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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]The comment was prompted when resents took concluded on addressing problems in Central America with coming US funds.  After the presentation during discussion a student asked why she had not heard more about the way the citizens in these regions felt about about it, [/quote]

On the one hand: of course people should talk to members of affected Central Americans communities before coming up with theories and plans, just as city planners in DC should talk to members of the community when putting in bike lines.

But, on the other hand:

- Maybe harried grad students don’t have fabulous ways to poll random samples of people in Central America.

- Maybe members of stressed groups in Central America have a hard time telling anyone what they think.

- The truth probably is that the typical person in Central America is probably way the right of typical grad students on many issues. If one grad student accurately presented real Central Americans’ real views, maybe that would have scandalized the class in a different way. 
[/quote]

But it is a fundamental problem and should be acknowledged, just like there should be a section in every research article that discusses the limitations of the study.

Do you think it's possible for a harried grad student to spend time acknowledging this, have thoughtful commentary on areas of the presentation that are weak for lack of input from the people in question, and present what can be found from a lit review of what input in similar areas from local population and stakeholders has been?

Like I said, it a known fundamental problem. Doesn't that deserve time and attention?[/quote]

You’re responding to me here.

I think this is a matter of degree and framing.

If people in the class are just saying, “You don’t have anything about what the people involved actually think. Why is that? How do
do we describe and address that gap? If this is a real information gap, not just a sign of you being a harried grad student, does that mean we have to start by creating a polling and focus group program?” — that’s completely reasonable.

If people are saying, “Look, this isn’t 2010. Your framing and phrasing here is going to get you slaughtered. Here’s how to fix that”:? That’s completely reasonable.

But — assuming I have a fair and complete understanding of the situation, and that we’re talking about a nice, well-meaning, progressive kid who may have his weaknesses but sincerely wants to help people, and that classmates were jumping down his throat in a way that felt pretty threatening: I think it’s great to talk about weaknesses in thinking, writing, project design, etc. that’s what grad school is for. But if people are really going to throw terms like “white savior” at him — without acknowledging that people from all backgrounds can be overly theoretical and weak at getting grassroots knowledge, too — or if people are going to say he has to think and talk exactly the way people who come at this with a certain philosophy want him to think and talk, then I think that’s unreasonable.

And if people are going to be really mean to him, even though he’s a nice guy who’s coming in peace and trying to help, I think that’s unreasonable.

Telling someone, “Hey, your cultural fly is unzipped” is necessary and fine.

Telling someone, “Hey, you were culturally imperfect, therefore you’re a colonialist scum and we have a right to sneer at you and laugh at you from behind your back, and we aren’t even going to let you try to help people in desperate circumstances in El Salvador,” is unreasonable and counterproductive. [/quote]

Yes, but although I can see an undergraduate student not addressing this context in a presentation, this is a graduate student. This has been a fundamental -- and when I say fundamental, I do mean it -- concern  in the field for a long, long time. If it isn't something that occurs to a grad student presenting in this field as a concern from the very conception of the project, then there is a big problem.

I don't know how to say this gently, but grad student aren't treated with the same kid gloves used for undergraduate students. They aren't expected to need to be gently handheld through understanding the basics. I do believe you that the terminology could have been better chosen, but I expect the other students were pretty shocked. It's just not graduate level work.

I know that's harsh, but I think it is true. My degree is from over ten years ago, and I think the same would have been true then.[/quote]

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