Sunday, May 31, 2009
Rabbit trails
Rabbit trails are one of my favorite aspects of conducting qualitative interviews. As the researcher, I can’t help but formulate ideas about what information is going to result from my questions. Often I am accurate in my prejudgments, but occasionally I ask a question that opens up a door of data that I had not anticipated, but is full of rich and meaningful data. For instance, I asked an administrator about the history of the Shanghai program and how it began and he shared about the inauguration speech of the current university president. During this speech, over 12 years ago, the president projected a vision for making inroads to higher education in China. This foundational vision that was cast in his speech started a domino effect that over the course of more than a decade resulted in the foundation of the shanghai program. Here I was anticipating an answer to my question that I believed would center around a 3-5 year period, but I learn that it all started with a presidential inauguration address. These gems of information that are totally unanticipated are one of my favorite aspects of qualitative research.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
interviewing
I’ve found that the interview phase of qualitative research is my favorite. People generally want to tell their story and if the right questions are asked, it is cool to see the energy that is created in the room. The interviews I've conducted with the participants and planners of the Shanghai international program have been great because it is something that the interviewees want to talk about. They get excited which in turn gets me excited. Every interview I've conducted thus far has been pleasant and each time the interviewee has been enthusiastic about participating in any future follow-up interviews.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Nathan 6 & 7 and Creswell 10
My freshman year - Ch. 6&7
What stood out to me at the beginning of chapter six was that Nathan kind of qualified her findings a bit. While this is a common practice in qualitative research, I was surprised that she held off on this aspect of her reporting until now. She mentions that some of her observations are nothing new and are "two centuries old." She also makes a point that not all college students could be categorized by her observations. While these facts are obvious, there would have been comfort in some of her reporting if she had stressed or embedded this point in in the earlier chapters. At times when I was reading the book I dismissed her findings because I mentally made the note that "well, I'm sure not all of the students in her school are like that. Why doesn't she report on some of the more positive aspects of what she is observing?" While it's obvious that this reality exists, I would have given her more credit if she had mentioned this along with her findings. Maybe this is just a personal preference.
Later in the chapter, I appreciated her discussion on the manner in which administrators and teachers over-stress the importance of time management skills. Her writing deign in reporting this portion of her findings made me feel like I was one of the students beginning the school year. Her vivid descriptions evoked emotions of my own personal experiences as a freshman. I think good qualitative research, which this obviously is, is exposed as such when an "insider" has an "AH HA!, YES" moment to what the researcher is describing. While I was not an insider at her particular institution, I was an undergraduate student during the time period of her study, and I related to what she was saying.
With chapter seven, I liked how she postured the chapter as an opportunity to conduct personal reflection and to also make some inferences from the data. Further, I liked how she put the book into context by stating that "I hold out my conclusions not as advice but rather as food for thought that students and teachers can share." Too often I think I get wrapped up in the need for research data to bring about change. After all, most quantitative research has a section devoted to application and changes, or "suggestions for practice." I love that such profound research can be done simply for the sake of starting conversations. After all, it is these conversations and the interrelations of people and campus leaders, that will lead to change measures and applications.
Creswell Ch. 10
"Is the account valid, and by whose standards?" So much is wrapped up in this questions posed by Creswell. I really enjoyed this chapter because it answered many of my curiosities that had emerged during the previous chapters. The discussions of validity and reliability, specifically in regards to the techniques used to enhance the quality of the research, were very informative. Having operationalized definitions for terms such as credibility, authenticity, and integrity was helpful for a beginning qualitative researcher. I almost think that this chapter could have been covered earlier in the book. Many of the terms described in chapter 10 have been used throughout. While the reader may have had a general understanding of their meanings, it would have been helpful to have a more thorough grasp of the terminology. Further, coming from a strategic point of view, the section on Validation Strategies would have been helpful earlier in the book as well. I think I would have been able to see what composes the skeleton of good qualitative research and been able to use that information to better understand the information.
What stood out to me at the beginning of chapter six was that Nathan kind of qualified her findings a bit. While this is a common practice in qualitative research, I was surprised that she held off on this aspect of her reporting until now. She mentions that some of her observations are nothing new and are "two centuries old." She also makes a point that not all college students could be categorized by her observations. While these facts are obvious, there would have been comfort in some of her reporting if she had stressed or embedded this point in in the earlier chapters. At times when I was reading the book I dismissed her findings because I mentally made the note that "well, I'm sure not all of the students in her school are like that. Why doesn't she report on some of the more positive aspects of what she is observing?" While it's obvious that this reality exists, I would have given her more credit if she had mentioned this along with her findings. Maybe this is just a personal preference.
Later in the chapter, I appreciated her discussion on the manner in which administrators and teachers over-stress the importance of time management skills. Her writing deign in reporting this portion of her findings made me feel like I was one of the students beginning the school year. Her vivid descriptions evoked emotions of my own personal experiences as a freshman. I think good qualitative research, which this obviously is, is exposed as such when an "insider" has an "AH HA!, YES" moment to what the researcher is describing. While I was not an insider at her particular institution, I was an undergraduate student during the time period of her study, and I related to what she was saying.
With chapter seven, I liked how she postured the chapter as an opportunity to conduct personal reflection and to also make some inferences from the data. Further, I liked how she put the book into context by stating that "I hold out my conclusions not as advice but rather as food for thought that students and teachers can share." Too often I think I get wrapped up in the need for research data to bring about change. After all, most quantitative research has a section devoted to application and changes, or "suggestions for practice." I love that such profound research can be done simply for the sake of starting conversations. After all, it is these conversations and the interrelations of people and campus leaders, that will lead to change measures and applications.
Creswell Ch. 10
"Is the account valid, and by whose standards?" So much is wrapped up in this questions posed by Creswell. I really enjoyed this chapter because it answered many of my curiosities that had emerged during the previous chapters. The discussions of validity and reliability, specifically in regards to the techniques used to enhance the quality of the research, were very informative. Having operationalized definitions for terms such as credibility, authenticity, and integrity was helpful for a beginning qualitative researcher. I almost think that this chapter could have been covered earlier in the book. Many of the terms described in chapter 10 have been used throughout. While the reader may have had a general understanding of their meanings, it would have been helpful to have a more thorough grasp of the terminology. Further, coming from a strategic point of view, the section on Validation Strategies would have been helpful earlier in the book as well. I think I would have been able to see what composes the skeleton of good qualitative research and been able to use that information to better understand the information.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Timelines
What I have been most surprised with about the research process this semester has been my lack of timeliness. I set a time-line for my big project with my proposals. I glanced at it this morning and chuckled. In my idealized world at the beginning of the semester I had it all planned out. Then life hit and things got pushed back again and again. Now I am glad that the first day of summer has begun and I can focus a bit more on my research. July will be here soon.
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