Article A10.3 Becoming a Researcher by Participating in a Peer Learning Forum Krishna Priya This article describes a novice researcher’s learning from participating in the research training seminars (RTS) organised regularly at Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar (XIMB), India. As a doctoral student enrolled at a public university in Bhubaneswar, I was perhaps an outsider to the RTS forum at XIMB. But I was welcomed there. My regular participation in the seminars was prompted by the absence of a similar peer learning forum at the university. In retrospect, participation in the RTS forum was a formative component of my becoming a researcher. Between 2006 and 2009, I had participated in more than 20 research training seminars on different topics (see Appendix below for a list of the seminars attended). The seminars covered a variety of disciplines, referring to a wide range of approaches and methods. Volunteering participants in the forum wrote comprehensive seminar reports (which are hyperlinked from the Appendix). Each researcher has to discover for herself/himself the focus of her/his research, the approach and method most suited to that research, and the deeper connections between self and society that give one a researcher identity. The goal of one’s research may change in the course of one’s study. While the main sources of information may be books, journal articles, and the data one collects, a researcher needs a forum to interact with other researchers in order to practice communication and receive feedback and suggestions on one’s work. During this period, I maintained a blog site and recorded my thoughts on doctoral research as they evolved. One of the methods of data collection in applied linguistics--my area of research--is data obtained from daily journal entries of respondents (Ellis, 1985). The purpose of such data collection is to observe patterns in the respondent’s language behaviour. Now going through my blog notes, I am able to observe patterns and milestones in my development as a researcher. I now summarise some of those thought patterns and milestones. 1. Staying Open-Minded Many of these seminars emphasised on the value of open-mindedness. A researcher should not to be limited by a fixed set of notions while exploring any topic or phenomenon. An open-minded attitude would help the researcher choose unknown paths; it could lead to unexpected results that are eye-openers, not just for the researcher, but also for the field of research. A researcher may also attempt to look beyond one’s field of research and outside one’s discipline, looking for new ideas and directions for research. In research, having preconceived notions is bound to limit one’s imagination with regard to research topic and research process. It could also constrain the researcher’s responses to research experience, thus depriving the researcher of potential opportunities for learning and growth. The researcher must acquire the means to remain receptive to ideas. 2. Constructing Research as Narrative As a student of literature, I am oriented towards reading stories. Usually, stories have a beginning, a middle, and an end. Each story has an element of surprise and the reader progresses with the question: What happens next? While embarking on my research I acquired a notion about doctoral theses that proved its merit over time: doctoral theses are similar to stories in the sense that they begin with a query, proceed to data collection and interpretation, and then reach a conclusion which either affirms or disavows a “truth.” While the plot of a doctoral thesis seemed quite predictable and appeared to be a matter of just finding the right questions, I was unsure about the narrative that would express my doctoral story. I wanted my doctoral story not only to solve a problem, but I hoped it would contribute to the expansion of knowledge in my field and also be considered to be of a good standard. I was uncertain about several things. The questions in my mind were: How was my story going to unfold? Would it be worthwhile? Do I have the requisite skills to perform this study? 3. Developing Research Skills At the initial stages of my research, the experience of learning an entirely new vocabulary on research paradigms, processes, and concepts seemed daunting. A few months and seminars later, I realised that I was more competent than I imagined. I was not only able to make sense of the discussions, but I realised that the critical perspective I had acquired during my education until then was indeed valid and useful. In literature, students are trained to write on character sketches, narrative techniques, or interpretations. In research, one has to read about schools of thoughts, paradigms, methods, and methodology for starters. The more I exchanged views on research questions and reflected on them, the more my research skills developed. I was not only able to use various research concepts, but also express the unfolding story of my own research. I must acknowledge that participating in the RTS forum helped me develop academic and interpersonal skills associated with doctoral research: listening for facts and opinions in conversations, taking turns to express my perspective, critically appreciating the ideas put forth by other participants, expressing differences of opinion, exchanging views, giving and receiving feedback, reflecting on what I had read and learnt, and developing my reading and writing skills. Doctoral students need different combinations of skills at different stages of their work (this has been a topic for discussion in the RTS forum; see the useful report by Vakkayil, 2005). Although research skills can be developed while acquiring research experience, it requires specific training and practice, as demonstrated by various institutional (e.g., Michigan Student Affairs, n.d.) and national initiatives (a good example from the UK, Vitae, 2011). I also learnt in the seminars that noticing similarities and differences, patterns and underlying structures, cases and anomalies, are some of the basic tools of the trade in research. Institutions of higher learning require a new vision to enhance doctoral education and develop the skills needed for the research world. The research training seminars at XIMB contained elements of such a new vision (as captured in an interesting way by Vakkayil, 2006). Institutions granting research degrees as well as supervisors of research students will have a huge role in translating such visions into reality. 4. Renewing Knowledge A doctoral thesis is finite, but research is not. A thesis can lead to other questions and further inquiry as in stories which are open ended. A doctoral thesis may contribute new findings through established approaches and methods or it may contribute by devising new approaches and methods altogether. The researcher needs to have a sense of where the study would be placed: would it fall within an existing pattern or would it trigger the beginning of new ones? We seek new knowledge to understand the events around us and also to solve problems. I acquired a familiarity with research paradigms and methods from the Handbook of Qualitative Research (Denzin & Lincoln, 2000), which has also been another formative component of my understanding of research. According to these authors, “The theoretical bricoleur [i.e., researcher] reads widely and is knowledgeable about the many interpretive paradigms (feminism, Marxism, cultural studies, constructivism, queer theory) that can be brought to any particular problem” (p. 6) and “The gendered, narrative bricoleur also knows that researchers all tell stories about the worlds they have studied” (p. 6). I consider problem-solving to be an important purpose of research. When knowledge outlives its usefulness, when the existing explanations are not sufficient, we need better explanations; we need new knowledge. At this juncture, research becomes the vehicle for renewal of knowledge. 5. Attaining Self-Belief I was teaching English for Professional Communication to college students in the 18-23 years age group. My students had different linguistic, regional, religious, ethnic, cultural, educational, and professional backgrounds. It was my first experience in teaching and I found it pretty challenging. But since I was also a research student simultaneously, I was able to bring some of my research skills to bear on this, gradually revising how I saw myself and my students. In the first few months into my research work, I was not very sure about my research questions, but I was sure that I wanted to do work which had direct benefits for the classroom. Teaching in college and participating in research seminars simultaneously gave me a better sense of self. From this grew a renewed confidence in my own ability to explore reality through research questions. I saw myself as a useful member of society, who was contributing through knowledge generation apart from skill development in students. 6. Becoming Aware of Assumptions If a researcher makes an attempt to reflect and become aware of the assumptions with which she/he is working, it might help in developing self- awareness and critical thinking. Such critical thinking is helpful or even necessary for maintaining quality in one's own work. Our biases and prejudices are often insidious, and we may not be aware of them, such as gender bias or ideological influence. Knowing the antecedents of our views helps in clarifying our own objectives to both ourselves as well as others. My life experiences influenced the biases I had acquired. I was conscious of some but not all. I think with improved self-awareness that developed within me through reading, conversations, interactions, feedback, reflections, and involvement with my research, I began to see patterns in my thoughts, behaviour, and responses. This self-awareness assisted my ability to face my inner assumptions that were guiding my thoughts and actions. I could also transfer this knowledge to other areas of my life. 7. Acknowledging Provisionality Theories are not permanent unshakeable truths. Research is about understanding phenomena, processes, and possibilities in a provisional (not final) sense. Research is an open-ended journey with several possible paths and intersections: I can choose to take some and abandon others, of course giving reasons for my choice. In research, one must be alert to the provisional nature of statements; there is always a possibility of modifying our statements in future. Researchers encounter both stability and change. Some phenomena (such as some aspects of the structure of the physical universe) appear to be unperturbed by human inquiry or human action. Here, researchers look for anomalous observations to renew the existing body of knowledge. But several other phenomena are subject to change, by human agency. As new realities emerge, our knowledge must also be revised. Ironically enough, a revision in knowledge, through the wondrous channels of social learning, often causes further change in reality, thus keeping researchers busy for ever. References Denzin, N. K., & Lincoln, Y. S. (Eds.). (2000). Handbook of qualitative research (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Ellis, R. (1985). Understanding second language acquisition. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. Michigan Student Affairs. (n.d.). PhD transferable skills. Ann Arbor, MI: The Career Centre, Author. Retrieved from http://careercenter.umich.edu/article/phd-transferable-skills Vakkayil, J. D. (with Dash, D. P.). (2005). Importance of self-awareness in developing research skills [Report on seminar led by S. Pattnaik]. Research World, 2, Article R2.19. Retrieved from http://www1.ximb.ac.in/RW.nsf/pages/R2.19 Vakkayil, J. D. (2006). Towards new visions of doctoral research: Experiences from an innovative research training programme. Graduate Journal of Social Science, 3(1), 82-101. Retrieved from http://www.gjss.nl/vol03/nr01/a05 Vitae. (2011). Researcher development framework (Version 2). Cambridge, UK: Vitae, Careers Research and Advisory Centre. Retrieved from http://www.vitae.ac.uk/CMS/files/upload/Vitae-Researcher-Development-Framework.pdf Appendix A List of Research Training Seminars Attended at Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar, India 2006 Doing Research: Discovering Reality or Constructing Knowledge?(Wiebe E. Bijker) Globalisation, Governance, and World Unity(Kittu Reddy) Reflections and Mobilisations: The Calling of Global Responsibility and a New Vision of Action Research(Ananta K. Giri) Doing Meaningful Research (Rajshri Jobanputra) The Ghosts of Popular Science (Lyubov Gurjeva) 2007 Training for Research (Jacob D. Vakkayil) Doctoral Summer School 2007: Fundamentals of Management Research (D. P. Dash & C. D. Kuruvilla) On Entering the Research World (D. P. Dash) Change Research (Anupam Saraph) Studying Online/Offline and Global/Local Intersections: Where the World is Actually not Flat (Radhika Gajjala) Modelling Agriculture in India: Historiography of Technology and Colonialism (Modugu Sridhar) The Modern Prince and the Modern Sage: Transforming Power and Freedom and . . . (Ananta K. Giri) Social Shaping of Research Results (Wiebe E. Bijker) Doing Research on Attitude: Requirements of a Cross-Cultural Method (Neharika Vohra) E-Government and Decentralisation (Research Proposal) (T. Kumar) Creative Research / Creating Possibility for Action (Elinor W. Gadon) Evaluating e-Procurement Strategies: A Game-Theoretic Approach (Amit Agrahari) Research on Organisational Change: Social Network Perspective (Niharika Rai) 2008 Understanding Research and Theory Development (Anand Agrawal) Irrigation Research: Balancing Technical and Social Factors (Chitra Krishnan) 2009 Research as a Gendered Practice (Elinor W. Gadon) * Suggested Citation: Krishna Priya (with Dash, D. P.). (2013). Becoming a researcher by participating in a peer learning forum. Research World, 10, Article A10.3. Retrieved from http://www1.ximb.ac.in/RW.nsf/pages/A10.3 Copyleft Xavier Institute of Management, Xavier Square, Bhubaneswar 751013, India Research World (ISSN 0974-2379) http://www1.ximb.ac.in/RW.nsf/pages/Home | ||
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