Proposal and assessment

1. Commercial Music in Context
The Proposal

2. Project Proposal and Bibliography
(1000 words)
Deadline for Proposal
15th December 2014

3. Essay
structure
Front Cover with details
Include your name, course,
assignment, year
List of Contents
List of Illustrations
Introduction
Main Text – divided into sub-headings
Conclusion
References
Bibliography
Appendices
Start this task by
considering the proposed
structure of your 4,000
word essay. Some of
these components will be
part of the Proposal.

4. Proposal
structure
Front Cover with details
Research Question
Explanation of this Research
Question
(approximately 200 words)
Contextual background
(approximately 500 words)
Proposed structure of the essay
(approximately 300 words)
7)
Bibliography (APA style)
8)
Appendices
Your proposal
should contain
the following
series of
headings in
this order:

5. The Research Question
and Structure part of the
Proposal will form the
Introduction.
!
Obviously there will be no
conclusion to the Proposal!
!
The Context part of the
Proposal will become the
main text.
!! NOTE !!
As with the 4000 word
essay, use sub-headings
to structure your proposal
and to split it up. Sub-headings
act as
signposts.

6. Research Question
In one or two sentences you will focus on the main
objectives of this essay.
It is these objectives that we will measure you against when
assessing your work.
There is a difference between having a Topic:
The Hip Hop Genre
and having a Research Question:
What were the social and cultural
contexts that gave rise to Hip Hop?
When constructing your question you need to ensure that
you have the research material to enable you to answer
this question

7. Immediately following the one or two
sentences that you have used to state
your question, you should write one
or two short paragraphs that
attempt to explain what your
question means.
Explanation of the
Research Question
!! NOTE !!
✘ Do not write a lengthy
account at this stage in your
proposal!
✔ Allow yourself 100-200 words
maximum.
In some cases you may have a
direct and simple research
question; however many
research questions do require
some explanation.
This should help to make it clear
what you are trying to do but it
will not be the answer to the
question you have set yourself.

8. This part of the Proposal
will be the largest
component.
Contextual
Background and
Referencing
You are expected to write a 500 words of text, using
APA referencing throughout.
This component of the proposal will
enable assessors to determine your
knowledge of the chosen topic
alongside your ability to write in an
academic format.

9. Contextual
Background and
Referencing
It is up to you how you compose this text.
!
It may entirely be a background/history to your topic.
You could concentrate upon issues/theory - this will
obviously focus on the core of your argument.
!! NOTE !!
Many students use this section as a mini version of the whole essay they
intend to write which they then work upon throughout this academic year.

10. Even though you are at the early stages of
this project we require you to produce an
‘essay plan’.
Structure
of the essay
✘ It is not enough for you to simply state that you will write a
history of your topic.
!
✔ You will need to say what this history is and provide a suitable sub-headed
title for the section. Likewise, this applies to the theory section
and the example section.

11. Bibliography
Following your context section of the proposal
you will have provided a list of references (using APA
referencing style).
!
Following the structure section of your proposal
you will provide a full bibliography.
(This will obviously include some of the material that you have
used in your referencing section).
!! NOTE !!
You are being assessed on this research work so ensure
that you have a good collection of books, articles, and
websites along side other research material.

12. The text for your
Proposal
Your text should be presented in the following way:
✔ The text must be word processed in 12 point Times New
Roman font
✔ All pages of the work should be numbered sequentially
✘ Do not use the first person when writing
✔ Lines of text should normally be double spaced
except for quotations of more than 5 lines
✔ All work must be spell
checked and proof-read prior to submission