Audit Trail

The notion of audit trails was introduced in Chapter 3 [https://edtechbooks.org/-Vby] and the need for audit trails was emphasized earlier in this chapter. Audit trails are simply records kept of how qualitative studies are conducted. The audit trail should include all field notes and any other records kept of what the inquirer does, sees, hears, thinks, etc. The “Descriptions of the Observer” field notes described in Chapter Three should contain most of these details or at least an index to documents that contain them. These notes not only describe where the inquirer is in relation to what she or he is observing or participating in, and what is being learned; but they also describe the inquirer’s thoughts about how to proceed with the study, sampling decisions, ethical concerns, and so on. Each inquirer is free to create an audit trail that fits the study being conducted. The audit trail may be used by the inquirer to review what has been done, and to consider alternative plans, in addition to serving in the dependability and confirmability audit functions described earlier.