Self Review

Like Michelle, I never really viewed myself as a researcher up to this point. I do feel that the researcher within is developing, so I definitely understand Edolla’s point regarding her self-perception as an “emergent researcher”. The Peshkin reading was especially helpful in terms of zeroing in on researcher bias. It’s still hard for me to unpack all the influences and experiences that shape my “I’s”. It’s even harder to accept that once I identify one “I” it’s more than likely that this bias is connected to another one.

Studying a group that I closely work with was challenging but really rewarding. I see the value of being part of the community that is studied. While I wasn’t surprised by some of the responses, and we have a long way to go in terms of coding data to uncover trends, it really helped me to see what pressures some of the boys and their parents face. I know the achievement gap exists. Reading a response from a parent describing three hours or more of homework as indicative that school is challenging, makes me wonder about the raw effect of being a student of color in an urban setting where one is attempting to achieve at a high level. I suppose I learned that the main difference for me about collecting qualitative data as opposed to quantitative data is about the story behind the numbers. The achievement gap is not a secret. These boys are their parents aren’t just aware of the gap, they’re living through it. I truly feel that Rebecca and I are working on something that is worthwhile and might help others one day. I want to keep exploring the truths about achievement for these boys and their parents. Ultimately it would be interesting to see if a quantitative piece could be added to what we’ve worked on.

Collaborating with Rebecca helped me to analyze my initial questions and framework in a very different way. I really don’t think this research would have gone in the same direction without her. She really helped me to refine and revise our questions about student perception of achievement through the articles we shared and read. We don’t really talk about the achievement gap at Boys’ Club, so using this critical analysis was enlightening.

I don’t feel like I utilized the blog as effectively as I should have, simply because I didn’t check it enough. I posted and then moved on, while making sure to respond to at least one blog member. I realize now that wasn’t really the purpose. I should have used the blog to track my reflections on our mini inquiry work and get feedback. The class wiki was a great reference and I relied on it very frequently at the beginning part of the semester. It was great to have an easily accessible reference available with one tap of my phone. Later one though, I definitely used Creswell more for specific references and descriptions.

I struggled with some of the practice assignments, most especially with the task of being a participant observer. I knew the difference between directly quoting and characterizing a response is in some ways the different between taking a photograph and drawing. While both require a point of view, using interpretation can lead one down a slippery slope. I’ve realized that it’s much better to use technology to assist with capturing raw truth. Perhaps this is why Rebecca and I are leaning toward a focus group or direct interviews when we follow up with the boys. With today’s technology, it’s so easy to record video and sound. So many things to think about!