4+Document

**Document**
====The first phase of participatory action research (PAR) in which you begin participatory action research with the students is the “Document” phase. At this first meeting with students to begin PAR, there are a few things you should cover:====

(7) Schedule times to meet
====**Purpose**: At your first meeting with a student, use a PAR graphic to point out the phase of PAR that you are starting (see Figure 6: PAR cycles). Then, review the purpose of the meeting: to determine what aspects of college the student wants to document, and what tools and strategies the student can use to do this. This is also when the research facilitator will review with the student some rules about doing research.==== Figure 6: PAR Cycles

====**Getting started:** There are a number of ways to help students think about what things they would like to document. You may want to ask students to take some time to talk about or write down ideas. Or you may want to interview them about college and then review the transcript with them to see if they can draw some ideas from their own account of college.====

====**Storytelling resources**: Two resources can be helpful to research facilitators who want to encourage students to tell stories about college as a way to think about their college experience: (1) the Center for Digital Storytelling Cookbook (http://www.storycenter.org/cookbook.html), which includes strategies to promote storytelling as well as digital story production, and (2) the Great Questions list from StoryCorps, which can be found at http://storycorps.org.====

====One other suggestion is to use a prompt guide such as the “Sample college prompt Bristol CC PAR questions to spark photo ideas” ( see Figure 7: Sample college prompt ). This was designed to ask students to think about their college routines, the people they interact with on campus, what they see as strengths and challenges of their college experience, and what recommendations they have about college. Agree on a first deadline to review the images they collect (usually 2-3 weeks). Remind students to bring the PAR toolkit to that meeting (see toolkit description below).====

Figure 7: Sample college prompt ====**Recording brainstorming sessions:**Often, student researchers prefer talking about their ideas, rather than writing them down. One way to support these students is to use a digital recorder, or an app such as Audionote or Audiomemo, to record the conversation. After recording the ideas (e.g., best or worst day at college, best places to talk with friends, best place to study), the file can be accessed by the student later as a reminder about possible ideas to document.====

====Another app that is useful for brainstorming sessions is iThoughts, which allows users to record ideas via a graphic organizer. In addition, iThoughts has features to save the organizer in multiple formats and to export the file to email or a virtual storage file.====

====**Note:** Often, students ask if they are allowed to use the camera to take other photographs unrelated to PAR. This is up to the research facilitator, but in general, as long as the student understands the PAR documentation tasks, they should also be able to use the camera to take other photos. In fact, sometimes it is these other photos that help students explain how college is influencing their lives.====

====**Selecting digital media:** Once students have some ideas about what they want to document, the next step is to discuss options for collecting their data. By using digital cameras or pocket video cameras, students have a way to produce and share data that is accessible and meaningful to themselves, their co-researchers, and others who view their work. Review each option with students: digital cameras to take still pictures or video, pocket video cameras to take video clips, or digital recorders to record conversations with people. For students who carry cell phones, smart phones, or tablet computers, built-in camera and video features may be the most convenient tool. Work with the student to make sure the quality of the images from those tools are to their satisfaction and that they will easily transfer to digital storytelling formats.====

====**Practicing with digital media**: Give students time to practice using the digital media tool they selected. Review all the relevant features. Provide students with printed directions that they can refer to when using the media tool (camera, video camera). Sample directions can be found in Table XX. ====

====**Seeking permission to take photos:** One of the most important things students must learn as researchers is how to ask permission if they want to take a picture of someone or someone's belongings. This applies to taking a picture of someone’s belongings as well. At this first meeting, it is important to discuss this aspect of research and to take some time to rehearse asking someone’s permission to take a photo, as well as practicing how to accept a “no” response.====

Pull out quote: One of the most important things students must learn as researchers is how to ask permission if they want to take a picture of someone or someone's belongings.
====In Figure 8, you will find an example of a customized "Permission to take photo" form student researchers used in a PAR initiative. This form is very important if the student researcher selects that photo to discuss with others or to share in any way. The form has also proved to be helpful for explaining the research project to faculty and staff if the student wants to take a picture in a class or elsewhere on campus.====

Figure 8: Permission to take photo: ====**PAR toolkits:** One way to help student researchers keep track of their data-collection materials is to develop a PAR toolkit. This kit can be as simple as a zip-lock bag. In this bag, students can store the following: (1) camera, pocket video camera, or digital recorder; (2) printed directions for using the digital media tools and for changing or charging the batteries; (3) permission form for taking photos; (4) contact information for the research facilitator in case the student needs technical assistance or support; and (5) flash drive to store all the images taken for the PAR initiative. The PAR Toolkit Checklist is included in this section (see XX).====

PAR Toolkit Checklist:

====**Schedule times to meet:** At this first meeting, decide what days you will meet to proceed through the six student phases of PAR. At a minimum, plan to meet every 2-3 weeks. This will give students time to follow up on activities for each phase.====