Ethnography and the Field Practicum

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 Ethnography
• Provides a detailed and in-depth description of
everyday life and practice in a community.
• The main purpose of ethnography is its descriptive
power. The description is essential in unpacking the
social, political, economic, and cultural complexities
that occur in communities.
• It helps provide a greater understanding of the
community and illustrates both students and
community members who aim for community
development.
• It is also a qualitative research process; its main aim
is interpretation.
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Ethnographer- is not only a chronicler or reporter of
events in the community; he or she is also a participant
in the dynamics that occur in a community. 

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 As a critical dimension of this
research method, a well-informed
interpretation allows the ethnographer to
understand what the anthropologist
Clifford Geertz refers to as the “web
meanings” that operate and are
generated within the context of a
community. While the ethnographer is
involved in the community, the rigor and
skill to provide insights about the
goings-on in the community are
required. 
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 The anthropologist Brian Hoey further characterizes
this requirement based on two perspectives in
ethnography, suggesting the dual role of the
ethnographer:

Ethnographers generate understanding of culture

through the representation of what we call an emic
perspective, or what might be described as the
“insider’s point of view.” The emphasis in this
representation is thus on allowing critical categories
and meanings to emerge from the ethnographic
encounter rather than imposing these from existing
models. An etic perspective, by contrast, refers to a
more distant, analytical orientation to experience. 
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 A particular method in developing an
ethnographic understanding of a community is
through participant observation. There are
different data sources (documents, surveys, and
interview data, among others) and various
methods of data collection.

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 Participant Observation is the direct
immersion of the researcher in the field for an
extended period, typically medium or long-
term. In this course, participant observation
takes place through field practicum.

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Field Practicum

• The culminating activity that gives weight to

immersion.
• This allows the student to directly observe,
participate, and experience the context of
communities.
• As the field practicum follows the particular
observation mode, students are expected to play
dual roles as both participant and observer.

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The field practicum consists mainly of:

1.  The student’s participation in the

implementation of the community action
initiative    that was earlier planned through the
expected tasks
2. A documentation of the observations and
experiences of the implementation phase,
alongside the earlier phases, through a
summative account of the course.

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 As Thomas Schwandt
explains, field notes are made
during the act of qualitative
fieldwork. They are used to
record the behaviors, activities,
events, and other features of an
observation. They are intended to
be ”read as evidence to produce
meaning and an understanding of
the culture, social situation, or
phenomenon being studied”  
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 Field notes can be direct observations of
those immersed in the community or from
interviews. They can also be reflections of a
researcher’s experience in a community. Thus
field notes have two parts:

1. Descriptive Information
2. Reflective Information

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1. Descriptive information refers to accurately
documented factual data (such as date and time)
and the setting and conditions in the community.
Observations of the actions, behaviors, and
conversations of community members are also
examples of descriptive information.

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2. Reflective information is the thoughts,
ideas, questions, and concerns of the
researcher during his or her fieldwork in the
community.

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Ethical Considerations in the Field
Practicum 

       During your initial interactions and exchanges

with community members and partners, it is very
important that you inform the participants about the
purpose of your field practicum. Honesty and
transparency about the purpose of immersion or
fieldwork must be practiced.

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Confidentiality 

      In the course of being a participant and

observer, you should ensure the protection of
the identities of community members that
you interact with. Ensuring confidentiality
requires that particular personalities can
never be explicitly linked to the information
and data which they provide. 

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