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Qualitative Research Practice in Adult Education DOCUMENT RESUME ED 477 245 CE 084 968 AUTHOR Willis, Peter, Ed.; Neville, Bernie, Ed. TITLE Qualitative Research Practice in Adult Education. ISBN ISBN-1-86355-056-9 PUB DATE 1996-00-00 NOTE 363p.; Produced by the University of South Australia, Centre for Research in Education, Equity and Work. Grant towards production provided by Texts in Humanities, School of Education, University of South Australia. Papers from a qualitative research colloquium (2nd, Carleton, Victoria, April 1995). PUB TYPE Books (010) Reports - Research (143) EDRS PRICE EDRS Price MF01/PC15 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS Action Research; Adult Education; *Adult Learning; Adult Literacy; *Data Interpretation; Developed Nations; Developing Nations; Educational Philosophy; Educational Research; Foreign Countries; Inplant Programs; Job Training; Literacy Education; Nurses; *Phenomenology; *Qualitative Research; *Research Methodology; Transformative Learning; Womens Education IDENTIFIERS Australia; Brazil; Steiner (Rudolf) ABSTRACT This collection of 20 papers is aimed at researchers, research students, and research supervisors interested in qualitative research into facilitated adult learning in the workplace, formal education programs, professional development, and communitysettings. "Introduction" (Willis) provides a summary of the papers. "Qualitative Inquiry: Meaning and Menace for Educational Researchers" (Garman)introduces two kinds of knowledge and identifies threecommunities of discourse inside approaches to qualitative research. The papers that follow are grouped in four loose clusters. Five papers in the first group have acommonality around social elements in adult learning, education, and research: "OnBecoming a Meditator: Reflections on Adult Learning and Social Context" (McIntyre); "Bread and Sex: Learning in Brazilian Women's Organizations" (Foley); "Learning Centers and Community Houses: Twelve More Years" (Neville); "Ethics of Ethics Committees" (Crotty); and "Contribution of Dr. RudolfSteiner to Adult Education: Australian Perspective" (Stehlik). These three papersin the second group are concerned with elements of interpretationin various forms of qualitative research: "Multi-Storied Approach to theAnalysis and Interpretation of Interview Transcript Data" (Grant); "Archetypal Investigation of the Experience of Infertility in Women: ObservationsDrawn from a Ph.D. in Progress" (Fiske); and "Enquiry into Writingin the Process of Transformation" (Coates). These five papers in thethird group deal with the theory and practice of phenomenology: "Difficulties ofUsing Phenomenology: Novice Researcher's Experience" (Ehrich); "Representationand Interpretation in Phenomenological Research" (Willis); "Capturing the Experience of the Clinical Nurse Specialist through Phenomenology"(Borbasi); "Hidden Spaces of Adult Literacy Education: Phenomenological Studyof Personal Transformation" (Campbell); and "Doing Phenomenology" (Crotty). These six papers in the last section focus on elements ofqualitative Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. research practice: "Visible Politics: Postgraduate Study and Adult Education Research" (Shore); "John Thomas, the Meno, and Research" (Claydon); "At Sea Beginning to Do Qualitative Research from and for Whom does Knowing and the Known Emanate?" (Arnold); "Reflections on the Role of an Evaluator" (Harris); "Course Design as Action Research" (Mulligan); and "Autobiography, Experiential Learning, and Discourse in Context: A Thesis in Evolution" (Waterhouse). An index is appended. (YLB) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. N N N zt- QUALITATIVE RESEARCH PRACTICE IN ADULT EDUCATION U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Office of Educational Research and Improvement EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) *This document has been reproduced as received from the person or organization originating it. Minor changes have been made to improve reproduction quality. Points of view or opinions stated in this document do not necessarily represent official OERI position or policy. PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY N)9_,AILL, TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC) Edited by Peter Willis and Bernie Neville BEST COPYAVAILABLE. David Lovell Publishing Qualitative Research Practice in Adult Education Edited by Peter Willis and Bernie Neville David Lovell Publishing 3 First published in 1996 by David Lovell Publishing PO Box 822 Ringwood Victoria 3134 Copyright © Centre for Research in Education, Equity and Work University of South Australia 1996 This book is copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright Act, no part may be reproduced by any person without written permission. Inquiries should be addressed to the publisher. Cover design by David Cope Layout and formatting by The Prism Group Production assisted by a grant from Texts in Humanities, University of South Australia Printed and binding by the University of South Australia Document and Publications Unit National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication data Qualitative Research Practice in Adult Education Bibliography. Includes index. ISBN 1 86355 056 9. 1. Adult education Research Australia. I. Willis, Peter 1939 II. Neville, Bernard 1938 University of South Australia. Centre for Research in Education, Equity and Work. 374.0072094 4 Contents Preface Introduction Peter Willis Part One: Foundations 10 Qualitative Inquiry: Meaning and menace for educational researchers 11 Noreen Garman Part Two: Social perspectives 31 On becoming a meditator: Reflections on adult learning andsocial context 33 John McIntyre Bread and sex: Learning in Brazilian women's organisations 49 Griff Foley Learning centres and community houses: Twelve more years 73 Bernie Neville The ethics of ethics committees 80 Michael Crotty The contribution of Dr Rudolf Steiner to adult education: AnAustralian perspective. 99 Thomas Stehlik Part Two: Approaches to interpretation 109 A multi-storied approach to the analysis and interpretationof interview transcript data 111 Audrey Grant An archetypal investigation of the experience of infertility in women:Observations drawn from a PhD in progress 155 Linda Fiske An enquiry into writing in the process of transformation 166 Aileen Treloar Coates iii Qualitative research practice in adult education Part Three: Phenomenology 195 The difficulties of using phenomenology: A novice researcher's experience 197 Lisa Catherine Ehrich Representation and interpretation in phenomenological research 215 Peter Willis Capturing the experience of the clinical nurse specialist through phenomenology251 Sally Ann Borbasi The hidden spaces of adult literacy education: A phenomenological study of personal transformation 262 Beverley Campbell Doing phenomenology 272 Michael Crotty Part Four: Qualitative research practice 283 Visible politics: Postgraduate study and adult education research 285 Sue Shore John Thomas, the Meno and research 300 Leslie Claydon At sea...beginning to do qualitative research... from and for whom does knowing and the known emanate? 309 'Teresa Arnold Reflections on the role of an evaluator 313 Roger Harris Course design as action research 325 Martin Mulligan Autobiography, experiential learning and discourse in context: A thesis in evolution 332 Peter Waterhouse Contributors 351 Index 353 iv 6 Preface This final product is the fruit of the kindness and collaboration ofconsider- able colleagues. Besides thanking the contributors for their work and our spouses and other family membersfor their encouragement and forbearance, the editors would like to mention the work of a number ofbehind-the-scenes resource people whose contribution hasbeen considerable. We would like to thank... Centre for Research in Education, Equity and Work, and the Faculty of Education, University of South Australia, for assis- tance in production. Texts in Humanities, School of Education, University of South Australia, for a grant towards production. Nick Lainas and Fiona Underwood who proofed the contributions and liaised with the authors. University of South Australia, Underdale Campus Librarians: Roly Eime, Pauline Berger, Irene Doskatsch and Wendy Spurrier Maria Argitis from the School of Education who assisted with word processing. The Prism Program, Margaret Bowden and Steve Parker for proofing and layout. Document Services, University of South Australia, for graphics, printing and binding. Introduction Peter Willis The papers assembled in this volume are the fruits of the second qualitative research colloquium held in April 1995 enriched with a small number of ad- ditional contributions from colleagues whose interests coincided with those of the project. A group of scholars with an interest in forms of qualitative research relating to some aspect of adult education broadly understood met for two days at Medley Hall in Carlton, Victoria. The research interest included all aspects of doing, supervising and assessing qualitative research into approaches to adult education understood broadly as 'adult learning facilitation' in the many are- nas of adult life and learning. As with the first collection, papers range widely over issues and interests relating to all kinds of human experience linked to one or other form of education in adulthood, from adult literacy to community education and development to forms of professional development and the re- search
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