“It's Just Another Piece of Schoolwork”: the ethics of questionnaire research on pupils in schools

Abstract

During 1988-90 nearly 2000 school pupils in Leicestershire took part in the 'Drugs in Schools; a programme of inquiry' (DISPRIN) project and the 'Drugs and Risk-Taking' (DART) research project. As part of the research these 13-to 16-year-olds completed a questionnaire on their use of alcohol, tobacco and other drugs. This article presents data on the pupils' perceptions of doing the questionnaire and discusses the ethical issues raised for researchers in schools. The research revealed that, whilst a minority of respondents were suspicious of the exercise, for the most part it was "just another piece of schoolwork". To the extent that completing research questionnaires is perceived as schoolwork, we need to question the extent to which such questionnaires are in fact completed voluntarily and with the willing cooperation of pupils. This, in turn, poses interesting ethical questions for researchers, teachers and educational authorities.

Ethical Review and Children's Research in Ireland

“…Within the school setting, which is governed by hierarchies, discipline and norms of conformity, the issue of the researcher's role definition and power becomes particularly pertinent. This will have a significant effect on the meaning of the informed consent process for students; there is evidence that students might perceive participation in research during class hours as another educational experience or 'just another piece of schoolwork', rather than something that they see as independent from the norms that govern the school context, especially if research activities have features that resemble educational activities (David et al, 2001;Denscombe and aubrook, 1992;Edwards and alldred, 1999). More personalised effects of power can be expected in research involving staff members, whose non-research role also gives them formal disciplinary authority vis-à-vis their pupils.…”

“…The result is frequently that research in these areas is not conducted or significantly modified to allow researchers to avoid these risks. however, perception of risk in these areas might be overstated (Cohn et al, 2005;Denscombe and aubrook, 1992) and valuable research might be unjustifiably discouraged.…”

Relational Discourses

“…The ethical issues of conducting research with or on children have begun to be given the attention they deserve in recent years (Alderson 1995;Denscombe and Aubrook 1992;James et al, 1998: Morrow, 1998). This material came from an initiative aimed at involving young people in Millennium celebrations and providing an account of their lives for future generations: a reference to the use of such data for research purposes being included in the material sent to schools.…”

Young People's Ideas about Time and Space

“…The ethical issues involved in conducting research with or on children have only begun to be given the attention they deserve in recent years (Alderson 1995;Denscombe and Aubrook 1992;James et al 1998;Morrow 1998). This material came from an initiative aimed at involving young people in Millennium celebrations, and providing an account of their lives for future generations.…”