My position as teacher-researcher, whilst it may allow me insights into the everyday realities of my classroom which may be inaccessible to external researchers, nevertheless posed its own challenges. For example, it was important to carefully consider the notion of consent, both from parents, school leadership, and, of course, the pupils themselves. As a practising teacher-researcher, it was important to both inform my Head Teacher about the proposed research, and gain her permission to proceed, in light of her role as ‘ethical guardian’ (Jones & Stanley, 2010: p. 158) of the pupils in my care. In addition, I sought appropriate parental consent, as suggested in articles 10, 11 and 16 of B.E.R.A.’s Revised Ethical Guidelines for Educational Research (2004). To do this, a letter detailing the proposed research was sent out to all parents, encouraging them to discuss this research with their children, and allowing them to opt out of the research on their children’s behalf if they so wished10. The response to these letters was extremely positive, and indeed 100% of parents chose to allow their children to contribute their views for the purposes of this research.
It was also necessary to ensure that each of the data collection tools utilized in this research - namely the assessment and attainment data, S.D.Q., and pupil views templates - were used in a manner which avoided, as far as possible, any bias resultant from my role – as both teacher and researcher - in this investigation. In addition to teaching both classes during both their time in Year 5, during the 2011 – 2012 academic year, and in Year 6, during the 2012 – 2013 academic year, I had also previously taught all of the children involved in this research during their time in Year 2 during the 2008 – 2009 academic year. Although I felt that this familiarity will help to ensure that pupils feel at ease during the research process, in compliance with article 18 of the research guidelines (B.E.R.A., 2004: pp. 7 – 8), I was also concerned about the obligation that pupils may have felt to contribute their views for the purpose of this research. One of the aims of the discussions which I held with pupils in order to ensure that they were fully informed about the research process was to ensure that pupils’ recognised the voluntary nature of participation. Therefore, throughout research, and in particular during each of the data collection periods, pupils were reassured that there
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were no right or wrong answers. They were also assured that their identities would remain anonymous, and that pupils should feel free to give their honest opinions, without fear that these would be shared with others.
Pupils were also fully informed about the purpose of each of the activities, and were given the opportunity to discuss these, together with any questions they had. Furthermore, in an attempt to dispel any further anxiety or sense of pressure to provide answers aimed to please me, as teacher-researcher, I decided that pupils should complete the pupil views templates and S.D.Q. in large groups – for example, with the whole year group or, in the case of the S.D.Q. and because of restrictions caused by the limited number of computers upon which to complete the online version of the questionnaire, with each class –
completing these data collection tools simultaneously11. This was done in an attempt to ensure that as many children as possible completed the research tools at the same time: I hoped that the reassuring presence of their peers would help pupils to give their views honestly, without feeling the pressure to conform to a pre-conceived notion of a ‘correct’ response.
In light of Dockett and Perry’s (2007) views about the notion of ownership surrounding any artefacts (drawings, pupil views templates12, completed questionnaires, etc.) produced by the pupils it was also stressed that these were the property of the children themselves – distinct from schoolwork produced in class. In order to convey this distinction, at the outset of research, and then subsequently, each time a data collection tool was completed, the children, my year group partner and I discussed the tool which was to be used: what form it would take, what it was for, and how it would be used, together with any questions or concerns the children raised. We stressed the optional nature of submitting completed data collection tools for analysis, emphasising that their views were private and important, and that they had control over whether or not they chose to share them. Particular care was taken to ensure that children understood that research tools were not work to be marked: the children were free to express their views honestly, without fear of being ‘told off’ if they
11
Please note that, for the comparative groups from across Key Stage 2, children from all year groups completed the data collection tools simultaneously in order to give as large a group size as possible.
12 Pupil views templates are a research tool devised by Wall and Higgins (2006) to explore pupils’ thinking
through uncovering evidence of metacognitive knowledge and skillfulness. A full description of this particular tool can be found later in this chapter.
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recorded a negative view or opinion. On the contrary, I stressed to children that I wanted them to be as honest as possible – that if there was something that they did not like, or that annoyed them, this was an ideal opportunity to say so, as my aim in asking them for their views was to improve their experiences of teaching and learning in Maths and so it was important for me to know what they enjoyed and found beneficial, and, perhaps even more usefully, what they did not.
Lundy et al (2011) suggest that asking pupils to participate in research ‘in their familiar school environment can be problematic because children may consider the activities to be class work. This can be addressed in part by keeping the engagement as informal as possible and by using the least conventional or school-like spaces available’ (p. 719). However, because all pupils in the focus cohort completed the data collection tools simultaneously, the limitations of available spaces within West Side School meant that unfortunately it was not possible to use a less conventional setting. However, every attempt was made to create a distinct and informal atmosphere in order to help children differentiate between engaging in research and regular class work. For example, to emphasise the
different nature of the pupil views templates, children were provided with a wide range of materials with which to record their views.
Typically, in Maths books, children were expected to use pencils, drawing any lines neatly with rulers. When writing, children used ink handwriting pens provided by school, and were expected to use neat, joined writing in-line with West Side School’s general expectations regarding the presentation of children’s exercise books. In contrast, when completing the pupil views templates, I emphasise to children that they were free to use their own pens, brought from home, coloured pencils, biros and felt-tipped pens. Whilst this change was relatively minor, I believe that it supported the important message that the pupil views templates were unlike the work children routinely completed in class and,
furthermore, I hoped that allowing pupils increased freedom in recording their ideas would in turn enhance freedom of expression.
To allow pupils the freedom to opt out of submitting any responses that they did not wish to share, I routinely used two trays during each data collection period. This method of opting
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in or out was decided upon in discussion with the children themselves. At the outset of research, having discussed the optional nature of including their responses in research, the children and I deliberated how best to achieve this. It was during this discussion that some of the children proposed the system of using two trays, one labelled simply ‘Yes’, and the other ‘No’. They suggested that ‘Yes’ could be used to indicate that pupils were happy for me to include their responses in the research into teaching and learning in Maths, and that ‘No’ would show that they wished to opt out of submitting their views, instead choosing to keep them private. In the course of our discussion, this was quickly agreed by the focus cohort to be the most straightforward means of sorting responses to include and exclude from research. Because the children themselves suggested this method, I felt confident that they understood it, and had a certain degree of ownership over it. I also feel that it is important to note that giving pupils the opportunity to share their own ideas regarding this aspect of the research process also allowed me to engage them, even in a very small way, as the kind of co-researchers described by Lundy et al (2011), in which children ‘have a key role to play in identifying questions, identifying ways in which their peers can participate effectively in research projects as participants’ (p. 719).
Each time these trays were used, their use was recapped and explained to the pupils, and they had the opportunity ask any necessary questions. Again, before children were asked to decide in which tray to place their data collection tool, it was stressed that their views were private and important, and that pupils had total control over whether or not they chose to submit these for use in this research. Furthermore, in an attempt to minimise any pressure which children may have felt to submit their views against their inclination, these trays were not monitored by an adult, so pupils were able to choose which tray in which to place their completed data collection tool without feeling as though they were being watched or monitored as they did so.
The majority of pupils were willing - even enthusiastic – to share their views about teaching and learning in Maths. Throughout research, many children expressed very positive responses to the discussions we had about our teaching and learning. Perhaps unsurprisingly, they appeared to enjoy being consulted! When asked how they felt about sharing their views using the pupil views templates, for example, 84.84% of pupils
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indicated that they enjoyed using the template. Furthermore, spontaneously and without prompting, 45.45% of pupils cited the opportunity that these templates provided to share their ideas about learning Maths as the reason for their enjoyment. A typical response explained that “I like doing this because it is fun and I like to share my ideas”13
. I believe that comments of this nature suggest the pleasure that pupils felt in being offered the opportunity to share their views surrounding teaching and learning – in other words, to share their reflections; their metacognition – and, as a result, to influence the teaching they experienced. I believe that this could also perhaps be seen as evidence of the ‘virtuous circle of increased confidence and raised self esteem resulting in more active participation by children in other aspects affecting their lives’ (Kellet, 2005: p. 11) which Kellet believes results from involving pupils actively in research – here, by sharing their views about the teaching and learning of Maths. Not only did this confirm my personal views regarding the importance of consulting pupils regarding their own education, but it also emphasised the suitability of the data collection tools chosen in providing the means for them to do so. The data gathered using the pupil views templates can be found in the Findings chapter of this thesis.