My Ethical Action Plan went through a number of revisions. I have included them all here to show this.
At first my project was too open ended. ‘How to increase student engagement for a series of sessions in which they learn a Digital Programme such as Adobe Illustrator.’ Feedback from Rachel and my colleagues highlighted that I needed to highlight the Social Justice aspect in the research question, so after 2 more drafts it became ‘Addressing the Social Justice issue of Student Inclusion, Digital Equity, Digital Literacy and the equitable broader access to technology, by increasing student engagement in sessions in which they learn Digital Skills such as working with Adobe Illustrator, and preparing Digital submissions of Portfolios, Sketchbooks etc. This is much more specifc and helped me to focus on what the actions and outcomes were enormously.
I also added ‘I want to emphasise and show objectively that Digital Skills alone are not enough to produce a good standard of work for Submission, and by extension for students’ career in industry. I want to do this by contextualising Digital Skills within students’ overall creative practice, modelling a creative workflow from Inspiration to Development and Realisation using a circular Analogue > Digital > Analogue process, more specifically using the approach of ‘Thinking through Drawing’. because I wanted to remind myself of the relevance and context beyond the immediate research question, and how I might implement my findings for future teaching. I like to think of myself as a Reflective Practitioner.
I also did more research in to the academic papers I wanted to refer to, so that they were embedded from the start of my Action Research Project.
Editing the ‘3. What action are you going to take in your teaching practice’ section also helped me to make practical steps. Looking at my timetable, I realised I had 2 great opportunities to action my research on 18th and 25th November in sequential sessions with Year 1 Bespoke Tailoring students. This definitely focussed my mind, as at the time I was teaching student-facing 6 days a week and my work on the PgCert had stalled! In one session I could do an individual drawing activity, and in the second I could do a collaborative drawing activity, and then ask the students about the difference.
For the section ‘7. How will you work with your participants in an ethical way?’ Rachel suggested I refer to the BERA principles from ‘Ethical Guidelines for Educational Research, fifth edition (2024)’ which is found at www.bera.ac.uk/publication/ethical-guidelines-for-educational-research-fifth-edition-2024-online#privacy-data-storage, and which are attached here ‘Ethical Guidelines for ResearchBERA (1).pdf
This is my considered response:
- Informed Consent: I will clearly explain the purpose and use of the data collection, and state that their involvement gives consent, explaining that their involvement is voluntary, and they can withdraw at any time without penalty.
- Transparency: I will clearly communicate the aims of the study, how the data will be used, and who will have access to it. Participants will be given the opportunity to ask questions and clarify any uncertainties before agreeing to take part.
- Confidentiality: I will protect participants’ privacy by anonymising all data collected, including drawings, feedback, and any observational notes. Personal identifiers will be removed or altered to ensure that individuals cannot be linked to specific data.
- Respect for Individual autonomy: I will respect students’ autonomy by allowing them to opt out of specific activities if they feel uncomfortable, without affecting their participation in the broader session or their grades.
- Minimising workload: I will ensure that the creative tasks and research methods used do not put any undue stress or pressure on participants. I will be mindful of workload and avoid making the process too time-consuming.
- Ethical Data Collection: I will gather feedback and collect drawings in a non-intrusive manner, ensuring that students’ academic progress and personal experiences are not negatively impacted by the data collection process.
- Debriefing and Feedback: After completing the study, I will share the overall results and key findings with participants, offering them the chance to provide further input. This will encourage a reflective and circular learning process for both the students and the staff involved.
- Optional involvement: I will ensure the participants are aware that the project is not part of their curriculum and will not be marked.
I found this slide from the workshop very useful as an overview:
