Module 2: Practical Aspects of Educational Research
Topic 1: An Observation Activity
Task
Spend about 30 minutes observing what happens at an eating place. Record your observations, how you felt during the activity and what you learned from it.
Context
The observation took place at a central town bar/restaurant at approximately 5:30pm. There were a descent amount of people gathering due to the time of night. In order to feel both more comfortable and not look like an obvious observer, I was at the popular bar/restaurant with a friend. We first ordered a drink, then followed with dinner as we observed what was going on around us. My friend was aware of my observation activity, so I could therefore discuss my observations as they arose.
Due to the bar/restaurant combination of the venue, there were small groups of people spread out everywhere. I (we) decided to observe (as an outsider not a participant) the actions of a male seated at the bar area. I chose not to record my observations in a paper and pen form, or take my laptop, rather I relied on conversations with my friend and also a few brief notes I put into my phone as I observed.
Observation
My observation of the male began when he walked in alone and sat down at the bar, ordering a drink. Automatically I assumed that he was waiting for someone as he appeared to look around the room, particularly towards the door way and then at his phone, whilst engaging in small talk with the barman. After approximately 10 minutes, a girl walked in and sat down on the bar stool beside the male. It was quite clear from their pair’s mannerisms (laughing, sharing photos on their phones, discussing drinks etc…) that they knew each other, however, it seemed like they had only recently met, as their interactions were not completely comfortable as with an established couple. The male then proceeded to ask the girl if she would like a drink, which he then ordered and paid for. Talking with my friend, we then assumed that the couple was actually on a first date.
I (we) proceeded to watch the couple as they chatted and ordered another couple of drinks. As the observation continued, a group of men walked in who were wearing fire fighter uniforms. The group of men proceeded to walk straight up to the male and female sitting at the bar and began to joke saying “mate you shouldn’t have told us what you were doing tonight”. Having heard this, I then discussed with my friend, my assumption that the boy was actually a firefighter also, who worked with the group of men and had obviously told them during the day that he was going out on a date. The male then stood up of his stool so that he could talk with the group of men. They continued to joke and laugh, involving the girl also about how they had “crashed his date”. Despite the obvious awkwardness of the situation for both the male and female, they were both good sports and had a laugh with the group of firefighters.
After approximately half an hour, the male and female then said goodbye to the group as they got up together and walked out the door. My automatic assumption was that they had been on a pre-dinner drink and were heading to dinner. The firefighters finished their drinks and left not long after the couple.
How I Felt
During the observation, I did feel slightly dishonest observing someone without them knowing, but on the whole I didn’t feel awkward or uncomfortable. I actually thoroughly enjoyed the “people watching” exercise. I think the fact that I was able to observe the male whilst sitting with a friend did make the observation exercise fun and it was good to have another person to share observations and assumptions with. I also think that sitting with a friend, made me unnoticeable as an observer and simply another girl at a bar/restaurant. In hindsight, however, if I had been doing the observation alone, I think I would have felt more awkward and uncomfortable, as I may have appeared to be “starring” at the couple as I sat alone.
During the observation I was a little bit unsure of what it was that I was actually meant to be observing. Due to the open-ended nature of the task, I wasn’t sure if what I was observing was in actual fact “correct” or if there was something that I was meant to observe/discover that maybe I hadn’t, or if I had observed/discovered things that I wasn’t meant to. I did during the observation continually second guess myself as to what I was meant to be “seeing”.
What I Learnt
During my observation activity, there were several main points that I learnt and had my attention drawn to:
· If you don’t have a strong framework or specific focus for your observation, it makes it very broad (as was the case in this exercise) and difficult to know exactly what you are observing/looking for.
· It’s all well and good to make assumptions, but you need to be ale to justify inferences that you draw from you observations.
· As an observer (field researcher) it is important to make a decision whether to observe as an outsider or as a participant.
· Whilst I had the benefit of having a friend with me to discuss observations and help remember them, it is important to record observations as soon as they are made, or very soon after.
· I did feel a little dishonest observing someone, especially on something like a first date, however having a friend with me, did make the experience a whole lot more entertaining.
On the whole, I really enjoyed the task of observing and found it informative, engaging and entertaining.
Topic 2: Writing Survey Questions
Task
Design three Likert Scale questions about the topic of “A Healthy Lifestyle” that would help to answer the research question - “What do people think are the essential components of a healthy lifestyle?”
Likert Scale Questions
Listed below are three Likert Scale questions, which will assist in answering the question “What do people think are the essential components of a healthy lifestyle?” Please mark your level of agreement with each statement.
Task
Write one or two open-ended questions that address the same topic.
Open-Ended Questions
Listed below are two open-ended questions, which will assist in answering the question “What do people think are the essential components of a healthy lifestyle?”
1. What do you consider to be the most important component in having a healthy lifestyle?
2. What do you consider to be the top three most important components in having a healthy lifestyle?
Rationale
At first glance, I thought it would be quite straightforward to design a few research questions. In actual fact it was harder than I thought. I did find Babbie’s (2014) Eight Guidelines For Asking Questions helpful however, and think my questions met the guidelines accordingly.
1. Items must be clear and precise: I did make my questions very short and simple, avoiding any confusion and misunderstanding.
2. The items should ask only about one thing: Each of my statements focuses only on one aspect. Fruit and vegetables are put together but I believe this an acceptable combination.
3. Respondents must be competent to answer the items: My statements are worded in a way that all participants can easily answer by simply drawing on information gathered from day-day experiences.
4. Respondents must be willing to answer the item: My statements do not require participants to recall any personal, specific or unrealistic information, therefore, encouraging willing participation.
5. Questions should be relevant to the respondent: The topic of “A Healthy Lifestyle” is something that appeals and is relevant to a large percentage of people. There will always be a group of people that health and well-being does not appeal to.
6. Items should be ordinarily short: I believe my straightforward and repetitive questions allow quick and straightforward answering.
7. Negative items should be avoided so as to not confuse respondents: My statements do not contain negative statements, therefore avoiding misunderstandings and confusion.
8. Items should be worded to avoid biasing responses: My questions are free of bias and I believe that they do not lead/encourage participants to answer in a particular way.
With my open-ended questions, I similarly tried to follow Babbie’s (2014) Eight Guidelines For Asking Questions but tried to design the questions so that they provided the researcher with more insight into “What do people think are the essential components of a healthy lifestyle?” I think my open-ended questions provide sufficient opportunity for participants to report on what they “think” on the topic of “A Healthy Lifestyle”.
Reference List
Babbie, E. (2014). The Basics of Social Research. Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth.