Theoretical perspectives on constructing experience through alternative field-based learning environments for students with mobility impairments

Students with physical disabilities encounter challenges in any scientific discipline, yet the geosciences have extremely low participation levels for persons with disabilities. Because of the emphasis placed on field research at the undergraduate level, persons with mobility impairments face limited opportunities for progressing in the geosciences. One strategy to address this is the application of adaptive technologies, such as virtual field trips (VFTs), as a supplement to traditional field instruction. A common goal of VFTs and other adaptive technologies is to promote equal access to undergraduate geoscience curricula for physically impaired students. If the scientific talents of these students are embraced and accommodated, regardless of their physical ability, the overall welfare of the geosciences as a discipline is enhanced. This paper describes ongoing research into the development of one specific VFT: an electronic re-creation of Mammoth Cave National Park for the Introduction to Cave and Karst Systems field course at the Ohio State University (OSU). This paper focuses on the theoretical processes necessary to conduct qualitative inquiry for the purpose of developing an accessible, alternative field-based learning environment. Grounded theory and critical theory are contrasted as two possible guiding frameworks. Three roles for the researcher are compared: researcher-as-observer, participant-researcher, and action-researcher. Phenomenology is discussed as the preferred methodological choice for this research, and attendant methods are described. Finally, a discussion of validity and reliability issues is provided. This paper is intended to serve as a guide for future researchers embarking on qualitative studies similar to this one. Atchison, C.L. , and Feig, A.D., 2011, Theoretical perspectives on constructing experience through alternative field-based learning environments for students with mobility impairments, in Feig, A.D., and Stokes, A. , eds., Qualitative Inquiry in Geoscience Education Research: Geological Society of America Special Paper 474, p. 11–21, doi:10.1130/2011.2474(02). For permission to copy, contact editing@geosociety.org. © 2011 The Geological Society of America. All rights reserved. 12 Atchison and Feig spe 474-02 page 12 reside. Adaptive technology may be first implemented as a classroom innovation. The impact of the implemented technology on student learning may then be (quantitatively) assessed. Its application could then be compared to extant pedagogical practice, which itself may be anecdotally considered an idealized baseline condition. For example, a web-based field trip may be designed by an instructor to provide his or her mobility-impaired students with a field-based learning opportunity. Subsequent research into this innovation could address the following questions/objectives: (1) How was it designed and executed? (2) What contribution did the innovation make to student learning? (3) How does it compare as a supplement to—or replacement of—a traditional field trip? These research objectives would ideally be approached in a mixed-methods manner. Quantitative analyses of outcomes between experimental and control groups of students are appropriate measures of efficacy. Qualitative inquiry provides a deep picture of students’ lived experiences with the innovation, guiding its future applications, and providing an additional illustration of its efficacy. Qualitative inquiry allows the researcher’s role to be presented and understood. This in turn allows the research to be deliberately applied to address a social problem, such as providing equal access to the sciences for disabled students. PURPOSE OF THIS PAPER AND GENERAL PROBLEM STATEMENT This paper is intended to serve as one example of the conceptualization of a qualitative study. It does not present a completed study, with a description of methods, data, results, and implications. Instead, it is a theoretical examination of the earliest stages of a research and development project. Guiding theoretical frameworks and roles of the researchers are discussed in detail. Methodological choices are described and justified. Strategies for ensuring reliability and trustworthiness are then outlined. The basic problem to be addressed by this research is that of improving accessibility to the geosciences for mobility-impaired students, which is defined more deliberately in the population characteristics section of this paper. One avenue to accessibility is the application of adaptive technologies, specifically virtual field trips (VFTs). A desire to understand the utility of VFTs in the context of accessibility generates three specific research objectives to be addressed by the present qualitative inquiry. Prior to a discussion of these three objectives, however, the necessary background on geoscience curricula and mobility-impaired students is provided.