Open AccessMethods and Ethics in a Life History Study of Teacher Thinking
Author(s) -
James A. Muchmore
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
the qualitative report
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.335
H-Index - 35
ISSN - 2160-3715
DOI - 10.46743/2160-3715/2002.1969
Subject(s) - narrative , realm , life history , narrative inquiry , oral history , pedagogy , historical thinking , psychology , sociology , field (mathematics) , epistemology , history , literature , anthropology , archaeology , art , ecology , philosophy , mathematics , biology , pure mathematics
During the past decade, there has been an increasing interest in the use of life history and narrative approaches to study teacher thinking and teacher development. Unlike other forms of educational research, in which relationships between researchers and participants are characterized by business-like transactions that rarely extend into the realm of the personal, life history and narrative research can involve relationships that are personal and complex. Such research can also generate massive amounts of data--in the form of field notes, interview transcripts, and other documents--which are very difficult to synthesize. This article presents some of the methodological and ethical issues encountered by the author during a five-year life history study of an experienced urban high school English teacher.