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            At this moment I am unsure as to what type of data I am going to collect.  Ideally, I would like what I collect to be useful to me in the future, but since I am still working on my IRB for my pilot study, I cannot use what I find.  Although I would like to use video, I am not sure how I can collect this type of evidence without being further intrusive. Audio is less noticeable than a camera set up, but both items create a feeling of ‘being watched’ and participants may feel they must monitor their behavior or ‘say the right thing’ because the conversation is being recorded. I realize that as researchers we have our own biases and influence the data collected, especially in a conversational situation. It is important to address these issues in the findings.  

            I have a few thoughts on the types of conversations I would like to record and the places I would like to go, but none of them are solidified at this point.  I would like to record a conversation with my interns, maybe an overall discussion about what is happening with them right now in their current placements. I would like to know their feelings, their experiences, highs and lows they may have encountered, things of that nature.  That would be extremely difficult to transcript, but I could use the practice.  I have yet to transcribe multiple speakers.  If that is not able to occur, I would be able to record a session between myself and my ‘writing coach’ in my ENG 462 class, which would not be personally beneficial for future use in my own research process, but it would be interesting to dissect.  I also thought about recording a part of my teacher evaluator training that I will attend on Friday, because the dynamics of these training sessions are fluid yet tight at the same time, due to the nature of the material. 

            As far as my mini-lit review, I will be gathering articles that relate to Discourse Analysis (DA) and  English as a Second Language (ESL) teaching.  I have one article that I stumbled across two years ago that uses Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) and an ESL college student, and when I first encountered it, I liked what I saw about CDA and wanted to learn more. I held onto it because it struck a chord with me. I have the opportunity to find more about it.  Although I am drawn to the ‘critical’ side of discourse analysis, I do not believe I will limit my search to only CDA.  I am drawn to CDA in part because of a previous course I took which was Critical Race Theory (CRT).  That class was eye-opening and shifted my view of the world dramatically, especially based on my background of teaching low SES black students for a very long time, and now working with non-native speakers, many of whom are faced with prejudice and unfairness in our systems (schools, government offices) on a daily basis.  Had I not lived those prior experiences, I do not believe the course would have had the same impact. In the beginning of Rogers et al. (2005), the piece discusses what is critical about CDA, and the idea is that “…injustice and oppression shape the social world” (p.367).   That idea is present in CRT as well, and now that I have read a few CRT articles and CRT scholars’ works, I cannot help but to use that lense when I am in schools.  To me, that idea makes sense, but it is also extremely frustrating to see when I am hearing about standardized tests written in English for students who do not speak English, yet they are unable to receive any accommodations for said tests.  That is just one example.  I also feel as if I have experienced a certain ‘power struggle’ with my children’s school and their scripted reading program.  I would have liked to have recorded that conversation and had a CDA scholar examine and analyze that data. 

            The article for today, Critical Discourse Analysis in Education:

A Review of the Literature (Rogers et al. ,2005) is extensive, thorough, and dense.  You discussed in the first night of class that it is less difficult to trace the origins of DA in academia, and this group takes it one step further, finding the role of CDA in educational settings.  Not only does this group of authors discuss the origins of CDA, but they also give the methodology of how they filtered articles—what I found interesting is that out of 803 articles, the group found 40 that were worthy of the literature review.  That in itself seems to be a monumental task, but since there are multiple authors, they could divide the work.  Although you stated in class that Gee is not a primary DA author for you, they do use Gee’s tenents of CDA, and I am asking this—do all disciplines (is that even the right word) have tenents?  CRT has tenents as well, but is that due to the ‘critical’ in the discipline?  Is CDA a method, like case study and ethnograpy?  Ethnography, too, has tenents, but I do not believe they are addressed as such, as in they are not labled, “Tenents of Ethnography”.  The more I read, the more I am trying to piece things together.

Introduction, EDPY 631, Discourse Analysis Fall, 2013

Hello! My name is Hollie Nawrocki, and I am a third year doctoral candidate (early stage) in Theory and Practice in Teacher Education.  I have ‘officially’ finished my coursework, and I am currently working on my comprehensive exams, but I am enrolled in this course in order to earn my Qualitative Research Certificate. I am earning a Ph.D. in Literacy Studies with a concentration in English as a Second Language (ESL) Education.     

I have always had an interest in Discourse Analysis, although until a couple of years ago, I did not know the name of the field.   I love words.  I was a high school English teacher in Columbus, Ohio for ten years before coming back to school.  To me, words are chameleons creeping in a dense, meandering jungle, blasting their changes or subtly shifting nuances as they navigate spaces.  Take the simple word, ‘fine’.  It can mean multiple things, especially if you are a woman (I know that is gender-biased, but I accept that bias and acknowledge it as I am of the female persuasion).  If I look at my kids, and say, “Oh, that’s fine if you have a snack while doing your homework”, that shows the most used definition of the word, as in, ‘acceptable’, or, it is fine.  On the other hand, if I am upset with my husband and he is pleading his case, and I say, “Fine” (in a brusque, guttural tone), certainly it is not fine.  That one word can have so many subtle nuances, based on pronunciation, volume of the spoken word, and facial or body expression that accompany it.  That is just one word!  We have tens of thousands of words that can have that shift-shaping potential!  That is almost impossible to imagine, let alone research and write about.  Printed words are ambiguous compared to those spoken, and while reading printed material, I have ‘voices’ that read text to me in my mind, much like an audiobook.  My perception of those words written and the way I make meaning of those words may not be the same as anyone else’s.  Although the “intended” (for lack of a better term) themes may emerge for many people reading the same text, there will be subtle differences in how we process what we see, hear, and read.  This idea (along with many more) is discussed in Mercer, 2000.

I have said this before in other courses.  I appreciate Mercer’s book.  His approach is straightforward, his writing is clear, he provides multiple examples (transcribed interviews, conversations, etc.).  It is amazing what I take for granted after reading some of the provided examples, the collective meaning of the crossword puzzle solution in the beginning of the book, the insurance call in chapter 4 (how scripts are designed to persuade people), and the examination of the rape victim (how the lawyer tries to paint the picture of the woman who was almost soliciting a sexual encounter).  I will be honest—I have this book on borrowed download, and I have not fully completed it, but it is on its way, as I think this can help me in my own work as I am using many interviews to gather ‘experiences’ of participating in a particular teacher licensure program.  Examining what was said by my participants will be in my analysis, but those printed words will not carry the same meaning as the recording (whether it be video or audio), and those feelings will be difficult to capture and convey in my work.  Also, as I said earlier, my interpretation will be what is produced, so then when others read what I have interpreted it, they will interpret my work in a myriad of different ways.  As in EDPY 604; Mind=Blown.  I am excited for the course.

Final blog (for EDPY 604)

Reflections on Tuesday’s Class

Doug Canfield (IT) was a presenter for Scrivener and Prezi (although he used a Prezi to discuss Scrivener.  Personally, I was a bit nervous when he told us about his first dissertation disaster.  There is more to that story--I wonder what it is?  Did he not successfully defend?  Is this his second time?  Is that even possible?  I digress…it is just one thing that I will not ask.

Doug showed Scrivener.  I find it interesting that he uses 3 screens—I do have one in my office from my most recent office mate that (I believe) graduated this summer.  I plan to hook it up, but for my use with ATLAS.ti. I did not download Scrivener.  At this point, I am not ready for another tool.  Currently, there are too many tools that I have learned about that I like already, such as Nvivo, Inqscribe, and DragonSpeak.   I do not plan to write any of these tools off, but file them for later.  I do like what I see with Scrivener, though, and maybe as I get into drafting my actual dissertation, I may think about using it. He said something that resonates with me regarding Scrivener—it lets you have a brain dump, then go back and split it, organize it, and  create your argument.  If you're a non-linear thinker, you will love this... (I am non-linear for EVERYTHING).

I am surprised at how much Prezi has ‘evolved’ since I used it in the spring of 2012.  This is exactly the point made in this class about how quickly technology can change.  I may try to use it again for the spring course I teach.  It was actually much easier this second time (even though I was in a group, I could do this alone).  I went to OIT for help with my first Prezi.  They were fantastic there. 

What has the overall experience of this class been like for you?

In order to answer this question, I went back to my blog posts and pulled some of my favorite lines.  They are compiled below in blue:

In regards to the class thus far, this is one of the classes that has gotten me excited about my progression from comps, prospectus, and dissertation. Up to this point, any of those words would carry ominous dark clouds full of fear and fraught with anxiety.  Although I still worry about my immediate future, learning about technology is the silver lining that can possibly assist me in managing that fear and anxiety. That is a welcome feeling.  The first day was full of so much information (thank you for posting Dr. Wood’s slide presentation) and finally using a software package like ATLAS.ti made sense to me, as shown by Dr. Wood’s presentation.  Everything you’ve done is in there—by using this, we explain what we did and how we did it, which allows us to state our findings. Ginny’s presentation of Evernote was very exciting (as you saw in my first paragraph), but what I am enjoying is that we are given permission open the programs presented (ATLAS.ti, Evernote, etc.) and see for ourselves if we deem them useful.

As a side note, I would like to add that I have been taking notes and writing thoughts in Evernote during class since Ginny's presentation for my blogs--and I made a grocery list with it today.  I am liking that tool!

Thank you Ann (and Ginny), for such an interesting class on what Nvivo does (and the ease of seeing discussion groups and tweets). Now academic researchers are able to access tools that marketing companies have used for years.

One reflection on my first skillbuilder—I am glad that I did it, and it took much longer than I anticipated.  That is not a downside at all

I feel fortunate to have such knowledge and experience surrounding me in this course.  Without this exposure and a ‘safety net’ (I know that Dr. Paulus, Ann, and Ginny get emails with technical questions at all hours), I would be much more intimidated by these tools.  I do not feel intimidated at all, in fact, I am more excited about some of these tools than I initially thought I would be.  I believe it is because I am just beginning my own research process, and I see the benefit of these tools for my own use.

I would say that my overall experience was extremely positive.  I am so very glad I enrolled in this course.  It was extremely valuable and useful.

How was the experience of learning ATLAS.ti as a required part of this class?

Again, I talked quite a bit about ATLAS.ti in my blogs and used it as a skillbuilder.  Here are some of my experiences from my previous blog posts in purple:

…and finally using a software package like ATLAS.ti made sense to me, as shown by Dr. Wood’s presentation.  Everything you’ve done is in there—by using this, we explain what we did and how we did it, which allows us to state our findings.

Today, Monday July 15, I drafted an IRB for an interview study and I stated in my IRB that I was going to use ATLAS.ti for document management and analysis

…my next skillbuilder, which is going more in depth with ATLAS.ti.

Since I am planning to go deeper with Atlas for my second skillbuilder, I plan on using it for transcription.  I imported a voice file from my digital recorder prior to class on Thursday, and I had no trouble with the file.  It was an mp3 file, which Ann stated that that type of file was the easiest to import into Atlas.  I was also excited because before connecting my digital recorder to my laptop, I downloaded software for my digital recorder thinking I would have to convert the file, but not at all—I did not even have to use the software.  I do like the capabilities of both tools, but my intent is to work with Atlas and learn it.  I found the functions surprisingly user-friendly for a first encounter, and I am glad that I can keep the audio file along with the written transcription in one place.  I realize this can be done with Inqscribe, but I can also access other documents in ATLAS.ti, such as my highlighted and memoed articles to support my findings, my IRB, and my research notes/journal.

While we were working in ATLAS as a group, I was feeling excited and frustrated--wishing I had real data, but, I was still glad to have the opportunity to walk through coding in ATLAS.ti.  I realize that there are multiple ways to complete the same task (now) and I have a fairly positive outlook on using ATLAS.ti for the remainder of my program.  I was surprised at how comfortable I was with working with memos and coding, even with merging codes and creating families.  It seems as if I have learned more than I thought (and actually remembered it) from advanced qualitative methods last semester.  The reason that I say ‘fairly positive’ is because I plan on using ATLAS.ti from this point on in my studies, and, although I have not heard anything ‘negative’ (I am not sure if that is the word I want to use, but for now, I am not sure what word fits better) from my committee, especially my chair, I hope they will be on board and not become frustrated when I want to show work.  This is why the final project of this course is very important and beneficial to me, because it can be a working draft of what I will present in my comprehensive questions in order to provide my rationale for using this CAQDAS tool.

I am very glad we were able to work with video files in Atlas--so nice that it works the same as an audio (sort of).  Either way, I was able to pick it up.  Now I'm really starting to think about rewriting this IRB...

I really like these functions with visual data in atlas--much easier than I expected.  I know people have described atlas as 'clunky' or not 'intuitive', but actually, if you're familiar with atlas and its functions with documents, it's relatively easy to get--but I am always grateful for in class tutorials/support :) ATLAS IS ON YOUTUBE!  I need to remember that when I run into an issue (which I am certain will happen sooner or later)

Again, quite positive in regards to ATLAS.ti.  I’m going to become very familiar with this tool!

Lots to think about...

Reflections on Thursday

Nalani opened class with her demonstration of Dragon Dictate in Inqsribe --so far, Dragon looks cool, and I am interested in it, but I don't think I will do anything with it at this point.  I have so much information on so many things, and I need to keep things simple.  When we practiced using atlas for transcription, I found it very easy, and I do not mind listening, stopping, then typing.  I am not discounting the idea speak-to-text, because I love the idea of speaking rather than typing, but I may use the feature already installed on my Microsoft pc prior to spending any money.  I am undecided.  What I plan to do with this information is file it and keep it, but not act on it at this moment.  I did not know that while ‘training’ dragon, you uploaded a word doc with your own writing so it can become even more familiar with your speech patterns.  That is quite impressive, but it could be a limitation, because you’re training the software to you only, which doesn’t allow Dragon to do the majority of the work for you.  For example, you cannot let Dragon ‘hear’ your interview with another person.  You must listen and speak both parties’ words in order for Dragon to be more accurate.  Nalani also pointed out that she prefers to enter punctuation AFTER transcribing rather than giving commands, which, I believe, can add more work and time, but as a researcher, you will become even more intimate with your transcription and interviews.  The idea of speak-to-text (for me, at least) may be a wash when compared to the traditional ‘listen and type’ method of transcription.  Thank you, Nalani :)

I really enjoyed the activities.  I talk about my experiences with them below:

I don't get much "background noise" when I am interviewing since its usually in an empty classroom or an empty teacher workroom/lounge (that is hilarious in of itself, a “lounge”) but I do not believe that this year I will have that experience, so it is important as a researcher to think about the setting.  I plan on meeting in a public place, but this will influence my participants' responses, and even my body language and demeanor, simply because people act differently in different locations.  Maybe they will be more relaxed, maybe they will be more guarded, maybe I will be distracted by what is happening around them, or maybe they will be--there is no way to know, but the space you and your participant are in matters.  It will be important to discuss that when I am analyzing the data in my written work.

Also, while using Wordle, it was very apparent how this can be useful for visualizing data (Cidell, 2010).  I have seen ‘word clouds’ for years, but I can’t believe it took me this long to realize that those are useful in data analysis. In my defense, I had not been in a graduate program and I had never even collected or analyzed data, so I suppose I would not have seen this obvious use of word clouds. 

I have never been on Pintrest—our group had a very interesting discussion—Nalani  and I initially thought it was gender biased, for example, we searched "sports" and the first word on the search was not ‘sports’ that popped up, but ‘sports bra’.  Ann came by, and said that Pintrest is user-generated data, and more women use Pintrest than men, so maybe it's not Pintrest that is gender biased, but since  it is used mainly by women, then everything will be geared towards women.  Ann told us to do a search on "maniterest??"(I got the email from Dr. Paulus yesterday on the “man pintrest” comparable websites)  We did not get to do that, but we did ask Scott for a topic to search in Pintrest.  He said, "guns".What came up were purple and pink and zebra guns--along with "normal" guns--still for women--but mostly women are using pintrest...that is also another aspect to show in written findings—knowing how data is generated if you are using internet sites for data collection. 

While discussing the mobile app for ATLAS.ti, I am glad it was covered, but I am not an iPad owner (nor do I plan to be), but, the usage seems pretty 'easy'--and handy, I guess, especially if you are in the field.

I am very glad we were able to work with video files in Atlas--so nice that it works the same as an audio (sort of).  Either way, I was able to pick it up.  Now I'm really starting to think about rewriting this IRB...

I really like these functions with visual data in atlas--much easier than I expected.  I know people have described atlas as 'clunky' or not 'intuitive', but actually, if you're familiar with atlas and its functions with documents, it's relatively easy to get--but I am always grateful for in class tutorials/support :) ATLAS IS ON YOUTUBE!  I need to remember that when I run into an issue (which I am certain will happen sooner or later)  Thanks, Ann, for a great class!

On a final note, Nvivo is super cool--maybe someday--not now.

 

Looking ahead to Tuesday

Ann, the Woo (2008) has you written all over it, as you are a proponent of what Dr. Paulus calls ‘far left’ or ‘radical’ qualitative research.  I know you are committed to representational ethnographic methodology and counter-narrative.  Woo (2008) states in her introduction about the validity of arts-based research in education and in the field, but then she also goes on to discuss whether the research may not be ‘artistic’ enough (p.321).  It seems as if there is a fine line, and I have a tendency to align myself more to the center of the qualitative research continuum, but when she gives her rationale for filmmaking, “My impulse for translating this research into film emanates from my curiosity about what would happen if I could engage a wider audience in dialogue about the themes in my study, certainly an audience wider than the handful of souls who might read the conference papers, book chapter, and journal article where the study would be published” (Woo, 2008, p.322), I embrace the idea.  How does this shift occur?  I would love to attempt something of this nature, because I feel that although I am working on becoming a part of academia, I become excited about sharing those academic ideas with others that are not part of that group.  I am such a ‘new’ researcher and my conceptual understanding of the word ‘scholar’ is morphing before my eyes daily.  I need to look at myself in the ‘now’, and hopefully ideas like this will stay with me when I feel I can stand alone as a ‘true’ scholar and researcher, and then move into the idea of more interpretive research.