ePortfolio Journal 2: My Grounded Theory Data Collection and Analysis

My ePortfolio Journal #2 is about finding my way through coding to the beginnings of a theory. Originally, I thought I would develop a concept map for my grounded theory project; however, the coding process has led me in another direction, though I did consider giving this assignment the title “Why I’m Creating a Concept Map and Why I’m Not”. Charmaz (2014) discusses that she has “unsettled notions about what theory means” (p. 228) – true of me throughout my academic career. With that in mind, I made it my task to engage with theory as fully and as early as possible in my writing process thereby tying together credentialization, critical thinking, and higher education alternatives. I battled with myself to become an amateur grounded theorist despite a disorientating dilemma between scholarship and my everyday existence. Then I realized that the greatest asset of grounded theory for me is the way it integrates research into the researcher’s whole identity (Stebbins, 2001). That meant starting as soon as I could with a list of my leading codes while reflecting on Charmaz’s (2014) discussion of theory. I am at a point when writing this Journal #2 feels like beginning to draft my paper, however, there is a long way to go in terms of writing analytically rather than prematurely describing the data as warned by Charmaz to avoid.

Reading Charmaz’s Chapter 9 for a second time with it now essential to begin formulating a theory, I was struck by positivism and ready to convince myself that I am more of a positivist since my subject is opinions about higher education credentials and not specific events. Next, somewhat relieved, I noted where Charmaz (2014) writes that interpretive theory “gives abstract understanding greater priority than explanation” (p. 230) and mentions Mead’s “imagined understanding of the other person’s role and response” (p. 230). By nature, I am self-reflective – combined with my overactive imagination, I do not think I could help including some elements of interpretation in any theory I might come up with.

Moving on to Charmaz’s (2014) unique approach, constructivist grounded theory is the “how – and sometimes why – participants construct meanings and actions in specific situations” (p. 239). I appreciated where Charmaz highlights that participants’ “meanings may reflect ideologies; their actions may reproduce current ideologies, social conventions, discourses, and power relationships” (Charmaz, 2014, p. 241). I realized a discussion of credentials in education was calling out for me to see it with this frame of reference. I also liked Charmaz’s suggestion of linking the micro and macro and the subjective and social (p. 241). Extending these ideas, Charmaz mentions the common sociological concerns of power and prestige, structure and process, and opportunities and inequalities (p. 246) which seemed important for the direction in which my research was heading. I needed to find a single basic process unifying my codes (p. 247) or face the lack of a theory.

My coding process started out using Taguette as recommended by a peer in the forums, a great suggestion. Taguette allowed me to start speedily and intuitively assigning codes to chunks of data. I did not worry about going line by line. The first part of my process involved finding out the codes as I coded. After an hour of coding with Taguette, I realized that some of my codes were gerunds, and some were not. After that, I made every new code a gerund. When finished with Taguette, I printed all my data with their initial codes in one document. It looked like chunks of text with codes underneath – sometimes several for one chunk – and lines separating the chunks of data. I highlighted all the codes in yellow later that day. Then, after a few days' break, I went back and began handwritten line-by-line coding using gerunds exclusively. I then typed all my codes into one twenty-page document with a code on each line. The font was large enough to stand out which partly contributed to the length of the document. 

Reflecting on Chapter 9 of Charmaz, I wrote some memos and then went to work on my document of codes. I began reading through the document of codes and writing more memos. I did this in various places including my home kitchen, my office at work during lunch hour, and on the subway train. I do not normally do anything on transit other than occasionally glance at my phone, but I was almost through the document at that point and wanted to finish the process of elevating codes to key codes and concepts.

My success in coding stems from the use of gerunds to turn ideas into processes. I have been able to elevate codes to concepts and begin working on a theory. My theory is “a theory of resolving a main concern” according to pragmatism (Charmaz, 2014, p. 242). The central idea is situating the student/individual in the process of education and employment and shifting the power structure in their favour by reimagining education as truly student-centered according to new methods of learning based on educational technologies. These ideas are not new to me as I have previously studied Paolo Freire’s critical education as well as student-centered education and the personalization of education through learning technologies. What is new for me is the realization that social media commentators on Reddit, Quora and Twitter are agreeing with Ted Talk speakers that the verdict is out and people want change. They just disagree on exactly what they want. Key concepts are the limiting impact of focusing on skills without the grounding of a balanced and thorough education in critical thinking and analysis and the fitting of students’ preferences to how education is delivered. Many educational technologies and suggestions of how to use them for student-centered learning are available, a discussion that could be incorporated into my final paper.

My research has revealed that outlook is essential to succeeding in education and will inform the future of education. There is a yearning to learn from the positive aspects of traditional education while disarming elitism by making education more accessible, more affordable, and more thoughtful. The data is telling me that learning should be about what happens outside of the classroom in the workplace and during the learning process. Education does not only develop an attitude to learning but also personality and personal qualities. Whatever our view of education, the way we spend our time, our interests, and our experiences directly impact us both intrapersonally and interpersonally. Education is intrinsically linked to power and privilege in a culture of privilege and students are led to value what will enable them to succeed in academia and the workforce. The data suggests that many elements of education and work are valued, though there is a dichotomy that needs to be remedied between emphasis on practical skills and a holistic higher educational experience that includes critical thinking.

Being intelligent is perceived as another subjective process to succeed at school and acquire power and privilege. Social media posters suggest that degrees are almost proxies and metaphors for gaining power and privilege, with intelligence like a beacon to obtain privilege and success through school and work. As I delve into how intelligence is perceived, I note the irony of specialization. It may be easier to succeed and be seen as “smart” in academia through specialization, although many commentators feel that a broader higher education experience is necessary to have a well-balanced command of a topic. Yet, in the working world, it is highly specialized skills that usually matter.

My data is made up of posts from Reddit, Quora and Twitter as well as three Ted Talks. I may need to find more data on social media though, it seems at present, that I already have a lot to work with and the data from various subtopics is aligning. Depending on the direction the writing process takes me, I may read more about today’s employees, especially those from the younger generation, who seem to have more “purchasing power” in the workforce perhaps because they are, in general, better educated, flexible to re-locate, more empowered through technology and social media, more self-aware, with the world at their fingertips. In today’s world, eighteen is young and it is likely asking too much of young people to commit to an inalterable path of education and profession in the tender years of early adulthood. I like the suggestion from the data that education should be accessed at the right moment and that this could be a certification before a degree. For the last number of years in Canada, it has been a common practice for some students to receive a diploma at community college before going to university, a practice affirming many opinions on social media as to how learning should be.

The finding of processes within data about higher education all started with reading posts about micro-credentials on social media. Now, I find myself exploring the shaping of careers from the beginning versus augmenting and advancing your career in the process of lifelong learning. Some data suggests restructuring education for many academic and practical qualifications to be on the same level. Other data suggests that “restructuring” is not enough and what is called for is “reimagining” education. There is too much inertia to simply restructure education. Numerous social media posts suggest that certificates cannot replace degrees which show a larger scope of education and a greater self-motivation, but they may be able to help level the playing field. Commentators often see a gap in the ability of certificates to place skills in context and translate skills to new situations, though others suggest that classifying degrees as just another certificate could help re-distribute power and challenge elitist education.

A difficulty presents itself. Much of my data is from American contributors. I may need a literature review to situate the processes uncovered from data in a Canadian context. Nevertheless, I found it interesting that posts about immigration issues illuminated the Canadian education experience versus the American one. As Canada is a country of immigrants that depends on immigration to grow, this makes sense and influencers proclaim that education is the best route to the Canadian dream. On the other hand, the posts about American universities underscore the perpetuation of elitism and class stratification by U.S. schools.

Social media commentary links a deficit in critical thinking directly to education and the economy. The suggestion is that critical thinking can and should challenge the status quo - students should be able to challenge the establishment freely as opposed to engaging in superfluous elitism. Commentators link the absence of critical thinking directly to workplace processes thus connecting schools, the economy, and the workplace. Some suggest a generation of highly skilled workers who complete tasks according to instructions but do not think critically. Others claim that employers do not want employees to think critically while some employers post another perspective that neglecting critical thinking creates terrible workers because it slows growth and progress. Furthermore, questioning or not questioning authority in schools is being linked to upbringing exemplifying class ideals. This is very interesting concerning restructuring education and shifting elitism to distribute power to students and community members.

I continue to view my topic through the lens of programming and computer science, a profession which fascinates me and of which there is a lot of content on social media, probably because others are fascinated with this field which it is possible to enter through sheer tenacity and personal effort. In the computer science field, there is a diversification of eligible backgrounds for jobs including being completely self-taught without a degree under your belt.

A suggestion that stands out for me at this point regarding education in general is for a taxonomy of subjects and authoritative methods to be created. I am curious about the subversion of educational processes for the distribution of power among students and communities as stakeholders. Agreed – we must set forward on a pathway of achieving upward mobility in diverse ways: empowering the whole populace and even the global community. The outcome of traditional education appears to be Western elitist values of power and privilege pervading scholarship and professions but, also, the provision of the necessary structure to make education effective. In contrast, the outcome of reimagined education could be pride in education and community rather than elitist pride. Being proud of grassroots and non-traditional learning includes independent learning and self-structured learning through new methods and pathways to education. My question is how I will build these initial musings into a grounded theory project. The course so far has been structured to support theory building and will hopefully guide me further as I undertake Stage 3 and the writing of my final paper.

References

Charmaz, K. (2014). Constructing grounded theory, 2^nd edition. SAGE Publications Ltd.

Stebbins, R. A. (2001). Exploratory research in the social sciences. Sage Publications, Inc.