Final proposal for analyzing data...

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In last comments, I have said that I was going to use quantitive methods to analyze the data of my project. However, after having reflected and doble-checked the instruments, I have come to realize that even though some of the tools give data in terms of numbers, those numbers may support the qualitative analysis of all the other instruments.

Therefore, the process that I used in order to analyze the data is a grounded approach. According to Auerbach and Silverstein (2003) in this method the researcher builds an interpretation of what it is found in the data by describing patterns that are found in it, having the research concerns in mind. In a second stage, names to the common patterns are assigned and finally, those themes are organized into abstract concepts which aim to categorize those groups of themes into constructs.


Once I have all the data forms completed, I started by reading and analyzing the results from a final question of the final questionnaire, in which students gave their points of view about the different stages and parts of the process. I did this in order to know the impact of the implementation in their learning process. Then, I focused on the numbers and percentages from that online questionnaire to read and reflect on the data from a quantitative point of view. Additionally, I read and analyze the information from the logs in order to organize the information I had about the time students spent in using Audacity and in listening to podcasts.
Finally, I graded the pre- and post-tests.

Once I have a gist of the results out of all the instruments, I started with the final reflection from the final questionnaire. I selected the relevant texts and recurrent ideas that showed distinct thoughts and feelings related to my research concerns (Auerbach & Silverstein, 2003, p. 44) and I put them altogether in a document. Once I had a master list of such ideas, I color-coded them in order to organize them according to what they expressed so that I could have common items in them. I read again all the texts I had and I deleted the ideas that seemed to be not related to my research concerns. After that, with the relevant text accurately selected, I grouped the ideas in common themes that emerged from them.

I came up with the following set of common themes:

1. Self-confidence
2. Self-assessment
3. Professional development
4. Language awareness

The themes mentioned above respond well to the research question that I had set at the beginning, since that question aim to identify the effects of using and creating podcasts as a way to improve sentence stress in teacher trainees. The themes show that in the process not only language-related categories emerged, but others aspect of learning were incidentally addressed.


Research questions

• How do the use and the creation of podcasts improve teacher trainees’ ability to stress sentences correctly?

• How can podcasting enable students to self-assess and self-monitor their performance when making sentence stress?

Emergent themes in students’ feedback


• Ways in which podcasting enhanced non-language related learning.
• Reported increase in awareness/use of suprasegmental features of English.
• Reported increase of meta-cognitive strategies.
• Reported increase in motivation and self-confidence.
• Reported achievement of ‘better results’