Our Research Approach
Learn about:
- the different apporaches to research we adopt;
- the methods we use;
- the rationale for conducting research in this way.
Approches to Research - theoretical framing
Our research is primarily ethnographic and qualitative, drawing on the theoretical framing of sociocultural theory and social phenomenology. Here we break down what that means in practice:
Ethnography is about making sense of actions and interactions. We do this through fieldwork, entering primarily early childhood settings to observe and ask questions about the everyday life of the people who are the subject of a study.
Ethnography is subjective and is a snap-shot of what we observe at the time of the study. We want to find out about children’s and educator’s experiences but we are not living ‘in their shoes’ so can never truly know what it is like to be part of that community or the challenges of doing a particular job. Consequently we make subjective judgements from what we understand, from listening and observing.
A qualitative research method explores social worlds of children, to examine social interactions, creative responses and individual motivations. In seeking to understand ‘meaning and action … in a lived situation’ an interpretative tradition of social enquiry enables us to have insight to children and adults motivations and responses to the world around them (Carr & Kemmis, 1986, p. 83).
In our research understanding what children bring to play situations and how they interact with others or in particular spaces, draws on a sociocultural perspective of learning and development. Sociocultural theory suggests that learning is inherently a social process mediated through interpersonal interactions (Vygotsky, 1978). For example, sharing the same cultural background means that children enter play with similar expectations of what might happen. Pyle and Bigelow (2015) consider that play, learning and development cannot be isolated from contextual influences such as the home or nursery/ kindergarten. They all influence the process of playing and learning and developing a holistic picture of children’s preferences and how those preferences support the expression of voice and rights.
Social phenomenology explores the subjective experiences of people and in our research we focus on children, families and educators. The often taken-for-granted aspects of daily lives are examined through a multiple lenses of layered experiences and interactions in social relationships. Through social phenomenology meaning is given and judgements are made in situations (Schutz 1970). Social phenomenology involves two aspects of interpretive understanding; the process by which sense is made or interpreted through everyday happenings and the process by which generalisations are constructed that are then used to interpret what is being researched (Berger and Lukmann 1991). Schutz argued that lived experiences are more than casual events and intersubjectivity that social phenomenology supports, enables common perceptions to be significant. Framing research within social phenomenology facilitates different voices and lived experiences to be exposed within the parameters of a study.
Methods
We use a variety of methods to generate data including:
- non-participant observations, fieldnotes, video;
- artefacts from practice;
- interviews;
- focus groups;
- case studies;
- reflections and diaries.
Rationale for research
The methodology we adopt starts from the premise that in order to gain insights into young children’s authentic voices within usually time-limited studies, the research process needs to be mediated through those who have the closest relationships with children and those with whom children’s voices are often shared, co-constructed and responded to during their daily lives.
In order to gain insights into children’s interests, preferences, curiosity, rights and views we pay attention to their physical and social curiosity (Dann, 2013). We therefore use a methodology that allows us to focus on children’s actions, communication, relationships and reflections in their daily lives, but that also acknowledges children’s access to pursuing and expressing their opinions, curiosity and exploration is usually bounded by adults (Chak 2010).
Participatory Research
Participatory approaches to doing research is rooted in principles of justice and democracy. It is an inclusive, collaborative approach to research defined both by participation and a determination to produce knowledge in the interest of social change. Within the social sciences, participatory research is committed to engaging knowledge and expertise by involving those who are most intimately affected by the research, for example shaping the research questions, framing interpretations, and designing meaningful research products and actions.
The Mosaic Approach
The approach combines reflections on a range of ways to listen to children’s voices, and to gather their views and experiences through child-led methods and observations, in order to inform pedagogy and research (Clark and Moss, 2011).
Each element of the Mosaic approach are valued and recognised as making a significant contribution to knowledge generation about children and the things that matter to them. Central to this is listening which is an ‘active process, involving, interpreting, constructing meaning and responding’ (Clark, 2017, p.26). Educators can work with information which can be seen and heard out of context – for example, the things children say and aspects of play that reflect learning and knowledge from home. Therefore it is important for educators to step back and recognise how children feel and see the world.
Rinaldi (2005, p.19) terms the development of collaborative understanding as ‘interpretative theory’, that ascribes significance and meaning to events and objects that are shared, layered and revised on ‘intellectual, affective and aesthetic’ levels. This research represents children’s voice, their interpretations and views on the world, through their play and conversations, whilst recognising and drawing upon interpretations and reflections made by people who know the children.
