Bncook1's Blog

RM#11 What I Learned

bncook1 — Tue, 04 May 2010 23:09:17 +0000

This semester was a great learning experience for me. I learned about research and I learned a lot about myself as a student and researcher. First and foremost, I learned that research is unpredictable. Things happen that are totally out of your control. At times that can be very frustrating, but when you look deeper into the situation you realize that it all works out for the best. I learned that most of the time research leads to even more research. Our job as researchers is never finished. There is always a story to tell and there is always a meaning behind everything, you just have to find it. Another thing that I learned was that you do the research that you can do at the time and not the research that you want to do. There are going to be times that you have this excellent idea for a research study and something is always getting in the way and not allowing that particular study to take place. But, from that you may be able to find a research study that can be done and then maybe you can come back to the research that you wanted to do all along at some other time.

From this class I realize that I love qualitative research much more than quantitative research. I am more interested in telling someone’s story and learning about their experiences. I learned that qualitative research is constantly changing. I love the fact that half way through the study you can change your research question if you have to. With quantitative research when you start with something then you have to stick to it, there is no changing mid way through the study. I love how qualitative research is all about telling a story and this class has helped me realize that is what I want to do, tell other’s stories.

Throughout this semester I feel that I did not learn anything new about my topic, I just got confirmation about what I was thinking all along. I learned that for the most part college students are very aware about the dangers of loud noise and that they should not be listening to their ipod at the volumes that they do. That was my original question, are they aware? I learned that yes they are aware. Half way through though I began to ask two different questions than what I started with. I first wanted to understand their experiences. I wanted to know if they had the same experiences that I did as a child with noise and hearing protection. I learned that for the most part, they did have the same experiences that I did. The only difference was, they did not carry those experiences along with them maybe as much as I have. The second thing I wanted to know was what was contributing to them not wearing hearing protection? I learned something that I think I already knew and was in the back of my mind. They are not wearing hearing protection because of the social stigma, the embarrassment and worry about what others will think, and the resistance to hearing protection all together. From the whole study I learned that we need to get to a point where wearing hearing protection is the appropriate thing to do because until then we will always have the lack of motivation and resistance to wearing hearing protection.

Finally, throughout the semester I learned some things about myself. I learned that I love to do research and I want to continue to do it. I learned that when I am passionate about something then that can make a difference in the world. If you are not doing something that you love to research then it will not be fun. I learned that I am capable of so much more than I ever thought possible. I have more confidence in myself and I realize that I can accomplish thins that present a challenge to me. I learned that I can face these challenges without running in the opposite direction. I can face them head on and make something come out of them. I want to keep researching because I feel that there is many more questions that need to be answered.

RM#10 Meanings of Themes

bncook1 — Wed, 28 Apr 2010 03:16:29 +0000

The writing process has been somewhat of a challenge for me. It has been difficult trying to gather my thoughts and actually put the work that I have been doing all semester down on a piece of paper. It is difficult for me to really explain my thoughts and the process in writing. I have really appreciated the feedback that I have gotten from my classmates. It has allowed me to rivise my thoughts several times. By letting other people read my paper, they are able to see things that I might need to add or see something that I have completely overlooked because I am too invested in the topic. Sometimes it is better to have someone look at it that is not so invested in it. The feedback has also helped me to clarify concepts that I might have been too vague on before or that might have been confusing when read.

Trying to find meanings from the themes was also a difficult task. I found that the themes of motivation and resistance answered the question about contributions to college student’s use of hearing protection. The themes of education and experiences answered the question about understanding college student’s experience with noise and hearing conservation. The meaning that I got from these was that the two college students that I interviewed did have expereinces with noise in their environment and had been educated as children about the importance of hearing conservation, but their motivations and their resistance was what was contributing to them not wearing hearing protection in certain situations. By doing the coding process and finding themes, it has helped bring out the meanings and how everything connects with each other.

RM#9-Occurring Themes

bncook1 — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 11:09:32 +0000

After I finished the coding process for my two interviews I was excited to see the themes that emerged from each interview. I was excited to see the interconnections that I had been noticing when reviewing the interview transcripts and now I was going to be able to actually put those connections down on paper. I had four themes that emerged from my two interviews and they were motivation, education, resistance, and experiences. Both of the college students that I interviewed talked about some form of motivation that led them not to wear hearing protection in certain situations and that motivation most of the time was social stigma. The also both talked about some form of education, either from their paretns or actual hearing conservation programs, that focused on the importance of hearing conservation. Next was resistance, in some way both of them were very resistant toward wearing hearing protection either because of their emotions that they had towards it or their feelings on how others viewed it. Resistance and motivation kind of play hand in hand. Finally, they both talked about experiences they have had with a family member who has hearing loss and they talked about what that family has gone through because of that hearing loss.

Now that I have my themes I am ready to take this to the next level and really find out what all of this means for my research questions, which is now How College Students experience noise and hearing protection and what are their attitudes and feelings towards it. I am ready to find the meaning behind all of this, which I feel I am already starting to see what that is and I am starting to see what these themes mean to my research question.

RM#8 The Coding Process

bncook1 — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 10:51:34 +0000

When I originally found out that we were going to have to code our interviews for this class I was a little scared to say the least. I had a little bit of an understanding about the process and how you go about the process because of being in CORP. I had seen others code transcrpits and I was able to see the outcome and the themes that they had found. So, before beginning even though I was really scared of the whole process I was really excited to get started and to find out what types of themes that emerged from my study.

Once the process began I realized how much hard work it really is. I never took that into account when I was thinking about the coding process. The hardest part about the whole process that I found was coming up with words that would fit the concepts that your interviewers were describing. Even though I found the work challenging, I still found it very exciting. It was really neat to see the different themes that emerged from two very different interviews with two very different people.

Now that the process is somewhat complete, I feel like it will never be finished, I am glad that I was able to experience that. I feel like I was able to accomplish something and I feel proud of myself. I was able to work through something that was challenging and see my work coming together. The coding process allowed me to pull everything together and see connections between people that I might not have seen before.

RM7-Observation Reflection

bncook1 — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 19:23:26 +0000

Before going into my observation I was a little anxious because I did not know how it was going to go. I was unsure if I was going to be able to focus because I was afraid that I might see someone that I knew and I would not be able to concentrate on what I was observing at the time. I was also a little nervous before going into the observation because I did not think that I was going to be able to comment on everything. Before actually doing the observation I so badly wanted to comment on everything that I saw, not realizing that I was never really going to be able to do that because that would be impossible. The last thing that I was thinking about before going into the observation was that I was afraid that I was not going to get enough information and I was also afraid that the information that I was going to get was not going to tell me very much.

During my observation I felt really overwhelmed. There were so many things going on at one time and it did not take me very long to realize that I was not going to be able to comment on everything, no matter how much I wanted to. I also felt that it was really hard to concentrate on what I was observing because there was so much going on. I could not get caught up observing one particular thing because I might miss something that was going on in a different part of the room. I also realized how loud it was in there. I have been in there about a million times before but I never really paid attention to how loud it is in that room.

After my observation I felt really good about my observation. I realized that I got a lot of good information sitting over there for an hour. I realized how much people use their ipods and how loud they must have their music playing. After my observation was over I was not only excited about doing my other observation to see if I could get more information, I was really excited about doing my first interview so I could get some personal stories about how much they use ipods and listen to loud music. I realized that although I would like to comment on everything, there would never be any way that I could possibly do that and I just need to concentrate on getting as much information as possible and hope that it is enough to tell me something.

RM6-Participant Observation

bncook1 — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 02:39:22 +0000

This week I did my participant observation. My experience was a little bit different from the rest of the class since I did not participate in observing Time For Music. So, I did my participant observation at the mall. It was really difficult for me to get used to doing this type of observation. I think as a whole our class is used to observing, but we only had to concentrate on the therapy session and what was happening at that particular time. Observing at the mall was very difficult becuase it was so unstructured. There were so many things happening all around me at one time. I had to learn, real quickly I might add, how to really step back and observe the whole situation. I had to learn how to absorb everything that was going on around me. I could not get hung up on one thing that was happening becuase that meant that I was missing something that was happening somewhere else. Even though it was very difficult I feel that it gave me practice for my observation that is coming up soon. The observation that I am going to be doing is also in an unstructured setting, so doing this observation at the mall helped me to get a feel for observing a situation where there are several activities going on at once in several different areas.

I also thought that writing my field text from my jottings was very difficult. During the observation I tried to write as much as I could without missing something that was going on and at the time I assumed that I was taking pretty good notes. My attitude changed when I came home and tried to write my field text. When I began writing my text I began wishing that I had taken better note of some of the activities going on around me. It is really hard for me to be detailed and elaborate from my jottings. Hopefully, I will keep this in mind when I go to do my next observation and I will be able to concentrate and focus more on my surroundings.

RM 5: My identity as a researcher

bncook1 — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 22:10:32 +0000

When I think back on my experiences that I have had with hearing conservation, it all started when I was a child. My stepdad used to work in a huge plant that made parts for cars. He was around loud machinery constantly. My stepdad also used to drag race and we would go watch his races all the time. In both of these situations it was very important that ear plugs were worn at all times. I never questioned why it was so important for the ear plugs, I just put them in and went on. When I think about my research question for this class, I think about what my dad’s attitudes were toward hearing protection and hearing conservation. His attitude was that protecting the hearing was very important and that did influence his use of wearing hearing protection. I believe that my experiences have influences my choice in this topic because I want to see if other people have the same attitudes and beliefs as my dad. I want to see if they view using hearing protectio as important as I do. Some assumptions that I have that are a result of my experiences are that everyone views hearing conservation and hearing protection in the same way that my family and I view it. Everyone feels that it is important to wear hearing protection in noisey situations. From these assumptions I have come up with goals for this project and they would be that everyone would come to view this issue as important. My goal is that people will want to wear hearing protection when they are in a situation where it is necessary.

Advantages of this research are that I get a better understanding of how others view hearing conservation and protection. This finding could contribute to how we approach hearing conservation programs and how we approach others on how important it is to protect your hearing. Some disadvantages would be that my assumptions get in the way of understanding why some people feel it is not important to protect and conserve hearing. I also feel that my goals for this research study might be a little too ambitious in that not everyone is going to be convinced that hearing conservation and hearing protection is very important.

I feel that my experiences and my own beliefs have really shaped my decision to study hearing conservation. I am passionate about educating our children about the importance of it.

RM 4: A changed outlook

bncook1 — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 00:49:36 +0000

This week we were asked to think about a positive learning experience that we have had in our life. When I think back on all of my learning experiences all of them, in some way, deal with my father. My parents divorced when I was a baby so I never lived with both parents in the same house. Before going to school I felt like that was normal, that everyone did what I did. I would spend most of the time with my mom and then on certain days of the week I would spend time with my dad. Then I began school and my whole world changed. I realized that all of my friends had both parents at home and that was something that I started to long for as a child. Then my world was turned upside down again when my mom remarried and then my dad also remarried and he moved to Georgia. For the next ten years my stepdad and I did not have the best relationship, mainly because of my attitude and my desire to have my “real” dad back in my life. Although I did not have the best attitude, my stepdad did everything for me, but I still was not ready to think of him as a “dad”. I know what your thinking, man what a brat, but I had this longing for my “real” father to be in my life. Then, I had a really horrible experience with my biological father that really helped me to open my eyes. I was engaged to be married and my wedding was only a couple of weeks away when I got a call from my dad, who by this time had moved to Florida so he was even farther away now. My dad informs me that he will not be coming to my wedding, for reasons that I will not get into, but they were not very good reasons. Especially when your own daughter is getting married, I would have thought that he would have done everything to be there. My stepdad was there to pick up the pieces when I sat there crying asking myself if my own dad really cared about me. It was at that moment that I knew that my stepdad had been more of a father to me than my own father could ever dream of being. I learned from that experience that we wish and long for certain things and if they do not happen the way we think they should happen then we believe life is horrible. I learned alot about myself as a person. When life hits me really hard sometimes I think back on how I was able to move forward with my life. I try not to dwell on what happened. I take it as I learned something about life and myself and I move on. I also learned that you need to open your eyes a little wider sometimes because usually what you are wishing for is right in front of your face and has been the whole time.

Update on my research: I was thinking about my research questions and if I look at parent’s views on hearing conservation then I might try to get some parent interviews at the elementary school that I am using for my independent study. If I go with another question then I want to go to a buisness, such as a factory of some sort, where noise is a problem in the workplace.

RM 3: Starting over-Getting back to the root of the question

bncook1 — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 04:39:32 +0000

I am currently doing research about hearing conservation and looking to see if implementing a hearing conservation program into a first grade classroom can make a difference. When we were asked to look at our research from a qualitative point of view I was extremely nervous because I am currently doing quanitative research. I also did not know what I was going to do about the interview process because I can not really interview first grade students. So, I decided to think about how I got started into researching hearing conservation. Last semester I started by looking at noise-induced hearing loss and how the incidence is on the rise. Then I started thinking about what I really wanted to know. I want to know what people know about noise, the dangers of noise, and I want to know what their attitudes are and if those attitudes affect how they protect their hearing. I came up with my very rough research questions by starting from the very beginning and coming up with a whole new research question, which was scary and challenging. My potential questions are:

1. What knowledge do people have about noise-induced hearing loss and hearing conservation?

2. What attitudes do people have towards noise-induced hearing loss and hearing conservation?

3. How does a person’s attitude toward hearing conservation and noise-induced hearing loss affect their use of hearing protection?

4. How has a person’s noise-induced hearing loss and having to wear amplification affected their identity?

5. What are parent’s views about hearing conservation programs and noise-induced hearing loss and what role do those views play in their child’s environment? (What I mean by this question, but not saying it very well is I want to know how parent’s feel about hearing conservation programs. I also want to know whether they feel positively or negatively, does that impact, for example, them allowing their children to be around loud noise without hearing protection.)

RM2-My history as a scholar

bncook1 — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 05:21:27 +0000

When I was growing up I knew that education was very important, but it was one of those things that was understood. It was always understood that I do well in school. My mom never had to sit down and talk to me about the need for me to do well or the importance of going to college. I feel that I already knew of the importance since most everyone else in my family had gone to college, except for my mom. I do not feel that I was pressured or forced to make good grades in school I just knew that I needed to do well. My mom always stressed to me that she wanted me to go and have more opportunities than what she had. My mom was always involved with my homework. She wanted to know at all times what I was doing and she would always help me whenever she could. Once I got older even if she could not help me I always had someone in my family to go to for help. Education has always been a huge part of our family. Even though I was never foced to do well in school I believe that I instilled in myself a desire to do great in school. I think that I push myself, a little bit too much sometimes. I feel that my mom was the one who inspired me to do well. As far as going to college I knew that I always wanted to go. I liked the fact of challenging myself, expanding my knowledge, and entering into an unknown world. This was the opportunity for me to show myself that I could do it on my own now. I felt like I owed it to myself. I had worked really hard through my academic career so far and I wanted to keep pushing myself and prove to myself that I could do it.

When I began at Marshall I was not real sure what I wanted to do. I did some research and I chose this field. Looking back I am thankful that I had that desire to do well from the start. It made the demands from this program a little easier to take on because I already had that internal drive to succeed. So, when I think back on the time when I was little and going to school I have always had support from everyone. It wasn’t them pushing me or forcing me to do anything. All they wanted from me was my best. That is what has helped me to get this far in my academic career is the support from my parents and my internal desire to push myself to achieve my academic goals.