The sampling process

I used two main criteria in selecting the particular undergraduate course for this study.

First, I wanted to follow the experiences of the same group of undergraduates over a

period of 3-4 years. As a lone researcher, it was more practical to study a group of

students following a „special degree‟ course in one subject than a group of students following „general degree‟ courses with different combinations of subjects. Second, I thought that I needed to have some familiarity with the subject matter taught in the

course. Therefore, I selected the students following a special degree course in

Psychology as this was a subject I specialised at the postgraduate degree level.

127 At the beginning of my fieldwork, I collected background data (see Appendix 7) from

every student enrolled in the „special degree‟ course in that year. There were 28 students including 4 Buddhist monks and 24 female students in the Sinhala medium

course and 3 students in the English medium course. In this study I focussed on

students following Psychology in the Sinhala medium.

In my study I generated data using multiple methods, which included semi-structured

interviews; observation of teaching and learning, reflective accounts and focus group

interviews. Therefore, all the students who enrolled in the „special degree‟ course in Psychology in the Sinhala medium in that particular year participated in my research

at some point. The total number of students who participated in this study over the 3-

4 year period of data collection was 28. Table 3 indicates the composition of the

student population by the medium of instruction, gender and civil status.

Table 3: The distribution of students according to medium of instruction, gender and civil status

Sinhala medium (N=28) English medium* (N=3)

Gender Civil status Gender Civil status

Male Female Monks Unmarried Married Male Female Monks Married Unmarried

4 24 4 23 1 2 1 1 0 2

Note: *- English medium students participated in this research when they attended the course on advanced personality studies with the Sinhala medium students in their final year.

As indicated in Table 3, the majority of students were female and unmarried. Of the

six males five were Buddhist monks. The age of the students in their second year

ranged from 22-26 years. All students started university after completing the highly

128 Only 2 % of students who sit for the GCE (A/L) examination get the opportunity to

go to universities in Sri Lanka. Moreover, the students had to earn a Grade Point

Average (GPA) of more than 3.1 in their first year in that particular year to be

selected for the „special degree‟ course in Psychology. Thus, the particular group of students selected for this study was a kind of an elite group in relation to their

achievements in examinations. These students also represented diverse characteristics

in relation to their socio economic background. Table 4 summarises the background

characteristics of students selected for the interviews.

Table 4: Background characteristics of the sample of students participated in interviews

Pseudonym Age

In 2004

School

type Father‟s Occupa- tion Monthly Family Income (Rs.) Father‟s Education Level Sex Marital status GPA 1st Year

Rev. B* 24 Pirivena Farmer 3000-5000 GCE(O/L) M S 3.56

Rev. A* 24 Pirivena Farmer 3000-5000 GCE(A/L) M S 3.46

Sanda 25 U-NS Farmer 5000-

10000

GCE(A/L) F MA 3.72

Anu 23 U-NS Rtd. Teacher 3000-5000 GCE(A/L) F S 3.47

Kumi 23 U-NS Teacher

(Deceased)

5000- 10000

Post Grad. F S 3.48

Ahinsa 23 U-NS Prison

Officer

>15000 GCE(A/L) F S 3.51

Sisie 25 U-NS Electrical

Super- intendent

>15000 GCE(A/L) F S 3.21

Dilki 23 U-NS Consultant >15000 GCE(A/L) F S 3.42

Sangita 23 R-NS Pensioner

(Deceased)

5000- 10000

GCE(A/L) F S 3.21

Supuni 24 R-NS Barber 3000-5000 GCE(O/L) F S 3.57

Priya 22 R-NS Bus

Conductor

5000- 10000

GCE(A/L) F S 3.17

Darshi 22 U-1C Rtd. Post

Master 5000- 10000 GCE(A/L) F S 3.20 Mali 24 R-1C Farmer 5000- 10000 GCE(O/L) F S 3.61

Ama 23 R-1AB Driver 3000-5000 GCE(A/L) F S 3.6

Abeya 25 U-1AB Farmer <3000 GCE(O/L) F S 3.34

Note: Pirivena: Buddhist Centres of learning, Primarily for Buddhist monks

U-NS: Urban National Schools: Schools located in Municipal or Urban council areas, which are controlled by the Central Ministry of Education

R-NS: Rural National Schools: Schools located in Pradeshiya Sabha areas, which are controlled by the Central Ministry of Education

U-1AB: Urban Type 1 AB: Schools located in Municipal or Urban council areas, with GCE(A/L) Science stream

129 U-1C: Urban Type 1C: Schools located in Pradeshiya Sabha areas, with GCE(A/L)

Arts/Commerce stream

R-1AB: Rural Type 1AB : Schools located in Pradeshiya Sabha areas, with GCE(A/L) Science stream

R-1C: Rural Type 1AB : Schools located in Pradeshiya Sabha area s, with GCE(A/L) Arts/commerce stream

S- Single MA-Married M-Male F-Female *-Buddhist monks

I have used a „maximum variation sample‟ (Merriam, 1998) of 15 students from those

who consented for interviews (see Table 4). Maximum variation sampling involves

identifying and recruiting those who represent the widest possible range of the

characteristics of interest of the study. There were 2 monks and 13 female students in

the sample. The sample of students represented different districts, rural/urban

locations, rural/urban schools/ pirivenas, different types of schools, lowest to highest

range of GPA obtained in the first year examination, their father‟s level of education or occupation and their monthly family income. Table 5 and 6 set out the variations in

socio-economic background and the academic past histories of the students selected

for the interviews.

Table 5: Socio-economic background of the students (Interview Sample, n=15)

Monthly family income (Sri Lankan Rupees)

Father‟s occupation Urban/Rural background

Less Than 5000 5000- 15000 More than 15000 Daily wage- earner Farmer Govt. Servant

Other Urban Rural

5 7 3 4 5 4 2 3 12

As indicated in Table 5, the majority of students (12/15) in the sample were from

130 They had attended different types of schools and private tuition classes6 to prepare

for their GCE (A/L) examination (see Table 6).

Table 6: Academic history of the students (Interview sample, n=15)

Type of institution The nature of private tuition (PT) received at „A‟ levels

NS 1AB 1C Pirivena Large groups Small groups

Individual Did not attend PT

U R U R U R

6 3 1 1 1 1 2 11 2 1 1

Key: NS -National Schools

1AB -Schools with GCE(A/L) Science stream

1C - Schools with GCE(A/L) Arts and/or Commerce streams

U -Urban

R -Rural

As indicated in the table, the majority (8/15) of students went to university from

urban schools. All but one student attended private tuition classes of different types,

to prepare for the GCE (A/L) examination. As reported by the students, they received

additional guidance and training to sit for the GCE (A/L) examination in private

tuition classes. The majority of students went to university (10/15) in their first

attempt and the rest in their second or third attempt.

The above characteristics of the sample of students used in this study indicate the

diversity of background of the undergraduates in this particular course. Table 7 sets

out an overview of the lecturers in the interview sample. These lecturers were

131 students. The lecturers varied according to their academic background and also

according to the years of experience in teaching.

Table 7: The sample of lecturers

Two of the significant features of the sample of lecturers were the limited number of

years of experience and the range of different academic qualifications that they had.