Update on Research

I'm starting to create a better idea of what my project will look like, but most of it is in my head (not the best place to be at this point). I have been thinking a little bit more about students and directed self-placementfor fycomp...Right now I would like to see what students think of the new"questionaire/quiz" that will be used in the summer months during orientation. This new format, derived from the "Cosmo-quiz-type" layout is what EMU is planning to use to place freshmen for the Fall 2005 school year (and hopefully for years to come). I have looked at the questionaire, and have seen some useful aspects, and some problematic ones. The biggest problem I have with this format is that it assumes that students already know how to talk about writing. Many students cannot think or verbalize aspects of writing,because they have not yet been trained to think in that way. I know this because when I ask my own students about identifying "conventions" in their writing, they have no clue what I mean. This is, of course just one example but something to keep in mind.

On Reading Empirical Research in Writing...

The text gives you quite a bit of info right away. I expected to be taken back by this info, but it seemed to be already known facts (sometimes hidden in archaic language). I wanted the author to "cut to the chase" without all of the background info. The background knowledge is a little bit interesting, like when she mentions the need for mechanical handbooks in the military leading to research on composition and rhetoric. Her thoughts on how to organize research with notecards scared me a little. Color-coded, word-coded, catalogued, and more seemed confusing to me. Even if I don't agree with her method of cataloguing research her point is still worth noting. Keep track of all materials and info as you go along! Unfortunately, this is something I know I am going to have difficulty with as I conduct my own research.