Evaluating Ethnography

Abstract

With full awareness that criteria are mutable, the author argues that ethnography needs to be evaluated through two lenses: science and arts. The author suggests five criteria: substantive contribution, aesthetic merit, reflexivity, impact, and expression of a reality.

Exploring whether (and how) self-reflection can improve practice as a teacher educator

“…Does it generate new questions or move me to action? (Ellis 2004;Richardson 2000) Expresses a reality. Does this text embody a fleshed out sense of lived experience?…”

“…Does the piece contribute to our understanding of social life? (Ellis 2004;Richardson 2000) Aesthetic merit. Does this piece succeed aesthetically?…”

“…Is the text artistically shaped, satisfyingly complex, and not boring? (Ellis 2004;Richardson 2000) Reflexivity. How did the author come to write this text?…”

“…How has the author's subjectivity been both a producer and a product of this text? (Ellis 2004;Richardson 2000) Impactfullness. Does this affect me emotionally and/or intellectually?…”

“…Does this text embody a fleshed out sense of lived experience? (Ellis 2004;Richardson 2000) However a proper theoretical stance is needed: the teacher educator needs to define whether he will follow phenomenology, grounded theory or another interpretive stance such a reflexivity, narrative inquiry or critical pedagogies. Considering that the objects of analysis are written texts or audio-visual materials, an issue of coding comes into place as well (Adams et al 2015;Denzin 2003;Ellis 2004).…”