D#5, HW#6 - Decide what data to Collect (p. 108)

Is there a person, place, activity or ritual that you might watch, hear or experience in order to answer your research question?


Yes, there are several people (friends, co-workers and peers) who I can watch to see if they suffer through any of the stigmas of community college life. Plus, my friends who go to ASU will provide me further insight. One of classmates in here made an excellent suggestion – to find someone who has experience with both the community college and big campus lifestyle. All the activities and rituals of each campus lie can be explored.

Would observing your subject over time provide data that would help you answer your research question?

Yep. By watching over time I can see how the stigmas associated with community college are proven false. (These are closed-ended questions!)

Could you participate in an event, ritual or environment that would give you a unique insight into the subject you are studying?

Nah. At least I can’t think of anything. Perhaps by attending an ASU football vs. an MCC football game I can observe the event and environmental differences.

Would talking to experts in a particular field help you answer your research question?

I could speak with Advisors at each school to gain a different point-of-view – albeit bias point-of-views.

Would speaking with participants in or members of a specific community help you to answer your research question?

I am not too sure what is meant with this question. I can’t think of any “community” that would not have pre-conceived notions about attending a community college.

What could you learn from speaking with someone that you can’t learn from reading already published information or from conducting and observation?

Advisors at each school (MCC and ASU) is all I can think of at this point.

What can you learn from a survey that you can’t learn from an interview or observation?

Not too much. My dad works for a pharmaceutical marketing research firm. He is the VP over data analysis resulting from surveys. He has told me over and over that you can ask the same survey question ten different ways and come up with one thousand different results. I’m not a big believer in surveys.

How many people would you need to poll in order to answer your research question?

See above.

Do you have the time to design a successful survey, distribute it, collect responses, and analyze the data?

No. (And that’s what you get for asking a closed-end question.)