Ethnography and Qualitative Design in Educational Research

An exciting addition to the field of ethnography, this revised and expanded textbook addresses ethical and theoretical concerns central to research in psychology, sociology, and anthropology - an interdisciplinary approach rarely utilized in other text. Like the First Edition, this book explains ways to collect data, methods for assuring the quality of that data, and the techniques and tools used to organize results, conclusions, and interpretations. The Second Edition diverges in that it demonstrates the delicate yet profound relationship between researchers and the material and participants under study. The authors investigate, interpret, and synthesize how each faction informs and affects the others' behavior, as well as the subsequent affect of these interactions on the results. The book discusses the historical development of ethnography and the fundamentals of how to do qualitative and ethnographic research. Other chapters address the problem of selection and of selection and research design, the issues involved in choosing relevant populations and in selecting and sampling qualitative data, and describe how populations are conceptualized. Resource and references lists are expanded to include the most recent developments. Accordingly, the use of computers as analytic tools is now addressed. This book will be of great value for both students and researchers concerned about the effects of theory and interpretation in the research process.

Table of Contents:
Characteristics and Origins of Qualitative and Ethnographic Research in Education. Considerations on Selecting a Research Design. Selecting and Sampling in Qualitative Research. The Role and Experience of the Researcher. The Role of Theory in the Research Process. Data Collection Strategies. Analysis and Interpretation of Qualitative Data. Personal Computers in Qualitative Research. Evaluating Qualitative Design. References. Author Index. Subject Index.

About the Author :
Margaret D. LeCompte and Judith Preissle, formerly Judith Preissle-Goetz, are, respectively, associate professor of sociology of education in the School of Education at the University of Colorado at Boulder and professor of educational anthropology in the Department of Social Science Education at the University of Georgia. Their coauthorship dates from 1977, with the presentation of their first joint paper, "Data Crunching, or, What Do I Do with the Five Drawers of Field Notes?," at the meetings of the Council on Anthropology and Education of the American Anthropological Association. Their subsequent articles have been published in the Review of Educational Research, Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, Anthropology and Education Quarterly, The American Behavioral Scientist, a number of handbooks on educational research in various disciplines, and a major text reference, Ethnography and Qualitative Design in Educational Research (New York: Academic Press, 1984). The latter work has been translated into Spanish and is slated for a second edition in 1992. Their professional activities include participation in professional associations serving sociologists, anthropologists, policymakers, and educators. Preissle served as secretary treasurer of the Council on Anthropology and Education, and LeCompte served as its president. LeCompte recently was elected secretary of Division G of the American Educational Research Association. Both are active in the Society for Applied Anthropology and the American Educational Studies Association. While much of their joint and separate authorship has been devoted to issues of research methodology, they also pursue empirical research interests. Preissle has done extensive studies on the role of schools and classrooms in the socialization of rural children to gender and other roles; like Preissle, LeCompte has had a long interest in studies of classroom interaction. In addition, she has done considerable research on school dropouts and on innovation and change in school pedagogy and organization.