Tipos de innovación

Research methodologies and methods depend on the research study and questions, or the nature of the problems that the researcher’s inquiry seeks to answer. Therefore, justifying the choice of methodologies and methods depicts the reality brought to research work (Crotty, 1998). It is important to choose a paradigm most suited to a particular study in order to execute good research (Groenewald, 2004;Luttrell, 2010). A paradigm is a loose collection of logically related assumptions, concepts or propositions that orient thinking and research (Luttrell, 2010). There are various research approaches which fit different epistemologies, theoretical traditions and practices. Different paradigms support different methods of data collection and analysis techniques that in turn cover a range of theoretical and empirical frameworks. Methodologies which are frequently used in human and social science research and fall within a qualitative approach are: phenomenology, ethnography, case study, focus groups, and grounded theory among others (Cohen, Manion and Morrison, 2008; Creswell, 2007). Positivist and subjectivist views were considered. Scientific positivism, however, is a paradigm which emphasises the objectivity and passivity of the human being (Creswell, ibid)

Positivist research attaches importance to explaining matters by means of ‘clear data, specific facts and observable actions’ (Xingping, 2002, p40). An objectivist view is one where understanding and values are considered to be objectified in the people to be studied with a possibility of getting the truth if the right way is used (Cohen, Manion and Morrison, 2008). The positivist model therefore, does not seem to address the uniqueness of human life. According to the subjectivist ontology, truth or meaning comes into existence when researchers engage with the realities of the world (Mcphail, 1995). It is clear, though, that different people may attribute different meanings to the same phenomena. It is evident that they

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also construct meaning in different ways, an aspect which is overlooked by the positivist model.

Crotty (2005) asserts that interpretive epistemology fits with the qualitative paradigm. Therefore it was found suitable for this study. It is the theoretical position that suits practice and method. Interpretive epistemology appeals to qualitative researchers. It involves an interpretive, naturalistic approach to the world. This study, centred as it is on understanding human experiences, is based upon teachers’ actively constructed meaning of their social world which was studied in their natural state the schools, where ‘meaning is not discovered but it is constructed’ (Crotty, 1998,p8). So positivism was found not to be suitable for this study. A subjectivist and not objectivist ontological view was therefore adopted. It was important to engage with the teachers in order to explore and understand how they view SEN. Questionnaires and interview schedules were used to collect data from the teachers. The elicited meaning facilitated articulation of themes arising from the interaction of the teachers and, to agree with Pring that:

‘The world researched is affected by the research itself, our knowledge is a “construction”, reflecting the world, not as independent of our deliberations but as something constructed by them’ (Pring, 2004, p 44).

The constructed themes formed a good basis for the data analysed in order to answer the research questions. Interview data especially, enabled the construction of themes and articulation of findings from the perspective of the teachers (Broussard, 2006). Therefore, teachers contributed to the construction of meaning. Teachers’ consent was sought and issues of confidentiality, withdrawal and anonymity explained before, during and after they participated in the research. Consent was also considered as a continuing process within the researcher and participant relationship rather than a one-off event. I continually ensured that teachers understood the implication of their participation in this study, when distributing questionnaires or conducting interviews. More details of how this was done are discussed in the research process section. To this effect, qualitative research was chosen for this study. To gain knowledge about the teachers’

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conceptualisation of SEN, I engaged with the teachers in their school settings: in the urban, municipal and rural settings - natural settings.

Teachers were partners in the generation of meaning. I interacted with the teachers and was able to construct meaning in different ways. For example, different teachers attributed different meanings to the definition of Special Educational Needs (SEN) which made it clear that, in understanding knowledge, different people may construct meaning in different ways, even in relation to the same phenomena. Different meanings were constructed from the teachers by interacting with them and it was possible to collect data which had a profound impact on the way the research outcomes were conducted and presented. Onwuegbuzie and Leech (2004) define meaning as ‘a taken-for-granted’ assumption in qualitative inquiry that studies meaningful social action ‘…cannot be adequately described in purely physical terms’ (Onwuegbuzie and Leech Ibid, p.153). They also assert that, in an attempt to make insights, qualitative researchers tend to seek to construct meaning from their data. ‘A significant finding is one that has meaning or representation’ (Ibid, p774). The meanings constructed were analysed as themes which had a bearing on the findings of this study.

Interpretive epistemology informs the theoretical perspective of phenomenology. It is the epistemological position of making meaning through the process of construction of knowledge as we engage in the world we are interpreting (Robinson, 2002). Interaction with teachers in different schools in the urban, municipal and rural settings in Kenya led to the collection of data which was later analysed to unravel the meaning of the phenomena of the teachers’ experiences as expressed in the questionnaires and interviews from the different research settings.

By contacting teachers in their natural environments, this researcher obtained descriptive data that facilitated the understanding of the teachers’ experiences, which formed a good basis for the data collected for this study. This research used

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an interpretive approach to inquiry in order to gain comprehensive insights into how teachers view SEN in public primary schools in Kenya.

The interview schedule and questionnaires used with the teachers were understood as ‘interacting with ordinary people in their particular situation’ (Bogdan and Biklen, 2003, p23), whilst also gaining a descriptive account for the study. It is from this interaction with the teachers that enabled the construction of interpretations of the empirical material collected.

‘Qualitative research insists upon face-to-face, heart-felt encounters between knowing subjects, recognition that each of us is unique in our effort to make sense of ourselves and the world around us’ (Luttrell, 2010, p1).

Teachers were provided with opportunities to disclose their ways of viewing the world. This was done through communication by filling in the questionnaire and interviews. I entered the world of the research sample and got to know them and earn their trust, systematically keeping a detailed research diary. In order to understand how the teachers in public primary schools in Kenya view SEN, I travelled to different schools in Nairobi, Coast, Rift Valley, Central and Eastern provinces and met with the teachers in their own environment. An interview schedule was used to collect data. Interviews were recorded and pseudonyms given to the transcripts to safeguard the confidentiality and anonymity of respondents. More details are provided in the methods section.

Charmaz (2006) asserts that influences from the past, cultural background and other situations shape peoples' view of the world and the meaning of truth. Holloway and Biley (2011) assert that:

‘Researchers are not tabula rasa - blank slates without any assumptions but like the other participants, they come with their own backpack of pre-conceived ideas usually rooted in their experiences and culture. The self is an integral part of any study’ (Ibid, 2011, p971).

Qualitative researchers need not only reflect on the complexity of what happened in the field and the possibility of transforming the story into a scholarly piece of work, but the story should also be interesting, original and contribute to the area

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of research. Qualitative research was chosen to facilitate the means of exploring the participants’ points of view and experiences (Creswell, 2008).

They not only capture reality but also 'condense and represent it' (Smart, 2010, p6). My study is based on the evidence from the teachers and their meaning is central to this evidence. The participants and the researcher shape the text and make meaning from the text (Creswell, 2008; Denzin and Lincoln, 2000). Therefore qualitative research is:

‘a situated activity that locates the observer in the world. It consists of a set of interpretive, material practices that makes the world visible …involves an interpretive, naturalistic

approach to the world … qualitative researchers study things in their natural settings, attempting to make sense of, or to interpret, phenomena in terms of the meanings people bring to them’ (Denzin and Lincoln, 2000, p3).

The following section underlines the procedure in undertaking this study.