Reflection Statement:
How this class affected my notion of Writing, Research and Technology
To be honest, I entered this class with reservations. I have always been somewhat insecure about my writing, despite being a Liberal Studies Major with a concentration in Writing Arts and English. Almost all of my classes at Rowan have dealt with writing or conducting research to produce writing and almost always required the use of technology. So, why was i so concerned about this class? I was excited about the challenges with which i would be faced.
The Twitterive seemed fun and different, the Collaborative Research Project would be interesting because of the subject matter and the Oral History Project would push me to finally dabble in the art of the interview process. When I finally sat down at my own computer at home after the first few WRT classes, staring at my blank Weebly screen, I was totally intimidated. "What am I going to write about in my blog? Who am I going to work with for my Collaborative Research Project? Who am I going to interview?"
These questions continued to follow me through the semester. I became more comfortable with blogging (I preferred the "free" blogging at the end of the semester - I liked sharing my own thoughts!) I found two great girls to work with on my project and we conducted two incredible interviews which added another dimension to our project.
While I was slow to warm up to the idea of publishing all of my work (good, bad and ugly) online, the slight possibility that an outsider might stumble across my page was thrilling! Maybe someone would be really interested in the research Linsey, Megan and I conducted. Maybe someone would be struck by something I was blogging about! Well, I was not an instant Internet sensation [thank goodness ;) ] but by publishing my work online, I was able to build an online identity, something I can access any time and any where I want. By having access to my peers blogs and writing assignments, I have been able to interact with my peers in a new way! We have built a community that extends outside of our classroom and that is amazing.
#iloveTWITTER
Thro the creation of this online identity and community, our class has also connected with other sections of WRT. We use Twitter to communicate regularly and keep updated on the progress of our work and work produced by our peers. I have had several "tutoring" sessions with my classmates over Twitter and it has proved to be a valuable resource for getting in contact with my peers quickly.
Different Forms of Research
Thankfully, I have been able to use the Internet to conduct research for the entire time I have been in college. The Internet is such a great way to find scholarly articles and research for any assignment. In order to complete the Collaborative Research Assignment, I relied heavily on the Internet for my research. If I was not using articles or references published online, I was using the Internet to find my way to another source for information.
When Mr. Mangini announced we would be combining the Oral History Project with the Collaborative Research Project, I was interested in how this would change the assignment. I was also a little nervous. "How are we going to record this interview? What if we lose the audio? How are we going to publish it online?" Thankfully, Linsey took on the responsibility for publishing out interviews because I not technologically literate enough to do that just yet! I appreciate the links Mr. Mangini posted guiding us on the processes of file conversions and transcription techniques but I would rather participate in other aspects of the project!
The interview process was great. I love the idea of a semi structured interview. By entering an interview with questions and ideas relating to the topic beforehand, it allows for some guidance during the interview but it allows for the interview participant to interject at anytime and expand on something of interest.
When Mr. Mangini announced we would be combining the Oral History Project with the Collaborative Research Project, I was interested in how this would change the assignment. I was also a little nervous. "How are we going to record this interview? What if we lose the audio? How are we going to publish it online?" Thankfully, Linsey took on the responsibility for publishing out interviews because I not technologically literate enough to do that just yet! I appreciate the links Mr. Mangini posted guiding us on the processes of file conversions and transcription techniques but I would rather participate in other aspects of the project!
The interview process was great. I love the idea of a semi structured interview. By entering an interview with questions and ideas relating to the topic beforehand, it allows for some guidance during the interview but it allows for the interview participant to interject at anytime and expand on something of interest.
I am grateful for the opportunity to have been able to creatively and constructively produce writing through Writing, Research and Technology and I believe I have a better understanding of how connected the three fields are. I have learned so much about different research methods and writing processes!