Ethnography Guidelines
Mini-Ethnography Guidelines
Mini-Ethnography — Requirements
Observe people’s cultural behavior, artifacts and knowledge at a site unfamiliar to you for 2+ hours. Prepare a paper (5-7 double spaced pages), two-part observation paper: Part A — A Cultural and Ethical Portrait of yourself, Part B – Ethical Climate of the site.
Choosing a Site
You are required to choose an site the organization shows an ethical difference from you. The idea is to get out of your ethical comfort zone and experience being the “ethical other.” For example, if you are middle/upper-middle economic class, you may want to observe in a setting that serves students of poverty. Or, if you are European-American, you may want to experience a local immigrant site such as an English as a Second Language class. You could volunteer your time as a tutor for students, experience a club event, or learn a new skill or hobby in a learning environment where you are out of your cultural comfort zone. I am not opposed to your sitting in a coffee shop either. If you know little about blind or hearing-impaired cultures or students with disabilities, you could volunteer in local social service agencies that serve these populations. Sites must be chosen according to “difference” criteria and must be approved by the instructor prior to your experience. You should announce to site members that you are doing a classroom assignment for one of your courses at Northwestern State University. (Examples of possible field sites include: U.S. citizenship course; spend a day with a gay or lesbian couple or heterosexual couple; attend classes at Buddhist meditation center; spend a day with a person with special needs; attend services or religious studies at a Mosque, Synagogue or church (different from your own); visiting and observing classes at a historically African-American college; and spending several hours in a Mexican or Asian grocery).
Field Note Taking
During (and/or immediately after) your educational site experience, you should take copious notes concerning your observations of: ethical behaviors (what people do), ethical knowledge (what people know), and ethical artifacts (items that people use.)
Observational Summary & Reflection Paper
The observation and reflection paper should be a smooth flowing account of your observations and self-reflections, between 2-3 pages double-spaced. The paper will include 2 sections:
Part A: Researcher Portrait
This should a combined version of your ethical and cultural self portrait.It should not be a copy of what you have already written, but a mixture of both elements for a complete profile of self.
Part B: Self Understanding
This section describes the characteristics of the site, ethical behaviors, ethical knowledge, and ethical artifacts that you observed, underlying values, and explicit/implicit rules in operation in this setting. You should describe some of the major assumptions that you had about the site that you visited, what have you learned about yourself and insights into your own cultural background/upbringing; explore feelings of disequilibrium or discomfort and examine your sense of ethical sensitivity.