posting #15

From the beginning of the class until now I feel that I have made a lot of progress. My progress has been great from the first assignment to the last. I feel like each paper took me a step forward and made it that much easier for me to write my twelve page paper. I think the way I go about writing has also changed. Usually I would procrastinate thinking that I write better under pressure, but during the process leading up to the mini-ethnography I realized that it is a lot easier to do it ahead of time. When it comes to larger papers my writing has changed because I have decided to write a certain amount of pages each day and it makes it a whole lot easier to get to the certain amount of pages that are due that day. As far as the class goes. I think the class was very interesting, it never became really boring. I think that this project was a great assignment because we were able to pick our topic, which made it easier for us to write about it. I think the conferences were also a good idea because it gave us a chance to talk to you outside of class and ask questions that we may not wanted to ask in class and also kept us informed on how we were doing in the class. I think that assignments were good. There was never too much due at once. The blog posting kept us checking the website, which us helped us stayed reminded of other things that were due that week.

Posting #14

I think my best piece of writing was exploring subcultures. It is what started me off for the entire process leading up to the mini-ethnography and portfolio. I also feel that it was the easiest to write, because you did not have to have sources and interviews and so on. It helped the decision of whether or not you really what to write about this sub-culture. I know, for me personally I ended up changing my sub-culture right before the assignment was given, because I wanted a subculture that I knew more bout and could write more about, It also was an assignment for to figure out if you were really interested in this topic.Although I feel that this is my best paper, I do think that my mini-ethnography is just as good and could wind up being better once I get to the second draft.

Cut-Ups

It was a hot, humid day and the sun was beating down on my face./ I think my favorite experience would have to be receiving the answers to my interview questions from my informants./ I mean come on, candy normally gets every student to pay attention!/ I respond and just tell her no and that I'm just looking around./ It was 9:00 in the evening. The sun had sunk beneath the trees about an hour before, and the stars were twinkling above./ Many people are either scared or too intimidated to join the fitness room.

Posting #13

My last visit to Joliet Illinois, My friend and I went to visit one of the high schools, which is also my old high school, Joliet West. I walked in at the security desk entrance, where they ask you to leave some form of identification. They photo copy your indentification card and give you a guest sticker with your name and photo. The first place I went was to the office of one of my favorite secretaries. After talking to her for while she asked us did we know the girl named Brittney who had been killed the night before. I didnt know of who she was talking about,so she pulled out a yearbook and sure enough I knew the girl, not on a personal level, but I knew her from around school. She had been killed by her boyfriend after getting into an argument. People assume that Joliet teens are all trouble-makers and people who tend to look down on the Joliet community (especially the teens) probably assumed that Brittney trouble-maker also and got herself into this position, but that was the complete opposite. My friend and I walked in the hallways as the final bell rang for classes to end. Now way people talk down about Joliet, especially the schools, you would think there would be complete chaos in these halls when classes let out, a bunch of kids running around, maybe an argument or fight breaking out. Not to my surprise, but maybe to the surprise of others, it was nothing like that. Everyone went to their lockers, there were groups of friends chatting here and there, a few kids laughing a joking around, then off they went, to the buses, to basketball practice, to cheerleading, to after school clubs, or to after school tutoring. The scene was nothing like the stereotypes would describe it.

Six-Word Memoirs

Me:
Fashion? Maybe, Public Relations? Ummm....Communications.

My Subculture:
Being Brought Down By Your Town.

Posting 12

The word rhetoric to me means, speaking and writing correct. It can also mean to get your point across effectively. I think the way that we talk and/or write is constitues rhetoric. I have not heard the word rhetoric being used very often, but when I have it has been either in a class or by an older adult. Rhetoric coincides with my subculture, because when writing and speaking it can be used in means of persasion and I am tying to persuade my readers to feel a certain way about my subculture and im also trying to get a certain point across to my audience.For my mini-ethnography and portfolio, once again I would being using rhetoric to persuade and get a point across to my audience.

Wrtiting is......

"Writing is like shopping"....The more I like something, the more money I spend.....The more interested I am in the topic the more I am able to write.

When writing about specific topics, it is alot easier for me to write about something I am very interested in and know a lot about. When I know a lot about a topic the paper usually just flows. If I dont know A topic to well my papers arent as good. I usually have to a lot of research on the topic if i dont know about it and after doing so much research it makes me not even want to write the paper. This reminds me of shoopping because of if i find something I really like and fall in love with then i am willing to spend more money but if im unsure about an item or i have to let it grow on me, then i am not as likely tospend as much on it.

Family....

My uncle is always the talk of the famiy, even when he is not around. My Uncle likes to drink A LOT, and always seems to do or say the wrong thing at family events. My family members are pretty used to it now, and just try to ignore him after he's been drinking or they try to keep him away from the drinks alltogether, but that never works. There's always a debate about who he is going to ride home with, because after he drinks, no one wants to be stuck in the car with him. It has basically become a known fact that at any family event involving alcohol (which is almost all), my uncle is going to get drunk, do or say something crazy and tell everyone how much he loves them. Even if he's not at a family evernt, something he did from a previous event will get brought up.

Glossary

The "ET"= Joliet
West= Joliet West High School
Central= Joliet Central High School
Packed= Alot of people
Caking/ Heating/ Riding= Talking about someone in a bad way, making jokes, or teasing
Raw or soak= Usually describes clothing or shoes and means that they are nice
Out the game= Means that something is played out or out of style or just ugly
Gangs:
ESC= Eastside Connect Gang
DPG= Dog Pound Gang
PRG= Patterson Road Gangsters
HTY= Hill Top Youngings

Posting #10

For my mini-ethnography I plan to start it out by telling why I was interested in my subculture and why I choose that subculture. I plan to proceed through the paper by just going through the steps of my research and everything I did in order to get to know my subculture better. I think this will help my readers understand my subculture more just by knowing each step I took in researching this subculture. For my conclusion I plan to explain my purpose for researching that perticular subculture and express what I feel everyone should get out of my research.

(Question 1): This research project was done in the 1986. If you were to re-do this project today, at the end of the first decade of the 21st century, what might you as a researcher do differently? What would you do the same?

In some clips there should have been some subbtitles to understand what they were saying. Research more ancsents and languages. I would still interview the different ppl from the towns.

(Question 2): What are some of the flaws with the study? Are there any groups that are under-represented? Over-represented? How might you make the study more appealing to an audience (visually, instructionally, etc?)

The people from the south were over-represented to me. I feel that there should have been more interviews from the west and other areas.

(Question 3): In your opinion (and based on some of the things discussed in the clips), how important is language in terms of how we perceive others? What is revealed (or others think is revealed) about us when we talk?

Language is very important. People judge you based on your dialect and how you speak. If your dialect does seem as proper as yours then they tend to look down on you.

?'s pg. 306

1. We are in my friend's living room of her house, on the couch in front of the big screen t.v. She is laid back person, very hardworking, and focused on her she schoolwork. Her and I both went to the same school and have both lived in Joliet for a most of our lives.


2. My recorded words are those that seem to be most inprortant. I think the fact that her and I are both considered to be in the "good" goup of teens, we have a fixed position that the other teens are just wrong.

3. Yes there are gaps. You can tell that she feels strongly about the situation. She not very fond of her city.

Questions About My Subculture (Joliet Teens)

*Why do my readers care about this issue?
The teenage violence that goes on in Joliet is a big issue, but its not the only thing that the teens are about. I my readers are from Joliet, they will definitely care that im clearing up what the usual stereotypes say about this city.
*What will my readers want or need to know about this issue?
My readers should want/need to know about Joliet as a whole, even aside from what I am writing about, my readers should know more about this city.
*What do my readers already know about this issue?
Some readers may have already heard of Joliet therfore they already know about these issues. Some readers have never even heard of Joliet and know nothing about the issue.
*What do I want my readers to learn about this issue?
I want my readers to learn that the stereotypes arent always true, they have some truth to them, but there's alot more to Joliet teens then what is said.
*If I am trying to peruade my readers of something, how easily will they be persuaded?
I dont think it is going to be too hard to persuade my readers that not all Joliet teens are what they are made out to be, becasue I do give examples of both sides,the good & the bad, and I do have information to back up my argument.
*What will my readers use my writing for?
My readers will use my writing as information about a place they may have never be to, or as something to look at before they visit this place or as a reminder in case they meet a Joliet teen, they will not jump to conclusions about then or even as something to read in order to determine whether or not what they heard was true.

Posting #7

I feel that by doing my fieldwork on teens in Joliet, I am giving people a better outlook on them other than the typical stereotypes. I think I will give Joliet as a city a better name all together. Although some of the negatives will be brought out, it helps to show that its not perfect, but its also not as bad as people think it is. I know a lot of people in my class have probably never even heard of Joliet and if they have, it might mot have been good. Im giving the class both the good and bad outlooks on the city, instead of the usual bad that is heard. By doing this fieldwork I have also lean more things about Joliet and i have lived in the city for 18 yrs.

survey

http://FreeOnlineSurveys.com/rendersurvey.asp?sid=iul3qvtp6tccqxy550105

groundwork activity

The first time I actually visited my subculture would be when I became a teenager I guess. In 8th grade I started to tell the differences in some teens. There were some that were into school and sports and then there were those who were caught up in gangs and were troublemakers. At this time was when I was finally understanding what gangs really were and who claimed what. A lot of people even as young as 8th grader were caught up in these gangs because of where they live. It was just hard to believe that come people were involved in this type of stuff because as friends they were all really nice people. I felt sort of confused as to why people would get involved with the things that were going on. A lot of these people were good people, some of them used to be on sports teams and so on. I didn't really like how people outside of joliet looked down upon all of the teens and kids from Joliet because of the situation that some of the teens were involved in. If there was a Joliet teen with braids arrested for something now other people are looking down on all Joliet teens with braids and making assumptions. I am very much an insider because I have lived in Joliet since birth until now. I have been to school with both kinds of teens, the good and the bad. I have been friends with both kinds. I have been in situations where one kind affected another. The way I will be considered an outsider is for the simple fact that I havent been living there the last few months

Posting #6 Annotation Bibliography

Annotated Bibliography
“Teens Held In Shooting Of Three In Joliet”. Jun 06, 2008. SJ-R.com. Feb 18, 2009.
< http://www.sj-r.com/archive/x120333499/Teens-held-in-shooting-of-three-in-Joliet >

In this article it talks about how a 3 million dollar bond was set for two teens charged in a shooting. In this shooting a 7 yr-old and his two uncles were wounded. The two teens, 19 yr old Justin Campbell and 18 yr-old Mark Bew were charged with three counts of aggravated battery with a firearm. The shooting took place May 21 in a Joliet housing complex. The two men appeared before Will County circuit judge Sarah Jones. Four gang members were seen by witnesses getting into an argument with the two brothers, at least 7 rounds from a handgun was fired by one of the men. The 7 yr-old was striked in the chest while on the couch sitting with his mother.

I think this article helps my argument that not all the teens follow down the good path. Some of the teens do get caught up in their surrounds and follow down the wrong path. Both of the boys that were involved in this went to my school. This leads me to more questions to ask teens that have followed down their paths and whom live in the neighborhood that came from. “How did you get in the position that you’re in now?” and “Do you think the neighborhood you lived in shaped you into who you are today?” are two questions that come to mind when reading this article.

Velasco, Catherine Ann. “Teens Strive To Get People To The Polls” Oct. 02, 2008. Icirr.org. Feb. 18, 2009
< http://icirr.org/en/node/3176 >

The article talks about how two Joliet teens, Arley Castillo and Alejandra Meidna, both 14 yrs-old, stood outside at Joliet’s Union Station asking one question “Are you registered to vote?” The goal was for them to get people registered to vote. The girls were two of twenty-eight volunteers at Joliet West and Joliet Central High Schools. They went to stores, festivals, parades, the train station and door-to-door to get people to register. They didn’t take sides or give their opinion on who should win, they just wanted people to register. The project reached its goal to register 20,000 new voters and hoped to get 50,ooo immigrants to voters to the polls. Another goal was to get teens like these to girls into politics at an early age.

This article helps with my argument that some Joliet teens are doing things with their lives to stay out of trouble. This shows the opposite of the stereotypes that Joliet teens are troublemakers or that they aren’t doing anything with their lives. These teens are only fourteen and are already getting involved in politics. They are not letting their surroundings determine who they are and what path they go down. I think this definitely helps my argument that Joliet shouldn’t be judged based on where they come from.

Box #18

My none physical focal points are the ideas that joliet teens arent as bad as everyone thinks they are and the fact that they shouldnt be judged based on the neighborhoods they come from. my physical focal points will be the actual neighborhoods they come from. The good and bad neighborhoods are both good focal points in my fieldsite. Im hoping that while focusing on the bad neighborhood, I find out that the teens there arent as bad.

visting a place in my past

When I first came to Muncie Indiana is was afraid of having to live here. On the four hour drive here from Joliet Illinois all I saw were fields, grass, and trees. There was never any point where we passed big buildings or anything that looked like where I came from. I had been told before that Muncie was basically in the middle of nowhere, but I was shocked when I actually traveled through the town and found a mall and a lot of similar stores and restaurants that we had in Illinois. But there were also some stores or places that are big here, that I have never heard of. Cheeseburger in Paradise for example is a very well known and loved restaurant in Indiana and I have never heard of it until now. Even since living in Muncie for months now, I still have not seen any big buildings or anything that would compare to Chicago. Although I live on campus and not in the neighborhoods of Muncie, it seems as though there aren't many oppurtunities  for people here in Muncie as there would be in big cities , such as Chicago.

Posting #5

I plan to spend time interviewing and hanging out with the teens in Joliet. I really dont need to spend more time in the actual fieldsite, but more time with the actual people from the fieldsite. I do need to do more academic research on my subculture. But overall I feel that I have spent enough time in my fieldsite. Interviews and academic research are the aspects that I must spend most of my time on.

I feel that it is both a enthography and for entertainment. I feel that the interviews were very effective because they were people who were actually involved and lived through this and they were very passionate about it. The interviews really help the story move along better and they give a better insight about their subculture. I feel like their passion about what they did made them a subculture. At first it was surfing, then it was skate boarding, but it was a big part of their life, and they did it no matter what. Even when people looked down on skateboarding they continued to do it, and they did it wherever they could. I feel like their love a passion for skateboarding made them into a subculture They were very serious about what they did, it was their life.

Posting #3

I cant make any conclusions about my subculture at the moment but I do feel that the beliefs, rituals, and language and so on is something that is only among Joliet teens. Other cities may have the same problems and their teens may have their own slang, but i'm sure its different from Joliet. I do feel that if some joliet teens were placed in a different area then their behaviors would be different, but thats the whole reason of researching them is to show how the city shapes the behaviors and decisions of these teens.

Box #12

Privileges through my own efforts:
Having a car
Getting into college
Having a lot of friends
Drive


Privileges w/out effort:
Go party
Hang with friends
Shop
Wear nice things
Have expensive jewelry
Get education
living in a nice home
Say what I want
Go where I want
Having a close family
Get tattoos & piercings
Get into rated R movies
Work

I dont feel that my privileges will affect my field research because of the fact that I am an insider and most of the people in my fieldsite have the same privileges as I do.

Posting #3

For my paper I have not yet done any academic research or interviews. When I do conduct my interview, I plan to ask: What it is like being a teenager in Joliet? What types of stereotypes do you face being a teen in Joliet? And, Do you feel these stereotypes are correct about teens in Joliet? I have definitely been to the site, because I have live there for eighteen years. There is a lot of gang violence, but the city does not look as bad as it sounds. I believe this is where a lot of the stereotypes come from, becuase it is a small town and it is not a very upscale town. I believe that my non-academic research will be a lot easier because of the fact that I am a insider.

Class ?'s

I feel that my subculture will be an interesting topic. Being a teen in Joliet, Il I know that there are a lot of interesting things about us, not there we're too much different from any other teens, but we are definitely interesting. My subcullture is important because Joliet is a small town that most people never even heard of, but is important to let people know just how fun this small town is. I just want readers to know about Joliet in general

Posting #2

As of right now that subculture that I plan to write about is NABJ. This is an orginization here at Ball State which stands for National Association of Black Journalism. All races are welcome in the organization. The organization has a mixture of mostly journalism and communications majors. The group meets every Wednesday in the Letterman Building at 6pm. The meetings are held in a classroom, in which the memebers sit in the desk and the executive board sits at the front of the cassroom facing the members. I am an insider because I am a member of this organization. I think that there are a lot of new things that I will learn due to this assignment, simply because I probably never payed attention to it before. Things such as our "lingo" and certain things we do everyday are things I never thought about until now, so I know that there are going to be a lot of things that I am going to learn.

Response to Box #2

Everyday I come and sign into this place. I dont have to come I just choose to do so. Once I have signed in I read the news about what all my friends have been doing. In this place I have 400 or more friends. Sometimes I share pictures with them from my weekend events or new songs that I have heard and so on. I always share with my friends what I am doing that day or what my feelings are that day. While im there I usually check out my friend's photos also and see what is going with them that day. I also find out about parties and events that are coming up on my campus when im here. Because I go to school in a different state then where im from I come to this place a lot to keep in touch with my old friends from back home. Its a place that I like to go to in my spare time. Its it really good way to communicate with others.

My Subcultures....

The subcultures I belong to.....
Nabj: communications and journalism majors
strong feelings about the news
talks/debates a lot about news
Athlete: Badminton
One on One/ Two vs. Two
Phrases: smash, drop, good eye, cross-drop etc
Stretch and run before playing
Strong feelings towards our sport
Illinois resident: Somewhat of an accent
lots of slang
Fan of the bulls

Nabj (National Association of Black Journalism) is a club at Ball State University. This club consist of mostly journalism and communications majors. It is not only for African American students, it is open to all races. At the beginning of every meeting we start off by reading our mission statement. Every meeting we also have someone pick a story for our current event discussion. It is usually a story about something going on in the news. After the person gives us the breakdown of the story and how they feel about it. It is open for debate. Everyone has there chance to speak on the topic and express how they feel about it. Nabj also teaches how to write a news story, how to find a news story, how to use a camera to record a story and so on, basically everything you need to become a journalist, newscaster, or somethng in that field. The group meets every wednesday at 5 in the letterman building.

My Senior Research Paper...

At my high school in order to graduate you have to have written a senior research paper which was worth a large percentage of your final grade. My paper was on how police officers need stricter rules and harsher punishments for breaking these rules. Before I even began an outline or any form of preparations, I had to do a lot of research to be sure that I had enough information on this topic in order to write a paper. Once I was certain on my topic I then created an outline. I also made note cards which we had to turn in with our paper. The process of actually writing the paper took weeks. I definitely listened to music while writing it as I do for all papers. I had a least two rough drafts that were read by my teacher before I actually typed the final paper. Overall it was a very long process in order to finish this paper. It was something that couldn’t have been done the night before.
I think the difference between editing and revising is when you’re editing a paper you’re correcting small things like punctuation and grammar. When revising you’re actually reading through the entire paper and making major changes such as moving sentences and/or paragraphs and rearranging them to make sure paper sound better.