Qualitative Research- Fieldwork Observation - Assignment Example

These issues can be accessed and evaluated through observation. This is true because most of the traits that determine students’ performance are physically portrayed. Most of these characteristics are associated with the environment which students grow in. For example, literatures have found that students brought up in poor backgrounds perform poorer than those brought up in middle class backgrounds (Billie & Bette & Wolfe, 2006). Specifically, physical characteristics like students behavior and the way they conduct themselves have a lot to say about their academic performance.

In the effort to determine this concept, I sought to carryout a research through observation from a public school in a poor background setting. The aim of this research was to find out how the students conduct themselves and if their behavior conducts have any relationship with their academic performance. In learning theories, main focus is on behavioral psychology. For children to be able to learn and remember new things, some things are considered to take place in the learning process. According to Billie & Bette & Wolfe, (2006), some of these things are explained by behavioral and constructivism theories which focus their attentions on acquired factors that help the learner acquire knowledge.

Burkhardt, (2004) asserted that students’ achievement is influenced by environmental factors such as cultural, ethnic, and socioeconomic factors. These factors are said to shape students behavior, which have adverse, effects on their academic performance. According to Burkhardt, (2004), students who come from poor back grounds have been found to perform poorly in their academic works. In some instances, living conditions are extremely harsh that the students have to attend school with empty stomachs.

Field-notes My field-work started early in the morning at 7: am. I purposely decided to start my research at this hour in order to gather information on the arrival of students from their homes since this was a day school. Students started arriving some minutes after 7: am. There was only one teacher who had arrived by then. I later came to realize that he was the teacher on duty that day. He mobilized students in cleaning their classrooms and the compound. Most students were seen to be sluggish in responding to the teacher’s instruction.

For example, when they were told to clean their classes, most of them hid themselves behind the classes. The teacher was forced to come after them with a cane. When the bell for the assembly was rung, some students were still arriving from their homes. In the effort to capture them for punishment, the teacher had difficult times as the students ran away while others hid themselves. In fact, some of those that were caught and given some punishment to do, they retorted to the teacher. When the lessons started, I visited one of the classes where I observed various occurrences.

Some minutes before the teacher entered the classroom, most of the students seemed not to be settled. They were discussing the previous night’s happenings. Some were chatting and gossiping. However, a few were seen to be preparing themselves for the lesson before the teacher entered. When the lesson started, some students were lying on their desks while others were busy chatting. In fact, remarkably few students concentrated on what the teacher was teaching. This was evident when the teacher asked questions related to what he taught.

The students gave irrelevant answers while other said