Exercise C: This exercise uses the Eve dataset in CHILDES and the CLAN software. The dataset from the Brown corpus and can be downloaded from http://childes.psy.cmu.edu/data/Eng-NA-MOR/.
In this exercise you will be tracking Eves MLUs at different ages and linking the MLUs to developmental stagesWrite a 500-word abstract about the data that you are analyzing here. Write the abstract as if you were writing an abstract for a linguistics conference. You can see examples of conference abstracts here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0a477xEnvzXVWEyNkNMVUtjdEk/view
(the one-page abstracts starts a couple of pages into the document). Your abstract should include the following:i) An introduction that introduces your analysis and describes what kinds of results you expect. Questions you may want to address in the introduction include: What kind of data are you looking at? Based on what you know about the one-word stage, two-word stage and multiword stage as well as which MLUs correspond to which of these milestones (see lecture slides for lectures 2 and 5), when would you expect Eve to reach which MLU?
j) A method section that tells us about the data, in particular, about the participant, the materials, and the task. You can find the relevant information here: http://childes.psy.cmu.edu/manuals/02english-na.pdf.
k) A results section in which you present the results. In particular, you should make a table that shows Eves age and MLU for all the 20 files in the dataset. You should use CLAN to calculate MLUs. Information on how to do this is in the lecture slides for lecture 5. To find out Eves age for any given file in the dataset, open the file by double-clicking on it. The age, given in number of years and number of months separated by a semi-colon, is among the information in the fifth line of each file. Make sure that your table clearly presents the data. Then you should link the MLUs that you calculated for the different ages to the five MLU stages according to Brown and to the one-word stage, two-word stage and multiword stage. That is, at which age does Eve enter which stage?
l) A discussion section in which you discuss the results. Questions you may want to address in the introduction include: What do the results show? What do the results mean with respect to Eves linguistic development? Is this what you expected? I.e. does Eve enter the different developmental stages at the expected age or earlier or later than you expected?

Data Analysis
Assignment Part I Qualitative Data Analysis Advice
Part 1. Qualitative data analysis assessment
Using the approaches which you have explored on this module carry out a qualitative data analysis on the interview data provided (available on Moodle). a) Present your analysis of the data under a ‘findings’ heading (1000 words)
b) With reference to the relevant methodological literature, critically discuss the challenges of analysing qualitative data and the production of rigorous findings.(1500 words).

Advice for part a) Present your analysis of the data under a ‘findings’ heading (1000 words)
1. Explain briefly and descriptively what you did to the raw data (transcripts) to arrive at your themes
2. Present 3-5 themes resulting from your data analysis. This means write an analytical, not descriptive account of these themes e.g. comparing & contrasting, paying attention to language, explaining differences & similarities.
3. Use of quotations (counted in the word count): short & Illustrative.
4. You can submit a short extract of a transcript you have coded as an appendix. This is not compulsory
5. You can submit your coding scheme as a appendix. This is not compulsory. Appendices are not counted in the word count.
What you are not doing: 1. You are not answering a research question 2. You do not need a research
question 3. You do not need to use any theory on masculinity, sexuality or health etc. but you will be given credit for recognising that themes from the literature would be important.
Advice for part b) With reference to the relevant methodological literature, critically discuss the challenges of analysing qualitative data and the production of rigorous findings. (1500 words).
• Discuss with reference to the epistemological and ontological debates about qualitative research
• Discuss the methodological underpinning of qualitative data analysis
Key issues to include, for example:
• How are issues of qualitative data analysis being
‘subjective’ addressed?
• How do we ensure the quality and
trustworthiness of qualitative research findings?
• Validity, reliability, and generalizability
• The section must be based on a critical
engagement with the methodological literature
You are not:
1. Writing a reflective piece on your own qualitative data analysis
2. Writing a descriptive account
General advice
• How to make a good argument:
• – Description
• – Critical elaboration
• – Substantiation
• – Examples
• Critical analysis
• Referencing: up-to-date, text-book and
journal papers
• Reading
• Writing + drafting = comprehension

Data Analysis
Assignment Part I Qualitative Data Analysis Advice
Part 1. Qualitative data analysis assessment
Using the approaches which you have explored on this module carry out a qualitative data analysis on the interview data provided (available on Moodle). a) Present your analysis of the data under a ‘findings’ heading (1000 words)
b) With reference to the relevant methodological literature, critically discuss the challenges of analysing qualitative data and the production of rigorous findings.(1500 words).

Advice for part a) Present your analysis of the data under a ‘findings’ heading (1000 words)
1. Explain briefly and descriptively what you did to the raw data (transcripts) to arrive at your themes
2. Present 3-5 themes resulting from your data analysis. This means write an analytical, not descriptive account of these themes e.g. comparing & contrasting, paying attention to language, explaining differences & similarities.
3. Use of quotations (counted in the word count): short & Illustrative.
4. You can submit a short extract of a transcript you have coded as an appendix. This is not compulsory
5. You can submit your coding scheme as a appendix. This is not compulsory. Appendices are not counted in the word count.
What you are not doing: 1. You are not answering a research question 2. You do not need a research
question 3. You do not need to use any theory on masculinity, sexuality or health etc. but you will be given credit for recognising that themes from the literature would be important.
Advice for part b) With reference to the relevant methodological literature, critically discuss the challenges of analysing qualitative data and the production of rigorous findings. (1500 words).
• Discuss with reference to the epistemological and ontological debates about qualitative research
• Discuss the methodological underpinning of qualitative data analysis
Key issues to include, for example:
• How are issues of qualitative data analysis being
‘subjective’ addressed?
• How do we ensure the quality and
trustworthiness of qualitative research findings?
• Validity, reliability, and generalizability
• The section must be based on a critical
engagement with the methodological literature
You are not:
1. Writing a reflective piece on your own qualitative data analysis
2. Writing a descriptive account
General advice
• How to make a good argument:
• – Description
• – Critical elaboration
• – Substantiation
• – Examples
• Critical analysis
• Referencing: up-to-date, text-book and
journal papers
• Reading
• Writing + drafting = comprehension