Learning Curve

This brief section outlines some of the principles of ethnographic research.  (more…)

This brief section outlines my process for setting up and conducting interviews. It explains the “courtship” ritual between an interviewer and an interviewee in which trust is developed. (more…)

This article focuses on my attempt to have students produce original research based on their family ethnography. I set up a list of interview questions and encouraged them to write reports from the answers. I have since used this data to teach other classrooms.

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Ayutthaya was destroyed by Burmese invader in 1767. The new capital was moved to Thonburi, and then later to Bangkok. Most Thai textbooks ignore Ayutthaya after 1767, and Western historians too often forget that it is still a thriving city today. I wrote this article to explain the rebirth of Ayutthaya, and how it became repopulated once again. In order to remind my students that history can be found everywhere, I required them to interview their grandparents about how the environment of the city has changed over recent decades. Their data was incorporated into this material. (more…)