Holistically, ‘An Ethnographer’s Tale’ is intended as a self-reflexive academic blog that will run alongside the Doctorate Education (Creative Media) research programme at Bournemouth University (Oct 2013-Oct 2017). Cohort 1 2013-2017.
Note: A paradigm shift occurred as we progressed between Phases 1 and 2 (or as articulations became more personalised as confidence developed). We started this research assuming a critical constructivists approach believing we might co-construct meaning together, however due to the way in which transferable skills appeared to perform, unique student outcomes became more aligned towards a post-structural framing as meanings themselves (through student articulations) became subject to ongoing re-definition as a result of processes encountered.
I will write about the ups and downs of undertaking a doctorate course whilst juggling professional/ student life commitments and motherhood, offering self-selected fragments of literature and discursive texts deemed both pertinent and relevant as I go. This narrativised account will only ever represent a partial truth but in writing about my journey and emergent outcomes, I hope to be able to connect to other colleagues who may take something from my experiences using Participatory Action Research and/ or ethnographic inquiry to understand more fully our employability remit (amongst all others ECM, Functional Skills, Maths and English, Tutorial responsibilities etc.).
For clarity, a more personalised self-reflexive biographical narrative will be located in the ‘Stings of Memory (1975-present)’ tab whilst the actual mechanics of project documentation e.g. methodological literature, analyses and reflections on data obtained from both 1) my pilot and 2) main body of research (post viva/ transfer document) will be accessible via the ‘Data Analysis/ Reflection’ and other created tabs.
A separate tab entitled, ‘Working Titles… (Oct 2013-present)’ will provide a one-stop summary of changes – as evident in the titles themselves – as this project unfolds.
It is important to state that the thoughts and opinions expressed here belong to me solely and are not attributed or representative of any one institution. Also, within this blog I fully respect the anonymity of each person who has agreed (all participants have signed a devised consent form including digital/ online forms of representation for dissemination) to participate in my project and I thank them in advance for their engagement. All data and identities will remain anonymised and be used for the purposes of the production of this thesis and related publications.
In fact it, it actually ended with pink sticky notes – a screen grab of some findings (translated from those pink notes).
An Ethnographer's Tale 