Process of my drafts

I felt as though I could really identify and relate with the writer Anne Lamott when it comes to writing the first draft. I can get easily frustrated with writing papers if I keep starting over and trying to write the entire paper in one sitting. I am one of those people who prefer to sit down for hours and complete an entire project instead of doing a little at a time. I suppose this is also why I tend to procrastinate, which is an even worse habit. Lamott expands on her writing process and how she would start writing and then cross it all out and keep starting over. She would take a break from her work for a while because she was frustrated, and then came back to her work and just let lose. She would stop being so hard on herself and just let her writing flow without restrictions."So I'd start writing without reining myself in, " lamott said. At times I have done this and it makes the writing process so much easier, even if it is just ideas or questins I have.

Practicing Using MLA Format

1. Burby describes, that when students enter seventh grade, hormones begin to kick in and peers become the most important people in their lives. Their catch phrase seems to be, "school is boring" (Burby, 108)!

2. Burby describes what excites children and how they have fun. "Kids just don't get the same adrenaline rush memorizing a poem in school that they get from going to a party," says Russ Quaglia (Burby,108).

Childhood Event

An event that sticks out in my mind is the time my brother broke his arm at my other brother's baseball game. I was probably about 6 years-old at the time. We spent a lot of time as a family attending Bobby's baseball games. He played baseball into his college years. I remember playing with a couple girls during that game, but I did not see very much of Jacob ( my other brother.) We tried to get into the basketball courts but the gate had been jammed so no one could get into or out of the courts. At some point during the game, a player hit a foul ball into the courts, leaving the ball stranded there.

I'm not completely sure what happened next, but apparently when no one was really paying attention, Jacob was making attempts at climbing the fence to get the ball. This was not the first time that Jacob has climbed something ridiculously steep. By the time someone actually noticed what he was doing, he had already made it to the top of the fence. The fence was about 20 feet in height. As he was climbing down to the other side he fell and shattered his arm. The worst part about all of it, was that he was stuck inside the courts and it took a while before anyone could break in to get him. I remember seeing our van fly out of the parking lot, thinking that I was going to be stranded at the game, even though my parents had already made arrangements for me to stay with another family for the night. All night long I was so worried about my brother.

Blogging My Research Paper

I stuggled at first with my decision for the subject of my action research writing paper. I knew it had to be something that I was passionate about that I could research in a scholary manner. I jumped from subject to subject of social issues that I am interested in and would find intriguing to research. Ever since high school, I have first-hand experienced the issue of schools shrinking emphasis on art programs and placing all their attention and importance on reading, writing, and math. I whitnessed teachers complaining about having to change their curriculum and teach certain lessons they did not find particularly important. I began to see new teachers hired for the purpose of tutoring certain students in math or reading during study halls. Why was this happening? My school was becoming obsessed with standardized testing. Depending on how well the schools does as a whole on the test, the more money the school recieves through the government. Art class was one of my only classes where teachers were safe from the pressures from the school board. Until, they went after the art supply budget. Because art is not tested, it was not viewed as impoarnt as other subjects. I am an art education major and someday will be an art teacher. This subject is very important to me and I would like to research further and find the importance of art in schools and the impact it has on students. I started with my research question..."Why are schools cutting art programs and how is this affecting students?" I decided to interview the people who would find this subject most relatable to their lives. I chose a teacher, parent, and student for my interviews.

Summaies

The copying of direct quotatation while forming notes can lead to the excessive use of quotes in a student's research paper. A student should only use about 10% quoted material in their research paper. The goal is to cut back the amount of copying source matter when composing notes. (Lester, 1976)

Discussion Questions for Chapter 3

Bernie Goetz is my opinion is a cold-blooded murderer. The main fact of the story is that we went onto an express train with a gun and the intention of killing. He walked over and sat down next to the kids ( who he already knew might start trouble,) and as soon as they tried to rob him, he shot them down cruelly. He was going out into the night looking for trouble, and he found it. There is nothing heroic about what he did. He is a racist jackass.
Yes, the kids were in fact starting trouble on the train, but he physically and knowingly put himself in that situation. If someone knows that it might be dangerous to jump into fire, they don't jump into a burning building. He may have been trying to handle crime, but he definitely went about it in the wrong way.
yes, I believe that certain individuals are more sensitive to their environment than others. I am strong believer that one's environment has much control over their actions. I believe that in nature verses nurture, nurture will always have a greater impact.
To some extent I do believe that crime is contagious. The power of the aesthetics of what is going around one has such a huge impact on how they act. If a student is sitting is a room filled with junk, garbage, and loud music...chances are they are not going to get any homework done. If that same student is in a clean, peaceful room, chances are they will at least get some homework done. If a group of kids are in a run down neighborhood and all they ever see is vandalism, they're going to think that this is acceptable.
I would say that a person may have certain traits as far as criminal personality type goes--but overall how a person grows up and what they are exposed to has more of an impact on their actions.
With the video which we saw in class during the peer presentation, I now believe that the living conditions and the environment set a tone for how the prison is run and how the inmates lives are run. Personally, I do not think that prisons should better their living conditions because this is punishment. These people are serving a sentence for crime they have committed, but I still believe that if the living conditions and environment were changed, the feeling in the prison would change substantially . Even something as small as having everyone wear different colors of uniforms instead of the usual orange.
Gandhi and Mandela are exceptions to this rule. The had such a passion for a cause which overcame the brutal environment they endured. They were extremely strong individuals and surpassed this rule because of their believes and passions in life.

English Conference

The conference which I attended discussed the idea of using a web quest--like technology in schools. It seemed a little similar to moodle or webct--only this was set up like an actual website that students can go on. The only problem I see with this is if some students do not have access to a computer at home, even though most students do now. I have also taken a a couple online classes and have found that sometimes the information can get confusing over the internet, or if there isn't enough access to the professor to understand the requirements--if any questions arise. Overall, I do think that web quests are great ideas, but maybe should not be relied on so much in the classroom (just as a reference.)

Chapter 3 The Sickness Factor

Gladwell discusses the sickness factor in his chapter which means a message that makes an impact. He presents a lot of research that was done regarding the sickness factor. In one study he has atually a participant observer and he also did research analysis. Their were a couple comparisons in this chapter. He uses Seasme Street as an example. The goal of this show was to spread litteracy to children all over the world. He presents a slideshow test to test the limits to how children can be disracted. The book showed a comparison between Seasme Street and Blues Clue by presenting tests to children. The results showed that Blues Clues had better success with getting information to the children. Blues Clues makes their program a mix between reality and fantasy to keep the children interested while learning. At certain points the book pointed out how Seasme Street made too many jokes that the children did not get. Bird bird also brought up how he does not really have a name, but people just call him that because that is what he is. This is far too philisophical for children to understand.

Chapter 3: Stickiness factor. Question 2 and 4

2. The stickiness factor is what makes a message memorable according to Gladwell. he said that it takes 6 times to view an advertisement to make it stick--repitition and active involvement to make a message memorable. Advertisers have succeeding in getting people to remember their advertisements, even if it irritated them, even though the buyer may be less likely to purchase the item. Even bad publicity is good publicity--this is true and false. It is true because the ad is still stuck in one's head, but not necessessarily good because someone could take a negative association with the product. Do we risk totally desensitizing as a culture...it depends on the upbringing of the child. What their learning style is. Depends on how much their parents read to them.

Chapter 2, Reflective Writing

Gladwell starts off this chapter with the story of Paul Revere. Revere's ride throughout the towns is probably the most famous example of a word by mouth epidemic. He aided the small militias with the valuable information, and they were able to prepare and do battle, and be successful with the start of the American Revolution. The interesting twist on this account of the story of Paul Revere is the fact that another man by the name of William Dawes, made a similar ride as Revere, but not much was done about it. What made Revere's ride so successful? Why didn't Dawes have this success? Did the people simply not want to listen to Dawes? The chapter goes on to talk about the six degrees of separation. A study was done where 160 random people were picked from Omaha, Nebraska. They were given a package and a name of a stockbroker who lived in Sharon, Massachusetts. The goal was to get the package to the stockbroker as fast as possible with the least amount of steps. The package made it to his door with a winning record of 6 steps. Gladwell goes on to talk about three different types of people who keep epidemics alive: connectors, mavens, and salesmen. Connectors know a lot of people. Connectors keep things interesting and keep things going.

Comparing and Contrasting Reading Genres

The last book I read was called Capitalism at the Crossroads, by Stuart Hart. Granted this book was for a winter session class, therefore I had to read it, I really did enjoy the content. This book seems to fall within the same genre as The Tipping Point. Both authors present facts and occurrences in the past which are pertinent to the subject of the book. These occurrences are stated to prove the theories of the book. Aside from academic reading I enjoy reading novels or humorous biographies. The last book out of school that I read for enjoyment that comes to mind is The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. This book is the diary of a boy who has autism. He adds charts, pictures, and maps within the book giving great visuals to look at. I could not put this book down. It was humorous and charming. The difference I felt while reading these two genres was the amount of stress and the sense of being too overwhelmed with information or feeling completely comfortable. With my pick, I didn't feel the stress of absolutely having to understand every page of the book. I could enjoy it in a more relaxed manner. With the Capitalism at the Crossroads, I felt as though I had to re-read pages just to understand all of the content that was being thrown my way.

Introduction and Chapter One

In the Introduction, Malcolm Gladwell begins by explaining the downfall of Hush Puppies (Brand of shoes,) and then the explosion of sudden popularity of the brand. “It was total word of mouth,” said Fitzgerald. The company went from selling 30,000 a year to 430,000 the next. The following years doubled these numbers. All of this happened just because a group of kids in East Village and Soho found them stylish! He states that the shoes passed a certain point in popularity and then they “tipped.” I have a feeling that this book is going to refer back to this idea in the chapters to come. They tipped? The book goes on to explain the exploding crime rate in New York city during 1992. Gladwell states that the crime reached an all time high and then it just “tipped.” It slowly became better, and the sidewalks and streets filled up again with normal residents at night. The idea behind this is how something turns into an epidemic. How word of mouth can spread ideas and products instantly. The link between these two examples is how little changes had big effects. There are three main ideas behind this chapter: contagiousness, little causes can have big effects, and change CAN happen at a dramatic moment. The chapter talks about how the city of Baltimore was attacked by the epidemic of syphilis. The percent of children born with syphilis increased by 500 percent. Crack cocaine can be linked to the increase in syphilis. Drugs are known to increase the action of risky sexual behavior. The drug problem also brought a lot more people into a small poor area.

Activity 5

For my social action report, I am still debating on a couple topics, but I think I have narrowed it down to the topic of the different stresses that the opposite sexes face based on what society has deemed as right and wrong. I would like to cover different topics such as: dating, school, socializing, and what is expected of he/she in later years. I would like to interview men and women of all ages to gain research in what our society really expects from women or men. Another aspect I could research is how different cultures have varied expectations for the women and men. I am interested in portraying to each sex what it feels like and what is expected from the opposite. Are the expectations of our society for men and women out of control along the lines of body image?--or is this just an individual's problem.

Diversity

The United States is essentially referred to as a melting pot. This term relates to the fact that this country was inhabited by a vast majority of races. The diversity in this country is refreshing and educational. I attended a high school where my graduating class consisted of fifty-six people. My class was all white students. There was one Asain student in my entire school and about six black students in the school--Kindergarten through high school. Needless to say, I never experienced much diversity. When I came to college I finally had the chance to socialize with people of different races than mine. I felt too sheltered and unexperienced to the diversity of a world outside of my little home town.

Activity One: Linguistic History

During elementary school, most of my writings were actually rewriting stories. In class we would read a story, then after, we were supposed to rewrite what we remembered from the story. I suppose this exercise increased our reading comprehension and aided our grammar skills. I also remember stapled phamlets that had statements at the beginnning and we were to finish with a story, such as: "If I were a bird..." I also wrote letters to my mom and dad. At the time, I thought they were letters, but most of them just said "I love you." I wrote in a diary once in a while. I never stuck with writing in a diary all the time though. I would write for a week then forget the next week and eventually pick back up a month later.

I do not think writing is a hard task. I think the idea of writing is actually harder than the task itself. When I have a paper due, my initial thoughts are negative, but when I actually sit down and begin, t is not a hard task at all. I had a journalism and college writing course in high school which helped a great deal when I started college. In high school I was on the school newspaper, but I mostly did polls and managed the quote of the day (the paper was on the internet.)

Hi

Hi. My name is Cassie McAfee. I am a senior and my major is art education and art history is my minor. I am new to blogging, but I am looking forward to the class.