Responding to Questions:
My critical question asks, "What is the relationship between the term "feminism" and the progression of women?"
I plan to study the group comprising Section 501 of ENGL254: Writing&Communities, which meets Mondays through Fridays from 11:00 AM to 12:35 PM. I want to study a seminar-like classroom environment, which already conflicts with the allotted time for weekend observation. I would be open to studying another similar class, but this one was the only one I could find that was operating during this session. I would also have to miss at least an hour of our own class time in order to conduct the initial observation, for which I would be willing to use one of the two absences I have left (although an exception would certainly be appreciated.) If you know of any other classes that don't conflict with our class time, please let me know.
I think it would be too obvious to study a Women and Gender Studies
class (which has some summer courses during this session), and this
ENGL254 class seems to encompass a seminar environment with relevant
topics such that the students should have something to say. I chose to study a seminar-like classroom in general (thanks for the idea, Nicole) because the exchange of ideas and interaction among these undergraduate students would constitute an appropriate as well as interesting environment for observation. My hope is that the nature of the course will produce some dialogue from students about issues and aspects of those issues they find relevant, and that the environment will yield meaningful student interaction between these young men and women. Further, I feel that this group's interaction should manifest the attitudinal side of the feminist paradox, namely the concern for equality and empowerment irrespective of gender, as well as more general egalitarian concerns (or lack thereof).
I seek to observe not only the elucidation of these attitudes in the classroom, but also the demeanor of students as they choose or decline to interact with one another. I don't want to scrutinize the beliefs held by these students so much as to evaluate the feminist paradox (the pervasive disconnect between concern for feminist tenets and identification as a feminist). I've been evaluating the literature about the feminist paradox with respect to college students, and I'm intrigued by the literature's incorporation of label theory and social identification theory. Importantly, in an academic setting, the feminist aspect of empowerment is central to this pivotal time for students as undergraduates.
To my knowledge, I have no personal relationship with this group, except that I am an undergraduate student currently enrolled in an English writing-centered course.
In order to set up this observation, I will converse with the professor in his/her office. If the professor's office hours conflict with my schedule, I will send an email. If permitted, I would like to wait until after my first observation to decide which students to interview. I would either approach the students before/after their class or email them, per the professor's preference.
"If you are doing an Ethnography of a group..."
3 possible questions for various group members:
1) Which social issues are important to you personally, and why?
2) How do you feel about the term "feminism"?
3) How has your college experience influenced your perceptions of gender?
I hope to conduct my first observation in a class as soon as possible. However, given the conflict with both the allotted weekend time to begin the observation and our own class time, I will need to hammer out those details before scheduling the initial observation.
What I'll be looking for in my observations:
-student interactions (especially between male and female students)
-student attitudes about issues and/or class material
-students' demeanor when speaking up in class
My iPhone cameras are broken, so I will need to use either my boyfriend's phone or someone's MP3 recorder to record my observations.
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