Teaching Qualitative Research: Experiential Learning in Group-Based Interviews and Coding Assignments

Abstract

This article describes experiential-learning approaches to conveying the work and rewards involved in qualitative research. Seminar students interviewed one another, transcribed or took notes on those interviews, shared those materials to create a set of empirical materials for coding, developed coding schemes, and coded the materials using those schemes. Students' input reveals that these assignments were more effective than readings and discussions in conveying the challenges and rewards of qualitative research. In particular, the coding assignment revealed the labor involved in doing qualitative research, but also the insights qualitative research can lead to. Others are urged to try similar assignments.

Learning as Researchers and Teachers: The Development of a Pedagogical Culture for Social Science Research Methods?

“…Learners' self-reflexive writing can also provide teachers with rare insights into students' (pre)conceptions, anxieties or motivations as novice researchers. In one notable development of students' reflective practice, the teacher went as far as to co-author an article on the teaching and learning of research methods for a major peer-reviewed journal with nine of her students (DeLyser et al, 2012). While reflexive writing typically requires students to pay critical attention to their own research practice, instructors have also found innovative ways of using existing interview data to explore how positionality, tension and sensitivity play out in the research of others (Hsiung, 2008).…”

“…To conceive of the learning of research methods as reflexive may involve learners reflecting critically upon their research practice, on the methods they are being taught and on the socio-cultural context within which learning is taking place. Once again, the language of reflexivity was used only in a small number of the papers we reviewed (DeLyser, 2008;DeLyser et al, 2012;Thien, 2009), although approaches that encouraged reflection on the research process as part of students' learning were discussed more widely.…”

“…Students may also be encouraged to deploy particular ways of thinking, such as reversing their positionality and considering situations from alternative standpoints by examining the use of language, the symbolism of non-verbal communication, or the role of action, interaction and embodiment in the research process (Hsiung, 2008). The writing itself may take the form of memos (Cox, 2012), journals and diaries (DeLyser et al, 2012) or field notes (Thien, 2009). Learners' self-reflexive writing can also provide teachers with rare insights into students' (pre)conceptions, anxieties or motivations as novice researchers.…”

“…Students may also be encouraged to adopt a reflective stance towards their own conduct as researchers, especially when exploring ethnographic or narrative methods (DeLyser et al, 2012). This often involves some form of self-reflexive writing on aspects of the research process; the challenges or difficulties they encountered; how these differed from prior expectations; how the task could have been done differently; and how the conduct of the research might impact on the analysis or writing up (adapted from DeLyser et al, 2012, p. 21).…”

Strategies Hospital Manager Use to Improve Customer Services

“…Interview data, member checking data, interview protocols, and transcribe notes are filed in the participant folder. Using labels or codes is to protect each participant's confidentiality [82]. Vohra (2014) [83] used codes and labels to organize the data, explore patterns, and generate themes before data analysis.…”