Blog 15

Blog #15:  Post your best version of your research question for your final research project.  Write a description of what kind of information you want to gather from your research participants, and begin a list of the kinds of questions you want to ask to gather your information.

Research Question:

• How do men tell stories of love and romance differently than that of women?

Information I want to gather:

• I want to see how each subject tells the same story, but in different ways.
• I want to ask each subject to tell a story. I want to look for not only how it is told but maybe the emotions, eye contact, and hand movements that are associated within the storytelling.
• I want to see what kind of stories that each subject tells and see if gender plays a role in how a story is told or interpreted.

Questions:

• "Tell me about your wedding day."
• "Tell me about meeting for the first time."
• "Tell me about your first date."
• "Where and when did you meet?"
• "What did you find interesting about your husband/wife's family?"
• (a question that relates to subject #1, but not necessarily subject #2; need help with forming a question related to this.)

Since my research is about storytelling, there are not many questions that I will be asking. I am more interested in how the stories are told to me and the information that I am given. 

Blog 14

Blog #14: Draft short analysis project.  This post should be an ESSAY.  Present your question, codes/categories, patterns, hypotheses and theories in a story form similar to the forms used in the sample research essays we read on commenting and WAW courses.  You may want to use tables or charts to present how your data fits into categories, and you may want to use headings to break your essay into sections.  Good luck!


Due to family situations I was not able to go into further detail with editing my rough draft.  I plan to have an updated draft shortly.

Short Analysis Assignment

     All writers write in a way that simply works for them. Writing has been opinioned to be an art of it’s own and how one decides to express themselves may vary based on how others perceive their writing and capabilities. Being a student for the past sixteen years I have noticed many different strategies for writing based on how my teacher’s taught writing. Unlike some, I find it useful if a professor comments on my writing whether it is something I take to heart or something I ignore.  I want look into how the complexity of professors’ comments can encourage or discourage a writer. The details within professors’ comments may benefit some writers, but discourage others based on their writing abilities and interests.

     Through many observations and days of analyzing professors’ comments within papers there were many similarities as well as differences. Many of the comments among the six papers were positive comments. For example, comment number six in Sample 4 mentions,  “There are definitely important reasons to cite (and to not plagiarize). My gut says you might need to go deeper into some of them, particularly those the audience may find surprising.” This is a very detailed comment and the professor offers additional research that the writer can do to strengthen their paper. It seems as if the professor has high expectations and that is why they give the writer more ideas for their paper. On the other hand, in Sample 5 the professor does not seem to give the writer a lot of feedback which may lead the student not to revise their work to their full potential. One negative comment in particular is as follows, “Too much repetition here, cut to your point.” This comment may discourage the writer because they may interpret that their professor did not put much time into reading their paper. The professor is clearly not giving the writer the feedback that they need to better enhance their paper. The writer may believe that their writing is at the professor’s expectations since there is no additional information regarding how to get to their focus or what to cut in their paragraph. Interpretation means a lot through the description of a professor comments and perhaps the personality of the professor as well.

     I do find it beneficial when a professor gives me feedback that can lead me towards a better paper. In Sample 3, the professor gives the writer a link that they can use to support their ideas between images and text of fashions. The writer can look at the link provided to go into more details regarding fashion. This comment is very well thought out by the professor, which the student can find valuable in their revision. On the other hand, in Sample 5 the professor circles “fighting” and comments, “or love making”. Although, this comment is not as useful as the previous professor’s comment, this professor goes into providing the writer with a comment they can use to their advantage. The advice given by the professor in Sample 5 is not as descriptive as Sample 3, but it does offer the writer feedback in terms of correcting smaller issues in their paper.

            To look into a deeper issue of how the comments are viewed as a whole I will describe the length of the comments in Sample 1 and Sample 6. Most if not all of the comments in Sample 1 are longer than a sentence and seem to ask a question for the writer. For example, Sample 1 mentions, “The basic ideas of this paragraph are clear, but I feel they could be taken further. Why should students care about opposing viewpoints? How should they deal with them if they must be incorporated into the argument? The bullets in this sections are good advice for research in general, but it doesn’t really tell students how to deal with sources that challenge their viewpoint and that they can’t ignore.” This comment is four sentences long and allows the student to think critically in terms of what they are speaking about in their paper. On the contrary, Sample 5 has comments that are roughly about three words each. The length among these comments does not describe what the reader can work on to support that particular point in their paper. For example, “not soul but taste.” The professor could have suggested different words or phrases the writer could have used to get their point across which is what the professor did in the other Samples I have previously mentioned. Length means a lot in terms of the thought that the professor gives to the writer. The more questions that the professor asks the writer the more the writer can add to their paper to make it stand out.

      In conclusion, the more detailed a professor’s comment is the more advantages that the students can receive from the comments. Comments that are only a few words long do not offer the writer much in terms of suggestions. Overall, the professors comments in all of the Samples except Sample 5, write to the students on a personal note. The personal paragraph contains information based on what went well in the writer’s paper and what the writer may want to focus on to meet the expectations of the assignment. Sample 5 does not give the writer any personal comments that’s gives the writer confidence and assurance. **don’t know how to end**

**may change research question? Can mine be answered?**

Blog 13

Blog  #13:  List any terms from Gee you are having trouble understanding.  List/discuss some of the building tasks language does that might apply to your research project.


Troubles Understanding:
I understood the majority of the terms and information within chapters 3 & 4. After re-reading the chapters I came across several definitions and examples that puzzled me. I understand the basic definitions of the terms, but I don't understand the terms as Gee explains them. 

-"Social situated identity" pg. 30
-"intertextuality" pg. 44
-"Real Indian" pg. 31
-"Who-doing-what" pg. 46

 Ideas for My Research Project:
I may find it beneficial to use social languages, discourses, conversations, and intertextuality as I conduct my research project. This fits very well with my research topic of storytelling among males and females as it relates to language. As I gain a better understanding of these terms, I feel like they will be easier to explain in terms of relation to my idea. 

Blog 12

Blog #12: We spent the last part of class talking about which data set you might want to work with - and what research question you might ask. This post should include which data set you will work with, a detailed research question, and some ideas for the features of the data that you will be working with.

I am juggling between two data sets:

The shaggy dog stories:
Research Question:

• How does negativity among the function of punchlines lead towards conflict within each story told?
• How does the clarity of the punchline help to interpret the story?
• How does a reader's clarity of the story determine the moral of the story?

Features of all three:

• Understanding the punchline
• Knowing what the punchline of the story is
• Having an interest in the story brings clarity to the punchline
• Re-reading the story can lead to a different view of the story
• Having imagery to work with in the story
• Each punchline/story contained some act of violence
• Having an interest in a story can help the reader to understand the punchline

Teacher commenting:
Research Question:

• How do written comments vary from comments typed?
• How do positive comments effect a writer's feeling towards revisions?
• How should a writer interpret teacher's expectations?

Features of all three:

• Comments typed have more detail and explaination
• Comments hand written are sometimes hard to read and aren't more than a sentence, if that
• There are more comments when typed then when written
• Given examples by the professor the writer can use their comments to expand their paper by adding more sources and information
• A teacher's expectations are depended upon their comments
• If the comments are short the writer may assume that they do not need to revise a lot or write to their full intentions because the professor shows no interest.
• If the comments are long the writer may assume that the professor cares and is willing to help the student to better their writing by providing examples and sources for the writer to use to strengthen their writing.

Blog 11

Blog 11:  Complete the points under 4 on the "developing a research plan" 

worksheet (posted at the right).

4.) Formulate a research plan that includes:

-Statement of purpose (what you hope to show/discover)

-Detailed statement of your research question

-List of the information you need to gather

-A preliminary list of sources

-Plan for gathering your information that includes:

·      Who/what you will be studying:

     -WHO: I will be studying one male and one female: My mom and dad.

     -WHAT: I will be studying how they each of them share stories about meeting for the first time and then about moments they recall from their wedding day. I then plan on asking both of my parents stories that may relate to one of them and not so much the other. 

     (I am still trying to come up with a topic starter this part??) 

            ·      Where you will collect your information:

                 -I plan on conducting interviews from both my mom and dad in separate 

                   locations, but not during the same time.

                 -Book: "In a Different Voice" By: Carol Gilligan:

                   This book speaks about women's perspective and on ways of reasoning through 

                    life experiences. I plan on using this book to help with the assumptions and 

                    values that many people make based on ones gender.

                 -Book: "You Just Don't Understand" By: Deborah Tannen

                   This book speaks about different moves that men and women make when they 

                    talk. I am using this book to help decode the moves that my subjects may make 

                    when they share their stories with me. Such as hand movement, jittering, etc.

                 -Article: "Competence and Connection: Gender and Generation in      

                  Boys' Narratives" By: G. Hallden

                  This article speaks about characteristics of stories that 12-13 year old boys tell. I   

                 am using this article to compare the overall stories told by each of  my subject 

                 and how gender plays a factor in how the stories are told through descriptions, 

                 emotions, detail, etc.

·      How many subjects you will study:

 I will be studying two subjects:

1.) Female: Mom

2.) Male: Dad

·      What methods you will use to conduct your study:

   -I will be conducting an interview in the form of storytelling.

  -As stated above, I will be using books and an article to help conduct my study. 

Blog 10

Blog #10: Post your group's analysis of the 6 papers with comments.  

Group:

Shana

Andrea

Kelsee

Generra

Question:

What features of the comments give information for the the revision of the paper?

Coding of comments:

#1- Writing Guide with Comments:
1. There are no negative comments.
2. Almost every comment contains positive feedback.
3. Encourages the student to edit their paper, without being aggressive.
4. Gives examples of sources that can be used to further extend the writer's work.
5. Sums up all the comments of the paper by providing the writer with a paragraph containing strong points and areas that need work.

#2- Process Narrative with Comments:

1. There are no negative comments.

2. Almost every comment contains positive feedback.  

3. Encourages the student to edit their paper, without being aggressive.

4.  Gives examples of sources that can be used to further extend the writer's work.

5. Sums up all the comments of the paper by providing the writer with a paragraph  

    containing strong points and areas that need work.

      

*I feel that these two papers are very similar in terms of comments. My group and I felt like these papers were commented by the same professor. We did not notice any negative feedback, instead we noticed many ways that the professor commented on the writer's work by asking numerous questions and providing feedback that benefited the writer.

#3- Sample 3

1. Gives a lot of positive comments, while staying away from aggressive comments.
2. Gives a check list of items that the writer can work on based on the overall paper.
3. Comment #3 provides a website that the writer can use to add more information.
4. Provides questions to keep the writer on track.

*There are no negative comments, the paper is full of positive feedback as well. By asking the writer so many questions the writer can extend their paper by answering those questions. All three papers are similar comment wise, thus far. 

#4- Sample 4

1.  The first comment is a bit awkward, it seems more of a negative comment than   

     positive. 

2.  Comment #4 gives the writer guidance on how to edit this particular section.

3.  There is no negativity because the professor goes into further explanation on how the   

      writer can fix or add to their writing. (Comment #3, Comment #14)

4.  Gives the writer questions to answer so that their writing is more clearly and covers all 

      aspects.

#5- Sample 5

1.     The first comment is one of the only positive comments I saw. It tells the writer what 

        to define so that their paper is stronger.

2.     There are too many grammar comments, which is irritating to me. 

3.     For the fact that the comments are handwritten and not typed, they are hard to   

         understand at times. 

4.     There are too many cross-outs or circling that bring negativity to the writer's work.

5.      At the end of the paper the comment mentions the writing is weak, but this comment   

         does not give the student any advice on how to fix their work.

*Overall, this paper is the first paper that contains negative feedback, where the comments gear the student towards failure rather than success in their revision. Maybe this is due to the fact the comments were handwritten or the professor looks for more negative comments than for positive comments. 

#6- Sample 6

1. The first page contains few comments, but overall they are positive. 

2. Words are added to make the sentence flow better. ("Solemn & "or a banquet")

3. The comment about organizing the examples, is feedback that the writer can use to   

edit their paper to make their information fit together.
4. On the second page, there are many comments that give the writer suggestions of what to write. ("a symbol of life")

5. Encourages the student by giving the student two sentences summarizing their paper.

*This paper is another paper that contains mostly positive comments rather than negative comments. The comments in this paper aren't as detailed but there are still comments that the writer can use to revise their paper. This paper fits into the category that all of the papers fit into, but sample 5. The handwritten comments in this paper are more clear than that of sample 5 as well.

Unanswered Questions:

• How does the writer feel when reading the comments to revise their paper?
• Are the comments positive or negative?
• Do the comments confuse or help the writer?
• What are the similarities between the comments? Are they written by the same professor?
• Are comments taken in different perspectives based on the relationship with the professor?
• Are comments taken in different perspectives based on how the writer feels about the topic?
• Are handwritten comments less descriptive than that of typed comments?

Blog 9

 Blog #9: Post your group's work on the task outlined above (points 1-5) so far:


Group: Shana, Andrea & Generra


We decided to use the paper that Andrea wrote for the assignment. These are our ideas and comments so far:


Question:What features of the comments give information for the revision of the paper?


Coding of the Comments:

1. No negative comments, but positive feedback.
2. Supports the student in a positive manner.
3. Encourages the student to keep writing and edit where necessary, without being aggressive.
4. Gives examples of soucres that can be used.
5. Explains what needs work and follows up with how to "fix" the revision.

Student Reactions:

Andrea - This was my paper that we were working on. I did not have any hard feelings about the comments from my professor. I thought I was doing the assignment wrong, but I was assured that I was not, and it gave me hope that I will complete the paper without worrying to much about it. To me it was all positive feedback.
Shana -  Based from experience, Andrea & I both have had this professor for two classes last semester. Therefore, I noticed that many of his comments followed a similar format when he edited my papers last semester. For example, he does not say anything negative, but he does provide feedback to improve a point being made. Another key thing I noticed was that he had given me many of examples that I could have used in my paper to make it stronger, which is similar what he did here for Andrea's paper as well. Comments like these make me want to edit a paper rather than just write to finish it and satisfy the requirements. We all had similar reactions when speaking about Andrea's paper. 

Generra - 

Pose a Question:

We did not get this far yet. We have no question as of today. 

Blog 8

Blog #8: After you receive my comments to Blog 7 - do some more work on developing your research project.  List references, write to the prompts for 4 & 5 on "developing a research plan" => or develop writing useful for where ever  you are in terms of developing your project.

My research topic: "How do women tell stories differently than men do?"

• I am very interested in borrowing Deborah Tannen's work that Dr. Chandler mentioned to me as well as any other suggested authors. I may look for sources online but I think that I will be able to find more relevant information in the form of print.       
• I am definitely open for my classmates to comment on this topic as well as any sources they think that I can benefit from.
• I need to choose a particular story that I want my subjects to share. With this being said, I want my subjects to tell their story about falling in love. I plan on asking my mom and my dad to share their stories with me. I think that my parents are the perfect candidates for this because they fell in love during high school and have been happily married for the past thirty-one years. I want to see how my dad recalls meeting my mom and falling in love for the first time and how my mom shares her story about meeting  and falling in love. Also, my parents have only been with each other, so I think that these facts may cause for some interesting results. Background information definitely plays a part in the results I may receive. 
• I am wondering if age (my parents are four years apart) plays a role in how each of them tell a story, as well as experiences, family values, etc. I want to know the reason or gain some insights why women and men share their stories differently. I am assuming that since women are more emotional and men may hide their feelings more often that this may be a reason why stories are more complex for women. This is why I am interested in this topic, all due to assumptions that society has.
• I can list some assumptions that I have about men and women that may contribute to them sharing their stories differently and than compare that to what I find from my research as well as from what authors have said about story telling.