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Chapter 3: Methods
Phenomenological Methodology
This study employed a phenomenological design and
coupled grounded theory
methodology to examine the unique experiences of individuals’ lived situations in HyFlex
courses. I conducted in-depth phenomenological interviews (Creswell & Poth, 2018; Seidman,
2013) with 10 student participants. Relying on data obtained via a three-interview
phenomenological process (Seidman, 2013) with college and university
students who had
completed at least one course via HyFlex modality in the United States,
I sought to give voice to
the experiences of participants from their points of view and the meanings they make (Bogdan &
Biklen, 2007) of their experiences as students in HyFlex courses. In addition to unpacking and
giving voice to the experiences of minoritized students who have participated
in HyFlex courses
or programs at colleges and universities in the United States, I sought to identify
a set of
guidelines or recommendations for community college practitioners considering HyFlex learning
at their institutions.
Seidman (2013) has cautioned against “one shot meetings” as
he argues participants are
not comfortable disclosing all of their experiences with someone they have never met, and for
that reason he argues such interviews “tread on thin contextual ice” (p. 17). With this advice in
mind, I conducted a series of three 60-minute interviews with each participant at intervals of 3
days to 1
week apart, depending on participant’s availability. Following Seidman’s (2013)
formula, Interview 1 focused on creating rapport and putting the participant’s experience in
context of the topic (HyFlex learning). Interview 2 focused on the concrete details of the
participant’s present lived experience in HyFlex courses. Lastly, Interview 3
focused on
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participant reflections to make meaning out of their experience in a HyFlex course. As the
researcher, I hope this study will be useful for practitioners and researchers interested in creating
learning environments conducive to equitable and accessible course design practices.
