FINAL RESEARCH PAPER

Research Project- Learning Styles

5/10/12

Jill Arnold

Introduction:

I have always wondered the ways that someones learning styles can affect the way they learn. Especially as an aspiring teacher, it will be extremely important to examine the learning styles of the students in my classroom and to try to cater to them. Considering everyone learns in different ways, it is important to see what helps students and what doesn’t. Therefore, I will perform an interview on my mother to see how learning styles affect the way we learn throughout our schooling process.

“One concept in particular which has provided some valuable insights into learning in both academic and other settings is learning style.” (Cassidy, 420). This quote explains that discussing learning styles and the way people learn has been extremely relevant lately. The article also discusses that a learning style can impact the outcome of students performance in assessments. As I interview my mother, I will inquire as to how her learning style affected the way she learned to read and write and how teachers adjusted to learning styles 40 years back as opposed to how they do now. 

Discussing learning styles and how they affect our students today has been extremely helpful to teachers and the like. Years ago, teachers were not as worried about integrating all different types of learning styles as to reach out to every student in the class. Now, teachers are learning that there are so many different ways that children learn. Learning styles is something that will affect the way I teach my students one day. Simply being aware that there are difference approaches to teaching and learning can make a difference (Cassidy, 420). 

Since my mother was born in 1951, I thought she would be a great subject to interview because I want to understand some of the differences between being a learner in the 60s-70s and now. I have looked up to my mother my entire life. Not only because she is my mother, but also because she is one of the most intelligent women I know. Another benefit of interviewing my mother is that I know she will be honest with me, as opposed to interviewing a stranger or acquaintance. As I begin to interview my mother, I get the feeling that things have changed throughout the school system as the years have gone on. Also, the way that parents are involved within children’s schooling has changed drastically as well. One of the things my mother points out to me is how much more involved she is in my schooling process than her parents were in hers. 

Furthermore, throughout my study I will use the interview method and discourse analysis to find out information on my mothers learning style and the way it affected her throughout her schooling process. Interviewing is a part of everyday life and some even regard it as an extension of what humans “naturally” do (Griffin, 175). By using this method, I will be able to use the knowledge that I have learned about my mother in the past twenty-two years of my life and also doing a formal interview to answer specific questions as well. Discourse analysis will be used to interpret what is being said in the interview. 

Body:

First, I explain to my mother that we will be talking about learning styles and the way they affected the way she learned to read and write. Since my mother is in her 60s, it will be interesting to examine the difference between the way teachers adapted to teaching styles back then as opposed to the way they do now. Since her siblings are 10 and 16 years younger than her, a lot of her schooling process, it was just her and her parents. All of her schooling through high school was done in Lodi, New Jersey where she grew up. When she graduated high school, she went to Hackensack Hospital School of Nursing. She explains that they did all of their nursing classes at the hospital then took college courses at Farleigh Dickinson. 

As we get into her schooling experience, she explains to me that she always did well in school, for the most part. Math was a struggle for her as she got older, but that seems to lend hand-in-hand with her learning style, which we will get to later. Reading and writing were always her strongest subjects. She explains to me that she was always the spelling bee champion in her classes. In high school, she was in honors english throughout her four years. 

I began asking my mother more about her learning styles. Even though I believe I already know what type of learning style she is, I was curious to find out the way she thought she learned best. When I first asked my mother about her learning styles, I had to explain to her a little bit about it because I could tell by the confused look on her face that she was a little confused about what I was talking about. It is interesting to point out that she was unclear of what learning styles were before I explained them to her. Like I said before, I don’t believe learning styles were as relevant as they are today. As we got more into learning styles, she began to understand better what I was talking about. I asked her how she thought the best way she learned was and she explained to me that she thought she learned best by doing something, watching someone else do it, or seeing it in writing. She explained to me that she could not easily do something by simply hearing instructions of what to do. As soon as she said this, it brought me back to some memories I have had with my mother. When I lived at home with her, I would call her and ask her to pick things up from the store for me if she was out. She would always ask me to “text” the list to her because she knew she wouldn’t remember what I needed from just hearing me ask. Now that my mother and I seem to agree about her learning style, I am interested to see what the survey says. 

I had my mother take a survey (What’s Your learning Style?) to determine what type of learner she is. It wound up that she was 100% for linguistic learning. Interpersonal was her second highest at 89%. When I asked her about her results, she explained to me that she was not surprised at all and that this is what she was expecting. She explained “Linguistic is totally me. Talk, talk, talk. Anything with written or spoken word totally relates to me. I think it pretty much sums up the way I learn. My brain has an affinity for that I guess”. 

Linguistics is defined as the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broken down into three categories: language form, language meaning, and language in context. Since my mother scored highest on this type of learning style, it would make that sense that she would excel in this area. She scored second highest in interpersonal learning. Interpersonal learning means that you can communicate well with people and that you are usually social. This also made complete sense to me. As long as I’ve known my mother, she has always surrounded herself around friends and family. Her motto has always been “the more the merrier!”.

After we discussed her learning styles, we examined some of the major literacy events in her life. She explained to me that when she was in elementary and middle school, she basically lived at the local library. She explained how she was always reading and how she could not get her hands on enough books. Incidentally, she became close with the librarian. She explained how the librarian would show her books that he thought she would enjoy and would have books ready for her when she got there. Whenever she talked about reading, a true joy came upon her face. It is easy to tell that this is truly one of her loves. 

As we discussed more literacy events, she explained to me how the biggest influence in her life was her english composition teacher her senior year in high school. She explained to me how he taught her how to write a term paper and how much he had prepared his students for college. She explained a few times how much of an influence he had on her and how grateful he was for the knowledge he instilled in her. 

When we started to discuss college, she explained to me that one of her favorite classes was a course at Farleigh Dickinson. This class was also an english class. As she explains to me all of her remembered literacy events from her schooling years, it seems as though there is a recurring theme. All of her best memories from her schooling years have to do with reading, writing, english, and important interactions with people, which correlates exactly to her learning styles. Since interpersonal learning style is one of her highest traits, it is extremely believable that all of her remembered literacy events are interactions with people. 

When my mother explained to me her interactions with these important people in her life, she never really explained anything in particular that they did. She simply explained that they either had things in common or that the teachers brought things to life. Since my mom scored so high in the interpersonally, maybe she didn’t need them to cater to her other learning style needs, she just needed people to communicate and interact with her. 

My mother also discussed with me her affinity for reading. We discussed the possibilities of how she got her love for the written word. She explained to me that her mother (my grandmother) was in the quill and scroll club in high school and also loved to read. Her mother never pressured her to read a lot, but it was simply something that came natural to her. Therefore, I believe that her learning style, the positive influences in her life, and genetics has helped her to excel in the areas of reading and writing. 

Also, my mother explains to me that her learning style has also spilled into her life as an adult as well. She is a registered nurse and she explains to me that if it wasn’t for her linguistic and interpersonal skills, she might not be as successful of a nurse as she is. She explains how she is constantly talking to people and getting information from them. 

Conclusion:

Therefore, I have come to the conclusion that understanding someones learning style can really affect the way they learn to read and write. Luckily for my mother, it seems like a lot of her teachers may have catered to her learning style, without even knowing it, by just being social with her. Research has shown that catering to children’s learning styles will help them to learn better. I believe that is why I have had to take classes here at Kean that specifically talk about understanding children's learning styles. These classes explain that you need to read students and figure out their needs according to their learning style. I don’t believe it was that way 40 years ago, and I think my mother was one of the lucky ones in the way that her high interpersonal intelligence allowed for her to be communicative with teachers. 

Furthermore, I believe that by examining my mother through interview and discourse analysis, I can determine that her learning style has positively influenced the way she learned to read and write. It also affected her in her personal life as well. Even before my mother took the survey, she and I were both aware of the areas that she was strong in and when she took the learning styles survey it only confirmed what we had already assumed.

References 

Cassidy, S. (n.d.). Learning Styles: An overview of theories, models, and measures. In Educational Psychology (4th ed., Vol. 24, pp. 419-441). (Original work published 2004)

Griffin, G. (n.d.). Research Methods for English Studies. Edinburgh University Press.

What’s your learning style? [Survey]. (n.d.). Retrieved from Edutopia website: http://www.eudtopia.org/multiple-intelligences-learning-styles-quiz

Research Paper Intro and Body

The following is what I have so far for my research paper...

Introduction:

I have always wondered the ways that someones learning styles can affect the way the learn. Especially as an aspiring teacher, it will be extremely important to examine the learning styles of the students in my classroom and to try to cater to them. Considering everyone learns in different ways, it is important to see what helps students and what doesn’t. Therefore, I will perform an interview to see how learning styles affect the way we learn to read and write. 

“One concept in particular which has provided some valuable insights into learning in both academic and other settings is learning style.” (Cassidy). This quote explains that discussing learning styles and the way people learn has been extremely relevant lately. Discussing learning styles and how they affect our students today has been extremely helpful to teachers and the like. Years ago, teacher were not as worried about integrating all different types of learning styles as to reach out to every student in the class. Now, teachers are learning that there are so many different ways that children learn. As I talk to my subject, I get the feeling that things have changed throughout the school system as the years have gone on. Also, the way that parents are involved within children’s schooling has changed drastically as well. Furthermore, throughout my study I will use the interview method to find out information on my subjects learning style and the way it affected her throughout her schooling process.

Body:

First, I explain to my subject that we will be talking about learning styles and the way they affected the way she learned to read and write. Since my subject is in her 60s, it will be interesting to examine the difference between the way teachers adapted to teaching styles back then as opposed to the way they do now. Since her siblings are 10 and 16 years younger than her, a lot of her schooling process it was just her and her parents. All of her schooling through highschool was done in Lodi, New Jersey where she grew up. When she graduated highschool, she went to Hackensack Hospital School of Nursing. She explains that they did all of their nursing classes at the hospital then took college courses at Farleigh Dickinson. 

As we get into her schooling experience, she explains to me that she always did well in school, for the most part. Math was a struggle for her as she got older, but that seems to lend hand-in-hand with her learning style, which we will get to later. Reading and writing were always her strongest subjects. She explains to me that she was always the spelling bee champion in her classes. In highschool, she was in honors english throughout her four years. 

After getting to know the subject, I began asking her about her learning styles and I asked her the way she thought she learned best. When I first asked my subject about her learning styles, I had to explain to her a little bit about it because I could tell by the confused look on her face that she was a little confused about what I was talking about. As we got more into learning styles, she began to understand what I was talking about. I asked her how she thought the best way she learned was and she explained to me that she thought she learned best by doing something or watching someone else do it. She explained to me that she could not easily do something by simply hearing instructions of what to do. So when I heard this, I categorized her in my head as either as bodily/kinesthetic learner or linguistic, since she explained to me that she was a great reader. 

Meanwhile, I had my subject take a survey to determine what type of learner she is. It wound up that she was 100 % for linguistic learning. Interpersonal was her second highest at 89%. When I asked her about her results, she explained to me that she was not surprised at all and that this is what she was expecting. She explained “Linguistic is totally me. Talk, talk, talk. Anything with written or spoken word totally relates to me. I think it pretty much sums up the way I learn. My brain has an affinity for that I guess”. 

Learning Styles Transcript

Transcript:

Jill Arnold

Learning Styles Transcript

J: Today we will be discussing learning styles and the way they affected the way you learned to read and write. We will also be discussing different literacy events in your life throughout all your years of schooling.

S: Okay.

J: To start, how old are you?

S: I am 61 years old.

J: Where did you grow up?

S: I was born in Passaic, New Jersey. I moved to Lodi, New Jersey when I was four years old. 

J: With your parents?

S: Yes, my sister and brother were not born yet. They are 10 and 16 years younger than me.

J: So you did all your schooling in Lodi? 

S: Yes, I went to two schools. Kindergarten through eighth and highschool. I graduated from Lodi High in 1968.

J: What about college?

S: I went to Hackensack Hospital School of Nursing. I graduated there in 1971. We took all of our nursing classes at the hospital and we took our college classes at Farleigh Dickinson. 

J: Okay, how did you do in school?

S: Uh, I always did well. When I was younger I excelled in all subjects, but as I got into highschool, math became a hard subject for me. 

J: How about the other subjects?

S: I always did well in reading and writing. Those were my strongest areas. Every year I was the spelling bee champion in my class. 

J: What kind of grades did you get in school?

S: I always got As and Bs when I was little, but in highschool I had a hard time with math. It was hard for me to pass those classes. I usually got Cs and Ds in math. It was weird because I was in the honors english classes, but in the lower level math classes.

J: Did you ever go for extra help in the classes you didn’t do well in?

S: No I didn’t. They didn’t have tutoring and extra help back then like they do now. 

J: So, do you remember when you first began to read and write?

S: Well, we were split up into groups, fast, medium, and slow. I was always in the fast group. 

J: How did the teacher know what group to put you in?

S: The teacher would see how well you could read and if you could understand what you read. I always had fantastic reading comprehension. I always understood what the teacher asked me to read.

J: Okay, how do you think you learn best? Listening? Watching? Doing?

S: Um, definitely not through hearing. Um, through reading and seeing it done. I have a hard time doing something when someone explains it to me. I do best when I read instructions myself or see someone else doing it. 

J: Okay, can you take this learning styles quiz to see what type of learner you are?

S: Yes.

(S TAKES LEARNING STYLE SURVEY)

Results: Linguistic: 100%, Interpersonal: 89%, Intrapersonal: 50%, Musical: 44%, Bodily Kinesthetic: 42%, Naturalistic: 42%, Visual/Spatial: 42%, Logical/Mathematical: 38%

J: So, what do you think about the results?

S: I’m not surprised, makes a lot of sense. Linguistic is totally me. Talk, talk, talk. Anything with reading or spoken word totally relates to me. I think it pretty much sums up the way I learn. My brain has an affinity for that I guess.

J: Are any literacy events that stand out in your mind? 

S: When I was in high school, my german was so good that I recited a whole section of the german bible and went to a contest and gave a speech and won an award. 

J: What type of award?

S: Well, there was a contest state-wide and there was gold, silver, and bronze and I won the bronze medal.

J: Thats awesome.

S: Yeah, I’ve always been very good with diction and pronouncing things.

J: Did your parents ever help you with work or influence the way you read and write?

S: No, my parents didn’t help me with homework. I do remember my father helping me study for tests, especially vocabulary. He would test me and ask me to repeat the definitions back to him. In those days, parents weren’t as involved in school as they are now. 

J: Did they influence your reading and writing at all?

S: I think probably genetically. Also, my mother was always a reader so I think she influenced me to read. Also, She was in the quill and scroll when she was in highschool. She wrote a play that was produced in her highschool. So I think I got that genetically from her. 

J: Do you remember what tools your teachers used when teaching reading and writing? Do you remember anything that helped or didn’t help?

S: I remember the Carden Method. 

J: What’s the Carden Method?

S: It was a spelling method. I don’t really remember anything about it because it was so long ago. I don’t remember specifics about how they taught me, but I lived at the Lodi Library. I was always reading and I could not get my hands on enough books. 

J: Any other methods or tools that helped you?

S: I do remember the Spellman Method for writing. They would give you a big piece of graph paper with lines on it and you would draw circles. 

J: What was that for?

S: It was to help you get feel of the paper and the way your hand would move around when you wrote. 

J: Do you think that helped?

S: Yes, I do because I think it helped my penmanship. I don’t think they teach penmanship now-a-days the way they used to. 

J: Do you think you could name a literacy event from each schooling experience in your life such as elementary, middle, highschool, and college?

S: The first thing that comes to mind is my honors english teacher my senior year in highschool. He taught us how to write a term paper and really prepared us for college. He was a huge influence in my life and really helped the way I learned to write. It completely changed the way I wrote for the better. 

J: Thats great. What about elementary and middle school?

S: Well, I always remember going to the Lodi Library throughout elementary and middle school. I loved the librarian! He would always pick out books for me and he was always very nice. He would put books on the side for me if he thought I would enjoy them because I was always there. 

J: Sounds like you have a lot of good experiences with reading and writing. What about college?

S: I loved one of my english composition teachers. He was fantastic. He would stand in the front of the room and explain books to us and bring them to life. He made you want to read and he livened up the classroom. He brought it down to our level and related well to our age group. 

J: Do you think the way you learned to read and write has benefitted you as an adult in any way? Not benefitted you?

S: It has benefitted me immensely. I have a fantastic vocabulary, I’m a great speller.

J: Do you think thats from your teachings or something else?

S: I think a mixture of that and the fact that I love to read. Reading really helps vocabulary. Like I said, my teacher when I was a senior in highschool was the best teacher I ever had. After him, I never got less than an A on a paper. 

J: So there were no issues when it came to learning to read and write?

S: No, no issues.

J: Is there anything you wish you were taught or that you missed out on?

S: No, I think I learned everything I need to know.

J: Do you think your learning style hindered you in any way? Why? How has it helped you?

S: It definitely hindered me in math (laughter). I am not good with mathematical thinking. My brain just goes towards linguistics and reading and writing more, I guess.

J: How did your learning style spill into your life?

S: I’m a nurse and I have to constantly talk to people and get information out of them. Why they are there and whats going on with them. It certainly helps to be very talkative and interpersonal. 

J: Okay, is there anything else you would like to share before we conclude this interview? Anything else about reading and writing that we didn’t discuss?

S: One thing I do feel is that I think that this generation is losing a lot because instead of seeing people in person or talking on the telephone its all through texting and computers. When I was younger I had to write letters to my husband when he was in college and we wouldn’t see each other that often. Its not like that anymore and I think a lot is being lost and the art of writing because of the internet. Spelling especially too, all the kids have spell check now on their computers. We didn’t have that. I think that something is being lost along the way because of that. 

Research Project Writing

Outline and Questions for Research Project:


LIFE STORY INTERVIEW


1st- 
Get the interviewee warmed up by asking questions about themselves and questions that are not intimidating (neutral questions). Even though I am interviewing my mom, I would like to treat this interview as if I do not know much about her. I will ask questions about her background, where she grew up, where she went to school, how she did in school (basically her childhood story)
2nd- 
I will then begin to ask more questions about schooling and how she sees herself as a learner. 
Some questions:
- Do you remember when you first began to learn to read and write?
- How do you think you learn best? (she will take a learning style survey)
- Ask about any literacy events that stand out in her mind. Do you remember anything from friends and family? Did your parents work with you? Do you think they influenced the way you read and wrote?
- Do you remember what tools your teacher used when teaching reading and writing? What helped and what didn't?
- Can you name a literacy event from each schooling experience such as elementary, middle, high school, and college?
- How has the way you learned to read and write benefited you as an adult? Has it not benefited you in any way?
- How did you do in school? Were there any specific issues when you learned to read and write?
- Is there anything you wish you would have been taught about reading and writing?
- Do you think your learning style hindered you in any way? Why? How has it helped you?
- How did your learning style spill into your life?
3rd-  
Lastly, ask if there is anything more she would like to share.
Anything else about reading and writing that we didn't discuss. 

Final Discourse Analysis Paper

Discourse Analysis Paper

“Gamer Transcript”

Jill Arnold

This essay discusses the differences between “gamer intelligence” and having intelligence with other technologies such as Microsoft Word and other software. The main thing that will be discussed is the interaction between the interviewer and the interviewee. By interpreting what is being said between the interviewer and the interviewee, we can further understand what is being said in the transcript by looking at the social power abuse, dominance, and inequality. Therefore, discourse analysis will be used to appreciate what is happening in the conversation. Discourse analysis is simply analyzing the language used in the transcript. The research question that is being approached in this paper is how an interview can be analyzed through the lens of an outsider. The methodology that will be used to analyze this transcript is interactional sociolinguistic. Also, the lens that this transcript will be viewed through is at the macro level because of the power relations in the transcript, which shows “Ch’s” dominance over “B”. Furthermore, this transcript shows the power relations between “Ch” and “B” and how “Ch’s” power in the transcript affects the way the interview takes place and if an interview can be affective with these types of power relations.

In this excerpt, “Ch” is interviewing “B” about his experience with different types of technology. The beginning of the conversation it seems as though the two people in the excerpt are friendly with each other. The interviewer “Ch”, jokes around with the interviewee “B” about how she bullied him into being competent with software. This is a way for “Ch” to start the interview by making “B” comfortable. The interactional sociolinguistic approach explains that “through interactions people can construct relationships between and among texts, events, and contexts”. Even though it is clear that these two people already have a relationship with each other, they are creating a different type of relationship in the interview and using these first few sentences as conversational building blocks. 

Macro level approaches to discourse analysis include broader, social, cultural, or political processes. Throughout the transcript, “Ch” is asking questions about “B’s” interactions with technology. This is a topic that affects our world today. Even though “Ch” is asking “B” questions about himself, she begins to relate it to the bigger picture by relating it to other technologies that many people use. I believe this subject is on the macro level because there are many people that this article can be related to. But, the interviewer is taking a “soft” approach by generating questions that are starting points and can lead to other, more promising answers

Also, macro level approaches are usually used to analyze power relations and dominance. “Ch” is the person in the transcript with the dominance. When “Ch” says that she bullied “B” into being competent, it shows that she may be joking around with him, but she is also asserting her dominance over “B”. This is assumed because usually when you bully someone into something they do not have a choice.

It is easy to tell that “B” is the person being interviewed because of the flow of conversation between them. Even though there are other clues such as the fact that “Ch” is the one who is asking the questions, “B”, even though as ease, seems to be like he is trying to get through the interview quickly, while “Ch” is wanting to ask many questions and find out more information. You can tell this by looking at the transcript and seeing that “Ch’s” dialogue is usually longer than “B’s”. For example, an excerpt from the transcript: “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)” In this excerpt, “Ch” seems to be probing “B”, but “B” seems to be wanting to get along with the interview. 

Furthermore, “B” also seems as though he is younger than “Ch” and might be a little intimidated by “Ch”. You can see examples of this throughout the transcript when “B” stumbles over his words a few times by saying “ah” and “you know” throughout the transcript. These terms also might be alluding to the fact that “B” is comfortable with “Ch” and I believe by using those terms “B” thinks that “Ch” understands what he is talking about, without having to explain in extreme detail. 

Another way to tell that “Ch” is older and more educated is because throughout the transcript “Ch” is trying to educate “B”. As discussed in the article, these parts of the transcript are moments of “learning opportunities” for both parties involved. When “B” discusses how he learned how to use programs, “Ch” explains to “B” that what they are describing is literacy. “Ch” does this again later in the transcript when “B” discusses preparing for different processes. Again, “Ch” educates “B” by explaining to him that that is similar to making moves. After that interaction, “B” agrees with “Ch”’s explanation. It is clear that “B” values what “Ch” has to say and that he looks at her as an authority figure. For example, another excerpt:  “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”. In this excerpt “B” is agreeing with “Ch”, but also elaborates on what he has to say, possibly asserting himself as the one with the knowledge on this sort of topic. 

Even though it is clear that “Ch” is still interested in teaching “B”, “B” is also teaching “Ch” some things as well. Since “B” is the one that is being interviewed, because he is the one answering questions, it is clear that he has the information that is wanted. “Ch” is interested in finding out “B”’s association with technology and how he views different types of technology. By having information for each other, they are keeping each other interested in the conversation. 

It is important for the interviewer and interviewee to have trust with each other or else there will not be a successful interview. I believe this is a successful interview because “B” seems to open up to “Ch”. Since “Ch” says something about “B”’s stepdad, it is assumed that they know each other before this interview because a stepdad is not mentioned in this transcript. “Ch” also says in the beginning that she bullied “B” into being competent with certain software, so “Ch” is making connections between the event they are constructing and a previous event. This skill is presented to us in the article. Since they seem to be compatible, it is assumed that a good interview would be produced. 

Another reason that the two people seem to be compatible with each other because “laughter” is said a few times in the transcript. It is obvious that these two people are on a comfort level with each other, and might even be friends with each other because the interview comes off to the readers as professional, but friendly. An excerpt in the transcript shows us that the laughter shows the reader that they these two people are comfortable with each other: “Ch- so you know lots of software, B- yeah, but it's just games (laughing)”. In this excerpt, they seem to be joking around with each other, but “B” also might be nervous from “Ch’s” assumption that he knows a lot about games.

As also stated in the article, it is important that the people in the interview signal to each other using all different types of communication, not just verbal. One way which is stated in the transcript is laughter. This is a type of contextual cue that assures both parties are comfortable, most of the time. The article also explains that it is important for the reporter to document these to get a shared sense of what they are collectively doing. “Laughter” can also be a signal to each other to interpret each others actions and communicate their intentions. This is important for both people in the interview so that they can continue to have a positive and informative conversation. Even though I believe laughter is seen in this transcript to convey comfortability, it may be important to describe what type of laughter is used because sometimes you can tell if someone is really laughing at something they think is funny, or if they are laughing because they are nervous or uncomfortable and trying to make the situation less tense. These two types of laughter are extremely different and convey different things.

As discussed earlier, the power relations in this transcript are apparent. “Ch” is the person in the power role and the one with the dominant discourse and “B” is the one who is abiding by her rules. Even though they are on a friendly level with each other, it is important for “B” to follow “Ch”’s rules and listen carefully to the questions that are asked. This shows that the transcript is at the macro level. “Ch” is the one with the power because she is the one interviewing and also asking and answering the questions. She is responding to “B”’s answers by giving more information about what “B” is trying to say.

In the last sentence of the interview, “B” compares what they are talking about in the interview to a song they have heard on the radio. I believe that “B” is assuming that “Ch” will know what the song is and goes on by explaining a quote that is in the song. “B” might be doing this because they are not sure what else to say and he feels more comfortable expressing it from a song instead. 

Furthermore, breaking down the interview through the interactional sociolinguistic method means analyzing further into the transcript than what is clearly presented. By using discourse analysis, one is able to break down the interview moment by moment by unfolding not only the text and verbal cues, but also signals and interpretations. Therefore, I believe that the power relations in this transcript made for a successful interview. Even though “Ch” has the power in the interview by teaching “B” and asking him questions throughout the interview, she also makes him comfortable by joking around with him and relating to things that are not associated with the interview. 

Methods, Methodologies, and Research Findings

Farrell, Arizpe, and McAdam


This article discusses the the different ways that immigrant and non-immigrant children interpret a picture book. The researchers work with a group of 10 children aged between 10 and hall. Half of those students were considered immigrants. The reason this research was conducted was because the researchers were concerned that immigrants would not be able to express themselves as freely as non-immigrants. 


The findings concluded that the main difference between the immigrants and the non-immigrants was that the non-immigrants needed more help with writing their comments and that it was the immigrant children who made the more insightful comments. They concluded this was because of their experience with immigration and they are more used to having to consider pictorial clues to make sense of the text. These findings are not surprising at all to me. It would make sense that the immigrant children would have an easier time deciphering pictures than non-immigrant children because they are more dependent on pictures than text. 


Some of the methods of interpreting the data included textual and artistic features such as intertextuality, metafiction, design, color, and perspective, as well as analyzing the author/illustrators intentions and identifying the implied audience. 


In the paper, they discussed the use of annotated spread as a methodological tool. They describe in their findings that this has been an effective tool for gathering data. The annotated spread they used included responses that were experiential, interpersonal, compositional, interpretive, and other. 

Rough Draft DA Paper

Discourse Analysis Paper

“Gamer Transcript”

Jill Arnold

This essay discusses the differences between “gamer intelligence” and having intelligence with other technologies such as Microsoft Word and other software. The main thing that will be discussed is the interaction between the interviewer and the interviewee. By interpreting what is being said between the interviewer and the interviewee, we can further understand what is being said in the transcript. Therefore, discourse analysis will be used to appreciate what is happening in the conversation. Discourse analysis is simply analyzing the language used in the transcript. The research question that is being approached in this paper is how an interview can be analyzed through the lens of an outsider. The methodology that will be used to analyze this transcript is interactional sociolinguistic. Also, the lens that this transcript will be viewed through is at the macro level.

In this excerpt, “Ch” is interviewing “B” about their experience with different types of technology. The beginning of the conversation it seems as though the two people in the excerpt are friendly with each other. The interviewer “Ch”, jokes around with the interviewee “B” about how they bullied them into being competent with software. This is a way for “Ch” to start the interview by making “B” comfortable. The interactional sociolinguistic approach explains that “through interactions people can construct relationships between and among texts, events, and contexts”. Even though it is clear that these two people already have a relationship with each other, they are creating a different type of relationship in the interview and using these first few sentences as conversational building blocks. 

Macro level approaches to discourse analysis include broader, social, cultural, or political processes. Throughout the transcript, “Ch” is asking questions about “B’s” interactions with technology. This is a topic that affects our world today. Even though “Ch” is asking “B” questions about them self, they begin to relate it to the bigger picture by relating it to other technologies that many people use. I believe this subject is on the macro level because they are many people that this article can be related to. But, the interviewer is taking a “soft” approach by generating questions that are starting points and can lead to other, more promising answers. 

It is easy to tell that “B” is the person being interviewed because of the flow of conversation between them. Even though there are other clues such as the fact that “Ch” is the one who is asking the questions, “B”, even though as ease, seems to be like they are trying to get through the interview quickly, while “Ch” is wanting to ask many questions and find out more information. “B” also seems as though they are younger than “Ch” and might be a little intimidated by “Ch”. You can see examples of this throughout the transcript when “B” stumbles over their words a few times by saying “ah” and “you know” a few times throughout the transcript. These terms also might be alluding to the fact that “B” is comfortable with “Ch” and I believe by using those terms “B” thinks that “Ch” understands what they are talking about, without having to explain in extreme detail. 

Another way to tell that “Ch” is older and more educated is because throughout the transcript “Ch” is sort of educating “B”. As discussed in the article, these parts of the transcript are moments of “learning opportunities” for both parties involved. When “B” discusses how they learned how to use programs, “Ch” explains to “B” that what they are describing is literacy. “Ch” does this again later in the transcript when “B” discusses preparing for different processes. Again, “Ch” educates “B” by explaining to them that that is similar to making moves. After that interaction, “B” agrees with “Ch”’s explanation. It is clear that “B” values what “Ch” has to say and that they look at them as an authority figure. Also, “B” might have a fear that their answers are wrong, so they want to agree with “Ch”, the person in charge of the interview. 

Even though it is clear that “Ch” is still interested in teaching “B”, “B” is also teaching “Ch” some things as well. Since “B” is the one that is being interviewed, it is clear that they have information that is wanted. “Ch” is interested in finding out “B”’s association with technology and how they view different types of technology. By having information for each other, they are keeping each other interested in the conversation. 

It is important for the interviewer and interviewee to have trust with each other or else there will not be a successful interview. I believe this is a successful interview because “B” seems to open up to “Ch”. Since “Ch” says something about “B”’s stepdad, it is assumed that they know each other before this interview because a stepdad is not mentioned in this transcript. “Ch” also says in the beginning that they bullied “B” into being competent with certain software, so “Ch” is making connections between the event they are constructing and a previous event. This skill is presented to us in the article. Since they seem to be compatible, it is assumed that a good interview would be produced. 

Another reason that the two people seem to be compatible with each other because “laughter” is said a few times in the transcript. It is obvious that these two people are on a comfort level with each other, and might even be friends with each other because the interview comes off to as professional, but friendly. As also stated in the article, it is important that the people in the interview signal to each other using all different types of communication, not just verbal. One way which is stated in the transcript is laughter. This is a type of contextual cue that assures both parties that they are comfortable. The article also explains that it is important for the reporter to document these to get a shared sense of what they are collectively doing. “Laughter” can also be a signal to each other to interpret each others actions and communicate their intentions. This is important for both people in the interview so that they can continue to have a positive and informative conversation.

As discussed earlier, the power relations in this transcript are apparent. “Ch” is the person in the power role and the one with the dominant discourse and “B” is the one who is abiding by that persons rules. Even though they are on a friendly level with each other, it is important for “B” to follow “Ch”’s rules and listen carefully to the questions that are asked. In the last sentence of the interview, “B” compares what they are talking about in the interview to a song they have heard on the radio. I believe that “B” is assuming that “Ch” will know what the song is and goes on by explaining a quote that is in the song. “B” might be doing this because they are not sure what else to say and they feel more comfortable expressing it from a song instead.

Furthermore, it is not hard to decipher the power relations in this transcript. Even though “Ch” and “B” seem friendly with each other, you can tell that “Ch” is the one with the power, not only because they are the one interviewing, but also the way that they are asking and answering the questions. They are responding to “B”’s answers by giving more information about what “B” is trying to say. 

Therefore, breaking down the interview through the interactional sociolinguistic method means analyzing further into the transcript that what is clearly presented. By using discourse analysis, one is able to break down the interview moment by moment by unfolding not only the text and verbal cues, but also signals and interpretations. 

Approach for DA project

I chose the transcript about the gamer. I believe this transcript has a lot of real world connections. I think the research question for this transcript could be something like: How does video games affect the way we use real life technology?

This transcript has so much connection to our culture today. Many kids are first learning to use technology through games and other media. The gamer explains that when you start a game, you have to read through the menu to understand what you are supposed to do. And if you mess up in the game, you start over and you do not make the same mistakes that you first made. This is exactly the process that most people go through when they are learning new programs on a computer. A person would usually have to read a manual or directions to figure out what to do and if they mess up, they start over and do something different.

Questions that need to be answered:
-What similarities are there between video games and real life technology? Differences?
- How can someone be so competent in video game literacy and not in real life technology?... such as microsoft word or excel
- Do people ever read the manuals for microsoft word, etc. or do they usually just "wing it"?

Throughout the interview, I think the interviewer does a good job of getting specific answers out of the interviewee. The interviewee explains that because of the background knowledge he had from playing games, he learned easier how to use software on the computer. I believe that this is how a lot of people learn how to use things like that.

I know that mostly everything I learned to do on the computer I learned from either other experience or I taught myself. I believe thats one of the reasons our generation is so into technology because we have so much invested in it. When computers became more popular, we began teaching ourselves how to use them. Like the "chat rooms transcript" said, we had to teach ourselves what to do on the internet and what not to do. It was a complete learning curve. I believe I am so good with technology now because I had so much experience with it when I was younger.

Overall, I enjoyed reading this transcript because I could relate to it. I think a lot of other people my age could also relate to it as well. Just like the interviewer said in the transcript, we used "trial and error" to figure out how to use software and the internet.

Research Question Revised

Question: How does someone see themself as a learner and how does that affect the way they learn?
Purpose: The purpose of my question is to develop an oral history instrument that can allow for my interviewee to open up about the way they learned to read and write.

Ultimately, my plan is talk to the person about the various ways they learned to read and write. I will also get input from them about what type of learner they believe they are. I will see if the way they believe they learned best affected the way they learned to read and write. I will ask my interviewee about literacy learning events. I will ask them what they remember and also if they remember hearing stories from their family.

What I will be doing with my interviewee is basically having a "life story interview" with them. I will talk about their different life periods such as kindergarten, elementary school, middle school, highschool, and college. I could also talk to the person about if they believe their learning style has stayed the same throughout the years or changed.

I believe this question is extremely relevant to me as a future teacher. When I am teaching, I will need to be familiar with the different learning styles that students have and the different ways that students believe they learn best. Hopefully, by creating a good oral history instrument, I will be able to get an accurate life story from my interviewee.

Stern and Evans

What is Stern's methodology?  what skills does she use?  How do the limitations of autobiography identified by Evans apply to Stern's essay? 

Stern's methodology is pragamatic. She is using the autobiographical research to find a solution. She has a few questions she is talking about in her essay. She talks about how she wants to find out it is that did this to her and how it shaped who she is now. In the preface, she first explains about her life and what her and her sister do now. In the chapter, Rape, Stern explains what happened to her and her sister the night they got raped. Since she does not remember exactly what happened that night, so she uses her police report to recall the events from that night. Even though she was in her teens when the rape happened, she becomes angry with herself that she did not do more. Overall, Stern's methodology gives us explicit details into what happened to her the night of her rape and the questions that she is trying to solve throughout the autobiography.

The skill that Stern talks about that she acquired has to do with the fact that she can do certain research that other people probably would not be able to do. In the preface, Stern discusses how what happened to her (the rape) gave her an ability to do research on things that are typically scary to the rest of the world. Because of her experience, she feels that she has this skill that many other people are not capable of.

Evans theory applies to Stern's autobiography when Evans discusses that autobiographys need to make you actually feel something for the person that you are reading about, instead of just collecting information on the person. Stern's autobiography does this by making you feel for her as a person. Even though Stern gives information in a timeline of what happened to her, she also gives you the emotions that she felt along the way of it. I know that when I was reading, I started to cringe at certain parts of this story, and it was mostly because Stern was giving such vivid details through her emotional recalling of what happened to her.

Overall, Stern's autobiography shows the person she has become because of the horrible incident that happened to her when she was younger. She explains that "My unusual reaction to fear turned out to be an asset in this work: I discovered that I could do things that other people find frightening...". This is definitely a skill she has acquired, from a horrible thing that happened to her.

More ideas for Research Paper

I think I have a pretty solid base for what I want to do my research project on. In my last blog post, I discussed that I would like to find out how children learn to read and write based on their learning styles. Since we are not allowed to do research on children, I am going to work with adults and talk to them about the different ways they learned to read and write.

Therefore, my research question will be "Does your learning style affect the way you learn to read and write?"

My plan is to select people to participate in my study, men, women, in ages ranging from 20-65. I am going to get a survey that I will have my participants take in order for me to find out what type of learning style they have. I will then ask all of my subjects the same questions about the way they believed they learned best and what their teachers did that helped them learn the best. I will also ask them about the different ways that they learned to read and write. Once I have collected my data, I will go over the information I have collected and compare it with the survey that the subjects originally took.

Some questions I will pose to my subjects are:
What way do you feel you learn best?
Are you a quick learner? if not, what do you think might have helped that?
What techniques did your teachers use to help you learn to read and write?
Do you remember when you learned how to read and write?

I believe that this will give me insight into the ways that people learn to read and write when they are younger. I believe that this information will help me to be a better teacher and also help me with my curiousity about english studies.

Ideas for my Research Project

In the previous class, we all discussed ideas we have for what we would like to do our research project on. In class, I explained that I would like to do a research project on the ways children learn to read and write. I know this statement is broad, so I was thinking that I could make it more specific by picking a few of the ways that children learn to read and write (for example: how a visual learner would learn to read and write). I believe this would be a topic for me to research not only for this class, but for my further schooling since my major is Elementary Education. As an education major, in my classes we have discussed the different ways people learn, but we never really went into much detail, especially in the research aspect. Therefore, I believe this would be a great topic for me to do my research project on.

While I am home on break during the summer and winter, I work at a preschool. Preschool is basically the main place where children learn to read and write. The preschool I work at goes from six months old to kindergarten. I think talking to the kindergarten teacher and watching the students while they are learning to read and write would give me great insight into my research project. I would like to ask the teacher if she notices the different ways that the students learn and then I would like to watch for the differences in the students ways of learning. As a hopeful teacher and a person who is interested in english studies, I believe this is one of the most important things for me to understand. Furthermore, I would love to research the different ways that students learn. I think it will be interesting to see the way a visual learner learns to read and write as opposed to a spatial learner, and so on.

Along with watching the students at the preschool, I think it will also be important to research different books on the different ways that people learn and how it affected the way children learned to read and write. A possible question could be: are logical learners better or worse at learning to write than spatial learners? Lastly, I am excited to get a start on this research project. I feel it will be me more insight into the head of a child and to help me understand how to become a better teacher.

Methods, Methodologies, and Skills

Methods- Research methods are concerned with how you carry out your research. The choice of the method will depend on the kind of research one wants to conduct.

Methodologies- Unlike research methods, methodologies are concerned with the perspectives you bring to bear on your work. Different people bring different perspectives on their analysis of a given text.

Skills- Research skills are techniques for handling material. For example, there are many different skills that one must acquire for postgraduate work in English.
Some of these skills are: 1. search skills in libraries 2. editorial skills 3. bibliographic skills 4. dissertation skills 5. IT skills 6. period-specific skills and lastly 7. professional skills

Overall, a person's methods, methodologies, and skills will probably be different for whatever type of research they will be conducting. The above factors will depend on the research they are conducting because they might have to tweak the way they conduct research depending on what they are researching. Also, the way a person researches can change if they are working with other people because no ones way of conducting research is the same.