Abstract:

Technology is a ubiquitous tool for learning that is changing traditional pedagogies and reforming the learning environment. This research reports on a study conducted in one post-secondary institution from 2016-2018, which explored how to use one format of technology- citizen documentary. Citizen documentary is video crafted by everyday people who aim to have an active role in “the process of collecting, reporting, analyzing and disseminating news and information (Bowman & Willis, 2003, p. 9).” Drawing on a visual ethnographic framework (Pink, 2009), we examined the use of video-based methods of research and scholarship in the graduate classroom. Specifically, the study aimed to investigate how one group of graduate students used citizen documentary for research and inquiry, and the technological benefits and challenges they faced during this process. In total, nine participants were gathered from three graduate-level courses at a recognized university in a metropolitan city in Canada. During the academic term, students designed and produced a citizen documentary related to their autobiographical experiences in education. For example, a doctoral student whose sibling has autism produced a documentary based on the first-hand experience of one of her autistic students. In each documentary, participants drew on a variety of first-hand interview recordings and footage, as well as secondary Internet data, including public domain Internet archives. Data for this study were collected through semi-structured interviews which resulted in three overarching themes: i) the validity and credibility of video production in higher education, ii) ethical sharing parameters and, iii) technological constraints. Firstly, participants struggled to understand the academic merit of producing a video compared with the conventional writing of a paper. Secondly, for example, participants were reluctant to share personal photographs of people online, despite drawing photos or obtaining videos from their film roll, and non-copyrighted archival databanks. Lastly, technological constraints varied among participants depending on their technological familiarity, access to hardware, and understanding of how to create meaningful content with a rich production value (e.g.: audio quality, and aesthetic principles). Our study suggests that video documentary is a powerful means of engaging and sharing research in the digital era and therefore research is warranted in this area.

Keywords:

Video documentary, higher education, research and inquiry, technology.