Between March 8-10, I piloted three focus groups that interviewed students in the ENG 102 Honors iPad cohort. The purpose for the pilot focus groups was to inform how best to collect data (iPhone vs iPad), test my "role" in the room, sample the questions, as well as acclimatize students to interact and articulate their experience in a small group setting. While I am still processing the results for a more formal analysis, I can offer a bit of reflection....
You can definitely read and study the concepts and theory of Qualitative Research Methodology, but you may never really know what it is until you apply it to your practice. At least, that was the case for me. For those who may not know, qualitative research, first and foremost, positions research participants as the experts and uses their perspectives on and articulation about a phenomenon as data to be formally analyzed.
I certainly had my perspective on the success and failure of the iPad as a classroom tool. However, I openly admit that I may not have been as innovative as the iPad should merit. Looking back, I tried to make the iPad work with what I already knew and did. I wanted it to function similarly to a computer, really.
But, research participants' (students') perspectives were much different, much more positive than mine. During the focus groups they began to reveal how the iPad actually works for them as an educational tool and how they integrate it into their academic lives.
One participant revealed that the Notes app was the most beneficial. He stated he could take much "neater and organized" notes now that he could type as fast as he could think. His handwriting couldn't keep up, and regular "pen and paper" notes were practically illegible. He stated that this lead to better quality studying.
Several students spoke to how much faster they could accomplish the more mundane educational tasks like emailing faculty or classmates, "googling" an example or reference, and accessing articles and websites. Without the iPad these tasks normally would be completed after work or hours later. Many expressed that after a few hours they may forget to complete the task or opt not to complete it as they were too tired or too busy. With the iPad they could complete it right "then and there" when they needed to.
A couple students spoke to how an iPad in the home increased family time. One participant stated her father bought an iPad during the initial release but returned it after a week. When she brought the iPad home, she spent teaching her father the various applications, and he even borrowed several times to make presentations at work. Another stated that she and her daughter would trade the iPad to conduct research on the couch during family time. Even though the household owned a WIFI laptop, it never moved from the computer desk, and when someone did use the laptop for homework, he/she was separated and isolated from the rest of the family.
Lastly, one student self-identified himself as "not a technology person at all" but is now a "convert" as he has seen the benefits in efficiency the iPad offers. He can get some of his homework "out of the way" thus giving him more time to "do other stuff." He is trying to figure out how to buy an iPad after the pilot ends.
However, (and the caveat is...) almost all stated that when it came to typing and researching longer, more involved papers, they still opted for a traditional laptop or PC; the iPad wasn't quite there yet.
In spite of my perceptions, as the "class room expert" I learned a very important lesson--teaching and learning is about students first, and the iPad seems to be a viable tool that helps them manage their busy, busy lives in a complicated, modern world.
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