This document provides guidance on key elements of a research proposal, including an abstract, introduction, problem statement, research questions and objectives, theoretical framework, methodology, and significance. It discusses how to write each section, such as including the problem, purpose, methodology, and results in the abstract. For the introduction, it recommends a deficiencies model that states the problem, reviews previous studies and their deficiencies, and advances the study's significance. It also provides examples of writing research questions, objectives, and discussing the theoretical framework, methodology, and delimitations of the study.

1. RESEARCH ARTICLE
TABLE OF CONTENTS
 Abstract ………………………………………………………..
 Key Terms………………………………………………………
 Introduction……………………………………………………..
 Problem Statement…………….. …………………………………..
 Research Questions……………… ………………………………..
 Research Objectives...…………….. ……………………………..
 Significance of the Study…………………………………………...
 Literature Review………………………………………………….
 Critical Framework and Methodology …………………………….
1. Approach to Inquiry /Research Design [(i.e. Qualitative/ Quantitative or Mixed
Method Research), including an account of specific method to be employed within
the framework of a research design]
2. Theoretical Framework…………………………………………..
3. Procedural detail for conducting the study (A detailed account of the way
whereby data has been collected and thereby analyzed)
 Data Analysis
 Delimitations of the study ………………………………………………………..
 References

2. Abstract
Writing An Abstract for a Research Project
Salient Features of an Abstract:
i. The problem being addressed
ii. The central purpose/focus of study
iii. Information about theoretical perspective, research design, sampling technique,
instrumentation, and procedural detail pertaining to data collection and data analysis
iv. The key results
v. Possible implication of research in future as connected with the findings
Writing an Abstract (APA)
1. The title of an abstract should be centered at the top of the page.
2. There is no extra space between the title and the paragraph.
3. Do not format the title of abstract with bold, italic, underlining, or quotation marks.
4. Avoid capitalizing all letters of the abstract’s title.
5. Do not indent the first line of the abstract’s paragraph.
6. An abstract’s length should be a minimum of 150 words, and a maximum of 250
words.
7. The abstract should be confined within a single paragraph.
8. Like the rest of the document, the abstract should be double spaced, and use Times
New Roman 12pt.
9. Define any abbreviations or acronyms that appear in your project in the abstract’s
paragraph.
10. Depending on your professor’s directives, you may choose to include a short list of
keywords to enable researches and databases to locate your work more effectively.
11. “Key words” as the heading should be italicized and indented.
12. Do not place period at the end of a list of keywords.
13. The margins around abstracts are set at “1” on all sides.
Keywords in a Research Proposal
Listing the keywords help researchers find their work in databases. Keywords are words or
phrases that capture the most important aspects of a research project. The keywords line
should begin indented like a paragraph. (In typeset APA journal articles, the keywords line is
aligned under the abstract.) The term “Keywords” should be italicized, followed by a space.
The words themselves, mentioned under keywords, should not be italicized.
Introduction
The deficiencies model of an introduction
The deficiencies model of an introduction is an approach to writing an introduction to a
research study that builds on gaps existing in the literature. It includes the elements of stating
the research problem, reviewing past studies about the problem, indicating deficiencies in
these studies, and advancing the significance of the study. It is a general template for writing
a good introduction. It is a popular approach used in the social sciences, and once its structure
is elucidated, the reader will find it appearing repeatedly in many published research studies

3. (not always in the order presented here). It consists of five parts, and a separate paragraph can
be devoted to each part, for an introduction of about two pages in length:
1. State the research problem.
2. Review studies that have addressed the problem.
3. Indicate deficiencies in the studies.
4. Advance the significance of the study for particular audiences.
5. State the purpose of your study .
The Problem Statement
A problem statement is a clear concise description of the issue(s) that need(s) to be addressed
by a researcher. The problem statement revolves around 5 ‘W’s
Who - Who does the problem affect?
What - What are the boundaries of the problem?
When - When does the issue occur? - When does it need to be fixed?
Where - Where is the issue occurring?
Why - Why is it important that we fix the problem?
The Purpose Statement
According to Locke, Spirduso, and Silverman (2013), the purpose statement indicates why a
researcher wants to conduct a study and what does he/she intends to accomplish. This
passage is called the purpose statement because it conveys the overall intent of a proposed
study in a sentence or several sentences. The purpose statement sets the objectives, the intent,
or the major idea of a proposal or a study. This idea builds on a need (the problem) and is
refined into specific questions (the research questions).
Designfeatures for writing a Qualitative Purpose Statement
• Use words such as purpose, intent, or objective to signal attention to this statement as the
central controlling idea.
• Focus on a single phenomenon (or concept or idea). Narrow the study to one idea to be
explored or understood. This focus means that a purpose does not convey relating two or
more variables or comparing two or more groups, as is typically found in quantitative
research. Instead, advance a single phenomenon, recognizing that the study may evolve into
an exploration of relationships or comparisons among ideas. None of these related
explorations could be anticipated at the beginning.
• Use action verbs to convey how learning will take place. Action verbs and phrases, such as,
understand, develop, explore, examine the meaning of, or discover, keep the inquiry open and
convey an emerging design.
• Use neutral words and phrases—nondirectional language—such as, exploring the “self-
expression experiences of individuals” rather than the “successful self-expression of
individuals.”

4. • Provide a general working definition of the central phenomenon or idea, especially if the
phenomenon is a term that is not typically understood by a broad audience.
• Include words denoting the strategy of inquiry to be used in data collection, analysis, and
the process of research, such as whether the study will use an ethnographic, grounded theory,
case study, phenomenological, narrative approach, or some other strategy.
• Mention the participants in the study, such as one or more individuals, a group of people, or
an entire organization.
• Identify the site for the research, such as homes, classrooms, organizations, programs, or
events. Describe this site in enough detail so that the reader knows exactly where a study will
take place.
• As a final thought in the purpose statement, include some language that delimits the scope
of participation or research sites in the study.
ResearchObjectives
The objectives of the study should be clearly stated and specific in nature. Each sub-
objective should delineate only one issue. Use action-oriented verbs such as ‘to
determine’, ‘to find out’ and ‘to ascertain’ in formulating sub-objectives, which
should be numerically listed. If the objective is to test a hypothesis, you must follow
the convention of hypothesis formulation with specific reference to the wording as
used in the type of methodology selected by you. More detailed objectives, if need be,
can be developed after a study is complete.
 According to some researchers, objectives must be set after having formulated good
research questions so as to develop coherence between research questions and
objectives. Objectives are usually headed by infinitive verbs such as:
 To identify
 To establish
 To describe
 To determine
 To estimate
 To develop
 To compare
 To analyze
 To collect
Example
Main objective:
To examine the relationship between academic achievement and social environment.
Sub-objectives:
1. To find out the relationship, if any, between self-esteem and a student’s academic
achievement at school.
2. To ascertain the association between parental involvement in a student’s studies and
his/her academic achievement at school.
3. To examine the links between a student’s peer group and academic achievement.

5. 4. To explore the relationship between academic achievement and the attitude of students
towards teachers
ResearchQuestions
a. Qualitative Research Questions
In a qualitative study, inquirers generally state research questions, not hypotheses
(i.e., predictions that involve variables and statistical tests). These research questions
assume two forms: (a) a central question and (b) associated sub-questions.
The central question is a broad question that asks for an exploration of the central
phenomenon or concept in a study. There can be one or two central questions in a
qualitative research.
Sub questions are the questions that follow each general central question; they narrow
the focus of the study but leave open the questioning.
According to Creswell (2014), as qualitative research is exploratory in its essence, one
may use exploratory verbs that convey the language of emerging design in a
qualitative research. Mentioned below are some of the examples in this regard:
Report (or reflect) the stories (e.g., narrative research)
Describe the essence of the experience (e.g., phenomenology)
Discover (e.g., grounded theory)
Seek to understand (e.g., ethnography)
Explore a process (e.g., case study)
Note: (One can also go for WH questions in all kinds of research designs (Qualitative/
Quantitative/Mixed))
Some Important Themes:
How to Write Significance ofthe Study?
The Significance of the Study describes what contribution your study will make to the
broad literature or set of broad educational problems upon completion.
As you draft your significance of the study, consider the following:
 Broadly, a component of the significance of the study is to illustrate the contribution
that your study will make to the existing literature on the problem or broad problem
areas of education.
 Generally, a component of the significance of the study is to elucidate exactly how
you will extend the current literature.
 Specifically, a component of the significance of the study is to determine who
benefits from the study and how that specific audience will benefit from its findings.
What is TheoreticalFramework ofthe study?
A theoretical framework refers to the theory that a researcher chooses to guide him/her in
his/her research. Thus, a theoretical framework is the application of a theory, or a set of
concepts drawn from the selected theoretical perspective, to offer an explanation of an event,
or shed some light on a particular phenomenon or research problem.

6. Theoretical framework provides a theoretical foundation to your study. Guided by theoretical
framework, a researcher seeks to answer the questions raised by him/ her in his research.
While selecting any theory to substantiate the overall research, a researcher is primarily
required to examine/ keep in mind:
 the title of study
 the research questions
 the research design
 the variables of study
What are delimitations in Research?
Delimitations are those characteristics that limit the scope and define the boundaries
of your study. The delimitations are in your control. Delimiting factors include the
choice of research problem, objectives, the research questions, and variables of
interest, theoretical perspectives, and the population you choose to investigate.