I looked in particular at chapter 4 of this book: “Collecting, Collating and Conversing with Data”. Here the author discusses what counts as data and follows on to talk about quantitative versus qualitative data. She establishes that in action research the type of data to be collected and the type of collection is highly depending on the individual research question. Reading this I started to reflect on my own research question and the research methods I had chosen so far. I felt confirmed that semi-structured interviews which gather qualitative data are greatly suitable for my research question.
Further on in the chapter she lists reflective diaries as sources for data. This is an interesting thought and I am not quite sure yet, how exactly I would extract data from my research diary, but I find her argument plausible and will consider it as an additional data source.
She highlights the importance of chronology in a reflective diary and states that “[…] the diary can be seen as a way of producing a running commentary on the project, to record observations and, crucially, a space in which to begin the process of theorising practice in order to develop contextualised understanding of specific problems or concerns” (McAteer, 2013, p. 70).
Returning to the research method of interviews, McAteer outlines some key points to consider on page 75, which I find really useful:
- selection of interview participants
- location and time of the interview
- relationship between interviewer and interviewee
- ensuring encouragement during the interview without asking leading questions
- capturing the content of the interview.
Reference:
McAteer, M. (2013) Action research in education. Los Angeles: SAGE.