Research Question: In what ways do both the presence and the absence of compassion manifest themselves among youth in digital settings?

To investigate this question, I will conduct qualitative research through a combination of digital and face-to-face interviews with 8-10 youth in Alberta, between the ages of 13-17. I will seek participants who have their own personal computer, Smartphone, tablet, or other device with internet access, with which they have some measure of freedom, and who spend at least 30 minutes a day online.

Source: Tom Daccord

I have selected interviews as the best research method to address this question, because they are most useful when the research objectives focus on better understanding experiences, opinions, attitudes, and values, and when there is insufficient known about the subject to be able to draft a questionnaire (Rowley, 2012). Being that at this stage I am still investigating what digital compassion might look like, and because there is little to no scholarly work on it, my research area clearly has the aforementioned attributes that are best explored through interviews.

Because my research deals with activities and interactions youth carry out on and with digital technologies, it would be advantageous to utilize these technologies for at least part of the research process. Benefits of this might include the fact that with such technologies, I would be able to interview people who may be shy in face-to-face interviews, or I could reach out to those who cannot express themselves as well in discussion as they do in writing (Olubunmi, 2013).  My initial semi-structured interviews, then, will be conducted via some kind of instant messaging (IM) interface, or even email. Since these technologies need at least a certain level of literacy, however, and because not all interview questions can be effectively expressed or answered using IM, this could result in some low or incomplete responses (Olubunmi, 2013), I will not solely rely on “digital” interviews.

Following this initial interview, then, I will ask participants to keep a diary of their daily digital interactions for one week. This diary would be a first-person account, documented through regular, candid entries in some kind of personal journal (again, use of digital technology would be welcome), which will then be analyzed for recurring patterns or salient events (Gkonou, 2013). With the inclusion of this step in my research, I will have access to concrete details that might otherwise get lost if I were only conducting interviews. A diary study will hopefully give me a glimpse into micro-level details about how some young people use and feel about digital technology in their everyday lives. These are often private matters that adult researchers do not have access to (Pascoe, 2012). Although diary data is sometimes subject to memory gaps on the part of the diarist (Gkonou, 2013), this step in my research would add another valuable facet of information I could gather.

Finally, I will conclude the data collection portion of my research through the use of unstructured, face-to-face interviews with each participant. This interview, then, would be based on a limited number of topics or issues that emerge from examining the participant’s diary, and the emphasis would be on encouraging each respondent to talk around the themes that emerged as most important or interesting to them. An unstructured interview, in which I would take a constructionist stance whereby knowledge is constructed between the researcher and the interviewee, would also allow me to adapt questions and the order we discuss themes in accordance to what each interviewee says (Rowley, 2012). Additionally, I foresee that the affect resulting from digital interactions will be an important aspect of this study, and physical, inter-personal interaction will most likely be more effective at conveying affect than purely online interviews would be (Pascoe, 2012). Thus, this final interview stage will be another necessary aspect of data collection.

Source: Jerome Stone

Using this type of qualitative research would mean that my “results” would not be generalizable to the more widespread population (Creswell, 2014).  But, by implementing a combination of these three qualitative methods and studying the data that emerges, I will be able to gain some primary insight into how compassionate feelings, responses, and relationships already exist among youth in digital settings, and in what ways compassion is manifested, felt, and expressed. I also hope to begin to better understand the digital situations youth encounter where there is a lack of compassion, and what kinds of affect can result, and how young people deal with those feelings.

Research Question: What are the prevailing opinions of both students and teachers regarding the extent to which schools and classrooms need to address students' digital practices?

Source: Wednesday Martin

This question would best be explored through the use of a quantitative research survey. My goal would be to survey a random sample of approximately 200 grade 8-12 students, and around 30 teachers, in the Edmonton region. This would be a cross-sectional survey, with data being collected at one point in time. Most of the questions would most likely be closed, using rating scales with 5 possible categories, because with any more, it may prove too complex for some students, and it would become too difficult to make such fine distinctions (Muijs, 2004). The quantitative or numeric description of the trends, attitudes, and opinions of the respondents I survey would then help me to generalize or draw inferences about the greater population of students and teachers in the Edmonton region, and perhaps even the province (Creswell, 2014).

There would be a number of advantages to researching this question through the use of a quantitative survey. First, it is easier to generalize the findings of a survey to real-world settings, which is certainly important in educational research. Surveys are also efficient in that a researcher can gather large amounts of data at a reasonably low cost and effort compared to other methods like observation. It is also easy to guarantee respondents’ anonymity, which could lead to more candid and honest answers than less anonymous methods, like interviews (Muijs, 2004).

Being that my research centers around digital technologies, it is only appropriate that I similarly use technology for my research, such as an online survey tool like Survey Monkey. Raghupathy and Hahn-Smith (2013) detail a number of reasons why online surveys have several advantages over more “traditional” survey methods. They are often quicker to conduct and more cost-effective, and because no manual data entry is needed, transcription errors and researcher workload are minimized. Additionally, computerized surveys allow for more complex questionnaire designs because automated skip patterns can easily be programmed into the survey. In terms of research with youth, there is evidence that students prefer taking online surveys, perhaps because they are in a format that is more familiar and comprehensible to this group. Use of online an survey could also lead to a benign disinhibition effect, whereby the online environment encourages respondents to disclose more personal information and secret emotions than they might in face-to-face interactions (Madge, Hemming, Goodman, Goodman, Kingston, Stenson, and Webster, 2012).

There are potential setbacks to online quantitative surveys which must be kept in mind, however. The setting within which the participants complete the survey can present challenges to confidentiality, because in some school sites or computer labs, students’ responses on the computer monitors may be visible to other students or teachers. This could also have an effect on the validity of responses, if a student perceives that someone else may see his or her responses. Web-based surveys also tend to produce more nonresponses than more traditional survey methods (Raghupathy and Hahn-Smith, 2013).

As a novice researcher, I might also encounter problems in designing my own instrument, such as writing questions that are unclear or confusing, or that detract from the validity of the research. For example, gathering quantitative information on respondents’ behaviours can sometimes be unreliable, as individual perception may differ from what an outsider might observe (Muijs, 2004).  To mitigate these problems, I would first create a survey instrument more focused on opinions or perceptions, with only a limited number of questions dealing with the individuals' behaviours. I would then perform a pilot study, conducting the survey with a small number of students and teachers from the same demographic I will eventually be formally researching. From this pilot study, I can make any necessary changes to the content or phrasing of the survey (Rowley, 2012).

Research Question: How can English Language Arts teachers help their students to understand and practice digital compassion?

I plan to investigate this question through the implementation of action research. Collaborating with other English Language Arts teachers, we would create a unit plan on the theme of digital communication, to be delivered to grade 9 students. This unit would include an exploration of current events and nonfiction, fictional texts such as short stories, and students’ own lives and practices. Students would also create written and reflective texts on the topics and themes that emerge. Data gathered for this research question would include in-class observations, interviews conducted with both the students and teachers involved, the texts students create in class, and a closing questionnaire.

Source: SCV Tutors

Action research would be the best method for this research question because, as outlined in the Alberta Teachers’ Association’s Action Research Guide for Alberta Teachers (2000),  I would be seeking to deal with a tangible issue that needs real, practical solutions, and this is what action research is designed to do. Other advantages include its participative and empowering nature, where many parties can be involved in, contribute to, and benefit from the research in meaningful ways. Because this is a relatively new area with no simple answers, the interpretive, tentative, and critical facets of action research are important contributing factors, as well. In exploring my research question, then, meaning would be constructed from all participants’ multiple realities, there would not be right or wrong answers, but rather, many possible solutions based on diverse viewpoints, and all participants would critically examine the specific problems of digital relationships, and act as self-critical change agents.

Additionally, because this research question has to do with the complex, complicated, and multi-faceted issues of harmful and even dangerous digital interactions and relationships, action research would be appropriate because of its spiral-like nature of reflection.  As an action researcher, I could plan a change, act and observe on the process and consequences of the change, then reflect on the process and re-plan, act and observe again, reflect again, and so on. This spiral offers the opportunity to visit a phenomenon at a higher level each time, ideally leading to ever-greater understanding (Koshy, 2010).

Action research also appeals to me on a personal level because in implementing it, I would not only be a researcher, but I can also, as an English Language Arts teacher, be a participant. There is not the same expectation to be “distant” or “detached” as there may be in other methods (Koshy, 2010). Advantages and additional insights will also result because I would not conduct individual action research, but would collaborate with other teachers and their students, with interventions occurring over a diversity of sites. The individual praxis that each teacher will bring to the unit of study, and the unique classroom conversations and texts that are produced in each location, will undoubtedly lead to deeper understanding.

Difficulties may emerge with action research, however, in that much of the literature reveals that action-research partnerships can sometimes come with conflicts between partners, especially when the different parties have neither met nor worked together before (Platteel, Hushof, Ponte, van Driel, and Verloop, 2010). Questions are also sometimes raised regarding the validity of findings with action research, such as how objectivity can be achieved when someone is researching his or her own practice. This can be dealt with, at least in part, if researchers acknowledge their values and epistemological stance at the outset, or if they set up a validation group (Koshy, 2010). This is also part of the reason why I would perform collaborative action research, rather than simply one individual intervention in my own classroom.

References

Action research guide for Alberta teachers. (2000). Edmonton, AB: Alberta Teachers’ Association. 

Creswell, J. W.  (2014). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (4th ed.).  Los Angeles: Sage Publications.

Daccord, T. (2012, September 27). 5 critical mistakes schools make with iPads (and how to correct them) [Photograph]. Edudemic. Retrieved from http://www.edudemic.com/5-critical-mistakes-schools-ipads-and-correct-them/

Gkonou, C. (2013). A diary study on the causes of English language classroom anxiety. International Journal of English Studies, 13(1), 51-68. Retrieved from http://revistas.um.es/ijes/article/view/134681/148011

Koshy, V. (2010). Action research for improving educational practice (2nd ed.). Los Angeles: Sage Publications.

Madge, N., Hemming, P., Goodman, A., Goodman, S., Kingston, S., Stenson, K., and Webster, C. (2012). Conducting large-scale surveys in secondary schools: The case of the youth on religion project. Children and Society, 26, 417-429. doi:10.1111/j.1099-0860.2011.00364.x

Martin, W. (2010, April 6). Is your teen step/child addicted to the internet? [Photograph]. Wednesday Martin. Retrieved from http://www.wednesdaymartin.com/blog/tag/teens-and-the-internet/

Muijs, D. (2004). Doing quantitative research in education. London: Sage Publications.

Olubunmi, P. (2013). Data collection and new technology. International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning, 8(2), 48-52. Retrieved from http://online-journals.org/i-jet/article/view/2157

Pascoe, C.J. (2012). Studying young people’s new media use: methodological shifts and educational innovations. Theory Into Practice, 51, 76-82. doi:10.1080/00405841.2012.662862

Platteel, T., Hulshof, H., Ponte, P., van Driel, J., and Verloop, N. (2010). Forming a collaborative action research partnership. Educational Action Research, 18(4), 429-451. doi: 10.1080/09650792.2010.524766

Raghupathy, S., and Hahn-Smith, S. (2013). The effect of survey mode on high school risk behavior data: Comparison between web and paper-based surveys. Current Issues in Education, 16(2), 1-7. Retrieved from http://cie.asu.edu/ojs/index.php/cieatasu/article/view/1172

Rowley, J. (2012). Conducting research interviews. Management Research Review, 35(3/4), 260-271. doi:101108/01409171211210154

SCV Tutors. (2013, August 5). Teacher-student-on-computer [Photograph]. Care Learning Academy. Retrieved from http://carelearningacademy.com/

Stone, J. (n.d.). How does meditation foster compassion? [Photograph]. Minding the Bedside. Retrieved from http://www.mindingthebedside.com/2011/05/how-does-meditation-foster-compassion/