Week 109: Card Sorting

This week, I did some very intensive data analysis. Using card sorting, I divided the data, named them, justified my categorisation, made a very quick sketch of it and sent it to my supervisors. A funny thing is that when I do an intensive data analysis, I stay home in pyjamas all day. A non-teaching day is an especially good opportunity to shut myself into the room, turn Wi-Fi off, have no distractions and go into ‘researcher mode’.

 

Card sorting

I like classic card-sorting analysis using white card paper, coloured pens, labels and clips. Card sorting is a traditional, simple, very powerful way to assess any subject matter – and lots of fun! I use it for any academic/creative activity, such as literature reviews, mapping data, categorisation, chapter structure making, etc.

In my analysis, it can be more information-heavy, because I write down extra descriptions in the spaces or on the reverse of each card to eventually make a hierarchy. This ‘physical’ activity is a great exercise for the imagination (and also exciting, as I am so addicted to stationery).

 

 

Teaching

Another achievement this week was that, after a little struggle in Monday’s class, my teaching went really well on Thursday.

On Monday, it was noticeable that a few students were struggling to keep up with the lesson, though most of them seemed fine. I wondered what I could do better for them. The students did three pairwork activities in the classroom on Monday. On Thursday, in a different class of the same course, I reduced the number of activities from three to two and decided to take more time for pair/group work activities. It worked so much better than it had the previous week.

 

 

My achievements in Week 109

• sent my quick sketch about categorisation for data analysis to my supervisors
• enjoyed teaching my Week 3 classes

Goals for Week 110

• revise some sections in the methodology chapter
• make a full transcript of one case
• write a manuscript of my speech