Research Blog Post 2

The article “North Elementary School” written by Jenny Irving and Michael Allen shows both the pros and cons of working as a team while doing research. The chose to observe the diverse community of an elementary school where Michael’s mother Mrs. Allen worked as a special education teacher. The main reason why they chose to observe a school was their shared love of children, and the fact that they both had a parent who was a teacher.
The main method of research that they used was through observation. They spent five days observing three different classes which included a second grade class, a split fifth/sixth grade class, and a special education class. They observed the classes both together and apart. The talked to the kids, observed, took notes, and interviewed staff members. They also used Michael’s mother as a principal informant.
Since ethnography takes a great deal of time, working as a pair helped them split up the work. The different perspectives also provided them with differing interpretations which led them to new ideas. One of the disadvantages of using Mrs. Allen as an informant was the possible bias on Michael’s part, but this was avoided by using two ethnographers. Since Jenny didn’t have the same relationship to Mrs. Allen she was able to give an objective analysis.
They weren’t sure how they would be accepted by the teachers, and if their presence there would affect the results. But the children and teachers were both very welcoming and helpful.
This kind of research seems very interesting to me. Instead of looking up things on the internet, you get a more hands-on approach. You get to see things first hand, since you are seeing it right before your eyes.