Creswell's questions regarding the impact upon the reader, the effect of words, really hit home with me. In chapter 9 of our book, he states that "Language may 'kill' whatever it touches..." Ouch! As a writer, I want to create, to bring to life for my reader. If it is possible that my act will actually do the opposite, kill rather than bring to life, what am I doing here?? I am almost paralytic with the thought that my research will not do justice to its subjects.
This was evident in the difficulty I had writing up my final research project for our diversity class last semester. I chose to study LGBT students at PLNU. I could not write the final paper until the deadline was so close that I could feel it like a hammer above my head. What if I mis-characterized the feelings of the students I interviewed? What if they felt outed by my paper? What if seeing what I had written made them feel badly about themselves, or the school, or life in general? Arrrgghhh!! It was so very hard for me to write that paper because I felt it had to be worthy of the gift of Story that these people had given me. Mishandling that gift would be so hard for me to forgive in myself.
I think that this type of research is especially hard for a Christian, yet truly appropriate. We question our motives to see whether they are Godly. We want to do justice in our work, and to do work that is worthy of our Lord. The same elements that make us ethical researchers may make the process of writing and making meaning from another's story excruciatingly difficult. As I see it, we are both blessed and cursed by the additional concerns that we as Christians bring to qualitative research.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Research Journal - Theorectical/Methodological Memo
For many reasons, I believe the Nathan book was a great choice for us to read as a class. The story is excellent, the writing accessible, it is an interesting study for anyone who is involved in higher education in this country. But it is also a good example of how to put together the findings of a qualitative study.
Nathan incorporates the literature especially well in chapters 4 and 5 of MFY, a really good example of someone who has thought deeply about her readings and understands the relationships between her study and those that have come before. Her inclusion of the literature in the narrative of her study is graceful and allows the reader to more fully comprehend the importance of the topic and Nathan's conclusions.
That said, I wonder how much of this ability lies in Nathan's many year involvement in the field. I begin to fear that I will overlook some major study, simply because I am both new to qualitative research, and new to the particular arena of higher education I have chosen to investigate. This helps me to think about the importance of choosing my topic wisely when it comes to my dissertation as well.
Some studies I have found that begin to lay the groundwork for my own investigation into honors programs follow, along with notes on their content.
Title: A Qualitative Study of Honor Students' Learning Orientations: The Rare Liberal Scholar
Personal Author: Storrs, Debbie; Clott, Lynsie
Journal Name: College Student Journal
Source: College Student Journal v. 42 no. 1 (March 2008) p. 57-69
Abstract:
Based on interview data, we examine honors students' learning orientation in light of this. Using the analytical concept of an "ideal type" we identify "liberal scholars," "players," "critical players," and "getting by" as the four student learning orientations expressed by honors students. Our analysis reveals that some honors students experience conflict between the business and liberal education models that co-exist at institutions of higher education and relatively few students embraced a liberal arts orientation despite honors programs' attempts to facilitate one. We conclude by critically discussing the larger cultural context that encourages honors students to view learning simply as a means to an end.
Title: Effects of Programmatic Selectivity on the Academic Achievement, Academic Self-Concepts, and Aspirations of Gifted College Students
Personal Author: Rinn, Anne N.
Journal Name: Gifted Child Quarterly
Source: Gifted Child Quarterly v. 51 no. 3 (Summer 2007) p. 232-45
Publication Year: 2007
Abstract: The purpose of this study is to examine the academic achievement, academic self-concepts, and aspirations of gifted college students who are enrolled in an honors program and of gifted college students who are not enrolled in an honors program. Participants include 294 gifted college students, 248 of whom were enrolled in an honors program and 46 who were not enrolled in an honors program. A series of analyses of covariance is used to compare the mean grade point averages, academic self-concepts, and educational aspirations of the two groups. Academic self-concept is measured using the Academic subscale of the Self Description Questionnaire III. Results indicate the gifted/honors students have higher academic achievement and higher academic self-concepts than the gifted/ nonhonors students, even when controlling for SAT score. No significant differences are found with regard to aspirations.
Title: Prioritizing Service to the Academically Talented: The Honors College
Personal Author: Floyd, Deborah L.; Holloway, Alexandria
Journal Name: New Directions for Community Colleges
Source: New Directions for Community Colleges no. 136 (Winter 2006) p. 43-52
Publication Year: 2006
Abstract: 5 This chapter describes community college honors programs and courses, emphasizing in particular the Honors College at Miami Bade College in Florida. The chapter discusses pros and cons of honors programs and courses in the context of their appropriateness to the community college mission of open access and egalitarianism.
Nathan incorporates the literature especially well in chapters 4 and 5 of MFY, a really good example of someone who has thought deeply about her readings and understands the relationships between her study and those that have come before. Her inclusion of the literature in the narrative of her study is graceful and allows the reader to more fully comprehend the importance of the topic and Nathan's conclusions.
That said, I wonder how much of this ability lies in Nathan's many year involvement in the field. I begin to fear that I will overlook some major study, simply because I am both new to qualitative research, and new to the particular arena of higher education I have chosen to investigate. This helps me to think about the importance of choosing my topic wisely when it comes to my dissertation as well.
Some studies I have found that begin to lay the groundwork for my own investigation into honors programs follow, along with notes on their content.
Title: A Qualitative Study of Honor Students' Learning Orientations: The Rare Liberal Scholar
Personal Author: Storrs, Debbie; Clott, Lynsie
Journal Name: College Student Journal
Source: College Student Journal v. 42 no. 1 (March 2008) p. 57-69
Abstract:
Based on interview data, we examine honors students' learning orientation in light of this. Using the analytical concept of an "ideal type" we identify "liberal scholars," "players," "critical players," and "getting by" as the four student learning orientations expressed by honors students. Our analysis reveals that some honors students experience conflict between the business and liberal education models that co-exist at institutions of higher education and relatively few students embraced a liberal arts orientation despite honors programs' attempts to facilitate one. We conclude by critically discussing the larger cultural context that encourages honors students to view learning simply as a means to an end.
Title: Effects of Programmatic Selectivity on the Academic Achievement, Academic Self-Concepts, and Aspirations of Gifted College Students
Personal Author: Rinn, Anne N.
Journal Name: Gifted Child Quarterly
Source: Gifted Child Quarterly v. 51 no. 3 (Summer 2007) p. 232-45
Publication Year: 2007
Abstract: The purpose of this study is to examine the academic achievement, academic self-concepts, and aspirations of gifted college students who are enrolled in an honors program and of gifted college students who are not enrolled in an honors program. Participants include 294 gifted college students, 248 of whom were enrolled in an honors program and 46 who were not enrolled in an honors program. A series of analyses of covariance is used to compare the mean grade point averages, academic self-concepts, and educational aspirations of the two groups. Academic self-concept is measured using the Academic subscale of the Self Description Questionnaire III. Results indicate the gifted/honors students have higher academic achievement and higher academic self-concepts than the gifted/ nonhonors students, even when controlling for SAT score. No significant differences are found with regard to aspirations.
Title: Prioritizing Service to the Academically Talented: The Honors College
Personal Author: Floyd, Deborah L.; Holloway, Alexandria
Journal Name: New Directions for Community Colleges
Source: New Directions for Community Colleges no. 136 (Winter 2006) p. 43-52
Publication Year: 2006
Abstract: 5 This chapter describes community college honors programs and courses, emphasizing in particular the Honors College at Miami Bade College in Florida. The chapter discusses pros and cons of honors programs and courses in the context of their appropriateness to the community college mission of open access and egalitarianism.
Reading Log #3 - Part 3
Reading Log, Creswell, Chap. 9
Summary:
The chapter begins with four presentations of what Creswell calls rhetorical issues. The first: Reflexivity and representation, in which the researcher acknowledges her own stance within the writing, the interaction between the subject and the researcher, and how this interaction informs the study. This issue is also concerned with the impact on the subjects, their ability to inform, edit, and approve of the writing concerning themselves, as well as the impact upon the reader.
The reader, or audience, is the second of the rhetorical issues. Creswell maintains that the final writeup of our research must consider the audience and will be structured differently depending upon whom we think will be reading our work.
Encoding, or the way in which we form our narrative, is the third issue. Creswell gives the example of the Richardson (1990) study, which was written in three distinct ways in order to reach three separate audiences. He then gives examples of various ways of encoding for academic audiences.
Quotes, the fourth rhetorical issue, are broken down into three types by Creswell: short eye-catching quotes, embedded quotes in which brief statements are placed within the researcher's narrative, and longer quotations. With this last type, Creswell cautions that they are difficult to use because they may contain many ideas and require setup and explanation for the reader.
The author finishes the chapter with example rhetorical structures for each of the five qualitative approaches used in the book.
Reflection:
Creswell has a number of things to say in this chapter that wildly appeal to the writer in me. His suggestions to play with form, experiment with style, and even look to methods of communicating that step outside the textual are very freeing and exciting. This is the permission to write as I love to write that I have been seeking since starting my doctoral program! But...I wonder how far one can really go and still find acceptance from professors, scholars, and publishers? My past attempts at playing with the structure of my papers has always been viewed with a rather critical eye - I did not put this information in at the accepted point, that bit of literature should have been included later or earlier, etc. The risk one runs in playing with form is that those who grade or assess are often married to a particular format and frown on those who risk stepping outside the box.
Alas,the methodology that I have chosen, phenomenology, will likely not provide me with an opportunity to test this theory. Creswell states that phenomenological studies require a highly structured approach to the composition of the writing, one with which I will be less able to test the boundaries of acceptable practice.
Summary:
The chapter begins with four presentations of what Creswell calls rhetorical issues. The first: Reflexivity and representation, in which the researcher acknowledges her own stance within the writing, the interaction between the subject and the researcher, and how this interaction informs the study. This issue is also concerned with the impact on the subjects, their ability to inform, edit, and approve of the writing concerning themselves, as well as the impact upon the reader.
The reader, or audience, is the second of the rhetorical issues. Creswell maintains that the final writeup of our research must consider the audience and will be structured differently depending upon whom we think will be reading our work.
Encoding, or the way in which we form our narrative, is the third issue. Creswell gives the example of the Richardson (1990) study, which was written in three distinct ways in order to reach three separate audiences. He then gives examples of various ways of encoding for academic audiences.
Quotes, the fourth rhetorical issue, are broken down into three types by Creswell: short eye-catching quotes, embedded quotes in which brief statements are placed within the researcher's narrative, and longer quotations. With this last type, Creswell cautions that they are difficult to use because they may contain many ideas and require setup and explanation for the reader.
The author finishes the chapter with example rhetorical structures for each of the five qualitative approaches used in the book.
Reflection:
Creswell has a number of things to say in this chapter that wildly appeal to the writer in me. His suggestions to play with form, experiment with style, and even look to methods of communicating that step outside the textual are very freeing and exciting. This is the permission to write as I love to write that I have been seeking since starting my doctoral program! But...I wonder how far one can really go and still find acceptance from professors, scholars, and publishers? My past attempts at playing with the structure of my papers has always been viewed with a rather critical eye - I did not put this information in at the accepted point, that bit of literature should have been included later or earlier, etc. The risk one runs in playing with form is that those who grade or assess are often married to a particular format and frown on those who risk stepping outside the box.
Alas,the methodology that I have chosen, phenomenology, will likely not provide me with an opportunity to test this theory. Creswell states that phenomenological studies require a highly structured approach to the composition of the writing, one with which I will be less able to test the boundaries of acceptable practice.
Reading Log #3 - Part 2
Reading Log, Nathan, Chap. 5
Summary:
The chapter begins with a description of an activity that Nathan regularly employs in her Anthropology classroom. She tells the students that a witch is responsible for the way the class is going, etc, then has the students each identify three candidates from among their classroom that might be the witch. She then discusses the outcome - which is nearly always the same. The students routinely choose the most engaged, prepared, and vocal from among their classmates. Nathan then uses this to focus the students' attention on matters of difference and expectation culturally.
Sections on patterns of speech in the classroom and the dorm highlight the disconnect between academic expectation and reality. In class, professors desire questions and discussion that engage the material, while students ask questions and participate in discussion in ways that secure necessary information or do not reveal to others a level of engagement that would mark them as different from the norm. Conversations before and after classes also showed that students were unwilling or uninterested in participating in academically focused dialog.
Nathan's observations of conversations within the dorms confirmed that, despite their claims to the contrary, students spent less than 5% of their time discussing material presented in class or incorporating classroom discussions into their outside interactions with one another.In essence, the desire of academe - to form persons who engage with intellectual matter on a level that pervades (and hopefully changes) their lives does occur within the students' time at university. Instead, the "real" culture of the undergrad world remains highly personal and relationship driven. In Nathan's words, "Academic and intellectual pursuits thus had a curiously distant relation to college life."
A mini-study of the reasons that students remain in college revealed that students see life in college as a major reason to be there. This confirmed the students' assertions that most of their learning at AnyU took place outside the classroom. Nathan's conclusion is that college culture, rather than academics, is often the most compelling part of the university experience. This finding was confirmed when Nathan attended a course recommended as the "perfect class." The sexuality class modeled what students required in their daily lives: equality, informality, fun, irreverence, and a separation from the more formal aspects of learning.
Reflection:
Throughout my reading of MFY I have sensed an "otherness" about Nathan that I suspect she does not recognize in herself but that is quite apparent to her fellow students at AnyU. Having read this chapter I can now put a name to that difference. Nathan is the witch! She is in many ways the epitome of that student her Anthropology classes have determined to be outside the norm because they are more engaged and prepared, less invisible. Though she talks about taking pains not to stand out in class, she does so in other arenas -through her physical attributes, and in the dorms through attendance at meetings and activities - what I call her "joinerism." These behaviors have made her the witch in the situation at AnyU.
It is so interesting to me that Nathan seems to have failed to see this in most cases and finds other reasons for her fellow students' behaviors. I do realize that she has taken great care to observe, interview, and understand the AnyU situation from many angles. Her book is fascinating on several levels. I just get a kick out of seeing her blind spots. :) I also wonder how often I am guilty of the same kind of self-ignorance!
I think this chapter, more than any so far, points out to me the basic disconnect between what the university desires for the student and the desires of the student him or her self. Professors and administrators, especially in a Christian setting, see their job as student formation. We are to impart a sense of intellectual seeking and an openness to learning. But students see the job of the university very differently. The class on sexuality demonstrates a way in which we can mesh the needs of the student with the ideals of the university. Not through showing prurient movies, but through ways of interacting with students that meet them at their point of interest.
Summary:
The chapter begins with a description of an activity that Nathan regularly employs in her Anthropology classroom. She tells the students that a witch is responsible for the way the class is going, etc, then has the students each identify three candidates from among their classroom that might be the witch. She then discusses the outcome - which is nearly always the same. The students routinely choose the most engaged, prepared, and vocal from among their classmates. Nathan then uses this to focus the students' attention on matters of difference and expectation culturally.
Sections on patterns of speech in the classroom and the dorm highlight the disconnect between academic expectation and reality. In class, professors desire questions and discussion that engage the material, while students ask questions and participate in discussion in ways that secure necessary information or do not reveal to others a level of engagement that would mark them as different from the norm. Conversations before and after classes also showed that students were unwilling or uninterested in participating in academically focused dialog.
Nathan's observations of conversations within the dorms confirmed that, despite their claims to the contrary, students spent less than 5% of their time discussing material presented in class or incorporating classroom discussions into their outside interactions with one another.In essence, the desire of academe - to form persons who engage with intellectual matter on a level that pervades (and hopefully changes) their lives does occur within the students' time at university. Instead, the "real" culture of the undergrad world remains highly personal and relationship driven. In Nathan's words, "Academic and intellectual pursuits thus had a curiously distant relation to college life."
A mini-study of the reasons that students remain in college revealed that students see life in college as a major reason to be there. This confirmed the students' assertions that most of their learning at AnyU took place outside the classroom. Nathan's conclusion is that college culture, rather than academics, is often the most compelling part of the university experience. This finding was confirmed when Nathan attended a course recommended as the "perfect class." The sexuality class modeled what students required in their daily lives: equality, informality, fun, irreverence, and a separation from the more formal aspects of learning.
Reflection:
Throughout my reading of MFY I have sensed an "otherness" about Nathan that I suspect she does not recognize in herself but that is quite apparent to her fellow students at AnyU. Having read this chapter I can now put a name to that difference. Nathan is the witch! She is in many ways the epitome of that student her Anthropology classes have determined to be outside the norm because they are more engaged and prepared, less invisible. Though she talks about taking pains not to stand out in class, she does so in other arenas -through her physical attributes, and in the dorms through attendance at meetings and activities - what I call her "joinerism." These behaviors have made her the witch in the situation at AnyU.
It is so interesting to me that Nathan seems to have failed to see this in most cases and finds other reasons for her fellow students' behaviors. I do realize that she has taken great care to observe, interview, and understand the AnyU situation from many angles. Her book is fascinating on several levels. I just get a kick out of seeing her blind spots. :) I also wonder how often I am guilty of the same kind of self-ignorance!
I think this chapter, more than any so far, points out to me the basic disconnect between what the university desires for the student and the desires of the student him or her self. Professors and administrators, especially in a Christian setting, see their job as student formation. We are to impart a sense of intellectual seeking and an openness to learning. But students see the job of the university very differently. The class on sexuality demonstrates a way in which we can mesh the needs of the student with the ideals of the university. Not through showing prurient movies, but through ways of interacting with students that meet them at their point of interest.
Reading Log #3 - Part 1
Reading Log, Nathan, Chap. 4
Summary:
Upon realizing that international students would give her a needed "outsider" perspective on US higher education, Nathan decided to add formal interviews of these students to her study. Themes that emerged such as the abundance of choice in the US system, and the independent nature of American students, tend to reinforce Nathan's previous observations.
Others highlighted the basic differences in American and foreign classrooms, such as lack of rigor in the US, informal dress and classroom conduct, US students' not completing assignments, and the US tendency to parse material into small, easy to digest segments. The US reliance on group work and presentations also struck international students as being quite different from their experience, and related again to the US students being more independent and less concerned with the opinions and needs of others.
Differences in relationships were a concern for nearly every one of the students Nathan interviewed. These students felt that Americans tended to have surface friendships (some questioning whether the relationships of Americans could actually be called true friendships), did not include their family in their lives in ways that international students commonly do, and spent much more time alone - echoing the recurrent theme of US students' independence.
Lastly, Nathan learned that international students see Americans as "woefully ignorant of the world scene." US students either did not ask questions regarding the foreign students' experiences or asked questions that betrayed a severe lack of knowledge of geography, politics, and culture outside the US.
Reflection:
It is interesting to see that Nathan realized her need to see the US university system from the perspective of "outsiders" while she herself is basically an outsider in the student realm. She talks about finding relationships among other students who do not fit in, such as students of color and internationals. Yet, she still seems to feel she has a good sense of what it is to be a normal college student in many ways and draws conclusions based on that assumption. Conclusions such as US students not finding their close friendships in the dorms or through classes. I see her being excluded from those friendships because she is someone that the students find puzzling.
While Nathan speaks about the US students' cultural ignorance with regard to the international students, it is perhaps necessary for her to examine US culture in order to understand some of the ways in which these students approach people from other countries. Our customs tend to tell us to mind our own business, not to be intrusive, and to be tolerant of difference without really asking about the differences themselves. She hears and reports the complaints of the international students without really looking at why US students might be acting in such a manner.
Nathan's findings from her interviews point out some real holes in our educational system where foreign students are concerned. Activities designed to create community are offered to these students as a separate group - creating not integration or cross-cultural learning between the international students and US students, but a group of internationals that rely on one another as a subgroup. Her interviews also point out the need for US students to have study-abroad opportunities and support the on-going efforts of schools that place a high importance on such programs.
Summary:
Upon realizing that international students would give her a needed "outsider" perspective on US higher education, Nathan decided to add formal interviews of these students to her study. Themes that emerged such as the abundance of choice in the US system, and the independent nature of American students, tend to reinforce Nathan's previous observations.
Others highlighted the basic differences in American and foreign classrooms, such as lack of rigor in the US, informal dress and classroom conduct, US students' not completing assignments, and the US tendency to parse material into small, easy to digest segments. The US reliance on group work and presentations also struck international students as being quite different from their experience, and related again to the US students being more independent and less concerned with the opinions and needs of others.
Differences in relationships were a concern for nearly every one of the students Nathan interviewed. These students felt that Americans tended to have surface friendships (some questioning whether the relationships of Americans could actually be called true friendships), did not include their family in their lives in ways that international students commonly do, and spent much more time alone - echoing the recurrent theme of US students' independence.
Lastly, Nathan learned that international students see Americans as "woefully ignorant of the world scene." US students either did not ask questions regarding the foreign students' experiences or asked questions that betrayed a severe lack of knowledge of geography, politics, and culture outside the US.
Reflection:
It is interesting to see that Nathan realized her need to see the US university system from the perspective of "outsiders" while she herself is basically an outsider in the student realm. She talks about finding relationships among other students who do not fit in, such as students of color and internationals. Yet, she still seems to feel she has a good sense of what it is to be a normal college student in many ways and draws conclusions based on that assumption. Conclusions such as US students not finding their close friendships in the dorms or through classes. I see her being excluded from those friendships because she is someone that the students find puzzling.
While Nathan speaks about the US students' cultural ignorance with regard to the international students, it is perhaps necessary for her to examine US culture in order to understand some of the ways in which these students approach people from other countries. Our customs tend to tell us to mind our own business, not to be intrusive, and to be tolerant of difference without really asking about the differences themselves. She hears and reports the complaints of the international students without really looking at why US students might be acting in such a manner.
Nathan's findings from her interviews point out some real holes in our educational system where foreign students are concerned. Activities designed to create community are offered to these students as a separate group - creating not integration or cross-cultural learning between the international students and US students, but a group of internationals that rely on one another as a subgroup. Her interviews also point out the need for US students to have study-abroad opportunities and support the on-going efforts of schools that place a high importance on such programs.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
