Rejected Plates: Coding and Finding Themes in Qualitative Data

Abstract

When faced with a pile of data, can students find the underlying pattern within? In this applied activity exercise, students practice basic content analysis methodology using an inductive approach. Students decipher and code 303 personalized license plate submissions that the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles rejected in 2017 between January and the end of...

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Details

Subject Area(s):

Qualitative Methodology

Resource Type(s):

Assignment, Class Activity

Class Level(s):

Any Level

Class Size(s):

Any

Usage Notes

The idea for this applied exercise emerged from a lighthearted story published in December 2017 by Cleveland, Ohio reporter Dan DeRoos.

To introduce the exercise, we briefly discuss how people personalize their vehicles (e.g. bumper stickers, “family” decals, and custom paint), and how these forms of personalization offer a glimpse into the...

Learning Goals and Assessments

Learning Goal(s):

1. Students will apply their theoretical knowledge about coding to a real world example

Goal Assessment(s):

1. Instructors monitor each group’s progress during the activity, and with students answering questions from the instructor about their coding decisions and the tentative patterns they see emerging from the data.