Safety in numbers? How to teach qualitative geography?

Abstract

Teaching qualitative methods in the context of an existing research methods course presents a number of problems. Qualitative methods tend to be marginalised and constrained by traditional expectations of teachers and taught to elicit a polarised response from students. A number of factors contribute to this reaction: the paucity of library resources, a perception that qualitative methods are frivolous and challenge traditional values and the difficulty of teaching large numbers. As the course has developed, a number of innovations have been introduced to combat these reactions and they are described and evaluated in a short article by James Sidaway appended to this paper.