Inside Schools

`Essential reading for any concerned educationalist and particularly for initial and in-service students of education. It is a fine example for this genre of educational text ... Well structured and comprehensive account of an interactionist perspective on ethnography in education ... A valuable springboard for educationalists seeking to extend our understanding of what it is to study schools and what we can learn from such studies.' - Journal of Curriculum Studies`What marks this book off from now a number of excellent handbooks in this field is the frankness and exuberance of the author ... Ample quotations from field note-books reveal the reality behind the rhetoric - uncertainty, boredom, despair, frustration, and the euphoria when it comes right in the end. For the beginner this is comforting and inspiring stuff, and frequently Woods goes out of his way to offer solace and encouragement ... Woods' enthusiasm for research is infectious, and one cannot help but catch the sense of process, flux, inconsistency and contradiction which for him lie at the heart of ethnography.' - Educational Studies'A lively and readable guide to the research process...The novel will undoubtedly learn from this book, and will benefit greatly from it. Woods always writes in an approachable way and the personal experience on which the book is based is an important resource for any student to draw on' - Erie` ... written in an attractive style and can be recommended without reservation.' - DG Lewis, British Book News` ... a lively, clear and practical introduction to the process of ethnographic work in schools ...' - Stephen J. Ball, Sociology`As a research methods text it is informative, clear and refreshingly well written ... enjoyable ...' - Odette Parry, Educational Review` ... a very valuable contribution to discussions of ethnographic data analysis that will be most helpful to students and teachers.' - Robert Burgess, The Sociological Review`It is written with an assurance and accessibility that reflects both the author's wide experience and the coming of age of ethnographic approaches in educational research...The substance of the book is essentially very practical. There are chapters on data collection, on observation, interviewing and written sources. Interwoven into these is helpful information on such things as note taking and tape recording...as well as issues such as the ethics of observation'. - Peter Worrall, Cambridge Journal of Education, 1987`a clear and stimulating statement as to the merits and value of ethnography in educational research...This book will be of great benefit not only to those undertaking school based educational research but to all students of sociological method as a sound introduction to the current state of play in ethnographic research by one of its main practitioners'. - David Hughes, Social Science Teacher, Spring 1988

• Chapter 1 Ethnography and the teacher; Chapter 2 Beginning research; Chapter 3 Observation; Chapter 4 Interviews; Chapter 5 Written materials; Chapter 6 Analysis; Chapter 7 Theory; Chapter 8 Writing up;