Insights Regarding the Use of Body Mapping as a Data Collection Technique for a Qualitative Research Study in Sarapiquí, Costa Rica

Data collection techniques in qualitative research have remained within certain methodological boundaries, with interviews being the most common (and preferred) data collection technique used. Body mapping is a flexible technique that promotes creativity and protagonism on behalf of the participants, while seeking to distinctive and symbolically represent their constructivist experiences and feelings regarding a specific social phenomenon. This project abstract seeks to reflect on the body mapping technique as it was used in a case study, grounded on inductive qualitative research. The study collected and triangulated data by means of semi-structured virtual interviews, document gathering, and body mapping. It aimed to describe the perceptions of five primary English teachers from the Sarapiquí Regional Directorate of Education regarding the return to in-person education, to better comprehend the academic and professional contexts of the teachers during the health crisis provoked by the outbreak of COVID-19. To enable the collection of the data, the participants attended a face-to-face workshop that included five phases adapted to the study. These phases were: map outlining, reflecting on distance education, combined education, and in-person education, writing testimonial sheets, completion of the final details of the body maps, and final reflections regarding the technique and questions posed by the study. This current abstract reflecting on body mapping aims to increase understanding of education during the phenomenon of COVID-19 in Sarapiquí, Costa Rica, sharing the perceptions of three participants, along with the insightful lessons learned through the research performed using the body mapping technique to collect qualitative data.