Project Work and Internal Assessment: From Research Question to Viva
What the exam tests
Internal assessment tests whether you can design a small, ethical sociological study, collect and analyse evidence, and defend your choices in a viva, not whether you can copy a report.
Core rules and concepts
- Topic and question: choose a focused, feasible sociological question, not a vague 'problem'. State objectives and rationale.
- Literature and concepts: use at least a few sociological concepts to frame the study; avoid mere description.
- Method: select observation, survey, interview, questionnaire or case study to fit the question. Explain sampling and tools.
- Data and analysis: keep field notes, tabulate responses, identify patterns, quote respondents anonymously, and connect findings to concepts.
- Ethics: informed consent, privacy, confidentiality, no harm, and permission from school or guardians where needed.
- Presentation: title page, contents, introduction, methodology, findings, analysis, limitations, conclusion, bibliography and appendix.
Worked example
Project: 'Mobile phone use among Class XII students in my school.' Reasoning: a short questionnaire to a stratified random sample by stream can measure hours and purposes; two focus interviews can explain why students use phones during study. Report both numbers and meanings, and state that findings apply to one school, not all adolescents.
Traps that cost marks
- Copying from the internet without citation.
- Asking leading questions such as 'Don't you agree phones are harmful?'
- Generalising from a convenience sample.
- Ignoring consent, anonymity or limitations.