Creative research methods for UoM PGCE Secondary 2012 13
1. Creative methods for data generation:
Learning Walks
Learning Journals
Dimi Kaneva
Research Student
University of Manchester
dimitrina.kaneva@postgrad.manchester.ac.uk
@dimi_kaneva
2. Learning walks - background
Management idea of ‘wandering around’
Mobile methods and ‘walking interviews’ in community studies
In education – a route into school improvement and CPD
Learning walks as part of the Stockborough Equity Research
Network
◦ Research question: What do we know about our Polish students and what
are their experiences at school?
◦ A group learning walk with ten Y7 and Y8 students from Polish background
led by myself and another researcher, the learning walk was followed by a
focus group
3. What is a learning walk?
An informal interview
conducted on the move
A way to understand the
perceptions of a place
A safe environment to
stimulate reflections on
existing practices
A discussion prompted by
the environment
What sense do children make of this? A way to develop a
trustworthy relationship
with research participants
4. Learning walks as part of my research
journey
The experiences of learning Transition from primary to
support of three students secondary education in
having English as an England: Understanding the
additional language who have experiences of children with
recently arrived in England EAL
Pilot study Transition project
5. Research methods triangulation
Pilot study
Transition project
Research strategies to ‘give voice’ to children and create a safe
space for reflection
Learning walks
Children’s own introductions
◦ Who are you? Where do you come from? What should I know about
you?
Small group discussions
◦ Transition, experience as a students, language and culture
Individual conversations
Learning journals
◦ Memories, expectations, worries
Observations to put talk in context
Lesson observations in specific subject areas
6. Getting started
The instructions I gave:
I am interested in you and your school, so I would like you to
take me on a tour.
I would like to see where you enjoy being – which are your
favourite places and subjects.
You can show me places where you don’t go as often or
never go. We can talk about the subjects you don’t enjoy very
much.
We can stop and talk anywhere you choose and we can look
at displays or classrooms which are not currently occupied.
The stories:
Where did the students take me and what did they talk about?
7. Decisions, decisions…
? ?
? ? ??
Questions
Recording vs. or themes?
note taking?
Timing?
Group or individual? Ethics!!!
8. Making sense of a learning walk
Learning walks as a preliminary data generation method before a more
in-depth interview
11. Example ‘…there’s some more interesting things
in my class that I want to show you’ –
she leads me to a display board with
the planets and children’s names and
explains that children who are the best
in literacy and numeracy get their
names there.
(Seyhan, June 2012)
‘That’s just my way of grouping children
according to their ability so that will
determine how I differentiate the work. I
teach the higher ability children for literacy
and the middle set for numeracy. It’s also
interesting that she’s picked up.. the
names that she’s picked up because
obviously I have the top set which is here
and the middle for numeracy so the
names that she can see are the brighter
children so that’s obviously how she’s
done it. ‘
(Miss Fay, class teacher, June 2012)
12. Lessons learnt
Building a trustworthy relationship with research participants
Making use of prompts around the school such as displays, classrooms and
strategic places
Ownership of the school
What could be done differently?
◦ Instructions/guidelines are vital
◦ Recording and note-taking can be difficult while on the move
◦ Look into different ways to capture the emerging conversation and data
◦ Follow-up activities
◦ Joint reflection with children
13. The learning journals
Background
Why I decided to use learning journals?
o Children as equal participants in research
o Children developing ownership of the research process
o A reflexive research approach
o Facilitated communication
Initial discussions about the learning journals idea
A number of interactive activities and discussions followed…
14. The learning journals – structured activities
Language maps Memories from primary school
Schooling timeline Pictures
16. Group focus on transition
Our transition project:
What we are worried
about…
What we are excited
about…
What could make us feel better...
17. The learning journals - reflections
Creative way to gather data
Providing time and space to ‘stop and think’
Options for communicating experiences and thoughts
Adding information in the journals in their own time
Ownership of the research
Option to opt out of keeping a journal
Further explanations and prompts to make sense of the data –
member checks
18. Being a research participant or what
the children said…
‘Nice to have time to think about primary
school / teachers / learning English’
‘It’s easier to think about high school when
there is someone to talk to’
‘It’s encouraging to know that someone cares /
listens to you’
Feeling important and valued
Proud of the learning journals work
