FIELDNOTES: A GUIDE FOR RESEARCHERS

Fieldnotes: "The observations written by a researcher at a research site, during an interview, and throughout the data collection process" (FW, 501).

I. REQUIREMENTS1

Much of the hard work of ethnography happens in the observations and fieldnotes. At times, you’ll
feel as though it’s tedious to take fieldnotes; however, taking detailed notes gives you a set of data
from which to look for patterns and ideas. In order to complete your field notes successfully, you will need to:

General Requirements
Spend at least one hour a week observing your community;
While you’re observing, write substantial (3+ pages of observation weekly) field notes.
Take time after you’ve observed to write meaningful, thoughtful questions and reflections on the “analysis” side of
your double-entry field notes (explained in “Strategies” below).
Date each entry, and number each page (This is vital! If you fail to date and number each page of your fieldnotes,
you will be lost when it comes time to write up your research and prepare your Research Portfolio for the Celebration
of Student Writing)
Write legibly enough that someone else could read them.
Keep them organized (in your Research Portfolio, among your artifacts and other fieldwork)

Taking good fieldnotes requires that to divide the process into two phases: (1) notes you take while you are in the field
(Observational/Descriptive fieldnotes) and (2) notes you take after you return from the field (Expanded/Reflective/Analytical
fieldnotes.

Requirements for Observations (while you are in the field)

Each week’s Observational/Descriptive fieldnotes should include the following:

The date, time, and location of your fieldwork;
Numbered pages so that you can keep track of your notes;
A record of specific details and facts (Who was there? What happened? What did you
notice?)
Approximate transcriptions of conversations and language;
Sensory details and images (What do you see? What’s the setting? How might you describe
the scene to someone not there?)
What texts involved in this scene (What literate practices are the people here involved with? What texts are being
written and what is the function of these texts? What texts are being read and what is the function of these texts? Who
writes the texts read? Who reads the texts written? Are there texts displayed on the walls? On/near the furniture?
Elsewhere? What texts are in this space but not being used--at least not in any obvious way--by the people inhabiting
this space?

Requirements for Expanded Fieldnotes (after you return from the field)

Each week’s Reflective/Analytical fieldnotes should include the following:

Aspects that you want to pay special attention to during upcoming observations;
Questions that arise as possibilities for your final ethnographic project;
Questions you have about the community that you’ll need to ask an insider in an interview (especially those related
to the texts that exist in these spaces);
Questions for further research (think about the essays read/written in response to Chapters 1-4 of Literacies in
Context);

1
Adapted from Heidi Estrem’s “Fieldnote Requirements” in Guide to First-Year Writing at Eastern Michigan University at
<http://www.emich.edu/english/fycomp/curriculum/pdfs/handouts.pdf>.

FYC @ Texas A&M-Commerce 1

II. STRATEGIES FOR TAKING FIELDNOTES

For your first set of fieldnotes, I’d like you to try the format I’ve described below. After that, you may wish to switch to a
format more comfortable for you (like typing the reflective part of the notes on your computer at home, for example).
o Divide several pieces of paper in half lengthwise.
o On the left, record only observations, and record those thoughts in the least biased ways possible (record them without
analyzing them).
o On the right side, reflect on those observations. This is where you can: ask questions, consider ways of interpreting an
event, and wonder about what you’re seeing.

These are called “Double-Entry Notes,” which are "[f]ieldnotes that are divided into at least two columns: one column lists the
fieldworker's observations on the fieldsite, and at least one other column lists the fieldworker's personal reflections about the
site and informants. Making such distinctions allows the fieldworker to become aware of the differences between verifiable,
tangible facts about the chosen fieldsite and his or her thoughts and feelings about those facts." (FW, 500)

A. The Observational/Descriptive fieldnotes

OBSERVE CLOSELY (in the field)2

o Write down as much as possible! You never know what might become important later.
o Always write down the date, time, and place of observation at the beginning of your notes.
o Include conditions of color, weather, light, shape, time, season, atmosphere, and ambiance.
o Write down specifics! Note the time something happens, what a sign says, etc.
o When you’re listening to people speak, write down their words. Specific words, phrases, and language can be very
important. (If you write “conversation about food,” there are hundreds of things that could mean. Don’t expect your
memory to be perfect.) As much as possible, write down or tape record (with permission) conversations word for
word. Create a glossary of insider phrases and words.
o Pay attention to nonverbal cues as well. How do the people in your community use body language? How do people
understand/interpret body language?
o Describe what you see. What are people wearing? How do they adorn their bodies? How is the area you’re in
decorated?
o Write down your sensory impressions. What can you hear? What do you smell? Tastes, textures, smells, and sounds
can be just as important as what you see.
o Map the space you’re observing. Having a map that shows you the layout of the area and tracks people’s movements
can be extremely helpful to refresh your memory and to help others understand your site.

B. The Expanded Fieldnotes

BE ENGAGED WITH WHAT YOU’RE OBSERVING (even after you leave the field)
o Respond to the notes you’re taking.
o What questions do you have as a result of your observations?
o Are there things going on in the community that you’d like to know more about (the history of a story, the
development of a ritual, where a specific phrase comes from, etc.)?
o Ask yourself questions about what you’ve seen. What surprised you? What intrigued you? What disturbed you?
o Ask yourself questions about the texts involved with this community. Where are these texts? What is there function?
Who writes them? Who reads them? If the texts there don’t seem to be in use by the members of this community, how
might you go about determining their function? Who could you ask? What of could you learn from this?
o Analyze your position in this community. What assumptions/expectations do you bring to your observations? Ask
yourself questions like: Why do I focus on this aspect of the community instead of that other one? Why do I focus
on the people I do? Where in my fieldnotes do I find evidence for this description? What have I rejected, and why?
o Reread your fieldnotes shortly after you’ve taken them. Take the time to fill in details that you didn’t fully write down,
to make sure that everything is legible and understandable for later, and to mark places that you’re interested in
researching further.
o Reflect on what you’ve written down. What data relate to your positions as a researcher?
o What information confirms your initial hunches? What artifacts speak about your site and your informants? Which of
your informants’ words explain larger ideas about the subculture you’re studying?

2
Sara Seyfarth, “Strategies for Taking Fieldnotes.” in Guide to First-Year Writing at Eastern Michigan University at
<http://www.emich.edu/english/fycomp/curriculum/pdfs/handouts.pdf>.

FYC @ Texas A&M-Commerce 2