Part One: Defining and Refining Your Research Question

What is your research question?

My research question is: How best can the District Six Museum best adapt to the challenges and opportunities posed by the 2010 FIFA World Cup? This question has two different lenses. First, I will be investigating, at a more theoretical level, how the museum can narrate the important and painful story of forced removals under the apartheid regime during a sporting event that tries to paint South Africa as fun and exciting. Second, at the more practical level, I will be investigating how the museum can prepare logistically for increased visitors and integrate both the original exhibit and the newly created soccer exhibit.

Why is this a worthwhile question? By investigating this question, what problem will you be helping your community partner to address?

For an entire month next summer, the eyes of the world will be focused on the “rainbow nation.” Aside from the promised economic benefits, hosting the World Cup will provide South Africa with an opportunity to showcase its beautiful and exciting country and allow its diverse peoples to rally around a common cause.

While South Africa has overcome so much and still is full of great promise, its past is very much a part of its present and future. Both directly and indirectly, the legacies of apartheid live on and continue to shape society, culture, and politics. Those who visit the country cannot fully understand it and cannot fully experience its complicated vibrancy without grappling with and making sense of its history. Since museums like District Six play a key role in facilitating this process, it needs to be prepared for next summer.

More specifically, helping the District Six Museum think through the logistics and impact of the World Cup will address two challenges that it faces. With heightened tourism, the museum could become “just another stop along the tourist trail,” undermining the visitor experience and stifling the District Six community’s narrative. Second, the geographical isolation of the main museum exhibit and the soccer exhibition make it possible that tourists will only visit one of the two exhibits, thereby exiting the museum complex with an incomplete understanding of soccer in Cape Town, the history of District Six, and the relationship between the two.

What do you know so far about your research topic:

From your own experience or from your community partner?

Based on my previous relationship with the museum and conversations with staff members over the past weeks, I know that the museum is at odds about how to prepare for next summer. The museum was founded to celebrate and preserve the memory of District Six, and tourism or profits has never been at the top of their priority list. At the same time, they are a bit concerned that increased tourism coupled with the commercial nature of the World Cup will undermine their ability to tell the story of a community torn apart by the forced removals of the apartheid regime. Therefore, they are a bit wary about focusing so much on tourism but recognize that such efforts are perhaps essential for the future.

From the scholarly literature?

The past week, I have spent a lot of time researching the 2006 World Cup in Germany as well as tourism plans for next summer’s competition in South Africa. The past century was very complicated for Germany. While on the one hand it excelled in the areas of technology and industry, it also fuelled one of the most gruesome violations of human rights in the modern world, the Holocaust. When selected to host the 2006 World Cup, government and tourism officials, along with members of the business community, recognized the event as a key opportunity to shape how the world viewed the country and its people. Instead of dealing with its layered past head on and encouraging soccer tourists to grapple with the country’s history, Germany adopted the slogan “Land of Ideas” and sought to paint the nation as a fun, innovative place. In essence, any mention of Germany’s troubled past was discouraged. Opinion polls conducted after the 2006 World Cup show that their “re-branding” effort worked; post-2006 visitors had a more positive perception of Germany and its people than before they hosted the event.

The planners of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa are keenly aware of the event’s branding power, and various reports and conferences indicate that they will pursue a similar public relations campaign to portray South Africa—and Africa in general—as a fun, safe, and adventurous destination that will leave any visitor satisfied. Consequently, tourism schemes currently in place put a high emphasis on outdoors sightseeing and adventure activities (sky-diving, shark-diving, surfing, hiking, etc). Cultural and heritage sights mentioned in the reports and publicity materials are those that are highly commercial in nature (tours of townships, Robben Island, the Apartheid Museum) that encourage a passive and shallow engagement with South Africa’s complicated history.

Critical reflection on your research question:

Is it clear, specific, and feasible for you to answer adequately in the time available?

I will be able to fully address certain portions of my research, while other parts will need to be further developed by the museum staff as it plans more concretely for 2010. The first part of my research question, which examines telling a story of trauma during a light-hearted, fun sporting spectacle, is clear, and by using the example of Germany in 2006, I will be able to address it thoroughly in a concrete deliverable to the museum. Because the second part of my question is more logistical in nature, I will not be able to completely answer it. Changing circumstances, limited information, and time constraints will prevent me from presenting exhaustive recommendations to the museum. That said, I still will be able to provide a strong planning framework for the museum to use in 2010.

What kind of question are you asking? For instance, do you have a hypothesis you are testing? Or is your research more exploratory and inductive, so that your goal is to develop rather than to test a hypothesis?

My research is more exploratory in nature. I am aiming to collect data in order to generate some sort of report/action plan that the museum will be able to use next summer.

By the way you have framed your question, is it clear that you understand the distinction between research and (political or organizational) advocacy? Will your research respect the principles of open inquiry?

While by its nature my research aims to further the goals and mission of the District Six Museum, I will not be acting as their advocate or blindly support their policies and staff members. Instead, I will conduct a fair, balanced inquiry. My research will be open ended in that I will be open to any potential plan of action, including recommending that the museum does not change anything in anticipation of next summer.

Who else is on your project team?

Faculty Mentor ___Bob Korstad_________
Community Partner ___District Six Museum__
Others? ______________________

Part Two: What is your Research Design? What steps will you follow to answer your question?

What data do you need to collect? How will you decide the parameters of this data? (For instance, if you will be studying a particular population, who belongs and who doesn’t? If you will be collecting data from documents, what documents will you need, over what timeframe, etc.?)

Tourism Plans: I need to continue to investigate tourism plans in place for Cape Town for 2010. This includes data from government tourism agencies, tourism non-profits, and profession tour guide companies.
Germany 2006 Perspective: I will examine how German history museums, especially those that mirror the context and model of District Six, adapted during the 2006 World Cup in Germany and how they told the story of their nation’s controversial past.
Other South African Museums: I need to know how other South African museums/cultural institutions (especially those in Cape Town) are planning ahead for next summer.
Museum Staff: I need to collect the perspectives and input of various museum staff members about what they see as key opportunities for the museum during the World Cup
District Six Residents: The former residents of District Six are key stakeholders in the museum, and I would like to hear their perspectives and ideas about how the museum should or should not adapt in 2010.
Visitor Experience: I need to understand what aspects of the museum’s exhibits enable a positive visitor experience and how this can be replicated in the soccer exhibited and perpetuated next summer.

What method or methods will you use to collect data? (e.g., one-on-one interviews, surveys, focus groups, questionnaires, direct observation, analysis of documents, etc.)

Analysis of Documents: I will continue to analyze various tourism plans for 2010 as well as scholarly articles written about the 2006 German World Cup.
Personal Interviews: I will conduct personal interviews with the Cape Town Tourism 2010 Director and District Six Museum Staff.
Focus Groups: I will conduct a focus group with former District Six residents.
Questionnaires: I will submit a questionnaire to the various Cape Town tour guide operators as well as museum visitors.
Direct Observation: I will observe visitors to the museum and note their “path” through the exhibit.

What is your project timeline? What are the “lock-in” dates for your project to ensure that you are able to leave a research product with your community partner before you leave? (Dates in parentheses are a suggested project timeline for a 10-week summer research internship)

Lock-in Date #1: Finalizing your research question and research design

(End of week 2)

My lock-in date #1 is: ___June 10___

Lock-in Date #2: Completing your “data collection” phase

(End of week 6)

My lock-in date #2 is: ___June 26__

Lock-in Date #3: Completing your “data analysis” phase

(End of week 8)

My lock-in date #3 is: ___July 3__

Lock-in Date #4: Completing your research synthesis, conclusions, and recommendations and giving your research product to your community partner

(End of week 10)

My lock-in date #4 is: __July 10____

What logistical issues do you need to think about in collecting your data?

Most of all, I need be cognizant of time constraints. At this point, I only will be working at District Six for about five more weeks, so I need to be effective and punctual in my data collection. To accomplish this, I need to plan ahead and create a timeline and deadline for various components of my research.

Another obstacle that I will face is my coordinator’s lack of time to meet with me on a regular basis. I will have little guidance, and I need to be sure that I take full advantage whenever I can get her attention or schedule a meeting.

What ethical issues do you need to think about in collecting your data?

I need to be aware of the fact that although I am working on behalf of the District Six Museum and maintain a close relationship with its staff, I am not a permanent stakeholder in the organization. As such, I must clearly identify my role as an independent researcher so as to not jeopardize my own objectivity or negatively influence the reputation of the museum. In addition, I need to be aware of the power dynamics of the organization and the community with which I am working so that I do not disrupt existing relationships.