#methods in context

[revisesociology]

Evaluate the strengths and limitations of using non-participant observation to investigate pupil behaviour in schools (20)

This is a 20 mark methods in context questions from the 2020 A-level Sociology Education with Theory and Methods exam paper (7192/1). Link to the Mark Scheme for the Paper here. Below I include the Item and Question, a full answer, and some hints and tips. If you like this sort of thing then you might also like this post: pages and posts: Methods in Context Questions: How to Answer…

[crunchyapple33]

i wish there were more stories about peoples realities or fun little posts like "what i eat in a day in my . . . italian reality" (IDK) like YESSS we know how to shift . everybody stop asking How it's been in us all along . can we have fun now

like it feels like we're all in class taking a test . im finished with my test and am waiting for everyone else to be so we can chat and have fun but EVERYONES STILL ANSWERING QUESTIONSSSS

this post was inspired by a post i saw that says like "stop scrolling ur overconsuming info u already know how to shift" like . i Want to keep scrolling :( i want to know about everyones realities

[spookygibberish]

Smile

[katakaluptastrophy]

"But he wore a crown of office that you had not seen before: a wreath of ribbon and pearlescent leaves in his dark hair, rustling prismatically in the windless docking bay. Each leaf was intertwined with a match-sized infant fingerbone... The foetal fingerbones and leaves crowning his hair kept swaying in some nonexistent breeze." - Harrow the Ninth, chapter 6

I finished my interpretation of John's very chill and unconcerning hair accessory!

The leaves are actually large sequins, and the bones are sculpted from Fimo clay after a rather disconcerting time on PubMed looking at papers on the biometry of phalangeal growth in utero... (each leaf is 24mm, and the bones vary from 10-15mm)

[revvethasmythh]

listen. there are a number of aspects in which c3 and divergence are not comparable and fundamentally work differently (namely the difference in construction between a long-form campaign and 4-part mini-series), but thematically? not only are they comparable, they are designed to be. divergence is being aired directly after the conclusion of c3 in order to further explore concepts introduced in its conclusion. a world with less connection to the gods, the effect of that on the faithful, how the average exandrian approaches the concept of faith in general (in multiple aspects), the connection between the divine and their mortal children, burgeoning hope from post-war darkness, etc. these are concepts we're being asked to compare with the finale of c3. so if someone says that divergence's handling of faith and exploration of the gods blows c3's out of the water, that's valid. if we were meant to be avoiding comparisons, a) they wouldn't have aired this immediately after c3, b) there wouldn't be so many overlapping concepts, and c) they wouldn't be holding off on having the wrap-up until divergence is over. divergence is in conversation with c3, actively and intentionally, and it puts a stark contrast on how poorly faith was handled in c3, but also things like. understanding character motivation. which yes, is going to shine more strongly in short-form content because you have to get the information out quickly, but is a valid thing to discuss if you genuinely feel you understand a short-form campaign character's goals better than you do a character you spent 4 years watching. it's the difference between a woman who has never been shown to seriously engage with the gods at all stating "i don't know if i want to save gods that don't love me" and the moonweaver saying "if the love is true, it will pass through the barrier" and us knowing that divine magic will continue to be granted to mortals, by the sheer love the primes hold for their children, complex as that love might be. and, fundamentally, divergence is an exploration of consequences. the consequences of the calamity on mortals and the gods and the earth itself, decimated as it is. so when people compare it to c3, when a major complaint of the campaign was lack of follow-through and exploration of consequences, divergence shines for being about exactly what a lot of people felt c3 was missing.

[aqun-athlok]

all i've been able to imagine for the last several hours is lucanis sitting on the edge of his shitty little pantry bed in complete silence, holding an ipad and watching knife cleaning videos and harshly judging their techniques.

[triaelf9]

Also like, sometimes not all content is for you? Sometimes the content is for the creator & they're awesome enough to SHARE it with you?

I think this is how I handle actual plays where things fall where they may. I'm not interested in what story I want, I'm excited what story the PLAYERS want

Going into media without any expectations and just wanting to hear someone tell me the story they wanna tell is literally the most exciting and freeing way to interact with media

Been doing this the last 10 years and let me tell you, I really should have done it sooner.

[marzipanandminutiae]

Sometimes I'll be having a perfectly normal day and then get blindsided out of nowhere by the "Louisa May Alcott was definitely 100% a binary trans man and if you call her a woman or use she/her pronouns for her, you're transphobic" Hot Take

why couldn't that asshole have just stuck to writing racist South Park (yes, really; this person even filed the serial numbers off one story and got it published) fanfiction and left queer/trans history to the people who have an ounce of nuanced thinking or interest in the broader context of what they read

[aquamarinebling]

isat’s “what should we do with dead bodies” conversation is so so catastrophic to me- and a little horrifying. there’s a range of knowing how you want to die, with Mirabelle knowing the exact religious way she would prefer to be honored, Odile giving her options & preferences that mainly align with Ka Bue’s ideals, and Isabeau not having much thought beyond the general way Vaugaurde does it. They all have thought about it, and know their options well enough that they have some sort of favor or acceptance of the way their body is handled.

And then there is Siffrin, who doesn’t have this luxury at all in multiple senses. They don’t get to know their options beyond the ones from cultures that aren’t their own, the closest we get to see being “throw my ashes into the sky” which, while definitely symbolic & feels fitting for the country’s connection to the sky above, isn’t solid enough to be coined as what the Country actually does (and still, siffrin wouldn’t personally know that death is handled that way back home). He doesn’t get to die, either, and ever be mourned for. They never see how the party responds to their death in the loops, and seeing as they assumed they would just go back to traveling alone like before at the end of the journey, possibly thought they would die alone or silently, completely unaware they would be missed.

post game as well, we never learn how people from the island honor their dead? the king never says anything about it, and it’s likely siffrin will never learn. the only difference is that, now, siffrin knows they will be missed, however they’re disposed of.

[isagrimorie]

Janeway: I never realized you thought of me as reckless, Tuvok. Tuvok: A poor choice of words. It was clearly an understatement. Star Trek Voyager - Scientific Method Part 1, 2

Seven Feeling Some Kind of Way for Janeway.

[revisesociology]

Evaluate group interviews to investigate subject choices made by pupils

This methods in context question came up in the June 2022 A-level sociology education with theory and methods paper.  Below I include the item, a plan and a possible response. NB this isn’t an easy question IMO! The Item and Question  Read Item C below and answer the question that follows As well as compulsory subjects at school, pupils can often choose optional ones. Pupils may choose…

[fatedroses]

Zenos viator Galvus and him trying to deal with actually feeling things for once (Even if he doesn't really understand how to handle the comfort he receives from others for it)

I am also giving this man a dad that actually cares, because this brainworm have gotten me and there is no saving me from them.

[yarrowleef-babbles]

been hearing rumors that the "i'm always straight" lines may have been cut from the GN and IF that is true, I expect everyone will be super mad about that--and ngl i'd mourn the loss of it too because it has become iconic to me

But. i can't believe i'm playing devils advocate for this, BUT it is not entirely unreasonable for an adaptation of this work to decide it does not want to reference Ronan's sexuality yet......coming to terms with his sexuality is (one) part of his arc in the 2nd book. Adam Parrish being ~the 2nd secret he doesn't want to admit to himself~ , Ronan's catholic guilt homoerotic nightmares and the like, all characterize his sexuality as something he might vaguely be aware of but seriously struggles to openly admit. I don't think he even uses the word gay or any other word to describe himself in the whole series? (unless I'm forgetting something?)

So, idk, it's not unreasonable to want the (hypothetical) audience to also not be aware of it until Ronan is forced to directly grapple with his identity next book.

i think this is one of those things that has become very dear to the fandom over time, but if i look at it objectively without my feelings, i just.....i do understand why someone could conceivably decide that this off-handed bitchy "he's gay btw" joke is not of dire importance for the sanctity of the story 😭 in the 'pros don't outweigh the cons' sort of way....

[silenceofthewave]

( just found out that rid2015 confirmed cybertronian sign language (NOT!!! CHIROLINGUISTICS!!!) and yeah. im gonna take that and run with it. )

[muninnhuginn]

Ngl definitely thinking back to the cartoon-making chapter now we know that Twilight doesn't realise studying/pursuit of knowledge can be fun. No wonder the cartoon he made sucked. He was approaching it purely from the educational angle with zero idea of the entertainment aspect that makes edutainment programming effective.

It's not that he was really bad at writing the fun parts. He plain didn't realise there were meant to be any in the first place for it to work.

Copying the aesthetics with no understanding of what was underneath.

[magpie-rat-king]

back when i was like 11 i came across roko's basilisk for the first time (memory says i was like 11 and it was on neopets but i could have been 15 and on tumblr), anyway i definitely recall that my reaction to reading about this god-ai was to make a promise that, if i ever got into computing, then sure, i wouldn't get in the way of anyone trying to make a god-ai

and then i went back to playing turmac roll or whatever

and now i get to learn about how a whole bunch of very online people broke one another on a fundamental level by getting really wrapped up in the whole idea to the point that they kinda forgot how to function?

and i definitely could have ended up following that kind of path the same way i almost fell down the gamergate pipeline or one of the other weird Very Online pipelines that end with people fundamentally broken in a very particular way

and i'm very glad i didn't