Tag Archives: research

Ethnography of the University / Ethnography of the University: Focus on Student Life 2024 / Undergraduate Ethnography / Updates

Why is Student Privacy in Research So Sensitive?

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By Yunshan Li Our group was assigned to study the organization and function of Student Engagement which is responsible for the support of clubs and leadership development. During our fieldwork, we planned to conduct participant observation on Student Engagement workshops. The staff in Student Engagement welcomed us at the beginning and seemed enthusiastic to help … Continue reading →

Ethnography of the University / Ethnography of the University: Focus on Student Life 2024 / Undergraduate Ethnography / Updates

The Art of Building Rapport with Professionals

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By Richard Wu One might think that, for the student ethnographic researcher, Student Life offers abundant opportunities for immersive field research. After all, like other students, the student researcher should in principle have equal access to the many opportunities for student engagement and development which Student Life is mandated to provide. Yet, as a student … Continue reading →

Ethnography of the University / Ethnography of the University: Focus on Student Life 2024 / Undergraduate Ethnography / Updates

When the Field Says No: Researching Student Life Without Student Voices

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By Molly McGouran How do you conduct research on a university without talking to students?   It is a question that caught me off guard during my fieldwork and, at first, felt incredibly limiting. I had started with what I thought was a clear, straightforward plan: observe, interact, and interview students at the University of Toronto. … Continue reading →

Ethnography of the University / Ethnography of the University: Focus on Student Life 2024 / Undergraduate Ethnography / Updates

The Assessment Cycle – Storytelling

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By Maia de Caro The Assessment Cycle is composed of five stages: 1) Assessment Plan Development, 2) Implementation, 3) Analysis & Summary, 4) Storytelling, and 5) Action Planning & Next Steps. This blog post focuses on Storytelling. My project began by trying to understand assessment within the division of Student Life and evolved into a … Continue reading →

Co-Creating Knowledge: Ethnography With, Not Of, Interlocutors
Ethnography of the University / Ethnography of the University: Focus on Student Life 2024 / Undergraduate Ethnography / Updates

Co-Creating Knowledge: Ethnography With, Not Of, Interlocutors

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By Hanisha Mistry When I first imagined going into the field as an ethnographer, I envisioned something akin to Bronisław Malinowski’s arrival in the Trobriand Islands. I pictured myself stepping into a space where ethnography was an unfamiliar word, and my interlocutors, unacquainted with the methods of anthropology, would meet my questions with unfiltered answers. … Continue reading →

Ethnography of the University / Ethnography of the University: Focus on Student Life 2024 / Undergraduate Ethnography / Updates

On Coping With Ethnographic Disappointment

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By Cameron Miranda-Radbord It is a real loss for future generations of students in ANT 473 that Professor Li is retiring, but if the course continues to be taught, I have a scintilla of what I think is wisdom: your ethnography may not be everything you hoped it was.  When I researched “anthropology disappointment” and … Continue reading →

Ethnography of the University / Ethnography of the University: Focus on Student Life 2024 / Undergraduate Ethnography

Symbiotic Ethnographies: Approaching Research at Two Connected Field Sites

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By Amani Hassan Making the strange familiar and the familiar strange is central to ethnographic research. Ethnography typically involves participant observation, where the researcher immerses themself in a community to understand it from a culturally relative perspective. But how do you approach this when you are researching two groups and are also an active member … Continue reading →

The Online World: Ethnography Behind the Screen
Ethnography of the University / Ethnography of the University: Focus on Student Life 2024 / Undergraduate Ethnography / Updates

The Online World: Ethnography Behind the Screen

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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 →

ETHNOGRAPHY OF THE UNIVERSITY: FOCUS ON STUDENT LIFE 2024
Ethnography of the University: Focus on Student Life 2024 / Updates

ETHNOGRAPHY OF THE UNIVERSITY: FOCUS ON STUDENT LIFE 2024

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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 →