Technique Isn’t Everything, But It Is a Lot 9310009A Jessie 9310047A Doris 9310049A Annie

Listen More, Talk Less Listening is the most important skill in interviewing. The hardest work for most interviewers is to keep quiet and to listen actively. Interviewers must listen on at least 3 levels: 1. listen to what the participant is saying 2. listen to the “inner voice” 3. listen while remaining aware of the process and the substance ― like a good teacher

Help interviewer in active listening: a. tape recording b. take notes the function of take notes: 1. help interviewers concentrate on what the participant is saying 2. keep interviewers from interrupting the participant

Follow up on what the participant says Follow up-additional remark or footnote 1.There are three things that interviewers should do: a. ask for clarification b. seeks concrete details c. request stories

2. interviewer’s basic work in the process of interviewing: a. listen actively b. move the interview forward as much as possible what the participant has begun to share

Ask Questions When You Do Not Understand unclear a. context, specific referent, chronology slide means ignore or skip a. slide may decrease interviewers’ understanding about the context in the process of interview.  interviewers might miss the significant part

3. ask questions a. respect your participants  let participants know you’re concentrate on what they say

b. use vague words Ex: Q: How do you feel about the online grammar learning website? Participant: It’s so so! ask a further question: What is so so? In order to get more details from your participant’s experience

ASK TO HEAR MORE ABOUT A SUBJECT →interviewers get generalities, want to get more information from participants →interviewers are interested in participant’s story

EXPLORE, DON’T PROBE Using word ”probe” could make participants feel uncomfortable Ill-timed words make participants defensive or shift the meaning Little exploration 　→make interviewers unsure participants’ real meaning →let participants use abstractive words

LISTEN MORE, TALK LESS, AND ASK REAL QUESTIONS Real Questions → interviewers cannot expect the response from participants AVOID LEADING QUESTIONS Intonation→ implies the expectations EX. What was your student teaching placement like for you? → How satisfied were you with your student teaching placement?

ASK OPEN-ENDED QUESTIONS 1. Grand tour →ask participant to reestablish a specific part of an experience Mini-tour →ask participant to reestablish the detail of a limited time of an experience 2. More focus on participant’s subjective experience

FOLLOW UP, DON’T INTERRUPT → jot down the key words then follow up later ASK PARTICIPANTS TO TALK TO YOU AS IF YOU WERE SOMEONE ELSE →a step to get familiar with participant →use role-playing way

ASK PARTICIPANTS TO TELL A STORY →what participants are discussing →to describe participants‘ experience concretely →have a memorable meaning CANNOT use this way too much KEEP PARTICIPANTS FOCUSED AND ASK FOR CONCRETE DETAILS * Before exploring attitudes and opinions

Do Not Take the Ebbs and Flows of Interviewing too Personally First: engrossed and share a lot of experiences Second: pull back Third: share within a zone that participants are comfortable

Share Experiences on Occasion sharing interviewer’s experiences may encourage participants overused → 1. distort interview 2. distract participants

Ask Participants to Reconstruct, Not to Remember Don’t ask participants if they remember something. →avoid impediments to memory Reconstruct experiences

Avoid Reinforcing your Participants’ Responses avoid reinforcing participants’ saying →avoid short affirmative response refer what participant said later in the interview

Explore Laughter Participants’ laughter →worth for interviewer to explore EX. self-evidently funny, nervous or ironic

Follow Your Hunches follow hunches → Try to ask what you think and difficult questions when you have doubt. →may get different result

Use an Interview Guide Cautiously Interviewers present questions that follow from what participants had said raise questions that reflect areas of interest avoid manipulating avoid imposing

Tolerate Silence participants’ silence → follows a question → within reconstruction tolerate silence → heard things that would never have heard

Conclusion effective question →concentrated listening →interested in what is being said →purpose in moving forward Interviewers must have interest in participants →foundation to learn interview techniques