Contents of a Research Proposal (Qualitative)

31 July 202531 July 2025 aswnetadmin No Comments

A research proposal is used to plan and communicate what the research is going to do, why, how, and with whom.

Section	Description	Example from a research proposed in Senegal
Title	Clearly states what the research is going to be about.	Exploring the educational transitions of Wolof-speaking migrant youth in Senegalese urban schools
Introduction	Introduces the topic, its significance, and relevance.	This study investigates how Wolof-speaking migrant youth adapt to formal schooling in Senegal.
Background	Provides context and literature informing the study.	Senegal’s education system promotes French, creating barriers for Wolof-speaking youth.
Philosophy (e.g. Ubuntu)	States the values guiding the research.	Grounded in Ubuntu values—justice, reciprocity, and ujamaa (communalism).
Theory and Theoretical Framework	A theory (single concept) or theoretical framework (combined ideas) used to interpret the study.	Uses Diopian theory and Ubuntu philosophy to analyse youth transitions.
Aims and Objectives	Clarifies why the research is undertaken and what it hopes to achieve.	Aim: Understand school transitions. Objective: Identify cultural barriers and support mechanisms.
Research Questions	Key questions the study seeks to answer.	What are the experiences of Wolof-speaking migrant youth in urban schools?
Positionality/Reflexivity	Researcher’s social position and potential influence.	As a Wolof speaker, I share cultural identity, requiring reflexivity.
Methodology	The research approach and worldview.	A decolonial methodology using participatory, relational approaches.
Methods	Tools and techniques for data collection and analysis.	Youth-led photovoice, interviews, and indaba with parents and teachers, translated from Wolof to English.
Ethics	Procedures for informed, respectful, and safe research.	Guided by the San Code of Ethics. Ethics approved by AIEC; Phase 2 by UCAD ethics board.
Limitations and Strengths	Acknowledges study’s constraints and strong points.	Limited to one region, but community-led and language-based strengths.
Reporting of findings	How study findings will be reported and what will be reported	Research report containing findings arranged in categories, themes, narratives, stories, quotes, visuals, case studies or a combination of these.
Knowledge Translation/Dissemination Plan	How findings will be shared and used.	Via community forums, Wolof radio, policy briefs, and school reports.
Conclusion	Summarises the project’s intention and value.	This study will inform culturally grounded education policy in Senegal.

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Deeply inspired by Mtandao/ASWDNet’s mission

Dear ASWDNet Team,

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My name is Hilda Ngaja a social worker based in Tanzania. I recently came across the African Social Work and Development Network (ASWDNet) and was deeply inspired by its mission to create, aggregate, and disseminate African knowledges and to promote social work and development rooted in our values, languages, and lived realities.

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