This week was great! I quite enjoyed May’s presentation on participatory observation. Not only will this be applicable to the research, but I feel is great to be conscious the elements she discusses about in our day to day lives. For example, it is important to be aware of our own assumptions and framework when going into new communities and talking to new people. This idea of self-awareness stems very closely with the concept of positionality we discussed last week as we must understand where we come from to help us understand our way of thinking. May’s view on research being a story that one tells struck a chord in me. It made me realize of the power that academics hold in shaping who is included in the story and how the story is shaped. It is another layer of complexity but also beauty in research.
I enjoy getting to know my team members more. Over the past few weeks we haven’t really had a chance to all sit together and chat about non-academic stuff, like our interests and past experiences. It makes me feel more comfortable working with them as well as understanding how they behave so I can adapt in a way that makes them feel comfortable. This shift in comfort level has shown me the value of team bonding activity and that even though at first it you may feel a sense of discomfort from the unfamiliarity of your group mates, we must stay patient as well as keep an open mind.
I also am realizing my role and behaviour when working in teams. I have been working with several groups throughout this semester and I have noticed in some groups I am very talkative and some groups I am more quiet. I believe the reason for this is because I would rather adapt so that everyone in the team feels comfortable instead of being fully myself at the expense of other people or altered team dynamic. I understand that simply by being present has an influence on the team dynamic, but I want to try to behave in a way where others feel the most comfortable and their potential is brought out the most.
Regarding our project, the progress we’ve been making is coming along. However, without having strict deadlines, it’s sometimes difficult to gauge if we’ve progressed far enough. Perhaps this is a taste of the “real world” when there is not always a real “end point” for some projects we do. I would sometimes get a certain feeling of accomplishment when we get stuff done, yet it fades when we look at the rest of things to do and planning what our next steps should be. I’ve realized also how important it is to affirm with the team the next steps collectively and consistently so that we all are on the same page and same direction.
We were also about to talk to Stella, a past student in the geog clas, was so generous with her time as she agreed to meet with us to talk about her experiences. The following are a few key things that she told us that I feel would be useful for the other groups as well;
- There are many challenges that Williams Lake may be facing and although it may be tempting to want to tackle them all, it is better to narrow it down
- Be flexible. When she went up there with her group it was very different than what she had initially thought. Their plans altered slightly while they were up there doing research but so encourages us to keep an open mind.
- Their group conducted remote community research through surveys, but they did not find it as effective compared to talking to the individuals directly. Not saying to not do so at all, but be cautious of how much we rely on the information sent through email.
I hope that we are all on the right track. I know that the visit is a few months, but I am quite excited! I hope to get a chance to bond with our class a bit more as well and get to know everyone.