosen is appropriate to convey the data.
Methods of the presentation can include: graphs (e.g. bar graphs, line graphs) pie charts, doughnuts, scatter
diagrams, maps, tables and texts (in a textbox).
These diagrams should be:
●
Labelled and numbered (at the bottom) - tables should be given their own number as “Table 1” and all
other diagrams should be labelled as “Figures” and given their own number).
●
For graphs, the X and Y axis should also be labelled.
●
All diagrams should be given a title (at the top of the diagram)
●
No “Yes” or “No” on the diagrams. Please use the Likert Scale, for eg. “Strongly Agree,” “Agree,”
"Neutral" "Disagree", "Strongly Disagree" etc.
●
There must be accurate accounting.
●
Keys should be included on the charts.
●
Raw data from questionnaires should be accurately transformed into statistical figures such as
percentages.
●
The first two diagrams need to relate to the respondents’ age and gender.
●
Diagrams must relate to the major objectives of your research.
●
Make use of double bar graphs where appropriate
HOW TO PRESENT QUALITATIVE DATA?
Using this approach the researcher will report key findings under each main theme or category, using
appropriate verbatim quotes to illustrate those findings, in a textbox. Below is an example using actual data
from a qualitative dental public health study that explored primary school children's understanding of food.
The interviews demonstrated that children are able to contrast and contradict food effortlessly:
'My mother says drink juice because it's healthy and she says if you don't drink it you won't get
healthy and you won't have any sweets and you'll end up having to go to a hospital if you don't eat
anything like vegetables because you'll get weak'. (Female, age 11 years).
ANALYSIS OF DATA (1 ½ to 2 pages):
Interpret means to understand and convey. Some level of analysis is expected on the main findings. Explain
your results and why you arrived at those results; look for trends, patterns and anomalies and make
suggestions as to why the persons responded in this manner.
You should NOT simply restate what is shown in the presentation of data, instead, you should account for the
results by explaining what has been derived from the data, ie. what the analyzed data revealed.
Interpretation is the process by which you put your own meaning on the data collected.
Analyse is to compare the data to determine the results’ patterns, trends and anomalies, and the reasons for them.
Start to form your opinion regarding what the data is saying; accuracy and relevance are important. All different
forms of speculation as to the meaning of the findings should be explored.
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HISTORY DEPARTMENT
CARIBBEAN STUDIES
INTERNAL ASSESSMENT GUIDELINES
Make reference to your diagrams in the presentation of data and support them with relevant statistics. For
example, as shown in Figure 1, 63% of teenagers prefer to wear black shoes than 28 % who preferred brown.
However, 9% had no preference.
DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS (1 ½ to 2 pages):
Give a logical and coherent discussion of your findings (from the analysis of data) in relation to research
objective:
You should discuss THREE findings. You are expected to offer different arguments to support your
finding.
Each finding must be compared to the Literature Review. If there were similarities and differences you must
explicitly state that and show the similarity and/or difference with YOUR findings and previous research.
No new literature is to be introduced in this section.
For each finding, you must explain the implications of the findings i.e. the significance of the findings for
policy formation, the need for future research and directions for long-term study.
CONCLUSION/LIMITATIONS/RECOMMENDATIONS (1 page):
In the Conclusion (one paragraph) you are to state your opinion based on your interpretation of the findings.
You must answer your problem statement with a summary of the answers to your objectives. No bullet form
For the Limitation (only ONE) state the problem experienced in the completion of the project, that would have
impacted the collection and interpretation of data ie the validity and reliability of your data. No bullet form.
In the Recommendations (only TWO) you are expected to state:
what should be done to correct the limitation identified.
what you would like to see accomplished regarding the findings of the study.
These must be relevant and practicable. Recommendations should be practicable and feasible (capable of
being done or put into practice with the available means)
No Bullet Form
The above can follow each other on the same page, separated by paragraph and heading. No need to separate on
different pages.
Referencing & Bibliography:
The sources in the bibliography should be organized in alphabetical order to the author’s last name using APA
Referencing format.
DO NOT: categorize or bullet or number the sources.
The majority of the sources should be books and scholarly articles. The internet sources acceptable are scholarly
databases (eg. JSTOR & EBSCO Host), Web of Knowledge & Google Scholar or
Use websites ending in .edu. or org
Appendices
Present the research instrument – Questionnaire and/ or Interview.
The instrument should have a short introduction at the top explaining the purpose of the Questionnaire and the
ethical considerations that will be put in place. Ensure the instructions are clearly written. Clearly state that the
name of the participant SHOULD NOT be written anywhere on the paper.
If you used Interview as a research instrument, ensure that you have a paragraph which explains the purpose of
the interview and the ethical considerations before the questions are presented.
Stick within a range of range of 14-16 questions. This is inclusive of open (where necessary) and close-ended
questions. Questionnaire should be constructed to match the research objectives/problem statement. Please try
to avoid YES or NO Questions.
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HISTORY DEPARTMENT
CARIBBEAN STUDIES
INTERNAL ASSESSMENT GUIDELINES
THERE SHOULD BE NO EVIDENCE OF PLAGIARISM. YOU WILL BE PENALIZED WITH A
SCORE OF ZERO.
Timeline of IA Activities:
Problem Statement
Literature Review
Introduction, Questionnaire and or Interview Questions
First Draft
Second Draft
Final Draft
General Presentation:
IAs must be typed using font-style: Arial (10), Times New Roman (12), Calibri (11) including Headings
Bibliography and Appendix must be included. A copy of the questionnaire or interview questions, transcript of
interviews or any other information can be included in the appendix.
The margins should be 1 inch all around.
Double spaced
Do not underline headings or sub-headings, however, they can be bolded
No bordering of pages, except for the cover page, which should be simple.
No use of colours, except for diagrams if necessary.
Number all pages except Cover Page. The page number should be placed at the top right-hand corner of the
page.
The Theme should be clearly typed on the first page (top).
The Topic is clearly typed on the first page (after the Theme).
The Research Question / Statement is clearly typed on the first page (after the Topic)
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