In this section of the Ethnography Lab website, we collect student and instructor writing from various ethnographic practicums offered by or via the Lab.
By Georgia Hanson, Molly McGouran an Yihang Xu If you are familiar with something, how can it be strange? Our individual experiences with fieldwork in Student Life presented us with new avenues through which we could explore this question, each of us gaining a new perspective on the university that we had once so confidently … Continue reading
By Yunshan Li and Georgia Hanson Participant observation is the foundational method of ethnographic research. It requires the researcher to immerse themselves in the field site to gain insights into a culture. However, in the case of our research in Student Life, we were limited from such immersion, barred from participation, and limited to a … Continue reading
By Molly McGouran and Lukey Lu From our first meetings with Student Life administration, it was clear that our participant observation would be different from what we expected. Most of the staff work from home; therefore, much of the programming offered by the Centre for Learning Strategy Support (CLSS), where we conducted our work, was … Continue reading
By Yunshan Li, Richard Wu and Amani Hassan On an early afternoon in October, we visited the reception office of the Clubs and Leadership Division of Student Engagement for a social event for club leaders. We arrived to find only one club leader, accompanied by two staff members. Half an hour later, another student showed … Continue reading
By Daisy Sanchez Villavicencio and Lukey Lu Imagine a wilting tree, rotting leaves fall throughout the seasons, the bark is visibly decaying, fungi is sprouting around the roots and bark. Now imagine the role of a forester or dendrologist who was hired to treat the rotting tree; the source of the rot, such as the … Continue reading
By Angelina Nguyen, Hanisha Mistry, and Norah Rahman “Why go to University?” Many students pursue higher education to increase their chances for jobs. The University of Toronto entices students with its prestige and reputation for producing high-achieving scholars. However, does your GPA and the name of your academic institution truly matter if you can’t apply … Continue reading
By Cameron Miranda-Radbord and Maia De Caro Early on in our class, we read articles and had discussions surrounding audit, evaluation, and efficacy, which influenced our decision to look into assessment processes within the division of Student Life. In this case, assessment is used to identify and understand how effective programs are at meeting their … Continue reading
By Cameron Miranda-Radbord and Maia De Caro How does student feedback translate into change at Student Life? Attaining feedback is a crucial component of the assessment process. It helps identify gaps in operations and programming, enabling targeted improvements. Feedback can be gathered through various methods, such as surveys, focus groups, reflections, and conversations. In our … Continue reading
Over the past two decades, Student Life has emerged at the University of Toronto and elsewhere as a domain where various aspects of student life become subject to expert management with the aim of facilitating learning, enhancing well-being, minimizing stress, and promoting a healthy and productive university experience. Yet for most students at U of … Continue reading
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Ethnography Lab 