Sincerely

“Through this be madness, yet there is method in it.” So sayeth Polonius, questioning Hamlet. Five hundred years later, so sayeth I, the method still rings true to its madness. “There nearly always is method in madness. It’s what drives men mad, being methodical.”  – G. K. Chesterton.

The question about what one learned in school today; I have written about it previously, for it was the question du jour of my childhood household. As it turned out,  my parents did not care what I learned in school, for when I began the discourse, I was usually cut off mid-telling. I came to understand that it is what a parent does: show interest and feign sincerity. They taught me well. So, what have I learned from writing and sharing my methods: madness, of course. Sincerely.  

One’s methodology for the less-than-fully formed dissertation premise is also less than fully formed. No premise, no method. The method of the study, whatever it should turn out to be, will be quantitative/positivist. I learned that the methodology represents a third chapter in the dissertation. I learned that it is the experimental statistical section whereby the experimental premise will be undertaken to test a hypothesis. I have also learned in school that there is an established structure, an outline, so to speak, of components and features to which a well-written and thought-out method should adhere. 

The method section of the dissertation will be comprised of a thorough description of the participants, with a detailed description of the intended subjects, an explanation of why they are the right participants for the study, and a detailed description of how I will recruit the subjects. The method section will give a detailed description of the setting and what it provides participants with the knowledge, information, or perceptions needed to perform the study. The method section will explain why this is the right demographic to gather the data needed for the research question. Within the method section, I shall explain how I can access the data collection setting and relay any information concerning constraints. Additionally, the method section will note how long I will have access to the participants and how a timeline may influence or impact the study. Finally, I will disclose my relationship to the participants or setting within the Method section of the dissertation to avoid ethical problems.

There will be a discussion on sampling procedures, sample size, measuring, data collection issues, the quality of the measurements, the instrumentation, and descriptions of the data diagnostic strategies. So, one is not surprised to learn that my peers are having an equally difficult time compiling a rough draft of the method assignment. What I have learned is the recipe for pudding. However, as often noted, the value of the recipe is in the proof.  

  To answer the question, “What would I like to learn going forward?” seems appropriate since I have yet to learn enough; hence,   I would like to learn more. The conundrum lies in wanting to know everything; however, the more you learn, the more you realize how little you have learned. When I was young, I learned “things”. How I learned those things seemed to happen. One day, you did not know a “thing”; the next, you did. Over the years, I presumed that I was continuing to learn. All the questions would eventually be answered, I mused. The philosopher called me a fool. My mind was like a sponge, soaking up the ocean. More and more information, facts, figures, and nonsense kept coming until I realized I was stupid and have been that way ever since. “To be stupid, selfish, and have good health are three requirements for happiness, though if stupidity is lacking, all is lost.”  – Gustave Flaubert.