Abstract:

Teaching and learning about qualitative research is notoriously difficult. Students often experience heightened anxiety as they consider qualitative analysis methods to be unclear and/or ambiguous. In turn, faculty members often struggle to address these anxieties whilst trying to cover the necessary content when teaching methodological courses. To alleviate these issues, our team has designed and implemented a set of eight digital educational resources (Digital Learning Objects, DLO's) covering the most common methods of qualitative data analysis in the social sciences (rhetorical analysis, semiotic analysis, constructivist grounded-theory coding, thematic analysis, discourse analysis, qualitative content analysis, and ethnographic research). This presentation first introduces the tested pedagogical formula behind these digital educational resources, which centres on moving students from knowledge acquisition, to practical application and critical reflection. Then, we present the student perspective on the usefulness of these resources. Our analysis focuses on a set of eight focus groups, conducted between May - July 2023, with students who employed these resources in their courses and preparatory work during the Bachelor and/or Master thesis writing process. First results indicate that students consider these modules helpful in cementing knowledge; increasing self-regulation; and, in providing a learning environment focusing on "learning how to learn".

Keywords:

Digital Learning Environments, Qualitative Data Analysis, Student Experience, Learning Analytics, Social Sciences.