Feeling very motivated by the wide ranging response and feedback I received after giving my mid-semester presentation earlier today.
It’s always very difficult to know where to start when you are describing your project. Within this particular group, it is a challenge to decide where it is you would like to begin contextualizing the project’s scope and what it aims to achieve. It is difficult to gauge the detail to which you should go to that explains enough about the project for a general group understanding, given our time constraints.
I was a little disappointed that the group was not allowed to engage with my sample questions, choosing instead to give feedback about the nature and tone of the questions, in addition to offering general feedback about the information provided within the very brief powerpoint. Had I known the presentation was subject to feedback I would have spent more time explaining the project aspects in detail, however, I wanted to allow time for classmates to fill out the form! All this said, I did gain valuable insight on my questions and further, very generous, offers for assistance.
One particular suggestion was that I should consider adding an additional demographic element to my survey/interview, collecting information as to what position the respondent holds within the community or organization where I would be situated while conducting the interview. While my initial desire is to not necessarily separate those working within the community from those living there in terms of response (because each have some tangible connection with the community) I can understand the value of knowing a little more about the respondents perspective, independent of age and gender. I will strongly consider adding this to my questions.
Additional feedback included a very lengthy discussion about whether or not to prime respondents with an example of a Civic Tech project, to then conduct interviews based on a respondents initial perceptions of that project. I feel the debate got rather contentious here. I made my point that I am interested in learning about this community’s general understanding or perceptions of technology and how they relate to the civic as they stand now, and that I did not want to feel as if I were introducing or bringing Civic Tech into this community. While I can definitely understand the value of finding out reactions to Civic Tech projects (particularly from the Civic Tech practitioner point of view), and how, in a respondents opinion, those projects could be applied locally in the South Bronx, I feel this skirts around larger and far more interesting social aspects about my project. Namely, if there is a general perception right now about the relationship between the civic and technology in the South Bronx, what are those beliefs and perceptions, and is there a connection or correlation between local perceptions and those of the Civic Tech initiative.
I received alot of feedback on my questions, which I greatly appreciate. A majority of this feedback surrounded my including clarifying questions about the civic. For instance: what does civic mean, what is civic in your life, and how has new technology helped you in your daily life. In addition to this feedback, one classmate commented that they wanted to know more about the price (socially and economically) of applying technology to the civic for that specific community, how it’s particularly determinist to think that tech will save us all, that it is naive to think tech will solve everything, and that there is a need for public policy. (I agree in large part with all of this…)
De-Ann suggested I use class funds to hire an additional interviewer to increase my sample size (GREAT IDEA!). She also suggested I contact New School faculty member Dennis Derryk for input and guidance (done, thanks De-Ann!). Hefen approached me after class and offered to help me conduct interviews. She suggested I collect at least 20 for a good cross section of the community. I will ask her assistance once I reach the interview phase of my project. Thanks Hefen, De-Ann, and everyone who provided me feedback.
onward
