Lessons Learned to Transform Qualitative Research and Teaching

Through ongoing reflections and dialogue, researchers better understand and articulate their own positions and beliefs--understanding what they know/believe and how this came to be (Watt, 2007). This panel reflects on specific experiences derived from lessons learned in the classroom and qualitative research practices which have shaped their research practices today. Focusing on the theme of lessons learned in research-related experiences, panel members reflect on transformative experiences that continue to impact how they understand, practice, and teach qualitative research. Panelists will focus on specific experiences in qualitative research that significantly impacted their growth as a qualitative researcher. Each panelist will primarily focus on a particular topic, sharing a brief narrative of what emerged in their own experiences, and the continued implication the knowledge gleaned from the experience has, including the ongoing impact on their qualitative research and/or in teaching qualitative research inquiry to others. Specific topics of focus include learning by doing and teaching, relationships between researcher and participants, using transcriptions to add depth to data analysis, reflections on researcher positionality and bias, and disidentification with academics and research-writing. Watt, D. (2007). On becoming a qualitative researcher: The value of reflexivity, The Qualitative Report, 12(1), 82-101