Good research skills will enable you be an innovator in horticulture, and to identify trends, issues, and needs that can create new opportunities and directions in horticulture.

Develop the skills and knowledge needed to plan, conduct and report on research in social, technological and environmental issues that impact on Horticulture today and which are needed for strategic business planning.

For many students, their first experience with research occurred in school where they were required to prepare a research report or a presentation on a particular subject. This is the fundamental level of research, and its aim is to gather information on a topic, which is later to be presented to an intended audience (a class, teacher etc). Examples are research on a particular country, animal, or political system.

Another level of research aims at answering a research question (often called the thesis question). The information that is gathered and presented is chosen in order to answer that question. Examples of research questions are: What main social and political factors contribute to poverty in country X? Why is the Madagascan lemur an endangered species? How was language used to justify and maintain the Cold War last century? Well formulated and pertinent questions can lead to meaningful research projects that can greatly increase our understanding of the world and ourselves. The problem with this kind of research, though, is that it can be very difficult to know what questions to ask.

There are 7 lessons in this course:

1. Determining Research Needs
2. Searching for Information
3. Research Methods
4. Using Statistics
5. Conducting Statistical Research
6. Research Reports
7. Reporting on a Research Project

Each lesson culminates in an assignment which is submitted to the school, marked by the school's tutors and returned to you with any relevant suggestions, comments, and if necessary, extra reading.

• Conduct preliminary investigations to determine areas where there is a valid need for research in social, technological and environmental issues that impact on horticulture today
• Conduct an information search into a defined issue related to social, technological and environmental issues that impact on Horticulture today.
• Explain research methods, including experimental techniques, commonly used.
• Demonstrate and explain the basic statistical methods used for research.
• Conduct a minor statistical research project into a well defined area, relevant to your area of study.
• Prepare a research report in a format which conforms to normal industry procedures.
• Demonstrate critical analytical thinking, reviewing skills and report writing skills.