Chapter 8

Blaxter,L., Hughes,C., Tight,M., 2010 How to Research. Fourth Edition. Maidenhead: Open University Press.


I am still in the process of going through my interviews and turning them all into transcripts which can be very time consuming- but I believe helpful in the long run- and I am now starting to think about the next step.  I did a lot of reading about this for my proposal in module two but now the practicality of it is a little more... well, real.  I had an initial read of the above book and found it incredibly useful in helping me structure a 'to do' list and formulate a plan of how exactly i will analyse my data.  I keep reading things like 'thematic analysis' and 'look for patterns' but HOW do you actually go about doing this? In this book I have found logical and helpful advice on all the different steps i can take which has enabled me to understand what my next step is.  I made a lot of notes in this first initial read and I simply copied some things down, which I will now try to make sense of in this blog.

'...Surviving as a research student is about accumulating knowledge and extending skills...'  

The above quote made me relax, it acknowledged that this process is something to be survived and gave two clear ways on how to do this!  Gather all the knowledge you can, then enter into a world of the complete unknown whilst you figure out what to do with it! I have never done this, but I will survive it by learning new methods, this is new learning, which is what makes it seem so uncertain. 

Set a plan with an achievable time-scale. Don't just look at what it is you have to do, but look at when this has to be completed and come up with a plan including dates and checklists.  Acknowledge your own limitations regarding the time you have to complete the project and the cost and your word count... So , we are not tackling a 5 year PHD, this a degree based project with a smaller word count, the limitations are greater.  As I have discussed with my tutor in the past, I am not in a position to change anything right now so I must focus on the exploratory aspect of this research not just the application of my findings.  I am not going to change the world... this time anyway... 

Chapter 8 begins by looking at what ' shape' your data is in, meaning, the condition of your data, with what facilitates are you going to analyse your data with?  Think about your preferences, for me I need everything to be neat and looking organised otherwise I find it hard to think clearly. A messy work environment for me is just too distracting! I will be laying my transcripts out in a big space in front of me in order that I took them, that way I can see everything in chronological order and it will feel familiar to when I first did the interviews.  I will use highlighters, a colour at a time to go through my data and make a reference of which highlighter colour means what.  I will post pictures of this on my blog as and when it happens.  

'...managing your data by reducing it's size and scope so that you can report upon it adequately and usefully...'

I had not thought about this before, the reducing of my data into manageable chunks and meanings.  Visually, this made sense to me, narrowing something down slowly.  One of the worries I have had with analysing is the amount of data I have in front of me, but the thought of analysing essentially being the process of making that amount smaller makes the process seem more doable.  

...' Analysing your managed set of data by abstracting from it and drawing attention to what you feel is important or significant...' 

Something to always keep in my head whilst going through my data... what is significant, Why? What does this tell me? What will it tell my reader?

This book also looks at the pros and cons of using software to analyse data.  Personally I will be doing everything manually because I want to go through this process, i don't want to learn how to program my data into software which will analyse it for me, I want to go through this process myself and develop those skills so i can use them after this degree is completed.  I feel it would be like learning to drive a car and never lifting up the bonnet to see what's underneath .  However, I can understand why other, more experienced,  researchers may choose to use a software program, time saving is one of them! If I had hundreds of interviews and years worth of research, then it might be something I would consider,  but I feel this is a process I have to go through manually.  

As I mentioned before, this book also helped to clarify some terminology for me, surprising me with things i thought I already knew.  Below are a few quotes from the book which helped me to understand these phrases further. 

'...Concepts are

                     - abstracts of general ideas, which are important to how we think about particular subjects or issues '

' Theories are, 

                    - suppositions which explain , or seek to explain something.' 

' Explanations are, 

                     - statements which seek to make something intelligible about why things are the way they are' 

'Understanding is, 

                    - Our perception of the meaning of something , in this case the subject are, the issues and/or the research questions under consideration.'  

I will use these to ensure that statements I have made fall in line with these definitions, for example,  if I make an explanation does it accurately and clearly make something 'intelligible'.  I can check this by asking other people to read my analysis and ensuring they understand it and what I am trying to convey. At the end of all of this, I wish to have a document which uses the evidence I have found and explains it in a way that is convincing of it's validity and worth.  I can also enlist help from the people in my work place, I will be meeting with our schools SENCO over the next few weeks to discuss what I'm finding out so far and my current ideas for artifacts. I wish to ensure I keep in track with the project being ' work based learning' and ensure that it is useful for my professional practice.  

I found this book more accessible and easier to digest than I have other research guides, everything is in sections with examples and clear definitions of those phrases I keep hearing.  It doesn't answer a question with another one but cuts straight to the point of what it means and how to do it. 

Notes on chapter 9 coming soon....