SCOPE OF RESEARCH

My study examines examines five processes in the life of a textbook: regulation, production, representation, identity and consumption. The details can be found here.

I spent over a year (2008/09) reviewing literature related to my study, and in particular, studies on materials development. During this time, I also designed my research and developed appropriate instruments to facilitate my investigation. I spent about four months in 2010 generating data in the field among diverse participant groups. In the process, I gained practical experience and insights into the research process, with a particular focus on qualitative investigation.

 

RESEARCH SKILLS

Development of Interview Guides and Interviewing

In my examination of the regulation, production and consumption moments, I engaged participants from the curriculum development body, the publishers, textbook authors and teachers in interviews using semi-structured interview guides. I subsequently transcribed and thematically analysed these interviews.

 Document Analysis 

I used inductive and deductive techniques for document analysis of the syllabus and textbook. In particular, I am familiar with Littlejohn’s framework for materials analysis, which I used to analyse textbook content.

 Classroom Observation in a Textbook Study

As part of my examination of textbook consumption, I developed an instrument to compare suggested textbook content and activities to actual classroom practice. This involved an initial stage of classroom observation with audio recording of lessons, and a subsequent stage involving transcription and comparison using Littlejohn’s framework for materials analysis.

 Questionnaire Design and Analysis

I designed and used questionnaires at the onset of my study for preliminary work among teachers and at the end for foundational work among learners. I analysed them using descriptive statistics.