The SenseCam as a research tool for exploring learner experiences in an urban classroom space
Loading...
Date
2015
Authors
Chetty, Carmel
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Faculty of Education, University of the Free State
Abstract
In this article I describe an ethnographic exploration into the daily school life of
Grade 6 learners at an urban school that serves impoverished areas in Durban. The
school is representative of the racial demographics of the country. The study explores
how Grade 6 learners experience education, and probes how human experiences
are mediated through everyday classroom practices and interaction, taking into
account the complex influences from the community in the life of the school and,
in particular, the lives of the learners. Photographic evidence obtained through the
use of a discreet SenseCam, worn by the class teachers and by me, the researcher, in
turn, is an essential part of the large data collection that also includes observation
notes, interviews, and historical records. I explain the use and value of the SenseCam
as a research tool. I demonstrate that learners undermined their own learning and
that a multiplicity of factors had an impact on learning and the way the learners
experienced school life. Complex social relationships extended beyond the confines
of the school.
Description
Keywords
Ethnography, Everyday, Learner positioning, Photographs, Poverty, Space and time
Citation
Chetty, C. (2015). The SenseCam as a research tool for exploring learner experiences in an urban classroom space. Perspectives in Education, 33(4).