Speed Bumps: A Student Friendly Guide to Qualitative Research

by Lois Weis, Michelle Fine

A crucial tool for anyone engaged in the process of learning about qualitative research, this collection of essays presents important information about developing interview questions, conducting observations, coding and analyzing data, and writing up results. More than a “how to” book, Speed Bumps also addresses the political and ethical dimensions of qualitative research while providing practical suggestions about how to actually conduct it. Noted ethnographers Lois Weis and Michelle Fine, in conversation with fifteen graduate students, offer readers varying perspectives on what lies beneath the surface of qualitative inquiry and what it means to carry out a piece of qualitative work. "Fine and Weis probe the contradictions inherent in the relationship between researcher and subject with an honesty and openness that is rare in academia. Their approach is based upon a commitment to research on the lives and experiences of the marginalized and oppressed that goes beyond voyeurism…. This is must reading for any researcher who aspires to the idea that research can serve as a tool for social justice."
— Pedro Noguera , University of California, Berkeley
"Lois Weis and Michelle Fine and their colleagues raise important questions about the ethics of writing research in the interest of social justice. The qualitative case studies they provide are a rich source of learning for both new and experienced social scientists - a book that both guides and inspires. Social change and social science can co-exist!"
— Beverly Daniel Tatum , Mount Holyoke College
"Weis and Fine provide a wonderful collection of close-to-the-field studies and stories of qualitative research that speak to the novice and veteran researcher alike. It will make the research road smoother for those new to qualitative research, and help those of us who have been cruising along watch out for 'speed bumps.'"
— Gloria Ladson-Billings , University of Wisconsin-Madison

168 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2000

About the author

Dr. Weis is author, co-author or editor of numerous books and articles that focus on race, class and gender in American schools.

Dr. Weis is Past President of the American Educational Studies Association and is on the editorial boards of several journals, including Educational Policy, International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education and Review of Educational Research.

Dr. Weis was awarded the rank of SUNY Distinguished Professor, the highest faculty rank in the State University of New York system. The award recognizes full professors of national or international prominence for outstanding achievement in research and scholarship. In addition, Weis and co-author Michelle Fine received the 2006 Critic Choice Award from the American Educational Studies Association for their book, Beyond Silenced Voices: Class, Race, and Gender in United States School.