Developing your analytical skills is an important part of the learning process. However, in my research I have found that this is an area of study that greatly concerns adult students. This tends to be because adults feel that they do not have the required level of skill or intelligence to develop skills of reflection, analysis, synthesis and evaluation.

Over your lifetime you have already developed these skills – you may, however, be unaware of these skills or have not thought of putting a specific name to them. This chapter gives advice on cultivating analytical skills and applying them to your studies.

LEARNING HOW TO QUESTION

Everybody knows how to question. It is part of what makes us human – we meet new people and ask them where they come from, what they do for a job, whether they are married. However, as your studies progress you will find that you need to think more deeply about how you question and the type of questions that you ask.

Being able to ask the right questions is fundamental to your studies, not just when you conduct your own piece of research, but when you listen to lectures, read books and talk to other students. If you do not develop questions you will not be able to reflect on what you are learning, query the arguments of others or develop your own ideas.

Start to take notice of the questions that your tutor asks. What are the questions designed to do? What happens when a question is asked? Do some questions work better than others? Why might this be?

Questions that should be avoided include:

• Trick questions;
• Sterile questions that constrain thought;
• Questions that are too simple, irrelevant or patronising;
• Questions for which the answer is readily available;
• Closed questions that require only one word answers.

Questions that should be used include:

• Open questions that require more than one-word answers;
• Questions that make you think;
• Questions that stimulate reflection;
• Relevant and ‘real’ questions that have meaning;
• Questions that introduce a problem;
• Questions that test existing assumptions.

Take note of the questions you ask when you reflect on your work, analyse the thoughts of others, solve problems and evaluate your learning. You might find it useful to write the questions down in your learning diary as this will be a useful list to reference over the duration of your course.

CRITIQUING AND REVIEWING

On some courses you will be required to critique and review the work of others. Some adults feel uncomfortable with this, believing they are ‘not clever enough’ or ‘too inexperienced’ to do this. However, this is not the case – from a very early age we learn how to critique and review, especially from books, television and newspapers or magazines.

Critiquing and reviewing the academic work of others is similar to this – we read the text, think about what we have read, ask questions and then form our own opinions about the content. If you are concerned about carrying out your own critique, break down the task into a series of steps which will help you to make the task seem more manageable, as illustrated below:

• Step 1 – Read quickly through the text to get a general idea of the content.
• Step 2 – Check the meaning of any unfamiliar words or phrases.
• Step 3 – Jot down a few notes about what you think the author is trying to say.
• Step 4 – Jot down any questions that have formed in your mind as a result of this preliminary reading.
• Step 5 – Return to the text and read it more slowly, asking yourself, what is the author trying to prove? A good author will hint at this in the introduction and summarise the point in the conclusion.
• Step 6 – When you have discovered the main point (or points) the author is making, jot it down.
• Step 7 – Think about this point (or thesis). Has the author backed up the point with evidence? Is this evidence adequate? Is it convincing? Are you convinced by what you are reading?
• Step 8 – Think about the purpose of the text. Why has the author published the work? At what audience is the paper aimed? Are assumptions made within the paper about previous knowledge?
• Step 9 – Think about the methodology and methods. What methods did the author use to develop this thesis? Are the methods and methodology sound and appropriate to the topic? Can you think of any problems or an alternative method that might produce different results? Don’t be afraid to say that you have spotted potential problems – academic work is built on the critical review of others.

SOLVING PROBLEMS

A problem exists when you are curious, puzzled, confused or not sure how to resolve an issue. Throughout your course you should encounter a series of these types of problems that have to be solved. You will find the task easier if you consider the following points:

• Think about alternative ways to describe the problem.
• View the problem from various perspectives.
• Try to explain the problem to someone else.
• Compare different accounts or explanations of the same problem.
• Break the problem down into manageable parts. Omit irrelevant information.
• Try to supply alternatives or different outcomes.
• Try role play or role reversal if appropriate to the problem.
• Recognise important questions to ask about the problem.
• Ask ‘What if … ?’
• Consider the consequences.

BECOMING A REFLECTIVE LEARNER

Reflective thought involves the ability to acquire facts, understand ideas and arguments, apply methodological principles, analyse and evaluate information and produce conclusions. It includes the ability to question and solve problems by linking your previous ideas, knowledge and experiences with present ideas, knowledge and experiences.

Becoming a reflective learner is a skill that is cultivated over time – you will get better as your course progresses. The following points will help you to think more about how to become a reflective learner:

• Your ability to reflect increases as you create mental challenges for yourself.
• Social interaction aids reflection.
• Reflection becomes easier the more you know about a topic.
• Your ability to reflect is increased by surrounding yourself with others who are engaged in reflection, such as fellow students and tutors.
• Reflection is more effective if carried out in an appropriate environment free from distraction.
• Constructive feedback helps your ability to reflect.
• Writing down your ideas helps. However, you should make sure that your writing is not purely descriptive. Instead it should include personal judgement, personal discourse and possibly an analysis of outside influences on your thought processes.

Reflection takes place at different speeds, levels and intensities. When you are first presented with an idea you may find that you rapidly reflect on what is being said. After the speaker has finished you might rapidly evaluate, forming your own ideas. Later you might think about the ideas in more depth, slowly, taking your time. Then you might return to the idea at a later date, when something else reminds you of what you have learned. At this time you are able to bring in new ideas that help to build upon what you have learned previously.

HYPOTHESISING AND THEORISING

In the ‘traditional’ science view, a hypothesis is an idea about a phenomenon or observation that is put forward for testing. At this stage it is tentative and not proven. However, once it has been tested repeatedly and the probability of error has been greatly reduced, the hypothesis can be developed into a theory. For a theory to stand up to scientific scrutiny, evidence for its development must be shown clearly and it must be able to explain existing phenomena and make predictions about the future.

In this view there are four main stages that you would need to work through to develop your theory:

• 1)Ask questions in the form of a hypothesis.
• 2)Look for patterns to support or disprove your hypothesis.
• 3)Formulate your theory, based on the hypothesis.
• 4)Design experiments to test your theory.

This type of theory generation is deductive, that is, the theory has been deduced from the hypothesis which was developed and then tested by the scientist. However, there is another type of theory generation which uses an inductive method.

Procedures for this type of theory generation may vary depending upon the methodological standpoint of the researcher, but in general you would need to work through the following stages:

• 1)Begin your enquiry by observing a phenomenon or behaviour.
• 2)Develop your research questions based on these observations.
• 3)Answer these questions through more in-depth observation or questioning.
• 4)Develop your theory, based on these in-depth observations.
• 5)Test and modify your theory with further observation.

The nature, development, importance and use of hypotheses and theories is questioned and challenged by some academics. In particular, the overriding importance of logic and strict mathematical form is contested by some philosophers and social scientists. If this subject interests you, further reading is suggested at the end of this chapter.

RECOGNISING OBJECTIVITY AND SUBJECTIVITY

In scientific terms objectivity is taken to mean knowledge or theory which is free from bias. To achieve this it must have passed rigorous tests for validity and reliability. There are many tests that purport to do this and scientists must follow strict rules if they are to have their work taken seriously by the scientific community. If you are engaged in this type of scientific research you will need to enrol on a suitable research module to help you to develop these skills.

Subjectivity is often described as being ‘of a person’ – everything that makes us who we are influences our knowledge and theory generation. This may include our background, our likes and dislikes, the society and culture in which we live and the time in history in which we are working and studying.

As your studies progress it is important to have an awareness of objectivity and subjectivity. It will help you to analyse and make judgements about what you are reading and it will help you when you come to do your own research. However, try not to follow the line of thought that suggests that objectivity is good and subjectivity is bad. There are some fantastic pieces of research that have been conducted in a highly subjective manner – indeed, some people would argue that true objectivity is impossible to obtain.

FURTHER READING

If any of the issues discussed in this chapter interest you, the following books cover the subject in much more depth:

Calhoun, C. (1995) Critical Social Theory, Cambridge, MA: Blackwell.

Harding, S. (1991) Whose Science? Whose Knowledge? Thinking From Women’s Lives, Buckingham: Open University Press.

Layder, D. (1994) Understanding Social Theory, London: Sage.