Sunday, December 11, 2011
Personal Reflection 7
The Rhizomatic Research Journey of Methods in Art Education
The research methods class has been like a rhizomatic walking derive with many divergent perspectives of research methods to explore for me. My walking turned into a skip and progressed into a run as I started collecting data and analyzing each method to find the convergent perspective that will fit my research proposal. I feel that the experience was a bit rushed, not really understanding that I should’ve come into this class with my reach question in hand. After learning about the research proposal, I was focused on the concept of the proposal, which deterred time away from the study of methods. I believe my understanding of the methods would be stronger if more time was spent to dig deeper into each method and I came into the class with my research question for my capstone project. Visually in my journal the progression of each lesson is captured, the beginning lessons were neatly captured in writing and diagramed; then time chaos set in and my journaling became sporadic in design.
I found myself searching for meanings throughout the course. My understandings were visually captured in the mixed media artwork on the beginning page of Sakai. I was captured by the arrows because they reminded me of digital videos derives that I created. My interpretation was directional into different research with methods and experiences that continually weave and grow throughout spiraling upward. The roots weave the depths as we dig deeper. The layers of research and questions are directional expressionist strokes that are cut and reworked into wings that represent the continual progressive flight of the research project.
Cognitive: I had no idea of the various research methods. I feel that now when I research paper I will understand the concept of the method that the author is illustrating in his research and why they chose that method for their study. Understand the need for clarity in my writing and that research projects need to be doable and microscopic. Also the research topic should be relevant and unbiased when analyzed. I understand validity of research depends on the data and triangulation method reigns high for validation. My interpretations of students could possibly cause invalidity and so I must define the research approaches with key junctures for constructing validity. I understand that quantitative precede qualitative research for validity with it's computational data.
Skills: New skills learned is becoming a better writer and making my thoughts flow. Writing is not one my strengths. I have to write clearer for my plans when developing collecting data. My writing is always to the point and short for presentations. Although I struggle with lengthy writings, I do enjoy research for finding meanings and I usually find myself getting too wrapped up in diving really deep. I learned the correct format for research thesis and writing references connected to bibliography. I have more skill in choosing the right methods and strategies for gathering and analyzing data.
Affective: I am committed to making art education beneficial for reaching the students through art. I believe by always focusing first on that reach in students that other diverse perspectives of art education will connect and benefit. I now understand that my writing reflections from lesson plans are considered part of an action research for implementing a better plan. I really connected to the a/r/tography reading as they brought to my attention the transpositions of artist, researcher and educator and the flexibilities within the research method. I was excited and related to the quote posted by Leslie; "We live in an age where the artist is forgotten. He is a researcher. I see myself that way." - David Hockney
Judgment/Evaluation: I believe you can apply principles when evaluating research. The principles would direct the correct focus of methods tor formatting a research proposal. They also would direct the researcher who is looking for a particular perspective that could be used as a reference in their research proposal. If I took this class again, I would come in with my research question and references in hand and engage my focus on the methods.
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Rejoice, Reflect & Repose
It seems with every new research method that I read; I imagined the method was adaptable and a better option for my proposal. It has been a challenge to find the right fit. But I believe my research will maintain the status as a qualitative research with an action approach because it involves daily observation awareness with documented journaling, photographs, and reflections of students. I want to document the organization of setting up a studio-based environment. I want to understand if the collaboration of a studio based environment and design thinking will engage students in their art making and induce creative, entrepreneurial thinkers for the future. After reading Douglas & Jaquith’s book, they explain the benefits a choice-based environment and teaching artistic behavior for students. In the fall have been changing my lesson plans by having students choose their materials for art making. I did a pilot study to find out from students how might they become more engaged in creative artmaking. I started discussions with students and had them write what they would like to learn in art, what was their favorite medium/art making and what are their strengths. I believe my research will show a progressive spiral cycle for taking action as I collect, analyze and reflect data process for planning improvement. And here I go again, I must admit a/r/tography research methodology really hit home for me too.
Douglas, K. & Jaquith, D. (2009). Engaging learners through art making. New York, NY: Teachers College Press
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Week Six Reflection: Lost in the Whirlwind of Life
This week came and went before I could blink an eye. Looking back on the process as I am now, I realize that I was all over the board with regard to what research method to employ for my project in Apalachicola. My research Proposal stated many different methods that were not supported by what I was writing about. My intentions and the direction I was going was not clear. For example these are my words, "The use of Ethnographic research is an appropriate match for my study because I am focusing on a community with a distinctly unique culture... I am considering using Descriptive and narrative research approaches. I feel this works with my way of thinking and would give credence to my voice while supporting the Philosophical inquiry". I even mention the mixed-method approach.
As the result of the rapid fire nature of this class I did not have a genuine understanding of the various approaches that we are learning. This is evident in the research proposal draft.
After a good conversation with Dr. Gates I was able to see the issue clearly and now am reading about Ethnographic case studies.
As the result of the rapid fire nature of this class I did not have a genuine understanding of the various approaches that we are learning. This is evident in the research proposal draft.
After a good conversation with Dr. Gates I was able to see the issue clearly and now am reading about Ethnographic case studies.
http://www.globalimpactstudy.org/2008/07/the-ethnographic-case-study-approach/
http://www.amazon.com/Art-Case-Study-Research/dp/080395767X
I like to refer back to this article :
Smith Koroscik, J., & Kowalchuk, E. (1997). Reading and interpreting research journal articles. In S. Pierre & E. Zimmerman (Eds.), Research methods and methodologies (pp. 75-102). Retrieved from https://ares-uflib-ufl-edu.lp.hscl.ufl.edu/ares.dll?SessionID=D094742171V&Action=10&Form=50&Value=66690
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Janice—Blog number seven: Reflection
My experience of this class was much different from what I expected. I think I had assumed I would be working directly on my thesis; in a way, of course, I was: I just had no idea so many questions and options existed around and for research work. The best readings for me were the articles about qualitative research options: Richardson (1993), Moen (2006), and Slatterly (2003), to cite a few. My thesis work, evolving as it has into a more creative piece of writing, thinking, and even living, as been a real shot in the arm.
The responses from my peers and my critical friend echoed some response and promptings from Leslie: I must pay more attention to academic practice and style. Yes, I can be more far-reaching in my thoughts and writing than I had previously thought, but I can’t be perceived as being sloppy or unaware of expected stylistic forms. Those are the two large “things I learned”: the paradox of increased intellectual freedom along with the increased necessity of documenting and supporting that freedom with a history and community. I won’t get away with writing off the top of my head.
My next is to follow where my journal is taking me. I will read definitive sources for social learning theory with utmost attention—Bandura, (1977), for example, and more intensely allied theories of creativity and psychology: Mumford & Connelly (1994) and Kitchner & Brenner (1990) being two good starting points. I need more internalized knowledge to recognize and respond to those granular teaching moments I am looking for.
The most important piece of knowledge I gained from this class was that I can do this. It is ironic: the basis of my hypothesis (self-efficacy) is what I had to achieve myself. I don’t know what I will remember in one or in five years time: I don’t make predictions of that sort. I suppose I hope I remember being happy in the face of doubt and chaos and turning a corner. I do know one thing: you never know what will happen in the future.
How has my knowledge grown about research? Even though I want to carve out my own path, others have carved out their own paths before me—and part of mine as well—and I must situate myself in a conversation with a research community. There must be strong tentacles to the world of academia. As for skills—I sometimes feel as if I am arm-wrestling sentences into shape; trying to make my words as clear, meaningful, and fluid as I would like them to be. Writing is hard work: I have to write, re-write, edit, deliberate, expand, contract, and ground—over and over again. Writing is an old interest newly revitalized, but I have the experience of my years of reading, thinking, taching, and artmaking to help make it happen. A skill I must work on is organization: my thoughts and notes are scattered over several journals, dozens of notated articles, and in my reading reflections. I need to create system for bringing information together and, sometimes, breaking it apart to go in different directions. I haven’t figured out how to do this yet.
I don’t think I changed the general tenor of my beliefs but perhaps I opened them up to new possibilities, especially in the realm of arts-based research and post-modern qualitative methods. The part of the class that seemed most worth my time, to me at this moment, was the reading and the research proposal draft and the pilot study. I feel good about my research because I was intuitively on the right path, but I had to learn to circumscribe my ideas so they, in turn, could be more focused. The single most important thing I learned about me and my research was trust: to trust my ideas and my ability to shape them.
I didn’t respond much in the discussion board. Most of the time I was lost in the chaos of my own thoughts and sometimes felt overwhelmed reading about the chaos of others. With all the surrounding study we did about research, I am certainly much more aware of the forms it can take and questions and issues it must address. I have more trust in my ability to evaluate research.
If I took this class again I would notice and submit to the academic requirements more quickly. Informal research is a part of daily life, and formal research can be a creative part of an artist and educator’s life as well. I would approach the class with a better understanding and respect for both perspectives.
References:
Bandura, A. (1977). Social learning theory. New York: General Learning Press.
Kitchner, K., & Brenner, H. (1990). Wisdom and reflective judgment: Knowing in the
face of uncertainty. In R.J. Steinberg (Ed.). Wisdom: Its nature, origins and
development (pp. 212-229). New York: Cambridge University Press.
Moen, T. (2006). Reflections on the narrative research approach. International Journal of
Qualitative Research Methods, 5(4), 1-11.
Mumford, M. & Connelly, M. (194). Creativity and problem solving: Cognition,
adaptability, and wisdom. Roeper Review, 16 (4), 241-257.
Richardson, L. (1993). Poetics, dramatics, and transgressive validity :The case of the
skipped line. The Sociological Quarterly, 34(4), 695-710.
Slattery, P. (2003). Troubling the contours of arts-based educational research. Qualitative
Inquiry, 9(2), 192-7.
My experience of this class was much different from what I expected. I think I had assumed I would be working directly on my thesis; in a way, of course, I was: I just had no idea so many questions and options existed around and for research work. The best readings for me were the articles about qualitative research options: Richardson (1993), Moen (2006), and Slatterly (2003), to cite a few. My thesis work, evolving as it has into a more creative piece of writing, thinking, and even living, as been a real shot in the arm.
The responses from my peers and my critical friend echoed some response and promptings from Leslie: I must pay more attention to academic practice and style. Yes, I can be more far-reaching in my thoughts and writing than I had previously thought, but I can’t be perceived as being sloppy or unaware of expected stylistic forms. Those are the two large “things I learned”: the paradox of increased intellectual freedom along with the increased necessity of documenting and supporting that freedom with a history and community. I won’t get away with writing off the top of my head.
My next is to follow where my journal is taking me. I will read definitive sources for social learning theory with utmost attention—Bandura, (1977), for example, and more intensely allied theories of creativity and psychology: Mumford & Connelly (1994) and Kitchner & Brenner (1990) being two good starting points. I need more internalized knowledge to recognize and respond to those granular teaching moments I am looking for.
The most important piece of knowledge I gained from this class was that I can do this. It is ironic: the basis of my hypothesis (self-efficacy) is what I had to achieve myself. I don’t know what I will remember in one or in five years time: I don’t make predictions of that sort. I suppose I hope I remember being happy in the face of doubt and chaos and turning a corner. I do know one thing: you never know what will happen in the future.
How has my knowledge grown about research? Even though I want to carve out my own path, others have carved out their own paths before me—and part of mine as well—and I must situate myself in a conversation with a research community. There must be strong tentacles to the world of academia. As for skills—I sometimes feel as if I am arm-wrestling sentences into shape; trying to make my words as clear, meaningful, and fluid as I would like them to be. Writing is hard work: I have to write, re-write, edit, deliberate, expand, contract, and ground—over and over again. Writing is an old interest newly revitalized, but I have the experience of my years of reading, thinking, taching, and artmaking to help make it happen. A skill I must work on is organization: my thoughts and notes are scattered over several journals, dozens of notated articles, and in my reading reflections. I need to create system for bringing information together and, sometimes, breaking it apart to go in different directions. I haven’t figured out how to do this yet.
I don’t think I changed the general tenor of my beliefs but perhaps I opened them up to new possibilities, especially in the realm of arts-based research and post-modern qualitative methods. The part of the class that seemed most worth my time, to me at this moment, was the reading and the research proposal draft and the pilot study. I feel good about my research because I was intuitively on the right path, but I had to learn to circumscribe my ideas so they, in turn, could be more focused. The single most important thing I learned about me and my research was trust: to trust my ideas and my ability to shape them.
I didn’t respond much in the discussion board. Most of the time I was lost in the chaos of my own thoughts and sometimes felt overwhelmed reading about the chaos of others. With all the surrounding study we did about research, I am certainly much more aware of the forms it can take and questions and issues it must address. I have more trust in my ability to evaluate research.
If I took this class again I would notice and submit to the academic requirements more quickly. Informal research is a part of daily life, and formal research can be a creative part of an artist and educator’s life as well. I would approach the class with a better understanding and respect for both perspectives.
References:
Bandura, A. (1977). Social learning theory. New York: General Learning Press.
Kitchner, K., & Brenner, H. (1990). Wisdom and reflective judgment: Knowing in the
face of uncertainty. In R.J. Steinberg (Ed.). Wisdom: Its nature, origins and
development (pp. 212-229). New York: Cambridge University Press.
Moen, T. (2006). Reflections on the narrative research approach. International Journal of
Qualitative Research Methods, 5(4), 1-11.
Mumford, M. & Connelly, M. (194). Creativity and problem solving: Cognition,
adaptability, and wisdom. Roeper Review, 16 (4), 241-257.
Richardson, L. (1993). Poetics, dramatics, and transgressive validity :The case of the
skipped line. The Sociological Quarterly, 34(4), 695-710.
Slattery, P. (2003). Troubling the contours of arts-based educational research. Qualitative
Inquiry, 9(2), 192-7.
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
lesson 7
Reviewing this class has made me realize how little I knew about research! I have learned a lot and I have changed many of my ideas multiple times during this class as well. When looking back at the discussion boards I’m reminded that my classmates had some really good ideas for finding information; it could be referred to online “brainstorming!” Being able to work through varied methods of research I was able to identify the mode that I am most comfortable with. Designing my thesis will now be an educated process. I won’t throw all my “eggs in one basket” and too late realize that this is not going to work for me.
One of the articles that I thought was quite interesting for my research, as well as for educational purposes, was the Evans-Palmer journal “The Potency of Humor.” It puts things in perspective in what we see and do every day, and reminded me that keeping myself stress free and adding humor to my day will also help with keep students engaged! I have also used a source I was not aware of previously, the National Arts Education Association, to obtain information for my research. With all the information they have, it’s been very helpful.
The following was very insightful for me as well and I feel the same way!
This was also very helpful, I do know, it’s from you (professor), but it did help with understanding Quantitative research.
Leslie Gates (lesliegates) (Nov 8, 2011 9:57 AM)
You write, "Adding actual experiences to the factual numbers definitely makes reading the research more interesting to me." One point of clarification - sometimes numbers portray experience. Quantitative research doesn't necessarily exclude experience. The difference between qualitative and quantitative research is how the data is expressed - either with words or with numbers. Both could present experience. Perhaps a more accurate way to say what you're feeling is that you prefer to have the data presented in story rather than in numbers. ?
Porter's Research Map
Monday, December 5, 2011
Reflections
This class has been an eye opener for me! I had done research before but never really understood or knew the depths of it. I knew that for research you had to look at sources and create your own idea of them, but never did I know how many different ways that could be done. I have learned there’s more than one way to conduct research and find what you are searching for. Learning about all the different options for research sort of overwhelmed me and put me at ease at the same time. I felt I now had a better idea of what I was looking for and how exactly I was going to find it. This course truly helped me find what I wanted to know. I now know what I want to research for my capstone project. I came in with an idea, but not really as specific as I knew it needed to be. This class taught me to dig deep within myself and find what I was truly looking for, not what sounded good on paper.
I now know as I leave this class what my research topic is, which is “using art as a tool of personal reflection in traditional art curricula.” Now knowing my goals, and what I am wanting to research by laying out my plans in my research proposal, I feel I am ready for the next step. After this class, I will begin my research during my independent study. It helped doing my pilot study in this class so I could learn from my mistakes and also learn from what worked. I now know how to conduct my study and what techniques I will use, it is now just time to do it. I know now I will use quantitative methods to collect my data, such as journals, interviews, artwork, surveys, etc. Before this class, I didn’t even know they were considered a part of a specific method of research. This class has helped me see the full world of research I never knew existed. I am thankful I have taken this class, because it taught me not just about research but also about my own research. It helped me learn to think more clearly and to problem solve by asking more than one main question. It helped me realize I can have more than one question I want to answer in my research study, but they can all be answered by possibly one overarching idea/question.
In all, this class definitely stressed me out and made me feel ignorant or stupid at times, but leaving, I now feel scared, but ready to move on to the next step. This class has empowered me with valuable tools that I am sure I will continue to use through out the rest of my career as an art educator as I strive to improve my own practice.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)