Reflective Journal

I kept a journal throughout the study. It was used to reflect on theoretical issues, ethical issues, issues of interpretation and analysis, and practical considerations. The journal also provided a source of data as I analysed my own experiences as a literacy educator in relation to the research questions. Below is a sample journal entry that was written during the data collection phase of the study:

Today I went into the class to explain the research and ask students for their permission to observe them. I had been thinking about how to simplify my explanations of the research process and reduced the ideas to the following points that I quickly scribbled on a piece of paper: I will join your class to learn about what you do in the program; I will talk to you and ask a lot of questions about what you are learning; and I will talk to your teachers about you and ask them questions about how they help you learn. This helped me to work out the essential elements of the research questions, which are really based on the 5W'. What are you learning in the program, in this activity, in this class, etc.? How are you learning this? Who is helping you? Why is this important to you? What does it mean for you? Now I need to ensure that these kinds of questions fit my theoretical framework. I knew I had to simplify my questions, and for this initial discussion with the students, I thought I would ask questions based more on my instinctual ideas of what I'm doing rather than the theory. I must now ensure they match and make sure that I can filter my theoretically developed questions through my instinctual interpretations.

DATA MANAGEMENT AND ANALYSIS

Field notes, digital pictures of the physical settings (not the people), transcriptions and accompanying narratives, documents, and my journal comprised the data. Once the data were in paper form, it was sorted into labeled folders according to source (student interviews, instructor interview and follow–up, documents, observation, and journal) and stored in a cabinet in my home. It was important not to leave any of the data in my office, the site of the study, in order to maintain privacy and to serve as another reminder that this data were not part of the program. Pseudonyms were used in all of the data and real names were covered if they appeared on the student's documents. There were approximately 200 pages of student transcripts and narratives, 100 pages of instructors' transcripts, narratives, and follow–up comments, 10 pages of document notes, 40 pages of observation notes and collected documents, and 60 pages in a journal. The tapes totaled approximately nine hours of recorded conversation.