Methods In Context (Participant Observation In Education)

Question 1

How ‘Valid’ is participant observation in education?

Answer 1

• PO is more likely to overcome status differences between interviewer + pupil
• Impression management

Question 2

What are the ‘Practical Issues’ using participant observation in education?

Answer 2

• Time consuming
• Classroom observations are less disruptive
• Observation is restricted by timetables
• Recording observations can be problematic

Question 3

What are the ‘Ethical Issues’ using participant observation in education?

Answer 3

• Informed consent is difficult to obtain
• Issues with protecting school’s identity
• Most observations will be overt

Question 4

How might the ‘Hawthorne Effect’ impact participant observation?

Answer 4

• Most observation is overt
• Hawthorne effect is unavoidable
• Impression management

Question 5

How ‘Representative’ are participant observations in education?

Answer 5

• Only carried out in a small scale

- Education system includes over 35,000 schools, making it impossible to gain representativeness