Blog 11

I decided to write my paper on the chat room transcript.


I know that the main focus of my paper would be dealing with how A thought the situation with the pedophiler was dangerous, but found the situation with the pastor's son to be funny. However, I'm finding it difficult to find the non-obvious aspect dealing with this focus. I know this is too general and I am still reading and rereading the transcript to come up with a more specific focus within this topic. 

Blog 10

Chat Room Transcript

Excerpt 1

1. The use of "I"

2. Repeat of the word "dangerous"

3. S asked the questions.

4. S moves the conversation along

5. A does the talking
6. A somewhat trusts the iinterviewer by telling her she was scared and did not tell her mom.
7. A explained when watching siblings, A was more overprotective with the sister than with the brother.

8. This excerpt was a serious

9. Told the story three times

S    so how do you think you felt about computers (when you were young- in grade school/middle school).

A    I loved it - I loved it because, when I discovered what AOL was - that I could email my friends, put in little pictures, photoshop - all those things - and like chat with people my age - which can be dangerous.  We didn't have a computer, but we had web tv.  Must have been in fifth grade.  And it was a slow connection and you could have a little keyboard, and you could, check your email, and you could also chat strangers - which was dangerous cause I think I talked to a pedophile I'm not sure, I I was in fifth grade I gave him my phone number when he called me I hung up I was so scared

S    what did that experience do

A    That was scary. because
S    did you tell your mom

A    no I never told my mom or my dad

S    we'll be careful if we publish this (laughing)

A    I mean, I think I told them later on when I was in college, but it's dangerous, cause my parents weren't familiar with computers or web tv and I was a child exploring it -like - there was no restrictions, my parents didn't know how to put restrictions, they weren't too familiar with it.  It's only maybe three of four years ago that my mom learned how to use a computer so being a child, discovering it on your own could be really dangerous when there's chat rooms, and talking to people telling you that they're your age, but they're not

S    Exactly

A    That was scary experience

S    But you figured that out, you knew to hang up when you got the call

A    Yeah, well as soon as I heard a deep voice I was like, that is not a kid, and like I think he asked me what I was wearing, and so I I was like, I'm wearing pajamas - bye, and I was like Oh my gosh, he's going to find where I live, my mom's going to kill me, so I didn't go on WebTv for a long time. 

S    Oh my.  So that was frightening. but it was also  - how did that change the way you used it then?

A    I was careful, and then I was strict on my younger sister and my brothers using the computer.  I also hogged the computer because I liked talking to my friends. But when my sister started going online I would check up on who she's talking to, I would look over, I would check the history, see what websites she went on

S    and how old were you when you were doing that.

A    High school.  I was in high school.  I was more familiar with it. And we started learning more about computers from the in middle school in high school by that time I was able to email who ever I wanted, and research, very familiar with the internet

Excerpt 2

1. The word "we" used.
2. S says something is funny, A continues saying fuuny things.
3. S and A take turns speaking.
4. Excerpt 2 much more funnier than Excerpt 1.
5. A did not seem scared when discussing her chat room experience with the pastor's son.

S    so what did you and your friends do on the computer in a typical session - if you went over to your friend down the street

A    check our emails, check our home pages, see if people left us messages, go in chat rooms and chat with our friends, exchange pictures with people that lived in our area that was our age, which could be dangerous, cause they could be imposters, we really didn't care

//

A    I think paint came with our computers,  I remember eight grade we were playing with like drawing our own little pictures, um changing the backgrounds and printing out whatever we did on paint, and then it evolved into photoshop, and making my eyes green, and fixing my cousin's nose to make it a little pointier, and then sending it to people will all the photoshop, so we had a lot of fun

S    oh you did (laughing) you did

A    we would make ourselves a little thinner, and that's what we did though, I think half of our albums were photoshopped, so um

S    so how often did you use technology with your friends?

A    every time we hung out

S    every time, every time

A    every time, that was just our way of life afterwards

S    do you have a particular story about one one adventure with technology (laughing)

A    um, one time we were in a chat room, chatting, well my friend and I were like, oh lets go with that guy's sceen name, and then, he was like do you have a picture, we sent a picture, we found out it was our pastor's son who was like 20, and we're like eeuew he's like an older brother, and then when he saw our picture he's like why are you doing that, why were you sending pictures to strangers, and kind of got mad at us

S    oh that's really funny it backfired on both of you

A    it was kind of embarassing, we were like eeuuew, we go to church with him, he's old,

S    that's really funny, how old were you then

A    we were freshman in high school

S    ok so you were about 14

16

A    yeah, and he was bout 20, and he was like our older brother, too, and we were like, so now we know how you pick us girls, all these girls you met were from the chat room

S    that's really funny

A    that was a weird story

S    that's a funny story, and it's funny, it's like a reprise of the story when you were little, and you gave, but it's um

A    well this time it's someone I know and I think we lied about our age, too, so we said, every time we were 14 we'd at 3 or 4 extra years, we wanted to sound older (small laugh) and we would change our screen name so many times, cause we're like  'ahh, we want to have a new personality today'

S    laughing

A    we're like "pinkgirlloves whatever" or there, like our new boyfriends name, like Angelalovewhateverhisnameis - we changed it every week.   What can you do?

Questions:

1. Why did it seem that "I" had less power in excerpt 1 than "we" in excerpt 2?

2. Why in excerpt 1 was the situation with pedophiler "dangerous", but in excerpt 2 the situation with the pastor's son "funny?"

3. How is A's tone different in excerpt 1 than in excerpt 2?


Adult Transcript

Excerpt 1

1.Repeats the phrase "I guess"

2.M replies with one word answers 

3. S pushes for answers

4. Ch does most of the talking.

5. M did not seem very interested in the interview, most of the answers given were very vague.

Ch        So in 2002, you were word processing, typing papers.  But in that math class you didn't want to use that math program

M         No

Ch        Do you remember why?  What were your feelings about it, can you remember that?

M         I guess thought that I couldn't do it, I didn't trust myself, I didn't trust the computer, I was afraid.

Ch        what was it about your self that you didn't trust?

M         That I could do it, I guess I didn't think that I needed to use a computer in that way.

Ch        Yeah

M         I was willing to use it to type

Ch        yeah, and what was it that you didn't trust about the computer?

M         I guess that putting all of my information in there, and trusting the computer to, you know, analyze it, the way that I could have done it myself

Ch        So you didn't think it would ah,

m         represent what I wanted it to represent.

Ch        yeah.[ pause] now go back again, so what was it, what was your resistance, if you can remember

M         With the computer?

Ch        Why didn't you want to learn it?  The teacher says we're going to do the course this way, and you rather than learning the program they gave you, that was supposed to make it easier, and that's the course where they were going to teach you and support you to use it, you you did it your own way, and that  isn't just you, that's fairly typical, so let's do some reflecting on, what were your motives, I understand the fear thing, but let's think about where the fear came from, what was it, the one you identified, about not thinking that it was going to represent what you really wanted, is a big one, that's big, but can you think of any of the other things, maybe about you, or your past experiences or

M         Maybe I didn't relate the computer to education in the right way, that I didn't think it was necessary

Ch        mm hm, and what do you mean, like, didn't relate the computer to education?

M         I guess I thought I could go through without - without having to do this.

Ch        It seemed like something extra?

M         Yeah, and even though I guess I wasn't you know comprehending that this was supposed to make my life easier, it made it more difficult

Ch        And also, I think I'm hearing, if I'm understanding you right, you felt that learning that program didn't really have anything to do with what you needed to learn for that course,

M         right

Ch        that you'd learn more, or better, or what you wanted, by doing it on your own

M         mmhmm

Ch        So you didn't see the program as part of what it was important to learn

M         Mmhm

[I wish I had asked why at this point]

M         I was fighting it

Excerpt 2

1. Says "didn't" alot 

2. Ch pushes for M to answer more specifically.

3. Ch asks the questions

4. M does more talking...explaining things in a bit more detail.

5. Just like in excerpt 1, M didn't seem interested.

Ch        that's very interesting.  OK that was your school experience beginning that fall. So then when you took the computer class, how did you feel, it was obviously different.

M         It was different, and ah, it was a fun experience because the teacher was very good, very willing to work with use, she asked us where we were all, part of the class it was you know, twice a week, once we would meet in the classroom, and the other time we would meet in the computer lab, so it was the history of computers, so we learned about the history of computers, and then it was the actual hands on, how we would use it, so and we had to do projects, each project, we had to do an excel project, we had to do a word project, we had to do what else, what other programs are there, we did excel we did word, we did (thinking) what's it? slides?

Ch        Powerpoint?

M         yeah powerpoint and ah,

Ch        frontpate?

M         no, I'm trying to think what else, but they were just projects that we had to turn in.  So ahm, some kids knew how to use the computer but they didn't know how to use it in the way she wanted it to be used, they would zip by all their work and not do it the correct way, and maybe I was in a better situation, because I knew nothing. about you know, computers, and this was my fear, entering the information and then you press a button, and I remember , you know, the laughed at me because you would press the button and everything on the screen would disappear and I'd be like "oh what happened" but there was a way to get it back, there was always a way to get it back, so it was a funny experience and it was ah, it was kind of taught me not to be afraid, to you know, to use the computer

Ch      good, so this course was important, in getting you over your fear

M         yeah

Ch        What do you think it was that got you over it?

M         Ahm, I guess what could happen, you know? You know, what could happen, you put your work in you press a button, and you just - what's going to happen?

Ch        So you had some assurance that your work would be there.

M         Right

Ch        that you knew how, that you knew how to what?  What was it that you learned how to do?

M         well I learned, well when I was typing on word I didn't know a lot of the different things, to use, I learned how to ah how to format, I learned different fonts, I didn't know how to use any of the pull down bars, I didn't know all of those things the drop down menus I didn't know all those things were there, I didn't know about the undo button, that's my favorite button the undo button (laughing) go back, go forward.

Ch        so let's go back to how you learned word when you learned it by yourself,

you had something you needed to do, right? and then you'd ask someone what to do.  Did you do very much exploring on your own?

M         No.  No if I had to type, I just went in and I typed I used it like a typewriter.

Ch        But you didn't go across the menu at the top and use the hover thing so

M         No I was afraid to.  I was afraid of breaking the computer. Or afraid of what would, I never explored, I went on, went to word, opened it up, typed what I had to type, and you know.

Ch        So your process of learning word was to go in and type, and then when you needed to do something that you didn't know how to do

M         Ask somebody

Ch        Ask someone, and then, how would they tell you, or what kind of directions did you get?

M         Ah, well like where us word.  I would type in Notepad, you know, and then maybe somebody showed me, or you turn it on, and I thought that was the only program and then somebody, don't you use word?  What do you mean?  You know, so , ahm, then I would go into word,

Ch        OK so, I guess then maybe that the discussions of the history of the computer and how they were organizred and what they did were important in that class

M         probably (but doesn't sound really convinced)

Ch        Do you remember

M         yeah cause when they, well it talked about, ah fear of computers, ah well and the realization that a computer has really been around for very a long time, and we talked about the internet and we learned how to find things, on the internet, and

Ch        What kinds of things - did they tell you how to get help on the internet?

M         I think so

Ch        Did you use that?

M         No

Ch        Ok, I'm trying to figure, cause, we've skipped all these other things about friends and growing up in school, so you had this one class and ah, so then, ah you bought a computer - how did things change when you bought a computer

M         I guess then I was little, my kids used it a lot more than I did, and I really didn't explore at first, and then I became more comfortable with it, little by little, then after I took that computer class, I took an internet course for the first time, I said, well let me try this, now that I, well I had to trying to graduate from Middlesex, to fit into my schedule, and then that internet course kind of helped me to build up my confidence, cause we had to do everything on the computer, answer all these questions had the discussion group and we had to answer all the se questions and he the teacher. It was an English course and he set up all these links to different things on the internet that we could go to, so I kind of explored a little bit that way.

Ch        So the internet course helped you to learn how to explore?

M         I guess so, how to research on how to use the computer for research

Ch        did it help you with exploring programs

M         not really programs, no

Ch        So how would you learn a program now?

M         Ask somebody

Ch        You still wouldn't go through the menu bar and see what each of the tools did, and you know because you can hover over it, or you wouldn't open them up and just play with it

M         I might, but I would probably ask somebody

Ch        Would you read somethihg
M         I would read, yeah.  I would read the help things

Questions:

1. How does Ch push for questions, when M was very vague in answers?

2. Does M's disinterest in the interview effect Ch's questioning>

3. In what ways does M explain more in excerpt 2, rather than one word answers in except 2?

Blog 9

Gaming Literacy Interview

Smith's Social Linguisticn (Interactional) Approach

Messages -> What someone says ( 1 person ) ( 1 Topic )
Interactional Units -> A conversation with two speakers on the same topic.
Set of interactional units -> Coversation on the same topic with multiple turns/interactions.
Moved conversation forward by making statements.
CH introduces new topic
Change in set of interactional unit
             -> Defined by laughter
             -> Ch introduces new language.
Where does the conversation change focus? What marks those changes?

Interactional set #1 -> (Main Focus) Being an expert in games doesn't count as being in software.Ch        I wanted to talk a little, you  talk about your self as a hardware expert, you said software novice, although I bullied you into being competent, what software do you know how to use?

B          you know, what everyone else knows how to use, word, frontpage, powerpoint, excell, spreadsheet things

Ch        so it's interesting, games aren't really considered software are they?

B          they are -

Ch        so you know lots of software

B          yeah, but it's just games (laughing) -> signal for the end of the first unit. (Laugh)

Interactional set #2 -> Relationships between games and software. (Background) 
Ch        so what kind of crossover did you find between learning the games and learning the software everyone needs to know?  Obviously it wasn't real hard for you to learn, frontpage

B          I think it's because I had ah, background exposure

Ch        what background?

B          Well, just in learning how to learn a program, I just see buttons, tool tips and ah I make a go at it, the scissors mean I can cut in here, and I can just cut and drag and drop - these a simple things everyone knows, I guess the only reason I can pick up learning a program is that I just have that knack, no other way to explain it.

Interactional set #3 -> Gaming as literacy.
Ch        that's literacy - you have the basic tools, the right basic set of assumptions for how to read, understand, interpret a program.  And so what I'm looking for is the connection between all the gaming experience you have and your ability to do that with the applications - the academic applications

B          well like a lot of games, in the beginning, there's menus.  You don't just start playing.  There's menus, you get to customize your decal your spray, clothes,

laughing

It's not all playing the game it's a lot of process to prepare for it, there's like box, scripts, you practice it, and you're not playing with other people, you're just like fooling around.

Ch        OK so all those things - same kinds of processes, same kinds of moves - so navigating menus is something you learned from games that can carry over - anything else?

B          I think that is the main thing, I can't connect a First person shooter with Microsoft word, that would be a real stretch

Ch        how about file systems and gaming spaces?

B          you know, you're right, because the game, the games are still software, and they're still files, so there are certain organization of a game that is different from regular files

Interactional set # 4 -> How playing games as a kid prepared you as an adult.
Ch  - so what's another thing - so playing those games when you were a little kid set you up to be able to disentangle that DOS system more easily than your stepfather, so what were you doing?

B          like I was navigating through menus

Ch        you got used to trial and error

B          I wasn't being graded - there's no - all right man, let's pass this class you've got to

Ch        so you're completely comfortable with messing it up and starting over.

B          Oh yeah

Interactional set # 5 -> Ch states her opinion about print generation.
Ch        I think the print generation has a lot of hangups with that - what's something else

B          there's a song by Natasha Ben ? I hear it on the radio - it goes like, she says in her song, that we're taught not to make mistakes, we really can't live that way

Discussion of Patterns:
            -> Throughout each interactional set, Ch directs the conversation. However, in many instances Chandler's questions are based off of Brian's response. For example, in interactional set # 2 Brian responds to Chandler's initial question by saying, "I think it's because I had ah, background exposure."
Chandler's next question connects to Brian's answer so she asks, "What background?"

Who learns what?
         -> In this interview it is obvious that Chandler learns about the primary focus which is gaming and software. However, through the conversation Brian seems to learn that he is quite good at gaming and software because during the interview Brian seemed to be very modest about his skills in his field pf expertise.

Power Dynamics:
       -> Chandler is in control throughout the entire interview.








Goldman's cognitive approach

Surface layer- Physical presentation of the text and what is being interpreted. (What Brian thought about his gaming knowledge).
Textbase layer- What the text says.
Situational Model- Assumptions referred to by the text. (Brian now knows that he can apply his knowledge of gaming to different software.)

Ch        I wanted to talk a little, you  talk about your self as a hardware expert, you said software novice, although I bullied you into being competent, what software do you know how to use?

B          you know, what everyone else knows how to use, word, frontpage, powerpoint, excell, spreadsheet things

Ch        so it's interesting, games aren't really considered software are they?

B          they are -

Ch        so you know lots of software

B          yeah, but it's just games (laughing)

Ch        so what kind of crossover did you find between learning the games and learning the software everyone needs to know?  Obviously it wasn't real hard for you to learn, frontpage

B          I think it's because I had ah, background exposure

Ch        what background?

B          Well, just in learning how to learn a program, I just see buttons, tool tips and ah I make a go at it, the scissors mean I can cut in here, and I can just cut and drag and drop - these a simple things everyone knows, I guess the only reason I can pick up learning a program is that I just have that knack, no other way to explain it.

Ch        that's literacy - you have the basic tools, the right basic set of assumptions for how to read, understand, interpret a program.  And so what I'm looking for is the connection between all the gaming experience you have and your ability to do that with the applications - the academic applications

B          well like a lot of games, in the beginning, there's menus.  You don't just start playing.  There's menus, you get to customize your decal your spray, clothes,

laughing

It's not all playing the game it's a lot of process to prepare for it, there's like box, scripts, you practice it, and you're not playing with other people, you're just like fooling around.

Ch        OK so all those things - same kinds of processes, same kinds of moves - so navigating menus is something you learned from games that can carry over - anything else?

B          I think that is the main thing, I can't connect a First person shooter with Microsoft word, that would be a real stretch

Ch        how about file systems and gaming spaces?

B          you know, you're right, because the game, the games are still software, and they're still files, so there are certain organization of a game that is different from regular files

Ch  - so what's another thing - so playing those games when you were a little kid set you up to be able to disentangle that DOS system more easily than your stepfather, so what were you doing?

B          like I was navigating through menus

Ch        you got used to trial and error

B          I wasn't being graded - there's no - all right man, let's pass this class you've got to

Ch        so you're completely comfortable with messing it up and starting over.

B          Oh yeah

Ch        I think the print generation has a lot of hangups with that - what's something else

B          there's a song by Natasha Ben ? I hear it on the radio - it goes like, she says in her song, that we're taught not to make mistakes, we really can't live that way

Questions this analysis may answer:

              -> This analysis can answer questions about how someone proir knowledge about a certain subject, can help them gain new knowledge about a new subject.

             -> How a student's background can help them for the future.

Blog 8

Sample Transcript for DA

After I read the interview between Dr. Chandler and her student Lorena, I scanned the interview and looked for any "power moves" regarding discourse analysis. Here is the list of things I came up with:

• The student repeated the words "you know" throughout the interview.
• The student told the story three different times in the interview.
• The mood changes from the begining of the interview to the end.
• The three themes I found was the ESL Test, friends, and fear.
• I also noticed hesitation with some of the student's responses.
• Dr. Chandler used the student's responses to ask the upcoming questions.
• The interview ended on a positive note saying, "Yeah, in the new class, I got a new group of friends. It was good."
• There were approximately fifty-sixty uses of pronouns.

"Power Moves":
      Social Expectations:
         State, School board, mother, and friends.

I have to admit some of the things I came up with were more difficult to find than others. I am still trying to see if there is anything else I could find, and if I do I will add it to my list!

Blog 7

1.) I think discourse and discourse analysis is a bit clearer to me after the class lecture. Since we broke down the "power moves" to look for when we analyze discourse analysis in writing. The list included things such as use of pronouns, use of questions, eye contact, struggle of authority, themes, and use of tone of voice. I think this list makes it so much easier for understand and analyze discourse. Now I know what to look for and how to use this information when defining discourse. After we learned about these "power moves" I went and reread chapters 1 and 2 of Bloome. It was actually a little easier to understand and I think I was able to pick out some important aspects about discourse.

2.) My big question about discourse that I still cannot quite understand is how to use as a research method. I know we went over it in class, but I am sstill confused about the whole thing. Hopefully reading the blog that Dr. Chandler post about the lecture will help me understand it better.

3.) I think the best kinds of activities would be working in groups and using what we learned to identify discourse and discourse analysis. Sometimes listening to what your classmates think can help you get a better understanding ona certain topic.   

Blog 6

I had a really hard time understanding discourse and discourse analysis. Even after I read Bloome's piece, I still could not come up with a clear, specific definition. So I hope what I came up with is at least somewhat right!

I do not think there is one definition for discourse analysis. From the chapter, Bloome describes it as a the way we use and explore language in various literacy events. Discourse is also linked to texts, fasce-to-face interaction, and the structure of social institutions.

There are two levels in discourse called micro and macro. Micro levels approaches discourse with a more face-to-face interactions, the immediate situation, and local events. While on the other hand, Macro levels approach discourse with a emphasis on broad social, cultural, and political processes.

Another approach to trying to define discourse, you can use it as a noun or a verb. There are four definitions of disourse as a noun  that inlcude text, language-in-use, identity, and as truth, rationality, and common sense. As a verb, it become the action that a person or group take with others.

Even after writing my blog I still have still blurry spots abput discourse and discourse analysis. It seeems to be such a broad topic that there cannot be one definition to expalin the entire concept. It may be useful as a research method because as a future teacher, it could help me help a student who has a difficult time expressing themselves with me, peers, and even their parents.

Blog 5

Unfortunately I was not in class when we went over creative writing as a research method, but after reading the blog posted about the discussion in class I think I understand some of the points for creative writing. So the idea I came up with was about a young boy coming to the United States from another country on his own. The story would focus on all the hardships he faced trying to become a neurosurgeon and creating a life for himself in a new place, around new people.

My research process would include:

1. Cluster: This first step would give me a chance to come up with various smaller ideas that reflect my cental concept. For example, what age would the boy be when he moves to the United States? What kind of community would he live in? The stages of his educational process to become a neurosurgeon?

2. I would talk to friends and family who may have knowledge about this topic, and use their experiences to come up with a storyline and help me design a plot.

3. Freewrite: I would begin to write down my ideas and come up with a sequence of events that my character would go through. I would keep a notebook and pen or pencil with me, so if an idea popped into my head I could write it down.

4. I would interview people and observe children from other countries in school and home settings, just to see how he or she adapts to a new environment.

5. Once I have organized my thoughts and ideas I would begin to write my first draft, I would definitely have more than one peer revisions with more than one person. After I revised and have written my final draft, I would do another peer revision  and proofread numerous times before being completely finished.