EPQ help/ topics?

[B4457]

Hi everyone, I'm due to be starting an epq soon and was hoping to do something related to both horses and veterinary medicine, but I'm struggling to find a suitable topic to write about; I was thinking of doing something related to sports horse medicine but I'm open to any suggestions- it has to be a topic able to be debated and cover 5000 words! Sorry if this is posted in the wrong place, and many thanks in advance!

 

[twobearsarthur]

Oh you could go down so many debatable paths with this. You only have to look on this forum to see some great debates.
If it’s a subject you feel passionate about 5000 words will seem like nothing at all. Is there anything recently in the equestrian news that’s peaked your interest?
You could debate the efficacy of alternative treatments or chose a specific treatment. Something extremely emotive regarding quality of life for injured or aged equines- just because veterinary medicine enables us to prolong it should we? I come for a mental health background so would probably pick something about the perceived benefits of NLP in equestrian sports or even equine therapy as a treatment for mental health problems. You could open a can of worms with a training question ethics & welfare vs real life vs the cost of winning. Something on breeding for success and the ethical implications (I saw tonight that Norway has banned bulldogs and Cavalier King Charles Spaniels due to selective breeding being cruel easily transferable to equine breeding practices especially in certain sports) I’m pretty sure if you search EPQ on here they’ll be some past posts too.

 

[[153312]]

Fwiw I didn't stick to the word limit for my epq and wasn't marked down for doing so; it ended up being 19,000 words so don't be afraid to go for something controversial/'meaty'.
If you want something sport horse related:
Bits Vs bitless?
Cloning ethics?
Shod Vs barefoot at the highest levels of equine competition
Those are kind of obvious but vast topics
Maybe something about the recent debacle re. Modern pentathlon?

 

[Cowpony]

The effect of modern husbandry practices on equine health and behaviour. That should keep you going for a few years

 

[stangs]

Ethics of using prosthetic limbs with horses?

 

[Highmileagecob]

Does the way we keep horses stabled in a light-restricted environment predispose them to developing Cushings Syndrome?
Is there a reduced incidence amongst horses who have access to natural daylight at all times?

 

[daydreamer]

hi, I teach the EPQ. Remember that your essay needs to show "synergy" (a really weird way of saying you need to bring ideas from different sources together) and should be analytical rather than descriptive. You need something with a pretty balanced for and against argument. You also need to make sure your essay is driven by research - it isn't really about what *you* think. You also need to make sure you evaluate your sources - so you can't really write an essay based on the opinions of people on this forum! I would start by doing a search on google scholar and on jstor if your school/college has access to it. Bear in mind you will need access to full text of any scientific journal articles so it is no good choosing something that comes up a lot in "Equine science" journal if you don't have access to that journal. Also remember that your essay needs to answer your question very clearly so i usually try and steer people away from "to what extent" or "the ethics of" type questions as they are really hard to write a clear conclusion for. Also remember the EPQ is largely a project management qualification so a huge part of what you are marked on is actually the planning, monitoring and evaluating the process.

 

[B4457]

Ethics of using prosthetic limbs with horses?

That's what I did my GCSE English Speaking exam on aha

 

[B4457]

Oh you could go down so many debatable paths with this. You only have to look on this forum to see some great debates.
If it’s a subject you feel passionate about 5000 words will seem like nothing at all. Is there anything recently in the equestrian news that’s peaked your interest?
You could debate the efficacy of alternative treatments or chose a specific treatment. Something extremely emotive regarding quality of life for injured or aged equines- just because veterinary medicine enables us to prolong it should we? I come for a mental health background so would probably pick something about the perceived benefits of NLP in equestrian sports or even equine therapy as a treatment for mental health problems. You could open a can of worms with a training question ethics & welfare vs real life vs the cost of winning. Something on breeding for success and the ethical implications (I saw tonight that Norway has banned bulldogs and Cavalier King Charles Spaniels due to selective breeding being cruel easily transferable to equine breeding practices especially in certain sports) I’m pretty sure if you search EPQ on here they’ll be some past posts too.

Thank you so much! I know a few people doing theirs about selective breeding in dogs so horses could be an interesting twist on that

 

[B4457]

Fwiw I didn't stick to the word limit for my epq and wasn't marked down for doing so; it ended up being 19,000 words so don't be afraid to go for something controversial/'meaty'.
If you want something sport horse related:
Bits Vs bitless?
Cloning ethics?
Shod Vs barefoot at the highest levels of equine competition
Those are kind of obvious but vast topics
Maybe something about the recent debacle re. Modern pentathlon?

19000 words is impressive, not sure I'd have the patience! I do quite like the ethics of cloning, and shoeing is always going to have plenty to debate about

 

[B4457]

The effect of modern husbandry practices on equine health and behaviour. That should keep you going for a few years

I'd imagine that could be an entire A-level in itself, not just an epq!

 

[B4457]

hi, I teach the EPQ. Remember that your essay needs to show "synergy" (a really weird way of saying you need to bring ideas from different sources together) and should be analytical rather than descriptive. You need something with a pretty balanced for and against argument. You also need to make sure your essay is driven by research - it isn't really about what *you* think. You also need to make sure you evaluate your sources - so you can't really write an essay based on the opinions of people on this forum! I would start by doing a search on google scholar and on jstor if your school/college has access to it. Bear in mind you will need access to full text of any scientific journal articles so it is no good choosing something that comes up a lot in "Equine science" journal if you don't have access to that journal. Also remember that your essay needs to answer your question very clearly so i usually try and steer people away from "to what extent" or "the ethics of" type questions as they are really hard to write a clear conclusion for. Also remember the EPQ is largely a project management qualification so a huge part of what you are marked on is actually the planning, monitoring and evaluating the process.

The debate aspect as opposed to an explanation is the part I've been struggling with, I considered doing something to do with injuries in racehorses but couldn't really come up with a concise enough topic/question and my coordinator didn't seem to like it so I dropped it

 

[B4457]

Does the way we keep horses stabled in a light-restricted environment predispose them to developing Cushings Syndrome?
Is there a reduced incidence amongst horses who have access to natural daylight at all times?

I'll have a look and see how many resources I can find, a horse at the rescue I volunteer at has Cushings so that could be a good one for linking in with my personal statement!