Hearing other’s research questions today – so inspiring to hear people be so passionate about their subject.
We talked as a group about our project outlines and I made notes on colleagues research questions and their initial thoughts;
Firstly a peer talked about making a resource for potential students preparing portfolios for admission to BA courses at UAL. This could lead to portfolio success and to demystify the application process. She plans to research existing resources, student’s perspective, what is there, interview students and teachers from a partner college, to see what they struggle with. Talk to successful students and film and record that as the resource. Some group/one-on-one, semi structured qualitative.
Reference: Cohen, L., Manion, L., & Morrison, K. (2012) ‘Chapter 4: Sampling’ in Research Methods in Education. Routledge: London, pp. 100-117
Feedback from peers’ led to the suggestion that she make the questions as neutral as possible so that they’re not already loaded. And that her research might be too busy that there’s enough to analyse without making a film as well.
Another course peer talked next about her question which is; ‘How to support Home, EU and overseas students on various course pathways’. She is thinking of creating a workshop around the theme and looking at a buddy system. She really wants to address how it’s great to take advantage of meeting students from different cultures. There are currently issues around groups of students keeping themselves separate from each other and they miss out on all the things a sense of community bring. She hopes to have a support group and to learn from this how to use their feedback to create something in 1st Year. Do some sort of questionnaire or mail some questions in advance so that they start thinking about it ahead of time. An honest discussion.
We were were advised to think about collecting data in creative ways. To think creatively and be experimental. Use it as a sight of experimentation. You don’t have to stick with pre-existing norms.
Peers then gave feedback on my current questions which is changing pretty much every time I think about it! Currently, it is about learning a challenging skill, with a level of safety attached to it.
My feedback from peers (in note form):
MT – Likes the question – she’s interested in how we absorb and then pass on something potentially challenging.. How we learn. Students taking responsibility for their own learning, When you’re asking other peers, is this reflected in your teaching. What is my aim? Might help me to work out what I want. Should get lots of examples back. The findings of this will start to help shape the research. The way A (peer on course) absorbs info is through reading – not all students are going to love that way of learning = she won’t just include podcasts, I could try to introduce a variety of formats. Learning in ways that make you comfortable and uncomfortable to go outside your comfort zone. Going outside your comfort zone is a good thing – school made us good at learning information for exams. There are so many different types of learning, that will embed the info in your brain other than memorising info like a robot. Not being comfortable with the learning method. Static intake of knowledge, is only half the story. Do you learn more if you’re comfortable, if you have anxiety does that help. If you’re on edge – do you have adrenalin that helps you absorb. Could my question be more focussed on the value of discomfort in learning. Discomfort is good!! Maybe this is what I should hone it down to..
Maybe I could run a specific activity and then get feedback on a particular part of that – the comfort factor and how it featured, or didn’t, for participants. I will ask specific follow-up questions across the cohort to avoid leading them to my desired response (realising that how you frame the questions is massively important. Once you start asking people what they prefer, then you have to identify how many would have the insight that being uncomfortable is useful. (which is my perception, not there. There’s also a time factor. ‘You were asked to do something in 5 mins’ and then the anxiousness – how many didn’t try because there was a time pressure.
Should I interview staff or students? could make it too big to handle effectively in the time available.
Action Research cycle = learned info to inform next cycle = focussing.
M – peer on the course – her question is around the gap that exists between taught theory and practice. She teaches both, she gets asked to develop a practical workshop and there will be someone else leading the theory. How to have more connection, less of a gap. How to find connections between theory and practice. Practical with alongside lectures. A focus group or workshop where she might do something like – research in arts, a piece of academic text, but then they will respond visually. Everyone has to draw out something from the same text. Follow up questions in terms of how they read the text differently.
Part of this is to run a brief where she would ask participants to write about a particular object. They are then asked to design their essay into 2 magazine spreads. They go away and really research the object and then visually communicate what they’ve written. There are always readings that they have to do alongside the briefs. Sometimes there is a marriage there, students might not have enough experience to bridge these two together. Two different kinds of knowledge, Letting the visuals do the talking.
A – peer on the course – ‘The role of feeling and emotion in the design process’ – graphic design, prizes rationality over anything else. So much of design process relies on reasons behind design decisions. There’s not room for feeling behind these decisions. Audry Laud’s power of erotic in life – wanted to relate this to design. Kant came up with the idea about objective good taste and objective beauty, people started to critic this in the 80’s built off cultural capital and reinforcing class devision. Arts and Crafts – admiring beauty in everyday objects such as wallpaper and furniture to bring joy to the working person.
Asking students to ask themselves how they feel when they’re designing. How to design the activity using alternative teaching techniques. Ask students for feedback after activity.
Questions she might pose: when you’re designing, how do you decide what looks good and what doesn’t?
What feelings do you experience in the process, whether that’s frustration/joy/confusion and are these feelings helpful for moving forward in the process?
When you see something beautiful what is your physical reaction
When you make decisions in the design process, how do you experience your feelings around this in your body?
How are you feeling in your body – physical sensations.
How to design an activity that elicits feeling – collect responses via padlet.
A feels that emotion is designated to Fine Art.
The inbetween – women’s work, craft not really being art.
We had great discussions around this and I was really interested in all of these research questions. These are fields that are unfamiliar to me although I recognise the hierarchy that exists around craft and fine art. I feel so motivated by today’s session and feel inspired to look at how I could creatively get feedback. I was also inspired by the last peer to present their idea, who tapes interviews of students talking about how they see themselves and how others see them, then transcribes these, highlights the text and turns them into Ipoem. He uses the ‘I’ term plus the verb to make a set of statements then he asks participants to reflect on these. His question centres on how international students might feel ‘othered’ and inferior and separated which was his experience when he was a student – also being an international student himself. He wants to reveal things that go unheard in these conversations, things that are suppressed.
A great day then but I am extremely daunted by how much I have to do! I’m in amazing company, so fantastic to hear other’s thoughts and their clarity and articulacy around their subject.
https://miro.com/app/board/o9J_luxM8D4=/ MOODLE from day
https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/ual/detail.action?docID=6193498 Link from today
Check out GDPR course on UAL Learning space: learningspace.arts.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=49
trello.com/home – organisation site?!