This article was downloaded by: [University of Nebraska, Lincoln]On: 17 October 2014, At: 17:46Publisher: RoutledgeInforma Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number:1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street,London W1T 3JH, UK

International Journal ofQualitative Studies inEducationPublication details, including instructions forauthors and subscription information:http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/tqse20

Telling data: "It sure lookednice!"Nancy Flanagan KnappPublished online: 25 Nov 2010.

To cite this article: Nancy Flanagan Knapp (1998) Telling data: "It sure lookednice!", International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 11:4, 555-558,DOI: 10.1080/095183998236458

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/095183998236458

PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE

Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of allthe information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on ourplatform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensorsmake no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy,completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinionsand views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views ofthe authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis.The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should beindependently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor andFrancis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings,demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoeveror howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, inrelation to or arising out of the use of the Content.

This article may be used for research, teaching, and private studypurposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution,

reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in anyform to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms & Conditions of accessand use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Uni

vers

ity o

f N

ebra

ska,

Lin

coln

] at

17:

46 1

7 O

ctob

er 2

014

QUALITATIVE STUDIES IN EDUCATION, 1998, VOL. 11, NO. 4, 555± 558

Telling data : ` ` It sure looked nice! ’ ’

NANCY FLANAGAN KNAPPUniversity of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-7143, USA

The following is from a 3-hour conversation between me (Nancy) and Kathrin, asecond-grade teacher whose students I had been interviewing and observing for a year.W e met in July to discuss a draft description I had written of Kathrin’ s classroom andof her teaching. Kathrin begins this selection by explaining a previous reference to someother teachers in her building. Kathrin ’ s and M aureen ’ s names are pseudonyms.

Kathr in : I mean, when you walk down the hall and you see these ± I mean, the teacherwould be sitting to the side, checking papers or something. And the kids are all workingquietly, and you know I walk down and think, ` ` Oh gosh ! That looks so nice ! ’ ’

¼

Nancy : W hen I taught, I had a hell of a time at management.

Kathr in : Oh, I have a terrible time with management !

Nancy : I always felt one of the reasons I had a hard time is that they weren ’ t scared ofme.

Kathr in : I think that perhaps it ’ s what I think of me, too. It’ s that they’ re not ; I trulythink so. But I talked to my mom who taught, and she said, ` ` Oh, Kathrin ! I have thesame problem. You know, I could never do that. ’ ’

Nancy : W ere they probably not scared of your mother, either ?

Kathr in : No, they weren’ t scared of my mother, either. She taught in an inner-cityDetroit school where the teachers all had to ± they all had problems, but the otherteachers toed the line, and they were quiet and they were this, and they were that. Andmy mother could never make her kids do it. She said, ` ` I always wanted to. You know,it sure looked nice ! ’ ’ (Laughs)

Nancy : It ’ s an inherited trait.

Kathr in : That’ s right. It must be. But I don’ t know, I don ’ t know.

Nancy : Do you think that it ’ s possible ± and this is just a speculation on my part, but oneof the things I noticed is that you shared with them, that you allowed them to see thatyou’ re a person.

Kathr in : Oh yeah, yeah.

0951± 8398 } 98 $12 ± 00 ’ 1998 Taylor & Francis Ltd

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Uni

vers

ity o

f N

ebra

ska,

Lin

coln

] at

17:

46 1

7 O

ctob

er 2

014

556 nancy flanagan knapp

Nancy : And do you think that if one makes that choice, that then you can’ t pull o å thisother thing ?

Kathr in : No.

Nancy : No ? So you don ’ t think they’ re exclusive ?

Kathr in : W ell, I don ’ t know. I think it ’ s something to ponder. But I asked to observeanother ® rst-grade teacher, who’ s leaving ® rst grade and going to ® fth. She did a lot ofcenters, and her kids were always going around and doing stu å , and I just questionedhow she managed it, you know, how she did it. ’ Cause I’ d walk by, and her class wasalways pretty quiet, too. Kind of that low hum, you know ? And she had some dooziesin there ! A lot of kids with lots of problems, and I couldn’ t ® gure out how she did it. AndI wanted to observe her, so I could see ±

Nancy : D id you get to ?

Kathr in : No.

Nancy : Oh rats !

Kathr in : I know. So she’ s on up to ® fth grade, and that’ s it. But I don’ t know. And sheseemed real connected with the kids and stuå . I don ’ t know. I don ’ t know. I don’ t knowif it ’ s my perception or whatever. ¼

Nancy : One of the things that hampered me, I think, is that there would be this kidcausing trouble, giving me grief. And in the back of my mind, I knew I was asking thatkid to do something that kid couldn’ t do. I mean, I felt like there were things I wasn ’ twilling to do to make them behave. And then I did do some things to make them behavewhich I felt horrible about.

Kathr in : No, see, I ’ ve just gone round and round and round and round with thismanagement thing. And I ® nally decided that, in the long run, if you have like yourthree basic rules that pretty much govern behavior in the classroom, and they knowwhat it is, and they know what it looks like, and they know what you expect. Then ifthey don’ t do it, you know, it ’ s like a cut-and-dried kind of thing, and you can be veryunemotional about it, and they can understand that they made a choice. For whateverreason, that they weren ’ t thinking or whatever, they made a choice, and it’ s no big deal.It ’ s just a broken rule.

Nancy : And the consequences?

Kathr in : The consequences, blup, blup, blup.

Nancy : Just follow ?

Kathr in : Yeah. And if you can be very unemotional about the whole thing, it works alot better. I, however, have trouble being unemotional because I will be inconsistent inthat I’ ll, like, ignore or don’ t see stuå . And then all of a sudden, I see something and it ’ s

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Uni

vers

ity o

f N

ebra

ska,

Lin

coln

] at

17:

46 1

7 O

ctob

er 2

014

telling data 557

like, ` ` AAAH !! ’ ’ And I admire teachers who don’ t let anything go by. I think that theyhave a much easier management time. If you’ re really nitpicky, and you don’ t everignore anything, I think. I don’ t know. I ’ ve never been that kind of person. But I guessin my own mind I see myself as, for whatever reason, choosing to ignore some kinds ofbehavior. And then all of a sudden something happens that’ s probably pretty minor, buttotally sets me oå . (laughs) And I’ m like ballistic!

Nancy : You get mad.

Kathr in : Oh, my God. You know, the kids are scared, and I’ m mad, and it’ s all becauseof my lack of being consistent and ±

Nancy : Are they ever scared, do you think?

Kathr in : Oh, yeah, I think so. It makes me feel terrible when it happens. Terrible. Idon ’ t want to scare kids.

Nancy : M ost classrooms I’ ve been in, there’ s a bad boy, I mean somebody whoeverybody in the class knows that if they tell on this kid he’ ll get in trouble ±

Kathr in : Yeah, yeah, right, right.

Nancy : ± and that if ® ve people are doing something, that’ s the kid who’ s gonna getyelled at ±

Kathr in : Yeah, right.

Nancy : ± and that kid is very clear in his mind. And it ’ s usually a he, not always, butusually a he. That kid knows that there’ s nothing he can do right in this class. He mightas well just quit. And that is typical. That is normal in a classroom. I mean almost everyclassroom I’ ve been in, that happens a lot.

Kathr in : See, I haven’ t been in that many classrooms, so ±

Nancy : W ell, I ’ ve not been in that many, but I’ ve been in maybe eight or ten, andthat’ s ±

Kathr in : Yeah, that’ s really interesting.

Nancy : And I’ ve never felt that was happening in your class, except maybe right at theend with M aureen. But most of the year, and I have it in my ® eld notes, I ’ m saying,` ` There ’ s not a ` bad kid ’ in this class. ’ ’ There’ s no kid who really felt like, you know,` ` M rs. Grant hates me. ’ ’ ¼ I mean there’ s no kid who felt like, ` ` I ’ m always going to bein trouble. ’ ’

Kathr in : No, and I purposely ± I think teachers do things to kids and say things tochildren that I think, ` ` I wouldn ’ t want anyone to say that to me. ’ ’ And I try to look atthe kids as that, like people, and how would you want someone to talk to you ? Youknow, you don’ t want someone to say [pause] something, like I hear the way some

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Uni

vers

ity o

f N

ebra

ska,

Lin

coln

] at

17:

46 1

7 O

ctob

er 2

014

558 telling data

teachers talk to kids. And I don’ t like to hear that. And I don’ t like to do things like that.And occasionally I guess I do, because you know, like, a bad day or whatever. ¼Everyone has days, good days and bad days.

Nancy : Do you have to say things to kids like those things you hear other teachers say,to have those quiet classes ?

Kathr in : I think so. I think you do. I think you do.

Nancy : So the price of the quiet class is that a couple of the kids feel ±

Kathr in : Or all of ’ em feel [pause] not good about it. Or not comfortable. I don ’ t know.I’ ve gone over and over and over it in my mind. And, you know, I just rememberhearing what teachers said to kids lining up on the playground to get ’ em to be quiet inline and to do this and that. And, you know, I just sort of say, ` ` Okay, now recess is over,let ’ s go in. ’ ’ And they kind of go, ` ` Chatter, chatter, chatter. ’ ’ And they’ re loud, and thesecond-grade teachers would make these little aside remarks to me, like ` ` Were theyready ? ’ ’ or ` ` W e got three in at a time. ’ ’

Nancy : Three in at a time ?

Kathr in : The three classrooms lined up. I’ d let all three of ’ em go in at a time, and I wastaught, you know, they got mad at me. So, I guess there’ s a lot of other things involved.But you know what ? [long pause] I don ’ t really care [pause] any more. In fact, everysingle time I’ ve been evaluated by the principal that just left, the thing that he alwayssaid I needed to improve on was my management skills. And, and I think perhaps someof it is just based on things that he told me he saw in my teaching and perceived it as alack of control, or a lack of whatever, and so I internalize that stuå . And I remembertalking to my mom about it, and she said, ` ` But you know what ? W ho cares ? ’ ’

Nancy : So I think you ’ re declaring emancipation here from some ±

Kathr in : Yeah, I am. I truly am. I think I ’ m on the point of, you know, who the heckcares ! ?

Dow

nloa

ded

by [

Uni

vers

ity o

f N

ebra

ska,

Lin

coln

] at

17:

46 1

7 O

ctob

er 2

014