How to

write my
Research
Proposal

Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia

Profesor: Jhonatan Vásquez-Guarnizo
Metodología de la Investigación y Contexto Educativo II
I-2023
 3 How to do/write your
pages
Statement of the Problem

1 1. From a global perspective, and theoretical speaking:

paragraph
Define the issue/situation/problem

2-3 2. From a local perspective, and theoretical speaking:

paragraphs
Explain how that issue/situation/problem affects
your future context.

Identify the gap and mention the importance of

doing research about it.

Justify it with the lack of research studies that

have been carried out about it.

1 3. Personally / professionally speaking:

paragraph
Describe your research interest and how your
experience in the field moved you to make the
decision to research about it.

1 4. Introduce the importance of supporting your

paragraph
concerns (issue, situation, problem) with the help of
a Needs Analysis.

Professor: Jhonatan Vásquez-Guarnizo / UPTC / I-2023

 2 How to do/write your
pages Needs Analysis
1 1. Introduce the process of the Needs Analysis
paragraph Describe the importance of carrying out a Needs
Analysis in your context / similar one.
Give a brief description of the context / population /
time / instruments you developed when carrying out
your Needs Analysis.

3-4 2. Display the results of your Needs Analysis.

paragraphs
If your results are totally qualitative, then select
excerpts that are relevant to support your concerns
(issue, situation, problem).
Note: It is NOT necessary to show all your results.
YOU are the one who makes decisions
regarding what to show. The more you
present, the better it will NOT be.
If your results are quantitative, then show graphs
that support your concerns (issue, situation, problem).
If your results can be displayed qualitatively and
quantitatively, then you can select excerpts as well as
graphs that are relevant to support your concerns
(issue, situation, problem).

3. Write your analysis.

Before each result, you need to write an introduction
of the excerpt/graph. Similarly, after each result, you
need to write your own analysis of it.

1 4. Conclude with an overall analysis.

paragraph
State why your Needs Analysis supports your
concerns (issue, situation, problem).

Professor: Jhonatan Vásquez-Guarnizo / UPTC / I-2023

 1 How to do/write your
page Research Question
1
The research question is the central axis of your research.
paragraph

What do contextualized workshops

WHAT? reveal about EFL students’ reading
skills development?
+
What does the use of contextualized
gendered ELT materials reveal about
Auxiliary verb pre-service English teachers’
awareness on gender equity?
+
What does the use of diaries in an EFL
MAIN CONSTRUCT classroom reveal on promoting
aesthetic reading in 11th graders at
Escuela Normal Superior Oiba?
+
What does the use of EFL task-based
The main verb workshops reveal about pre-service
(instrumental or holistic) teachers’ reflections on social
discrimination at a public university in
+ Tunja, Boyacá?

about
What does a group of tenth-grade
+ students reveal about the
implementation of the English for
Population Academic Purposes (EAP) approach at
Colegio San Rafael IED?
+
What do EFL students’ pen pal letters
reveal about their cultural awareness
MAIN CONSTRUCT development?

Professor: Jhonatan Vásquez-Guarnizo / UPTC / I-2023

 1 How to do/write your
page Research Objective
1
The research objective is the central axis of your research.
paragraph

To describe what contextualized

Infinitive verb workshops reveal about EFL students’
reading skills development.
+
To describe what the use of
contextualized gendered ELT materials
What reveals about pre-service English
teachers’ awareness on gender equity.
+
To describe what the use of diaries in
MAIN CONSTRUCT an EFL classroom reveals on promoting
aesthetic reading in 11th graders at
Escuela Normal Superior Oiba.
+
To describe what the use of EFL task-
The main verb based workshops reveals about pre-
service teachers’ reflections on social
+ discrimination at a public university in
Tunja, Boyacá.
about

+ To describe what a group of tenth-

grade students reveal about the
Population implementation of the English for
Academic Purposes (EAP) approach at
Colegio San Rafael IED.
+
To describe what EFL students’ pen pal
MAIN CONSTRUCT letters reveal about their cultural
awareness development.

Professor: Jhonatan Vásquez-Guarnizo / UPTC / I-2023

 6 How to do/write your
pages
Literature Review
Introduce this new chapter of your monograph by:
1
Writing an introductory paragraph where you tell
paragraph
your readers what they will find in this chapter.
Mentioning that you are about to describe ONLY
research studies that came to be RELEVANT for your
own research study, not all of them.
Note: As a minimum, you are expected to describe
3 per each scale.

WHAT TO WRITE IN EACH PARAGRAPH:

Purpose of each research study.

Main objectives.
Research design (Paradigm, Method, Approach)
Teaching context.
Participants.
Instruments used to gather data.
Findings.
18
paragraphs DO NOT FORGET TO:

Create a paragraph after each description stating

HOW-WHY that aforementioned research article is
connected to yours. In other words, mention the way
in which each research study contributes to your
proposal and establish analytical relationships
between those consulted related studies and your
research concern.
Establish subtitles per each scale:
- At the International Scale
- At the National Scale
- At the Local Scale
Conclude each subdivision by introducing the next one.

Professor: Jhonatan Vásquez-Guarnizo / UPTC / I-2023

 6 How to do/write your
pages
Theoretical Framework
1. Define your main constructs
1 They are and must be found in your research question.
paragraph 2. Begin with an introductory paragraph in which you start
mentioning your research question. Then, based on that, you
continue stating your main constructs.

3. After writing your first and most important construct as

a subtitle, you dedicate some lines to mention THAT is your
main construct. Samely, with your second/third construct.

WHAT TO WRITE IN EACH CONSTRUCT

What is it?
12
That means, definitions from several different
paragraphs
points of view. Here, you establish a "dialogue"
with the authors. YOUR VOICE counts the most.

Additionally, you need to break your main constructs

down somehow. I mean, you need to start clarifying
what they actually mean-entail from a general
perspective and then a specific one.

Notes:
Remember that each construct may have subdivisions
which also need clarification from the theoretical
perspective.

If the main focus of your research study is

MATERIALS DESIGN, that means that you will have to
coin your own creation. When you break down the
concept of Materials Development, you will need to
specify WHY you decided to coin your materials in the
way you did. Everything aligned with theoretical
foundations.

Professor: Jhonatan Vásquez-Guarnizo / UPTC / I-2023