The night before yesterday, I sent my revised proposal to the Education & Training Director of the International Institute of RI (IIRI), Mrs. Rahman, I'm hoping she will answer soon , and that she will give me permission to do my field work there. Its sort of nerve racking to know someone outside of school will read my proposal. I'm assuming the IIRI is a busy place and she might not get to read my paper by tomorrow.
Sometimes, insistency and persistency will help you acquired what you want, so I decided to call and ask if she had received my proposal. She said she had read it and that she was happy I had picked the IIRI, but that because there are in such a busy schedule I will have to wait a few days until they will be able to present my proposal to the teachers at the institute, because if you don't remember my purposed is to sit in a class and observe the refugees and or immigrants as they are being taught English (an ESL class). The teachers will then decide if they want somebody in their class or not. I hope they understand I'm not there to evaluate them in any way, I think that would be the main reason for them to deny me access to their classrooms. The educational director Mrs. Raman also gave me the number to call a make an appointment to get a tour of the Institute.
Without delay I called, and I was sent to voicemail, so I left a message explaining why I wanted a tour of the IIRI.
So did I mention I was a persistent person? So because I know I will not be receiving a call back from the IIRI, not soon anyways, as they are such a busy place. I decided to go by again. This time I was faced to face with the Mrs. Rahman, When I introduced myself , she knew who I was right away, she thought I was there to ask permission again to enter a class and she gave me a lecture on why that couldn't happen right away. When she allowed me to explain myself , I was able to explained to her that this time I just wanted to sit outside in the student lounge to get some observations and a feel of the place. And promised her that I wouldn't bother or talk to anyone, although there was really no one to actually talk to. She instantly agreed. We got to talk a little bit, and I got to tell her why this research project is important to me, not just for school but for me as an immigrant myself. She smile at me for the first time at that point, so I'm guessing she likes me a little bit more than at the beginning. Finally, I was able to get my first field notes, and I can't emphasize how happy I am to have picked the IIRI. Another lesson learned, Persistency does get you somewhere haha.
Christmas Celebration 2011
First time I was introduced to the subculture of the International Institute of R.I.
Silvia: This is great, and I'm so excited that you've used your blog to serve as a record of the complexities of the research process as well as a vessel for storing your analysis and findings. The post, as well as the one before it, shows me that you are a humble fieldworker and not someone who thinks the world should open its doors to you. Access is difficult in this world, and you've not only learned a valuable lesson but you've demonstrated to me and everyone else that tenacity is the number one tool of the fieldworker. Thank you! I'm sure you will use part of this story of access in your final paper.
ReplyDeleteI must admit, I admire your persistence. It is definitely a necessity when it comes to field working! I can really relate to this post because I have had some major difficulties with my field work so far. The first site that I had planned on studying denied me access, so that meant I had to scramble to find a new idea and quickly begin the difficult road to gaining access! I made a few phone calls and sent an email, but I really wish that I had as much persistence as you do. It seems like this is something that greatly expedited your process of gaining access, at least as much as it possibly could, since places like our field sites require approval from higher ups that may not have time to think about our projects immediately. I am so glad that everything is working out for you, though! Hopefully soon my field site will approve as well, so that I can get my research going.
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