Research Title
Using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis to explore the experiences of teaching assistants of forming relationships with pupils who have Autistic Spectrum Disorder in mainstream primary schools.
Who is doing the research?
My name is Allan Willis and I am studying for a Doctorate qualification in Educational Psychology. I am doing this piece of research as part of this course.
Are you interested in taking part in this research?
I would very much like you to take part in my research study. This sheet provides all of the relevant information for you about this study, such as why it is being done and what you would need to do as part of it. Please spend time reading it through and then decide whether or not you would like to take part.
What is the aim of this research?
I am interested in the experiences of Teaching Assistants who work with children who have Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and, in particular, the relationships that they develop with them.
Who has given permission for this research?
The head teacher at the school you work in has given permission for this research to take place if you are happy to be involved. The training institution I am studying at is the Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust and they have given me ethical approval to do this piece of research.
Who can take part in this research?
I am looking for teaching assistants who support young people with Autistic Spectrum Disorders in mainstream primary schools. The teaching assistants needed should be the identified 1:1 support workers for the young people in question.
Do you have to take part?
You do not have to take part and it is up to you to decide if you want to. You are free at any time to stop your involvement in the research and you do not have to give a reason for this. This will not affect any work you do in the school either now or in the future.
What will you need to do?
You will be invited to meet with me in your school at a time convenient to you. I will explain what we are going to do at the beginning of the meeting and then I will ask you about your experiences of working with the young person you support. This meeting will last about one hour and I will record it onto an
audiotape. I am expecting that we will only need to meet once but it might be the case that I need to ask you more about your experiences. If that is the case then we will arrange another meeting at a time convenient to you. The recordings will be stored in a locked box at my home and when transcribed the data will be protected on my computer using a password. You can ask for the recordings to be stopped or deleted at any time. The recordings will be deleted once they have been typed up.
What are the possible benefits of taking part?
There isn’t much research in this area and so this will be a new and hopefully interesting study into how teaching assistants experience the development of their relationships with young people who have ASD. Therefore, your views and ideas are really important in helping to understand more about teaching
assistants and the support they give to ASD pupils. What will happen to the findings from the research?
The findings will be typed up and will make up my thesis, which will be part of my Educational Psychology Doctorate qualification. I would like to tell you about the findings of the research if you would like. We can talk about the ways in which you would like to know about the findings such as me explaining them to you in person or me sending them to you. I would also like to arrange a meeting with all of the TAs who take part in the study so that you can have the chance to talk about the research and its findings together.
What will happen if you don’t want to carry on with this research?
You can change your mind at any time and if you want to stop, you can leave at any time without explaining why. Any research data collected before your
withdrawal may still be used, unless you request that it is destroyed. If it has reached the point that it has been anonymised to the point that I can no longer retrieve your data I will not be able to remove your data and it will not be traceable to anyone, including me.
Will your taking part in this study be kept confidential?
Yes. I will follow ethical and legal practice and all information about you will be handled in confidence. All information that is collected will be kept strictly
confidential. All records related to your participation in this research study will be handled and stored appropriately. Your identity on these records will be indicated by a pseudonym rather than by your name. The data will be kept for a minimum
of 5 years. Data collected during the study will be stored and used in compliance with the UK Data Protection Act (1998).
Are there times when your data cannot be kept confidential?
If you tell me something that makes me concerned about the safety of you or someone else then I might have to share that information with others in order to keep you or someone else safe. However, I would always aim to discuss this with you first when possible. Because I am meeting with 6 TAs, there is a chance that you may recognise some of the things you said in my research. To protect your identity, your name will be a pseudonym so that others are less likely to be able to recognise you and what you said.
Further information and contact details
If you have any questions or concerns about any aspect of the research, please contact me:
Email: [email protected] Telephone: 020 8361 7377
If you have any concerns about the research then you can contact Louis Taussig who works for the Tavistock and Portman research department. His contact details are:
Email: ltaussig@tavi+port.nhs.uk Telephone: 020 7435 7111!
APPENDIX 5
INFORMED CONSENT FORM