Saturday, November 08, 2003
I just finished transcribing my first interview. I was absolutely amazed at the amount of time it took!! I definitely understand now what being immersed in the data means. I honestly thought it might take me twice as long to transcribe as it took to complete the interview--three times as long at most. I thought I was looking at 3 and 1/2 hours of time. Nope. 6 hours. 6 complete hours to transcribe a 37 minute interview.
As I was transcribing I was surprised at how much I talked during the interview. I always thought of myself as a good listener who didn't talk much except to ask questions to keep them talking. And, after listening to the interview, I still think I am a good listener. Just in a little different way. Most of what I said was to encourage my interviewee to continue talking about herself and her experiences. I was trying to build a relationship with her--to gain her trust. Still, though, I was surprised by how much I talked. I will need to pay a little more attention to that next time.
The coding of the interview was less difficult than I imagined. One of my group members, C., had already coded her first interview and had sent the code list to the rest of us. That *REALLY* helped a lot in terms of giving me a place to start. When I began coding I first looked at her codes to see if my interviewee's thoughts fit with any of them. If not, I would create a new one and add it to the bottom of the list.
This time I coded using different colors of type on the computer. I started with crayons from the 96 colors box, but I could not write small enough. The colors on the computer worked better, but I don't really like the strategy. It was too hard to keep up with what color was what--especially colors that are very similar. I eventually ran out of different colors and had to start using italics and underlining. I definitely need a new system for next time.
As I was transcribing I was surprised at how much I talked during the interview. I always thought of myself as a good listener who didn't talk much except to ask questions to keep them talking. And, after listening to the interview, I still think I am a good listener. Just in a little different way. Most of what I said was to encourage my interviewee to continue talking about herself and her experiences. I was trying to build a relationship with her--to gain her trust. Still, though, I was surprised by how much I talked. I will need to pay a little more attention to that next time.
The coding of the interview was less difficult than I imagined. One of my group members, C., had already coded her first interview and had sent the code list to the rest of us. That *REALLY* helped a lot in terms of giving me a place to start. When I began coding I first looked at her codes to see if my interviewee's thoughts fit with any of them. If not, I would create a new one and add it to the bottom of the list.
This time I coded using different colors of type on the computer. I started with crayons from the 96 colors box, but I could not write small enough. The colors on the computer worked better, but I don't really like the strategy. It was too hard to keep up with what color was what--especially colors that are very similar. I eventually ran out of different colors and had to start using italics and underlining. I definitely need a new system for next time.
Wednesday, November 05, 2003
Today was my first interview!!!! It went very smoothly! The middle school assistant principal I interviewed was very easy to talk to and she was very open and honest with her answers. I knew a little bit about her before meeting her because she is a friend of a friend. I knew she "inherited" five children when she married her husband and the middle boy is autistic. I also knew from our mutual friend, P., that she was full of energy. As P. stated, "She has more energy in her little toe than I do in my whole body!"
First mistake I made, I did not ask her to choose a psuedonym!!!! I'm not sure what to do in this situation. Should I email/call her and ask her to choose one, or should I assign one to her. How important is it for her to choose her own? Would it be possible to send her the summary of the interview with Participant A as her name and ask her at that time to choose a pseudonym to replace Participant A?
I did audiotape this interview with my new digital recorder. There was a lot of background noise going on due to the setting, so I hope I will be able to hear what is being said. I also jotted down the key points (as suggested in our textbook) to help jog my memory. When I got back to the car, I wrote down my observations that would not be captured on tape such as the friendliness of the front office staff, the welcoming surroundings despite being housed completely in trailers, and the decorations of my participant's office. I also noted her body language, gestures, smiles, and eye contact.
She also talked about another of my passions--technology and education. Some of her teachers are doing phenomenal stuff with technology in the classroom. She also talked about a new curriculum software that automates to some extent the differentiation process. I definitely want to check it out--this brings up a question, though. If a participant mentions something by its brand name, can it be included in the study report? And, if what is mentioned is relevant to the study, can the investigators explore it on their own and draw connections to the study from it?
Overall, I feel confident about this interview!! I think there was an ease of conversation between us and her love of students was evident in everything she said and did. I am interested to hear from my group members how their interviews are going and to see if we are getting similar information or not.
First mistake I made, I did not ask her to choose a psuedonym!!!! I'm not sure what to do in this situation. Should I email/call her and ask her to choose one, or should I assign one to her. How important is it for her to choose her own? Would it be possible to send her the summary of the interview with Participant A as her name and ask her at that time to choose a pseudonym to replace Participant A?
I did audiotape this interview with my new digital recorder. There was a lot of background noise going on due to the setting, so I hope I will be able to hear what is being said. I also jotted down the key points (as suggested in our textbook) to help jog my memory. When I got back to the car, I wrote down my observations that would not be captured on tape such as the friendliness of the front office staff, the welcoming surroundings despite being housed completely in trailers, and the decorations of my participant's office. I also noted her body language, gestures, smiles, and eye contact.
She also talked about another of my passions--technology and education. Some of her teachers are doing phenomenal stuff with technology in the classroom. She also talked about a new curriculum software that automates to some extent the differentiation process. I definitely want to check it out--this brings up a question, though. If a participant mentions something by its brand name, can it be included in the study report? And, if what is mentioned is relevant to the study, can the investigators explore it on their own and draw connections to the study from it?
Overall, I feel confident about this interview!! I think there was an ease of conversation between us and her love of students was evident in everything she said and did. I am interested to hear from my group members how their interviews are going and to see if we are getting similar information or not.
Tuesday, November 04, 2003
Today I wrote a high school assistant principal with whom I have had several classes regarding participants for the study. C. said she was able to locate one of her participants through this classmate. I sent him an email around 6:30 am asking him if he know of a high school AP teacher who might be willing to participate in the study. He wrote back around 8:30 am saying he would try to find someone. By 1:00 that afternoon I had the name and contact information of an AP teacher!! I was soooooo impressed!!! Not only did he take my request seriously, he also acted on it quickly!! I definitely owe him one. Of course, finding someone is just the beginning. I have written this potential participant and have not heard anything back from her yet. I will give her a day or two, then try the phone number my classmate gave me.
One thing that just occurred to me that might be of some concern. I am going to have to check with my group members about the gender of their interviewees. Right now, all three of my potential participants are female. I am interviewing four people and do not yet have a lead on the fourth. I don't know if I should hold out for a male participant or not!! People are so busy this time of the year that I'm afraid if I wait for a male participant I will lose all the females who were willing to participate earlier. Such dilemmas!! There really is a fine line between doing what will give you the best data and doing what is feasible within the time constraints of the study.
One thing that just occurred to me that might be of some concern. I am going to have to check with my group members about the gender of their interviewees. Right now, all three of my potential participants are female. I am interviewing four people and do not yet have a lead on the fourth. I don't know if I should hold out for a male participant or not!! People are so busy this time of the year that I'm afraid if I wait for a male participant I will lose all the females who were willing to participate earlier. Such dilemmas!! There really is a fine line between doing what will give you the best data and doing what is feasible within the time constraints of the study.
Saturday, November 01, 2003
Okay. So my first interview is set up for Wed., Nov. 5 with the middle school assistant principal. I am a bit nervous, but excited at the same time. I always get myself worked up about interviews and then, when they are finished, am always pleasantly surprised by how smoothly they went.
I'm off to get some sort of recorder......
I'm off to get some sort of recorder......
Wednesday, October 29, 2003
YEAHH!!!! We received Human Subjects approval!! We can start gathering data in earnest now!! VERY exciting news. Also, the first participant wrote back and said she had some time next week to conduct the interview. I am very curious to see how the interview goes and the kind of data I get.
The topic of telephone interviews also came up with my group. There is a beginning teacher in Northern Virginia whom I think would add a lot to the data, but I cannot really travel there to interview her. So I asked my group members what they thought of phone interviews. I didn't really get a definitive answer from any of them. They all said that it seemed fairly common practice but things like body language were lost, there was less back-and-forth, and the interviews were generally shorter. So, should we do them or not?
The topic of telephone interviews also came up with my group. There is a beginning teacher in Northern Virginia whom I think would add a lot to the data, but I cannot really travel there to interview her. So I asked my group members what they thought of phone interviews. I didn't really get a definitive answer from any of them. They all said that it seemed fairly common practice but things like body language were lost, there was less back-and-forth, and the interviews were generally shorter. So, should we do them or not?
Tuesday, October 28, 2003
I sent an email today to two potential participants. One is a friend of a friend, and my friend (P.) called ahead to kind of "pave the way" so to speak. She responded almost immediately saying she would definitely be willing to participate! YEAH!! :-)
The other one, a professor whom I know is very busy, has not yet responded. Yet another dilemma. If she doesn't respond within a certain timeframe, should I email again, try calling, or just leave it be? I know people are so busy and I don't want to pressure anyone into doing something they don't have time to do. The thing about professors here, too, is they really want to help out the students and go above and beyond to do so. I don't want to make her feel badly if she honestly doesn't have time to participate by asking again.
The other one, a professor whom I know is very busy, has not yet responded. Yet another dilemma. If she doesn't respond within a certain timeframe, should I email again, try calling, or just leave it be? I know people are so busy and I don't want to pressure anyone into doing something they don't have time to do. The thing about professors here, too, is they really want to help out the students and go above and beyond to do so. I don't want to make her feel badly if she honestly doesn't have time to participate by asking again.
Monday, October 27, 2003
I just sent an email to the faculty member I hope to interview. I hope it wasn't too long, and she decides not participate because I took so much of her time with email!! At the same time I think email is less obtrusive. People can read it, think about it, and respond when they are ready. I feel like if I call my potential participants they will feel pressured to give me an answer right away. I don't know....if it were me, I would rather get an email than a phone call. But, I guess that is one of my biases that I need to recognize and not project on to the study or my participants.
On another note, I am a little worried about whether or not observations at the upcoming national conference I am attending will add any substance to our study. Many of the presentations are geared toward classroom teachers, which, in a way, is good. We can see what type of information is being broadcast to teachers of the gifted. But, at the same time, the only teachers who get this information are teachers who attend the conference--a big time (and sometimes monetary) commitment. So, the argument could be made that the teachers are the conference are not a representative sample of teachers of the gifted at large.
I don't know.....I'm just not sure, based on past experience, that we are going to get the greatest observation data from this conference. I could be surprised, though, and will keep an open mind. :-)
On another note, I am a little worried about whether or not observations at the upcoming national conference I am attending will add any substance to our study. Many of the presentations are geared toward classroom teachers, which, in a way, is good. We can see what type of information is being broadcast to teachers of the gifted. But, at the same time, the only teachers who get this information are teachers who attend the conference--a big time (and sometimes monetary) commitment. So, the argument could be made that the teachers are the conference are not a representative sample of teachers of the gifted at large.
I don't know.....I'm just not sure, based on past experience, that we are going to get the greatest observation data from this conference. I could be surprised, though, and will keep an open mind. :-)
