Reflections on Research with Children in Pakistan in a Mixed-Methods Study

This chapter is about conducting research with kindergarten children—approximately 5 years old—in Pakistan using multiple methods within a mixed-methods research design. A growing body of literature is emerging to address the methodological complexities of conducting research with children in the early years to better understand their experiences in diverse socio-cultural contexts (Greene & Hill, 2005; Holmes, 1998; MacNaughton et al., 2004; Pardhan, in press). However, there is still a great deal that is unknown concerning the methodological dimensions of research with children in developing contexts like Pakistan where educational research with young children is only recently emerging (Pardhan 2009; Pardhan & Juma, 2007; Vazir, 2004; Pardhan, in press). This chapter contributes to the methodological discussions on research with children in Pakistan based on experiences and reflections from my doctoral study exploring gender issues in early childhood education from the perspective of teachers, children and mothers at the kindergarten level. ¹ The possibilities and challenges related to using multiple data collection methods with children within the complex, multi-layered, mixed-methods research design of my doctoral study are highlighted. Moreover, I provide a reflection of my researcher identity in relation to the data collection process, particularly the insider/outsider tensions (Glesne, 2006) I experienced as a Shia Ismaili Muslim Canadian woman, born in Kenya, with South Asian ancestral heritage, and professionally situated in Pakistan in the field of education.