Training Students in Field Research Methods 2007

Natural Healing Systems in the Andes:
Exploring Indigenous Knowledge and Practices in Peru
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OVERVIEW
The Center for Social Well Being (CSW) is now in its sixth consecutive year offering an academic training course in rural field research methods focused on local knowledge, practices and natural resources applied in traditional healing therapies in the Callejón de Huaylas, northern Peru. Working with a multidisciplinary team dedicated to the promotion of traditional medicine and ecology, our institute aims to make a significant contribution to preserve and promote natural healing and health prevention techniques in the region. Students will be oriented to the geographical, ecological, historical, social, cultural, and linguistic contexts and characteristics of the Andean intermontane valley, where our rural research base is located. The program is designed for university students in the major fields of social and behavioral sciences, with particular emphases in subfields of medical anthropology, cross-cultural psychology, ethnobotany, mountain ecology, and alternative medicine, as well as Latin American Studies, rural sociology, public health and human geography.

Content
Students will participate in the field research course that includes design, data collection, analysis, and presentation methods over the period of 3 weeks during the summer of 2006. Classroom instruction combined with actual field investigation shapes the study program. From the onset, students participate in daily Spanish classes in accord with proficiency levels, in addition to introductory classes in Quechua (native language of the Andes). Coursework in investigation theory, method and practice will set the foundations of the learning experience. The development of an appropriate research design, that stresses Community Participatory Action Research approaches will be the focus of classes to prepare and monitor the field experience.

Structure
Students will be organized into teams to develop research hypotheses, objectives, questions, schedules, tasks and responsibilities. Together with our local program team, Applied Medical Anthropologist, Dr. Patricia Hammer, trains students in both theoretical and practical approaches to investigate indigenous healing resources and therapies in rural communities located in discrete ecological zones in the highland valley. CSW team members with expertise in native understandings of medicinal plants (wild and domestic, propagation, extraction of active properties, preservation of endangered species, etc.), nutritional value of indigenous foods, and alternative healing techniques, will teach and supervise the progress of students. Weekly evaluations of students will be carried out based on progress in the acquisition and development of language and research skills, as well as demonstrated abilities to collect, order, analyze, synthesize and present preliminary research findings.

Objectives
1) Plan: Students will learn and perform the preparatory steps required for field work: orientation to the setting and research problem; design research: develop investigative instruments, identify research participants, rural communities and ecological zones. Organization and delegation of research responsibilities: form teams, rotate tasks, develop schedule, check lists and follow-up procedures, monitor and evaluate activities.

2) Act: Acquisition of research skills: Implementation of participatory methods to collect data; verification, systematization, synthesis and analysis of findings.

3) Evaluate: Capacity building of individual students, as well as team capacities, will be measured to assess the acquisition and performance of research abilities to achieve the proposed objectives. In addition to the development of individual field skills, significant stress is placed on team dynamics, power sharing in decision-making contexts, negotiation of differences to foster the best efforts of the group, continual peer review, feedback and participatory discussions to ensure balanced complementarity in the exercise of team work.

4) Disseminate: Presentation of research findings and summary conclusions for academic audiences and the general public are developed as a final phase of the field methods program. A post course dissemination opportunity is extended to outstanding students who are invited to participate with CSW in the presentation of annual results at the Society for Applied Anthropology conference
(CLICK HERE *RESEARCH to review previous conferences).

Faculty
All program activities are under the supervision of Director Patricia J. Hammer, Ph.D. in Applied Medical Anthropology. Field Coordinator, Flor Barreto, Ecologist, orients students to Andean ecological systems as a point of departure for comprehending the local social and environmental context. The CSW team members conduct classes and guide students through research activities with surrounding rural communities, as well as facilitate subsequent reflection and analyses of findings. Language classes in Spanish and Quechua are taught by teachers from regional language academies.
(CLICK HERE *FACULTY for details of each faculty member).

Evaluation
Students have the opportunity to demonstrate their previous knowledge and experience of research themes during the preliminary week of orientation in both written and verbal forms. Students develop, write up and present their own expectations of knowledge and skills they wish to acquire. At the end of each week students examine their progress so far, by three different means. First, students reflect individually, write up new skills and knowledge acquired, and subsequently present this self-evaluation to peers. Peers provide feedback and further elaborate on improved areas of peer student. Thirdly, an expert panel of mentors provide critical advice on students’ progress to date based on both field and class performance, as well as on written and oral tests. By the end of the 3 week course students have compiled preliminary draft reports on their research methods and findings for which they will be graded.