Learning Journal #15: Methods Practice Interview

Earlier in the week we talked about interviewing and ways we could ask questions.  We talked about the different types of interviews we could conduct which include structured, semi-structured, and unstructured.  We will know which ones to use depending on the context and situation.  I think I will be using all types in Tonga.  I will be using structured interviews with faculty members as I plan to use a national and international survey.  Tonga as a whole already has data from that international survey, but that was in 2010.  I'm curious to see the results from Liahona high school only from today (2012) and compare those results with the results found in 2010.  I will also be using semi-structured interviews with health teachers or workers at the health center on school campus, asking them open ended questions as well as straight questions.  I think I will be using semi-structured and unstructured interviews when talking with students and the younger generation because I think that will make them more open to answer my questions and comfortable as well.

We were assigned to conduct a practice interview, applying the things we learned.  I decided to do an unstructured interview with one of my coworkers because he is a public health major as well and will be graduating in April.  My topic was health education.  In class we also talked about different probes.  I didn't realize the importance of probing until we talked about it.  This made me more conscious of the probes I use and I realized that I say "yeah" a lot, nod my head, and also give the silent probe.  This made me think of probes that will be better to use in Tonga.  I don't think the silent probe will be too good to use because I think that probe could bring about some confusion.  My parents used silence when they were angry and mad, and so I don't want to bring up any idea of that sort.    

I asked him open ended questions such as, "what does health mean to you?  Give me an example of someone who is healthy?  Do you think health education is important?  Why or why not?"  I liked this type of interview because it seemed like a discussion more than an interview because we were talking back and forth.  I realized after the interview that I didn't get through all the questions that I wrote down.  But instead, from the notes I had written down, I had gotten answers for other questions.  I asked two questions and we were able to expand on those two questions and carry the interview through those questions.  We talked about health education and one thing he brought up was, what approaches do health educators use when teaching their material.  Some teachers use different approaches to teach their students and I thought that was something very interesting to look into at Liahona high school.  I think unstructured interviews bring about open discussions and the person I will be interviewing will be able to say their ideas and thoughts freely.  I think one of the problems with unstructured interviews, is being able to stay on track, especially because Tongans love to tell stories and explain a lot of things.  That will be one of the challenges for me while doing interviews.