Member checking is another process recommended by Lincoln and Guba (1985) through which participants verify data and the interpretations. There were always informal verbal exchanges with family participants following each interview. Although all participants were offered the chance to read the transcripts, not one expressed a desire to do so. The emergent themes were discussed with participants in subsequent interviews and there was opportunity for the parents to expand upon points that needed more detail for understanding. They watched and commented on their videotaped interaction in a final interview and chatted about the study. Thus, I was able to clarify some misperceptions I had about what they had said in their interviews or elaborate certain points with the supplemental information they provided.

Similarly, there was ample opportunity to convey my developing understanding of the subject studied with the school staff in the many informal exchanges we had along the way. Moreover, I continued to volunteer at the school in the months after the completion of my data collection. This afforded me additional occasions to continue my discussions with staff participants and further explore ideas.

Confirmability

Confirmability deals with ensuring that the data and interpretations of the results are grounded in the context rather than projections and expectations of the researcher. This measure of trustworthiness was addressed through requests for feedback from participants to check insights, results and conclusions. This helped to ensure that they "agree[d] to honor the reconstructions" (Lincoln & Guba, 1985, p. 329) and not see the findings as determined by researcher biases or interests. Copies of all taped interviews, notes from interviews and discussions, and hard copies of all transcriptions have been maintained and are available upon request from the researcher.

An experienced qualitative researcher served as the auditor for this study. She reviewed the data, methodology and analysis processes for consistency and applicability, and offered her ideas for changes. Suggested reconsiderations were negotiated.