Preparation for learning: What are the strengths and weaknesses of using interviews in sociological research? Write one evaluation point on your post-it note and stick on the window under which P.E.R.V.E.R.T issue this is

Methods in Context: Interviews Learning Objective – To be able to describe the strengths and weaknesses of using interviews in the context of education

Interviews: The contexts your are likely to be asked about in relation to interviews are: Pupil subcultures Pupils’ experiences of sex education Class, ethnicity and language Gender identity Class and parental choice of schools TIP: When answering questions on this – don’t forget you need to refer to the Item and see who the researcher is investigating (parents / teachers / pupils) and apply it to the context the sociologist is interested in investigating.

Construct: Using the textbook on page 132-134 (202-204 for the old textbook) – complete the questions on page 13-15

Preparation for learning - interviews: 5 MINUTE - On arrival – review the PET of unstructured interviews. We will call these LEVEL 1 skill. Unstructured interviews are: Practical issues Ethical issues Theoretical issues

Present new information: Who? – is the group we are investigation What? – are we investigating? How? – are we going to investigate it? (method) Any strengths / weaknesses from Item B?

Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Writing MIC essays: Referring to the research method only! Level 2 Referring to the research method and the context of education / parental attitudes briefly Level 3 Detailed knowledge of the research method AND the context (choice) AND the group we are investigating (parents)

5 MINUTE - Now we have discussed the method, what about the school context? We will call this level 2 skill. Discuss with your partner: What must you consider when researching in a school? Theoretical issues? Ethical issues? Practical issues?

5 MINUTES - Now lets consider we want to find out about parent attitudes and the impact on achievement. We will call this level 3. Are all parents like this? Which type of parents are more likely to volunteer for a interview? Do you think there children are more likely to achieve? Which type of parents are less likely to be interviewed? Why not? Do you think they will have high achieving children? What impact will this have on your results? Who else could you interview to find out about parental attitudes? Teachers – what stereotypes might they use? Pupils – how might they speak? What problems might arise? Why? What impact will this have on your results.

Spend 5-10min to plan your answer. Applying material from Item B and your knowledge of research methods, evaluate the strengths and limitations of unstructured interviews when investigating the role of parents in pupil’s achievement (20 marks) Complete the card sort task

Write your answer: Overall, your answer should have a range of level 1, level 2, and level 3 to score above 15/20 (A/B grade). You have 30 minutes Organise your answer Introduction – What is unstructured interviews – give a strength/weakness of which theoretical perspective prefers / does not like this method and why Main – aim for a range of short paragraphs, addressing each issue in turn. Start with level 1 (a strength or weakness) and then develop into the school context, finally ending if you can making reference to parental attitudes and achievement). About 6 points are possible in the time allowed. Conclusion – Is this method the best method to investigate parental choice? Refer to triangulation of other methods. DO AS MANY AS YOU CAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! e.g. sample paragraph – Practical issue is time (L1), unstructured interview have open questions (L1), which are lengthy to analyse (L1). This is an issue in a school because head-teachers may deny access to any research in school time, due to timetabling (L2). Asking students in an unstructured interview about how much their parents help them with homework (a sign of parental attitude) can be problematic – middle class students may be more willing to take part in an interview due to being pro-school, as they will want to show off how much their parents help them to achieve…(L3)

Before you submit you are going to highlight the following Have three colours Level 1 Level 2 Level 3

Level 1 ETHICAL ISSUES: THEORETICAL ISSUES: PRACTICAL ISSUES: Count HOW MANY level 1 points you have made – write at the bottom. Read through your answer When you see the following METHODS only keywords highlight and label L1. ETHICAL ISSUES: Have consent Keep if confidential Sensitive topic Vulnerable groups THEORETICAL ISSUES: Low in reliability High in validity Social desirable answers Small sample (lacks representativeness) Interpretivists prefer it PRACTICAL ISSUES: Time consuming, costly, researcher needs special characteristics - build a rapport Or anything about the method: open questions, flexible, can explore unfamiliar topics, social desirability, lying, forgetting, right answer.

Count HOW MANY level 2 points you have made – write at the bottom. Re-read your answer – highlight where you have starting to discuss in context! E.g. Commenting about schools (but NO link to parental involvement). Researcher would have to get past the gatekeeper (headteacher – you must say this) to access teachers/pupils, etc. Headteacher may refuse access due to marketization (may portray the school in a bad light). Students are under 16 and therefore a vulnerable group. CRB check is required for any research with children. Researching students about their parents is a sensitive topic. Middle class students speak in an elaborate code (compared to working class restricted) which means that more information will be collected from M/C.

Level 3 Re-read your answer. Now highlight where (IF) you have included the following. Count HOW MANY level 3 points you have made – write at the bottom. Interviewing pupils about their parents involvement UI allows the researcher to prompt if students are unsure what the question means, this is useful as working class students speak in a restricted code, however they may be aware that the researcher is asking about much their parents help them – and they may lie as they feel embarrassed. (lack valid) Middle class students, are more likely to volunteer to UI about how much help their parents give as they are more likely to be pro-school and are likely to want to show off about their achievement. (unrepresentative) Interviewing parents about their involvement Middle class parents who culturally are more interested in their child's education are more likely to give consent to an UI, as they may feel it may give their child an educational advantage and help their achievement. Working class parents, due to working unsociable hours (being materially deprived) may not be able to participate in an unstructured interview, this may make them appear not to care about their childs’ education which could lead to failure.

Lastly, level 3 Re-read your answer. Count HOW MANY level 3 points you have made – write at the bottom. Lastly, level 3 Re-read your answer. Now highlight where (IF) you have included the following. Interviewing teachers about parents involvement Middle class -Teachers may view working class parents in a negative light, as they are less likely to be involved in the school, or attend parents evening. Whereas they are aware that middle class parents are more likely to be actively involved with their child's education. This may lead teachers to say that middle class achievement is due to more parental involvement. Which is biased. Interviewing headteachers about their parental involvement Head-teacher may or may not allow access. In more middle class schools where there is high parental involvement, head-teachers may allow UI as it will portray the school in a good light (due to marketisation). Whereas in more working class school where parental involvement is limited (due to parents working longer hours, looking after siblings), the head-teacher may reject access as they may fear it will portray the school in a negative light, as they might already have low achievement.

AT THE BOTTOM OF YOUR ANSWER If you have ONLY level 1s – you have limited your answer to 11. D GRADE! Some level 1 and some level 2 – depends on how many, etc. but max 14. AVERAGE C GRADE. The above AND some level 3 – A/B grade!

Review: Debate: One half of the room are going to debate that structured interviews are good for investigating parental choice The other half will argue how it is bad to investigate parental choice. Each team BUZZ in with a valid point The total number of points a team has will WIN the game