Group 3
Project Class 2
Mark Holloway
Organise the paragraphs that Mark
gives you in order to create a report.
You will then need to add a title and
any headings that you think are
necessary.
From Stephen Bailey, Academic Writing : A Handbook for International
Students (Routledge 2007)
STUDENT EXPERIENCE OF PART-TIME WORK
Introduction
With the introduction of course fees and the related increase in student debt, more
students are finding it necessary to work part-time. The survey was conducted to
find out how this work affects student life and study. The research was done by
asking students selected at random on the campus to complete a questionnaire
(see Appendix 1). Fifty students were questioned on Saturday April 23rd, with
approximately equal numbers of male and female students.
Findings
Of the respondents, 30% currently had part-time jobs, 20% had had part-time jobs,
but had never done any work during university semesters (see Table 1).
Interviewees who were working or who had worked were next asked about their
reasons for taking the jobs. The most common reason was lack of money (56%),
but many students said that they found the work useful experience (32%) and
others mentioned social benefits (12%).
Table 1. Do you have or have you had a part-time job?
Men
Woman
Total
%
Have job now
8
7
15
30
Had job before
4
6
10
20
Never had job
14
11
25
50
The twenty-five students with work experience were next asked about the effects
of the work on their studies. A significant majority (64%) claimed that there were
no negative effects at all. However, 24% said that their academic work suffered
slightly, while a small minority (12%) reported serious adverse results, such as
tiredness in lectures and falling marks.
Further questions examined the nature of the work that the students did. The
variety of jobs was surprising, from van driver to busker, but the most common
areas were catering and bar work (44%) and secretarial (32%). Most students
worked between 10 and 15 hours per week, though two (8%) worked over 25
hours. Rates of pay were generally near the national minimum wage, and
averaged £5.20 per hour.
The final question invited students to comment on their experience of part-time
work. Many (44%) made the point that students should be given larger grants so
that they could concentrate on their studies full-time, but others felt that they
gained something from the experience, such as meeting new people and getting
insights into various work environments. One student said that she had met her
current boyfriend while working in a city centre restaurant.
Conclusions
It is clear that part-time work is now a common aspect of student life. Many
students find jobs at some point in their studies, but an overwhelming majority
(88%) of those deny that it had a damaging effect on their studies. Most students
work for only 2-3 hours per day on average, and a significant number claim some
positive results from their employment.
Obviously, our survey was limited to a relatively small sample by time constraints,
and a fuller study might modify our findings in various ways.
Now take a worksheet from Mark and fill the gaps with
suitable vocabulary items.
sample
mentioned
conducted
interviewees
slightly
common
respondents
questionnaire
random
generally
questions
minority
majority
generally
questioned
APPENDIX 1
Questions
1. Do you have or have you had a part-time job?
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Using the text, can you write the other six questions that were featured on the
questionnaire?
APPENDIX 1
Questions
1. Do you have or have you had a part-time job?
2. Why did you take a job?
3. What effect did the work have on your studies?
4. What kind of work did you do?
5. What hours did you work?
6. How much did you earn?
7. Do you have any comments on your work?
Question Task
1. Which is the better question and why?
i.
How old are you?
ii.
Are you a) under 20, b) between 21 and 30, c) over 30?
2. What is the main difference between these two questions?
i.
What do you think of university students?
ii.
Do you think university students are a) lazy, b) hardworking, c) average?
Question Task
1. Which is the better question and why?
i.
How old are you?
ii.
Are you a) under 20, b) between 21 and 30, c) over 30?
The second question is more diplomatic and therefore more effective.
2. What is the main difference between these two questions?
i.
What do you think of university students?
ii.
Do you think university students are a) lazy, b) hardworking, c) average?
The first question is open, the second is closed. Different question styles suit
different purposes.
Match the beginnings and endings of the following sentences to create good
advice on writing a questionnaire:
Limit the
collect a wider range of responses.
Long and complicated
clear and simple, and not be too personal.
Questions should be
easier to process.
Closed questions are
number of questions so the respondent
can answer them in a minute or two.
Open questions will
a classmate before beginning the full
survey, and be ready to modify any that
were not clear.
You should try asking the questions to
questionnaires will not receive accurate
replies.
KEY
Limit the
Long and complicated
Questions should be
Closed questions are
Open questions will
You should try asking the questions to
KEY
Limit the
Long and complicated
Questions should be
Closed questions are
Open questions will
You should try asking the questions to
number of questions so the respondent can answer
them in a minute or two.
KEY
Limit the
number of questions so the respondent can answer
them in a minute or two.
Long and complicated
questionnaires will not receive accurate replies.
Questions should be
Closed questions are
Open questions will
You should try asking the questions to
KEY
Limit the
number of questions so the respondent can answer
them in a minute or two.
Long and complicated
questionnaires will not receive accurate replies.
Questions should be
clear and simple, and not be too personal.
Closed questions are
Open questions will
You should try asking the questions to
KEY
Limit the
number of questions so the respondent can answer
them in a minute or two.
Long and complicated
questionnaires will not receive accurate replies.
Questions should be
clear and simple, and not be too personal.
Closed questions are
easier to process.
Open questions will
You should try asking the questions to
KEY
Limit the
number of questions so the respondent can answer
them in a minute or two.
Long and complicated
questionnaires will not receive accurate replies.
Questions should be
clear and simple, and not be too personal.
Closed questions are
easier to process.
Open questions will
collect a wider range of responses.
You should try asking the questions to
KEY
Limit the
number of questions so the respondent can answer
them in a minute or two.
Long and complicated
questionnaires will not receive accurate replies.
Questions should be
clear and simple, and not be too personal.
Closed questions are
easier to process.
Open questions will
collect a wider range of responses.
You should try asking the questions to
a classmate before beginning the full survey, and be
ready to modify any that were not clear.
Previous Topics
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-Leisure activities
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-Self-access centre in the International Academy
-Smoking
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-Why students come to the UK to study
1. Choosing your topic for investigation.
When choosing your topic, you will need to bear the following in mind:
The aspect / focus of your topic
Will your topic be of general interest? Who will it benefit?
Can you make any predictions about the outcome? Do you have any
hypotheses you want to test?
Who will take part in your survey? Are the respondents available?
2. Focusing your topic
This is a vital part of your task; you need to make sure that the scope is
narrow enough for you to be able to collect the data required in the limited
time available.