Picking a topic
You can pick any topic that is related to Modern Studies. You can pick a subject that is not on your National 5 course or one that you have done in previous years for example.
Despite this it is good advice to pick a topic that you have studied for National 5 as it means that the knowledge you collect may be helpful in the final exam if that question comes up. This means that your research will be useful to you twice.
There are often problems when choosing a topic. Common ones are:
- Too historical 鈥 Are Russia and the USA Superpowers? Too often this leads to a detailed description of the Cold War from over thirty years ago
- Too descriptive 鈥 How should the UK punish serial killers? Too often leads to a detailed description of the murders
- Too much like RMPS 鈥 Should Scotland legalise Cannabis? Too often this leads to moral arguments rather than the political arguments
Is it a good topic?
One problem many students face once they have picked a topic is a lack of information. Before you settle on a topic make sure you do an internet search to see how much information on your topic is out there.
You may have picked a topic which has lots of information but framed a question or hypothesis that doesn't have much information available. At that point you may wish to keep the topic and change your question or hypothesis or change topic completely. It is best to find out now rather than later.