The Benefits and Challenges of Adopting Duoethnography to Enrich and Enhance Educator Practice

Femi Waters-Ajisafe, Angela Mazzetti

Research output: Contribution to conferencePaper

Abstract

In this paper, we reflect on the benefits and challenges of engaging in two duoethnographic studies as a means of enhancing and enriching our educator practice. Duoethnography is an established methodology employed in the education disciplines as a means of critically reflecting through collaborative dialogue the lived experiences and sense-making of different individuals. As educators employed in different institutions, we work with very different cohorts in terms of their demographic make-up and also group size, we therefore find duoethnography an effective way of comparing and contrasting critical incidents in our teaching practice. We connect our personal experiences to wider discussions on pedagogy as a means of critically reflecting on our different experiences. For example, our first study which explored academic failure, prompted us to engage with the literature on neoliberal higher education regimes and how these inform attitudes to success and failure within academia. Our second study exploring assessment feedback processes, prompted us to engage with the literature on the emotional impact of assessment feedback, the impact of assessment feedback on a student’s sense of self, and the impact of feedback on student belonging. However, in the paper, we also reflect on the challenges of engaging in duoethnography. These include the need for mutual respect and trust between those involved in the duoethnographic process; the ethical challenges of exposure for both self and others; and the challenges of getting a relatively novel and new approach to ethnography published in the business and management journals.
Original languageEnglish
Number of pages8
Publication statusPublished - 16 Jan 2025
EventNewcastle University Qualitative Special Interest Group Annual Symposium 2025 - Newcastle University. , Newcastle, United Kingdom
Duration: 16 Jan 202516 Jan 2025
https://research.ncl.ac.uk/ima/qualitativesig/events/nuqualitativespecialinterestgroupannualsymposium2025.html

Conference

ConferenceNewcastle University Qualitative Special Interest Group Annual Symposium 2025
Country/TerritoryUnited Kingdom
CityNewcastle
Period16/01/2516/01/25
Internet address

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