Week 15 - Posting 15

In this final blog posting of the semester, I'd like you to reflect on your progress throughout the course. What do you feel you have really improved on within the fifteen weeks? What do you still struggle with? Explain. (Consequently, the answers to these questions can pertain to your writing process, the way you conduct research, organizational skills, critical reading skills, or whatever else you can think of). Lastly, provide a suggestion or several suggestions for how the class could be conducted more efficiently in the future. Is there an assignment you think could be reworked? Would you have benefited from more conferences? Less conferences? Etc. etc.

Week 14 - Posting 14

For this week, I'd like to give you folks the opportunity to do some more pre-writing for your portfolio reflections. So, pick ONE of the following questions to answer: What strategies did you develop to analyze the data for your mini-ethnography? What is your favorite piece of data (or data source) and why? (i.e. people you interviewed, observations you made, academic sources you read, etc). What do you feel is the best piece of writing you've done in the class (Exploring Subcultures, Annotated Bibliography, Research Proposal w/Literature Review, or Mini-Ethnography) and why?

Week 13 - Posting 13

As I've mentioned to several of you during the conferences, the mini-ethography will essentially be you (the researcher) telling the reader the story of the your subculture using your personal voice, the voices of your informants, research, etc. So, to practice doing this, tell the story of your most significant experience as a fieldworker observing one of your fieldsites. Make sure to use sensory details/descriptions, balance your voice with the voices of your informants, and try to see if you can bring in some points from the research you've done to supplement what you're saying. Good luck and have fun with this.

Week 12 - Posting 12

What is your understanding of the word "rhetoric?" What is your definition? What do you think constitutes rhetoric (is it our appearance, the way we dress, the things we say, the way we act, etc.)? Where do you hear the word rhetoric being commonly used in American society? Is its use generally in a positive or a negative context? Do you think there might be a rhetoric that coincides with your subculture? If so, what is it? How might you utilize rhetoric in constructing your mini-ethnography or your final portfolio?

Week 11 - Posting 11

Way back in week one I asked you folks to discuss a paper you had written for a previous class and your writing process. Now, in week eleven, I'd like to hear about your writing process again. Has your writing process changed since we started this course? If so, how? Did any particular assignments give you trouble (both in terms of the type of assignment and how it might have conflicted with your specific writing process)? Were any assignments unexpectedly easy? And now, the million dollar (somewhat philosophical) question: Why do you write (aside from it's a requirement of this class and higher education in general)? What role does writing play in your life? What role do you think writing will play in your future (in terms of a career, family, etc.)?

Presentations

Students,

The presentations from Thursday, March 26th are posted on Blackboard under "Course Documents."

D.

Group Multimodal Mini-Project

Students,

Just to reiterate some points during class:

You and your group members are required to compose a collaborative multimodal document (one which incorporates any combination of words, images, videos, multimedia, etc.) for the purpose of generating discussion and instructing the class on how to formulate a research question and how to write a literature review. You can choose to emphasize either the research question or the literature review...it's up to you and your group (Don't forget, we also had this reading for formulating a research question: http://www.bedfordstmartins.com/researchroom/question/).

Again, I realize I'm giving you a very short amount of time to do this, so I'm not expecting anything dazzling here, but you should try to make your creation presentable. Some possible multimodal documents include, but are not limited to:

• A PowerPoint presentation
• A digital poster (http://www.glogster.com/)
• A digital newsletter (http://letterpop.com/)
• A small webpage (http://www.weebly.com)
• A short video

By giving you folks the opportunity to work together and teach the class, I think that you will learn more about what is required for your Research Proposal (plus, it's more fun than just hearing me talk). We will spend most (if not all) of Thursday's class finishing up these little projects and presenting them to each other. Finally, if you don't get to the other readings assigned in the textbook, that's okay (just try to catch-up on them over the weekend).

I'm looking forward to seeing that you folks come up with!

D.

Week 10 - Posting 10

THIS POSTING IS NOT DUE UNTIL FRIDAY, MARCH 27TH BY 11:59 P.M.

Although I know we are still concentrating on the research proposal assignment, now might be a good time to begin thinking about the shape or structure of your mini-ethnography. So, what structure do you plan on using for your mini-ethnography? How do you plan to begin? Will you start by profiling a specific informant? Will you talk about your interest in the subculture or your place within it? How might you proceed through the paper? Will you take the reader chronologically through your research process? Will you create sections based on themes, focal points, observations, etc? How do you think you might conclude the piece? Finally, why do you think that the particular structure you've chosen (or might choose) will be the best for what you want to do?

THIS POSTING IS NOT DUE UNTIL FRIDAY, MARCH 27TH BY 11:59 P.M.

Links to Literature Review Pages

Two great websites that provide of wealth of information courtesy of the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill and the University of Toronto:

http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/literature_review.html

http://www.utoronto.ca/writing/litrev.html

Link to Research Question Handout

Here is a fantastic handout about how to formulate research questions courtesy of The Writing Studio at Vanderbilt University:

http://www.vanderbilt.edu/writing/resources/Formulating%20Your%20Research%20Question.pdf

In-class (3/19/09): Clips from the documentary American Tongues

Today we will be watching clips from the 1986 PBS documentary American Tongues. As you watch the clips, answer the following questions:

(Question 1): This research project was done in the 1986. If you were to re-do this project today, at the end of the first decade of the 21st century, what might you as a researcher do differently? What would you do the same?

(Question 2): What are some of the flaws with the study? Are there any groups that are under-represented? Over-represented? How might you make the study more appealing to an audience (visually, instructionally, etc?)

(Question 3): In your opinion (and based on some of the things discussed in the clips), how important is language in terms of how we perceive others? What is revealed (or others think is revealed) about us when we talk?

Week 9 - Posting 9

This week I want you to take a step back from your research and do a reflection on the research process thus far. What has been the hardest thing? What has been the easiest? If you could start over again, what would you do differently? How has keeping a blog helped you track your research process? How do you think it will help you in preparing your mini-ethnography?

Week 8 - Posting 8

For this week I want you to answer the following questions: What is the main theme you see through your research? In talking with some members of your community, does that theme seem to run through the fieldsite as well? As of today, eight weeks into this project, what is your place in the subculture? Is it similar or different to where you were eight weeks ago? What changed?

Week 7 - Posting 7

By now you should have visited your site at least once (if not a few times), interviewed one or two people (or at least set-up interviews for the not-too-distant future), and gathered some research. Now I want you to start thinking about the benefits of fieldwork and what you can give back to your chosen culture/subculture by doing your research. So, what can you give back to your community? You should know a good deal at this point, so what does your community need that you can provide them? What is your contribution (to the community, to our class, to your own education)? Think about it and post on your blogs.

Citing Electronic Sources

Students,

Here is a great source for how to cite electronic sources (including those databases you access through the BSU library): http://www.valenciacc.edu/library/west/research/doc_mla_electronic.asp

D.

Week 6 - Posting 6

Very simple for this week: Locate two sources, read them, and post an annotation for each, just like we discussed in class. So, provide the citation (i.e. how the source would be documented on a works cited page), one paragraph summarizing the source (remember, if it's a research study you need to show how the authors got their results, what their results were, and why the did the study), and a second paragraph explaining how you will use the source in your mini-ethnography.

Week 5 - Posting 5

Though we've riffed-off of this idea a few times in previous blog postings, I think it is important to keep you folks focused and on task: What type of plan have you come up with to finish this mini-ethnography? Do you need more research on a specific facet of your subculture? Do you need to spend more time in your fieldsite(s)? How do you plan on spending that time? Interviewing? Observing? Participating in activities? In other words, how do you plan on finishing this assignment? Also, what questions do you have for me pertaining to upcoming assignments? Activities? Expectations? Etc?

In-class Writing (2/5/09)

Today we will be watching a significant section from the documentary Dogtown and Z-Boys: The Birth of Extreme. As you watch the film, take notes and think about how the film pertains to some of the things we' have discussed thus far. At the end of our viewing, consider and answer the following questions on your blog:

Do you feel this is an ethnographic study, a work of entertainment, both? Explain your answer.

Who are the interview subjects and why are they important? What roles do the interviews play? Do they move the story along? Lend a perspective on the subculture?

What are some of the attitudes, beliefs, rituals, artifacts, etc. that make this group a subculture?

What is the structure of the piece? How is it organized? Does this help or inhibit your understanding of the subculture?

What were some of the stereotypes you held about skateboarders before watching this? Do those stereotypes still hold true? If so, why? If not, what changed your perspective?

The rhetorical triangle (ethos – do we trust what the creator of this is telling us…? What if you knew the filmmaker was also one of the skaters? Pathos – what emotional response did you have and why? Logos – how was the piece constructed?)

Week 4 - Posting 4

Can you make any general conclusions about your subculture as of right now? And if so, what are those conclusions? Do you think that what you have been observing is specific to the particularly community in which your subculture resides, or do you think it would be the same even if you observed that subculture in a different community (i.e. is being a server at Ruby Tuesday's the same everywhere? Would a club like the BSU Tennis Club or Campus Crusade for Christ conduct itself in the same way at Kent State? Do the same rituals, beliefs, behaviors, etc. surround all tattoo parlors? etc. etc). Think about how geography, demographics, political and religious positions, etc. play a role in influencing members of a particular subculture.

Week 3 - Posting 3

What research have you started thus far for this project? In other words, have you already interviewed possible informants? If so, describe that interaction and what transpired. If you have not held any interviews, what questions will you ask when you do and why do you feel those questions are important? Have you already visited your cultural site? If so, describe some of your observations and what questions those observations might have raised. If you have not been to your cultural site, when do you intend on doing so and what new questions or expectations might you have after some of our in-class discussions and exercises? Have you attempted some basic "academic" research (i.e. Internet, books, periodicals, etc.)? And lastly, do you consider there to be a difference between "academic" and non-academic" research? List some examples.

Week 2 - Posting 2

Hopefully at this point in class you have figured out where you are going to do your fieldwork (i.e. a fieldsite or fieldsites, for example a retail store at a mall, a band practice room, a locker room, etc.). So, remind the class what culture/subculture you have picked, then describe your possible fieldsite(s). If you’ve already been there, what sensory details can you remember? If you have not been there, what do you expect to find? In addition, discuss what you hope to learn about your particular culture/subculture by visiting a specific fieldsite(s). If you are already an insider, what new things do you hope to discover? If you are an outsider, are you looking to learn something specific about your chosen culture/subculture, or are you open to learn whatever you can?

Week 1 - Posting 1

Because ENG 104 is a writing-intensive class, it is only natural that we begin the course by discussing your previous experiences with writing. Answer the following, again in 200 - 250 words on your own blog, and make sure to click "Publish Post" once you are done (NOT "Save Now"):

Write about a paper (any paper) you have written in the past. What was your process when writing the paper? (Did you have music playing in the background, did you write the paper the night before, did you outline or just start writing, etc.) What “type” of paper was it? (Creative piece, research paper, lab report, book report, etc.?) What do you feel is the difference between editing and revising?

Link to Video (Screen-capture) on "Creating Your Own Blog"

Students,

I have created a screen-capture video to refresh your memories on how to create a blog (or to help those students who weren't in class on Tuesday). Please follow the link below (*note: this link contains audio and it's important for you to hear my instructions, as well as see the clip):

http://www.screencast.com/users/drdisarro/folders/Jing/media/028336e1-7e79-471d-a4df-d0c1b463caaf

Welcome to ENG 104 at BSU

Hello students and welcome!

This is where I will be posting announcements, occasional notes from class, links to various websites, and (of course) the weekly questions you need to answer as part of your research. Feel free leave me comments or ask questions. Don't forget -- your first posting on your own blog is due Thursday, January 15th. Also, please remember to e-mail me a link to your blog.

I'm looking forward to working with all of you this semester. Until next time...