Using Ketso in Qualitative Research With Female Saudi Teachers

Authors

  • Dalal Alabbasi Dar AlHekma University
  • Juup Stelma The University of Manchester

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17169/fqs-19.2.2930

Keywords:

Ketso, focus groups, mind mapping, voice, Saudi Arabia, research methods, educational technology

Abstract

New perspectives on education can emerge when the voices of teachers are articulated in the research process. This is especially the case in contexts where teachers' voices have not often been heard. In this article, we provide a data-driven exploration of the potential of Ketso, a visual-tactile focus group method originating in participatory research, to generate female Saudi teachers' views on technology use in education. The design of Ketso is based on a tree metaphor, and it employs written input and group discussion. Our analysis reveals how Ketso enabled the voices of each of the female teachers to be heard and how it helped participants to extend their initial individual views in conversation with others. Moreover, the physical nature of Ketso, with its shared workspace and turn-taking built into the use of colored leaves for asking different questions, kept the participants focused on what was important to them, whilst avoiding shared or strong views to be magnified. We conclude that Ketso can be used beyond its participatory origins as an inclusive data generation tool in qualitative research. We also discuss what additional steps may be taken to make the voices of the female Saudi teachers more visible.

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Author Biographies

Dalal Alabbasi, Dar AlHekma University

Dalal Omar ALABBASI, PhD, is an assistant professor in the graduate school at Dar AlHekma University in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, specializing in integrating technology with education. Her research interest is educational technology and the implications of technology in learning and teaching, as well as in social and political aspects of society. She is also interested in teachers' development, experiences and presenting teachers' voices, and the use of Ketso especially in the context of Saudi Arabia. Current research includes: using Mind mapping techniques in the process of evaluating students' satisfaction and feedback in higher education.

Juup Stelma, The University of Manchester

Juup STELMA is director of teaching and learning at the Manchester Institute of Education of The University of Manchester. He teaches courses on language education, as well as research methods in education and the social sciences. His research is focused on dynamical and ecological understandings of language education, research methodology, and researcher development, with a particular interest in how educational and research practices vary across linguistic, national and cultural boundaries.

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Published

2018-04-18

How to Cite

Alabbasi, D., & Stelma, J. (2018). Using Ketso in Qualitative Research With Female Saudi Teachers. Forum Qualitative Sozialforschung Forum: Qualitative Social Research, 19(2). https://doi.org/10.17169/fqs-19.2.2930

Issue

Section

Single Contributions