Browsing by Subject "narratiivinen tutkimusmenetelmä"

The aim of this study was to understand the process by which children produce meanings with adults and in peer groups. Courage was selected as the theme of the study, as it is an abstract concept that is concretely present in a six-year-old's life. In the interview, the children were asked to explain in their own words what courage means. Explanatory questions examined the different kinds of meanings of the word courage that children have, as well as what kind of narrative method results in children telling stories that can be interacted with by their peer group as well as adults and children. The theoretical framework is based on a socio-cultural point of view and narrative research methods. The study outlines the narrative as well as the methodology and pedagogical methods. The study involved 15 preschool-age children at a day-care center. They were interviewed both individually and in groups, which was the setting used to examine the storytelling method. The study encompasses qualitative research; it is a case study that examines and describes the meanings of children produced by a group of children. The data were classified by means of content analysis and narrative research methods. The study also focuses on ethnographic features in order to understand and explore the phenomenon from the children's point of view, as well as from that of the teacher and researcher. The results of the study indicate that the children produced meanings of courage that can be divided into three categories: courage portrayed in images, courage that can be translated into concrete acts, and courage presented in the fairytale world. The meanings the children produced were directly related to their own experiences. The interviews contained numerous narrative moments, in which children told little stories that described an important experience of courage. The children's collective narrative was marked by spontaneous verbal description, as well as by playing with the worlds of media effects and the disorder of civilizations. This study demonstrates that the use of narrative methods can assist with understanding children's ways of communicating and forming meanings.