No class Thursday, December 1

 I will not be in class today.  I am sick.

I will give you feedback on your Blog post about the research project over the weekend.  On Monday, we will talk about the Final exam questions, and you will begin informal presentations, workshopping f your research projects,  Have a good weekend and see you next week.

11.28 Portfolio and Research Essay Workshop

Workshop and portfolio
You workshopped your essays, and set up your portfolio.
For the workshop you tweaked your research questions - and planned how to write an essay that met the criteria for the assignment.

You set up your portfolios at google.sites, and as noted (with some prompting from Juliana), you will use the first page to let me know if there is any work in the portfolio that you want "re-graded," or if there is any information that I should take into account as I add up the numbers for your grade.

A sample portfolio and a list of what to include in your portfolio are listed at links to the right.

For next class:
On Thursday, we will spend part of the class responding to any questions/problems remaining with your research projects, and the rest of the class will be devoted to a discussion of ethics and how universities and other research institutions make sure human research subjects have choice and dignity throughout the research process.
The NIH site for researcher training in ethics is:
http://phrp.nihtraining.com/users/login.php

Blog 17:  Research question, relevant research, and identification of methods

11.21 Quantitative methods + research papers

Note:  I will be getting back to you about blogs 14-16, probably by Sunday.  Have a great Thanksgiving and see you on Monday..

Quantitative methods in English Studies.  Nicci and Jazmyne talked about "Is Oral History Good for You?"   They discussed how the author gathered data to discover quantitative data on whether "telling one's life story is a beneficial experience an that participation (in the PSA failure study) makes one feel better".  The data indicated that participants valued their participation - but it is not clear that it was the oral history component of the study - or simply the opportunity to tell one's story to someone who listened attantively.

Our focus in reading this essay was to explore how (and why) quantitative data can become important in wiriting studies.  One of our first observations was that in the contemporary U.S.  there is a "bias" toward quantitative data as more "real" and "important" than qualitative data. In a discussion where we noted differences between qualitative and quantitative (f2f interviews and surveys) we noted that:

• Some questions may be more difficult to ask F2F than in a survey
• Surveys "bias" subjects to particular answers by presenting fixed language/questions
• Writing allows time to think (surveys might get more thoughtful answers)
• F2F allows for interactive formulations of questions and answers

Add this these observations the fact that the categories in sureveys and "numbers" erase the fuzzy edges of those categories - and the differences within them.  I gave the example that for "B" essays in a given class - each essay would get a B for different reasons and would have different writing issues.

We talked briefly about advantages + disadvantages of each approach (you might want to think more about this), and then used an "assessment rubric" to evaluate student progress in writing research papers.  We didn't have quite enough time to finish talking about this - but the idea was to demonstrate ways to assign meaningflu numbers to patterns in writing.  It is not perfect - but it is usable.

Research papers
I met with many of you to talk over your research topics and set you up so you can get started on your papers over the break.  The post that has your research question, your resources, maps out your essay (on the blog for my feedback) is due  December 1: => discussion of research question, description of methods, relevant research.


For class Monday
We will set up your portfolio, the google.site where you will turn in your work.  A list of what to include in the portfolio will be posted on the course blog.  You will also have some time to work on the post for December 1


Have a great Thanksgiving and see you next week!.

11.17 Oral history and appointments to talk about research projects

Today you conducted a kind of mini-oral history interview about memories of your experiences of 9-11, and we used your reflections on conducting the interviews as a basis for talking about the points in our text book's essay about oral history.

We considered how the material you gathered in our short interviews "recovered" material that supplemented mainstream stories for what 9-11 was about.  One of the first things we noticed was recurring efforts to "shield" young people (most of you were in middle-school through high school) from the event, and to place the "story" of 9-11 in the control of parents.  This is a different perspective on what happened - and how it affected people - than is usually set forward, and it tells us something about our culture in that time and place. In our discussion of your stories about 9-11, we also noted connections between the way you represented "what happened" and representations in the media and popular culture.  As pointed out in the textbook essay, we generally relate our experiences in terms of stories that are "out there" and experiences that don't fit into readily available stories can be harder to tell.

We also considered ethical considerations associated with who has control of interview material.  You took part in an in-class exercise to see if the interviewer and the subject had the same "interpretation" of what was said, and while most of you had excellent agreement - there were aspects of the conversations that one person remembered or noticed that did not stand out to the other.  These differences can "matter" to subjects when researchers write up their results.  We talked about the three ways to "get permission" listed in the text, and about collaborative analysis of transcripts => the approach taken in participatory research associated with oral history.

We briefly touched on methods to for analyzing and interpreting oral history interviews - and noted that it often involved techniques associated with textual analysis, literary analysis, discourse analysis, and quantitative analysis.

I have been conferencing with you about your research projects.  Your post discussing your research question, describing your methods, and listing/describing relevant research is due December 1.  You should have a good hand on what you will be posting BEFORE Thanksgiving break so you are on the right track (and can read the necessary background material.  Check the assignment sheet or email me if you have questions.


I will not be answering emails from Wednesday, Nov 23 - Saturday November 26. 


On Tuesday, Nici + Jazmyne will give a presentation on Quantitative research (the oral history article => available through the Kean data bases), and I will present some "number data" from the Kean University writing program so you can get an idea about how quantitative data is used in writing studies.


Have a good weekend, and see you on Monday.

11.14 Research essay Assignment and Oral History

We began class by discussing the research project.  We talked through the assignment sheet (posted below and to the right), set up the due dates, and revised the calendar to reflect those dates (also posted below + to the right).You also signed up for conferences to figure out your research questions and begin planning writing for your research essay.

Juliana and Katie then discussed the sample essay for oral history (notes from that discussion are posted on the previous blog).  

For Thursday:

Final draft DA: Due Nov 17 => send it as an attachment to the course email

You will participate in the interactive exercise for oral history, and we will talk briefly about the chapter in Griffin. Pay attention to the four features of oral history that the author focuses on: oral history as "recovery history;" the role of memory in creating the stories at the heart of oral history; the effects of culture & "popular" stories on oral history, and the ethics of creating oral histories.  Also - look at the release form and do some thinking about why release forms might be necessary in oral history research.

No blog assignment - but work if you have something drafty up for the December 1 post (Blog 17, see research project assignment sheet) I will give you some preliminary feedback.

Research Project

Purpose:  to identify a compelling research question relevant to English studies; to practice two or more research methods for gathering and analyzing data relevant to that focus; to reflect on how to make informed choices about research methods; to document your research process.  

Description of the assignment: Write a reflective essay in which you identify the background and intent for a research project of your choice, present a research question and/or focus to direct your exploration of that project; and present a discussion of your methods for data collection and data analysis.  The overall focus of this essay will be reflective analysis of the appropriateness and effectiveness of your choice of research method(s) for the project you have identified. 

Criteria: Content

1. Clear statement of a research question to focus your analysis=what the analysis will show

2. Discussion of the relevance/importance of your focus to English Studies

3. Presentation of relevant background, including other research, related to your project  

4. Clear identification & explanation of your choice of research method

5.  Discussion of your choice of methods for data analysis

6. Reflective discussion of how you will conduct your research

7. Discussion of anticipated obstacles or difficulties in this project

8. Development and organization appropriate to a reflective analysis

9. Sentences relatively free from errors

Criteria: Writing process The essay will be developed through a series of drafts that demonstrate:

1) a variety of techniques for invention and revision;

2) increased quality of writing and ideas throughout the revision process;

3) thoughtful analysis of how and what to revise in successive drafts. 

Length and form

MLA format (no title page).  Word processed.  Length should be sufficient to cover the requirements of the assignment.

December 1: posted on blog for workshop=> discussion of
Research question, description of methods, relevant research

December 8:  Draft due

December 15: Final draft due

revised calendar

Week 13 Quantitative methods in English Studies

M Nov 21  

Discussion - uses for quantitative methods in English Studies

Read: nothing!

No Blog

Th Nov 24   NO CLASS  HAPPY THANKSGIVING

3.  Becoming a researcher: writing research

Week 14

M Nov 28 

Set up portfolio

Workshop essays

Blog 21:  link to draft portfolio

Th Dec 1 

Workshop portfolios/ research projects using rubric

Week 15 

M Dec 5   

Discussion exam questions

Presentations research projects

Blog 22: Posted

Th Dec 8  Draft research essay due

Presentations research projects

Blog 23: Posted

Week 16 

M Dec 12   Distribute exam question

Final workshop research projects

Th Dec 15

Final research project ts due + portfolio

M Dec 19 Final exam due

Oral history presentation

Feminist pragmatism

Assumptions about how knowledge is created

·       Understanding of truth can change through conversation

·       (subjects concern) might produce knowledge not valued

Assumptions about truth

·       Subjective truth located in a particular perspective

·       Created through active participation of interviewer + subject

·       Subject’s truth may differ from interviewers

·       Truth is not always presented directly

Ethics

Assumptions about how the world works

Power & control

·       Interviewer and subject work together = subject can resist

·       Need for critical study of dominant framework

Theory of history

·       Contests “great man’ theory of history

·       Oral history narrators actively shape stories = create stories never told before

11.9 More on interviews and what to expect for the Research Essay assignment

We concluded our discussion of interviewing & did an exercise to explore interviewing techniques.

Important questions to review as you think about interviewing include:
What are the different types of interviews you might design in terms of number of participants, the interview setting, kinds of questions, and power dynamics?

What factors influence power dynamics in different interview types, and how do power dynamics affect the kinds of data available through interviewing?

What are the differences between traditional (author) interviews and the kinds of interviews used for research in English studies?

What are "active" interviews and how do they differ from interviews where the interviewer strives to remain neutral + objective?  What kind of information is gathered through each approach?

Research project essay:
Your final essay for this course is a reflective analysis on a research method for a project of your choice.  I will post the assignment sheet by Monday - and we will talk a little more about the requirements at that time.

For Monday:

Read:  "I didn't do anything important," The Oral History Review 36.1 2009, available through Kean University data bases.

Blog 16:  Post a description of a research project you want to do.  Describe what you want to study in general - and what questions you will ask in particular.  Describe where, what (who), how & why you want to study.  If you are nor sure => put some possibilities out there. 

11.7.2011 DA drafts + Interview

Due dates for the DA revisions + draft of the Research essay will be as follows:

First Draft DA: Nov 3  Thursday
Returned by Nov 7

Final draft DA: Due Nov 17
Returned Nov 21

Draft Research Project: Due Nov 28


Revisions to DA essays.
We began class with a general discussion of what to work on for your revisions to the DA essays.  My impression from your drafts was that almost everyone is doing good work using discourse analysis as an analytic tool.  Most of what needed work was connected to not being familiar with the academic discourse for research essays => the particular "moves" research writers in writing studies make in order to present their findings.


We used the Goldman essay in Bloome et all to look at a pattern for setting up an essay.  The introduction contained the following information: 

1.    Identified text she will analyze

2.    Identified method = discourse analysis

3.    Specific statement of what she will study

4.    Elaboration of what the analysis will show => opportunities to make meaning through critical analysis of text

5.    Context for transcripts = setting, different moves made in the transcript

6.    features of text she analyzes

7.    [importance of the question]


While your essay does not necessarily need to present exactly this same information in exactly this order = this list does represent the kind of information that writers use their introduction to set up. 


Presentation of evidence.  We also discussed how to present evidence  for what your analysis shows about the transcript.  Again - looking at Goldman's essay - you paid attention to how she presented a larger section of transcript -and then drew attention to particular patterns in language use, or turn taking, or other features.  Presenting a larger section of the transcript allows the reader to understand the context for the patterns you point out.

Conclusions:  We also discussed what to include in your conclusion.  The focus of your conclusion will necessarily reflect what you "discovered" and the methods you used to discover it.  In general - the conclusion points out what your evidence shows with respect to your focus.  In addition to summing up findings, you might also:

• discuss strengths + weaknesses of different answers suggested by your analysis
• generalize your findings  + ask questions about how & whether that generalixation will hold
• point out the usefulness/importance of your findings for researchers/etc

Interviews

Amanda and Melissa began their presentation on interviews.  We left off in the middle of the discussion on methodology.  We were discussing  Strangman's methodology - and were considering the possibility that her assumptions may have been quite different from those of her interview subject.  

On Thursday, we will finish this discussion, and move into more in-depth talk about interviewing as a research process (as set forward in Griffin's article).  After we finish discussing interviewing, we will map out a rubric for your research projects and set up the assignment sheet.

For Thursday:

Read: Griffin in Griffin

Blog 15:  Post your plan for revising your DA essay

Good class and see you on Thursday.

11.7.2011 Overview of Strangman

Interview organization

Introduction [overview of the project]

Questions:

1. subject's credentials

2. background for the class project

•  motivation for doing it (why she did it the way she did)
• how the project "worked" (what she did + how children responded)
• available versions of the text
•  what kids "do"

3. discussion of the Alice in Wonderland Web site

4. Toy theater production

5. Assessment

6. What students learn

7. Technology in the classroom

•  technology itself
• what students learn + how to use it effectively

8.  Closing comments

Questions: 
This essay uses interviewing to report on a teacher researhers' work.  What are the findings?   How does the interviewer highlight those findings? 

What is the difference between the approach taken by Ch in the DA transcripts, and Strangman's approach?

What other "kinds" of interviews might be useful for research in English Studies?

11.2 Ethnographic research Part 2

Subrina set up an ethnographic writing exercise for us to take part in today.

You were participant/observers during a group activity to solve a brainteaser.

After we all took notes and worked on the brainteaser - it was not clear that we "solved" it correctly = but for the purposes of studying group interactions that really didn't matter.

We made a list of what you wrote down.  They included:

1. "objective" observations
what individual group members said
the order and interactions in conversation
how people looked (facial experssions, posture), moved (gestures, shifting in chair)
what they did ( looking at computer, writing, talking or not talking)
what you did
the time, duration, and sequence of interactions and events

2. interpretations/inferences
how group members "felt"
inferences about what group members were doing or thinking (she thought the puzzle was easy, she didn't want to tell us the answer but she knew it)
why group members did what they did

3. self- reports
how you felt
where you sat/what you did with respect to the rest of the group
what you said
your internal response to the activities around you

We followed up our quick categorization of the kinds of notes you took with a discussion of how we might use these observations to study group dynamics => what they might tell us.  The "objective" observations serve as "proof" or at least evidence of the inferences.  The self-reports provide "clues" to the observer's biases or assumptions - as well as his/her patterns for thinking. Taking these three types of observations together - you can begin to create a detailed picture of "what happened" in the different groups, and you might correlate differences in interactions with differences in some aspect of the identities of group members, their communication strategies, or some other factor.  Patterns in correlations between "success" as a group - and other factors (from your descriptions) might then give you clues as to what made the group work (or not). You would need to study many groups, for a long time - to come up with a "theory" to account for group success in college classrooms - and you might want to ask your participants what they thought about your theories to ensure that you had interpreted what you saw the way they "meant" it.

Your process for analyzing your observations would involve naming, classifying, counting, and exploring the context of the various the actions/interactions/ and outcoumes you saw.  You might then think about how what you observed connected to larger cultural patterns.

We ended class by briefly reviewing Alsop. I directed your attention to ideas/practices from the text that might be important for you if you chose to use ethnographic methods for your project.

Good writing today!

For Class Monday:
Read: Amanda and Melissa will be discussing Visual Literacy for All:  A Fourth-Grade Study of Alice in Wonderland  http://www.readingonline.org/articles/voices/edinger/.
Read your classmates' essays
Blog 14:  discuss what you did well + what you need to work on for your DA essay.  Then indicatewhat kind of feedback you would like from readers.

In class we will spend some time discussing what the DA essays - and you will spend some time commenting on your classmates' drafts.

Have a good weekend.