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Student guideRainflower user guide Handbook PDF Coordinator guide →
Contents · page 6 of 9
  1. 1Welcome
  2. 2Getting started
  3. 3Your dashboard
  4. 4Raindrops and badges
  5. 5Research stages
  6. 6Research groups and papers
  7. 7Community
  8. 8Getting help
  9. 9Quick reference

Student guide · 6 of 9

Research groups and papers

Claim a paper, get approved, work in your group space and follow the 13-week plan.

A research paper takes about 13 weeks: you claim a proposal, wait for approval, do the work in your group space and submit. Papers can be written alone or by a team of up to 5; each paper sets its own limit.

Claiming a paper

  1. Browse open proposals at /research/proposals/open and read the full proposal (there is a PDF too).
  2. Agree on your team and tell your parents.
  3. On the paper, scroll to Want to write this? Leave Teammates empty to work alone, or type their usernames to add them.
  4. Optionally name the group (otherwise a water-themed name such as Lotus Petals is chosen), then press Claim this paper.

Whoever presses the button becomes the group lead. A student can be in only one group per paper.

Approval

The group page shows Waiting for approval until a Rainflower admin approves or declines it. While you wait, the lead can rename the group, write a description, add a cover photo and change members.

Your group page

Find it from the profile menu (My Group), at /research/my-groups, or on your dashboard. Once approved, it gives you:

  • Group files: drag files in (up to 20 at a time, 100 MB each), choose a folder, add a What changed? note and press Upload. Every version is kept. Files are never public.
  • Log in to Aktiful Survey: opens the Aktiful survey tool already signed in. Everyone in your group shares the surveys any member creates there.
  • Edit group details and Add members (within the paper's team size).

Who can do what

Action Lead Teammates Coordinator
See files and versions Yes Yes Yes
Upload or remove files Yes Yes No
Rename, description, cover, add members Yes No Yes
Remove members Before approval only No Yes
Withdraw the group Yes No No

Keeping files tidy and safe

Suggested folders: plan, consent, survey, interviews, photos, diary, analysis, drafts, final. Use codes such as H01 instead of people's names, and don't upload photos of children's faces.

The 13 weeks

  1. Choose and plan (weeks 1 to 2). Your coordinator reviews the plan.
  2. Permission and pilot (weeks 2 to 3).
  3. First sample (weeks 3 to 4). An advisor reviews it.
  4. Full data collection (weeks 5 to 8).
  5. Analyze (weeks 9 to 10).
  6. Write (weeks 11 to 12).
  7. Final review (week 13). Your coordinator reviews the final draft.

Asking questions about a paper

Each proposal has a Questions section. Press Ask a question: Thunder answers straight away if the proposal covers it. Otherwise your coordinator and the Rainflower team are emailed, and you are emailed when it is answered.

The full step-by-step research-group guide, with a PDF, is at /guides/research-group.

The Research Team Handbook

Everything about research teams, a full chapter on research ethics, and every open research paper, in one printable book: Research Team Handbook (PDF).