1. The Personal Interest Project [PIP]

2. 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.

3. 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?

4. 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.

5. 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!

6. 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.

7. 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].

8. 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].

9. 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.

10. 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

11. Putting together your PIP The process of putting together your PIP should be documented in a diary or journal. Buy one NOW!

12. A ‘GOOD’ PIP

13. 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?