There is a huge array of literature on both reading and writing. Rather than provide pages of references, here are some texts that I’ve found helpful. Writing literature reviews Boote, D. N., & Beile, P. (2005). Scholars before researchers: On the centrality of the dissertation literature review in research preparation. Educational Researcher, 34(6), 3-15. Wallace, … Continue reading Useful texts on reading and writing
Author: qualpage
Writing as a social practice
Writing is a task that is usually thought of as a solitary practice. One need only go to a coffee shop in a university town to see individuals hunched over laptops reading and writing to observe some of the work that goes into completion of the numerous term papers, theses and dissertations completed each year … Continue reading Writing as a social practice
Qualitative Research Journals
There are a growing number of journals that publish qualitative studies in particular disciplines. One of the oldest of these is Qualitative Sociology, established in 1978. Since that time, journals have been founded that focus on research in education (International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, founded in 1988), health (Qualitative Health Research, founded in … Continue reading Qualitative Research Journals
Doing autoethnography
Doing autoethnography means writing a story about oneself, doesn’t it? If that is the case, it should not be hard. Right? In fact, doing autoethnography requires quite a few skills. Among these are: The ability to write evocatively and engagingly. Keen skills for research. This involves doing fieldwork and research in the library. Fieldwork might … Continue reading Doing autoethnography
Getting started with qualitative inquiry
Newcomers to qualitative inquiry encounter numerous new terms. There are so many approaches to doing qualitative inquiry. Further, authors frequently use terms in different ways. What are ways to navigate the maze of beginning to learn about qualitative inquiry? First, it helps to build a scaffold, a strategy recommended by Michael Crotty (1998). In qualitative … Continue reading Getting started with qualitative inquiry
Working on writing
One might mistakenly assume that writing as an academic activity gets easier with more experience. I have not found that to be the case. In fact, with time, I’ve struggled with the tendency to let other responsibilities crowd writing out of my calendar. When the unexpected happens – such as the death of a loved … Continue reading Working on writing
Examples of qualitative inquiry: Ethnography
In the United States, a new academic year is beginning. Here are two recent ethnographies that might be helpful in teaching qualitative research methods.
QualPage relaunched
It has taken longer than I had anticipated... but I am excited to announce the re-launch of QualPage. Founded in the early by 1990s by Judy Norris in Alberta, Canada, QualPage was one of the earlier websites to provide links to resources about qualitative research. When Judy Norris retired in 2003, Professor Judith Preissle from … Continue reading QualPage relaunched