Running Head: ROLE OF A RESEARCHER 1

Role of a Researcher

Mina J. Blazy

California State University, San Bernardino

EDUC 712 Qualitative Research Methods

Dr. Edna Martinez

May 2, 2017
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Abstract

In the following paper is a synopsis of my personal, professional and academic background. I

also include subjectivity and my role as a researcher as an educational leader.

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I received a traditional education, influenced by my teachers and mother starting in 1976

until I graduated high school in 1989. Compliance was upheld through corporal punishment in

my elementary schooling (Mahon, 1977). I learned that if you did what you were told in class,

turned in assignments on time and didnt talk back school wasnt difficult. However, that did

not mean the academics were always easy. I remember having to learn clichs and provide

examples of what clichs meant. It wasnt until I was an adult and reflected on my learning that

it became clear to me that curricula was meant for the mainstream education and not my own

individual learning.

I was raised in a White world at home and went to school in a multi-cultural world.

Being raised by a White-female, single parent had its advantages. I dreamed of being a pilot and

my mother encouraged me. My mother also gave me the opportunity to take flight lessons

between my junior and senior year of school. I learned to play the violin, took horseback riding

lessons and became an avid swimmer, even joining my high school swim team.

Living in a suburb of Chicago, I felt like I belonged and I was embraced by a diverse

community. It wasnt until I went to the University of Dubuque, Iowa to become a pilot where I

felt out of place. Iowa did not feel welcoming at all. I sat in a class of all White boys for flight

school and felt like I didnt belong. Moreover, the professor was indifferent in a room of about

20 students. I felt paralyzed, defeated and realized that I wasnt going to graduate from this

institution. I learned a lesson that year of school. Even though I was capable of doing the work I

felt ostracized and unwelcomed. I wasnt imagining this either as one of the professors had a

cross burned in his yard and in the same year I was called a nigger. I left the school at the end of

the year to regroup. I then transferred to Northern Illinois University where I finished my

education degree with a minor in biology.

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I became a teacher because I wanted to make change in the classroom. Mr. Deddo, my

high school chemistry teacher, gave learning a real world hands-on viewpoint. He was an

advocate for children and the community. Being a White-male, he became the voice of minority

students. He could see racism, when we, as students could not. Even though we listened, I

didnt hear his words until I was an adult. I watched Mr. Deddo cross the picket line during a

two-week strike. His peers were angry with him. He stated that he was there to make a

difference not to worry about negotiations between the association and administration. His

actions of equity are those that should be continued and challenged (Bonilla-Silva, 2013, p. 308).

I believe that we need to educate the whole child. That means that curricula and state

standards should be equitable and suitable for gender, race, ethnicity and culture. Unfortunately

curriculum is formed by a Euro-centric theme and fits best for the middle class family (Apple,

2004). As an educational leader it is my duty to work with the community and teachers to find

curriculum that meets standards and supports all types of learning and is equitable.

My subjectivity as a leader can have a harmful affect if I am not careful (Peshkin, 1988).

I am aware that I too am a justice seeker and want to understand different perspectives (Glesne,

2015, p. 40). I also am keenly aware that my presence changes behaviors of both students and

teachers. Consequently, whether I am in a classroom, walking through the halls, or on the

playing fields, my goal is to be visible, supportive and always reflexive. I am also aware that my

role as a leader needs to be open in order to build trust and benevolence within the community

which include teachers, support staff, parents and students (Tschannen-Moran, 2014).

As a researcher and leader I am open and honest with the community about who I am and

my role as a leader, teacher and caregiver of students and participants. I work through my own

feelings of injustice by continuously reviewing literature and questioning the status quo. I
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thought that my stance in research was post-positivist but the more I read and learned I believe I

seek to understand critical theory (CT) for race and women (Sipe & Constable, 1996). The

political powers of the federal government and local government can be idiosyncratic regarding

critical race theory (CRT) and feminism.

It is my hope that I can influence change in science technology engineering and

mathematics (STEM) education for women. I am aware that my first dream to be a pilot was

influenced based on the experience I had at the University of Dubuque, Iowa. Developing my

conceptual framework, I have found that woman leave university STEM programs and careers

based on subtle microaggressions. The term that is widely used is called the, Leaky Pipeline

(Blickenstaff, 2005). I believe that if young girls have access to STEM knowledge at a young

age they will continue in STEM careers or a least have a sense of equity in in STEM throughout

their K-12 school years.

I will be employing my research at my current school site. I will need the institutional

review board (IRB) approval before I begin. Even though teachers are not participants I will

want their consent and will need to give full disclosure of the study to all stakeholders. The data

collected will need to be shared with the school community. I will need to get parent/guardian

approval since the participants are children at the school site (Creswell, 2012, pp. 5859).

The STEM conceptual framework is my priority as this time. After I have shared the

review of literature with my chair I hope to move forward by taking my qualifying exams.

During this time I will keep a journal of my thoughts and practice being reflexive during my day

at work and at home.

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Bibliography

Apple, M. W. (2004). Creating difference: neo-liberalism, neo-conservatism and the politics of

educational reform. Educational Policy, 18(1), 1244.

Blickenstaff, J. C. (2005). Women and Science Careers: Leaky Pipeline or Gender Filter?

Gender and Education, 17(4), 369386.

Bonilla-Silva, E. (2013). Racism without racists: color-blind racism and the persistence of racial

inequality in america (4 edition). Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.

Creswell, J. W. (2012). Qualitative inquiry and research design: choosing among five

approaches (3 edition). Los Angeles: SAGE Publications, Inc.

Glesne, C. (2015). Becoming qualitative researchers: an introduction (5 edition). Pearson.

Mahon, J. P. (1977). Ingraham v. wright: the continuing debate over corporal punishment.

Journal of Law and Education. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ169711

Peshkin, A. (1988). In Search of Subjectivity--Ones Own. Educational Researcher, 17(7), 17

21.

Sipe, L., & Constable, S. (1996). A chart of four paradigms: metaphors for the modes of inquiry.

Taboo: The Journal of Culture and Education, 153163.

Tschannen-Moran, M. (2014). Trust matters: leadership for successful schools (Second edition).

San Francisco, California: Jossey-Bass.