Annotated Bibliography

Annotated Bibliography

 1) Martin, Adam. “Pursued at the Speed of Passion.” Unpublished essay, 2009.

This essay is a reflection on my personal literacy history. It reflects the sponsors that influenced the reader and writer that I am today and offers insight into the way my mind works in the world of literacy. This work includes a bit of my educational background and history, and also provides insight from a few outside sources. This item serves as the first major milestone in my entire research project. Also, it provides some testimony in the language development portion of my discussion.

2) Martin, Adam. “Choose Your Words Carefully…” Unpublished essay, 2009.

This piece is an essay concerning the notion of images as a form of literacy. It incorporates visual images with text in an effort to better validate its arguments. This essay was my first step in the direction of “informal literacy” discussion. It also provides statistical information that will prove useful in a few of my arguments.

3) Martin, Adam. “Formal Proposal.” Unpublished essay, 2009.

This is my formal research proposal. It includes my pointed research question and how I plan to go about answering it. It mentions my study sites and how I plan to obtain and convey information that will support my final project. This gives the reader a good outline for my project. Also, it provides insight into how the process of researching the material played out from my point of view.

4) Martin, Adam. “Is Writing Casual?” Unpublished essay, 2009.

This is an essay focused around an interview with a college student about his usage of “informal literacy.” It analyzes the patterns of usage (or lack thereof) in his life and investigates why these patterns occur. This essay marks a major analysis of a unique interview. It also happens to be a parallel milestone to my first interview in this project.

 5) Plyler, Eric. Personal interview. Oct. 7, 2009.

This is an interview with a college student concerning “informal literacy” in his life. It is unique due to the nature of this specific student’s history and schooling. It provides testimony from the strange case of a student that chats with friends on the internet, but doesn’t use “informal literacy” very often. It is the first interview involved in this project.

6) Kolvanov, Dimitri. Personal interview. Dec. 2, 2009.

 This is a psuedonamed interview with a college student that is very involved in “informal literacy” practices. This person is in the chat-room style environment often, and tends to invent new abbreviations to be included in “txt tlk.” It goes into situations where this person tends to act a bit differently than the average person concerning whether or not to use an informal style. This interview provides a very informed perspective on the issue of discussion. Also, it is a testimony from the unique side of one who uses the informal so often, but shows a very evident respect for the formal.

7) Martin, Adam. Observational notes. Oct. 18, 2009.

This is set of fieldnotes taken while observing the nature of the networking site, Facebook. They cover the topics of Facebook’s apparent goals and the ideology of communication evident in the features of the site. This set of notes provides an insight into why Facebook and informal literacy go hand in hand. Strangely enough, it also shows patterns of why the two could be more of a correlation of circumstance.

8) Martin, Adam. Observational notes. Oct. 30, 2009.

These notes were taken while observing the language used in status updates on Facebook. Many different styles are used, usually staying relatively similar within a specific user. Sometimes however, I noticed formality fluctuation for various reasons. This provides a somewhat statistical analysis of the status update section of Facebook concerning formality. Also, it shows some of the reasons why people will choose whether or not to speak informally.

9) Martin, Adam. Observational notes. Nov. 10, 2009.

These notes were recorded while chatting with three friends. I conducted a miniature analysis of their respective speech patterns as sort of a blind survey. The chat window proved to be much more informal than status updates. This entry analyzes another portion of the Facebook networking site. It also provides a rough spectrum of what to expect in the informal conversation environment.

10) Martin, Adam. Observational notes. Nov. 23, 2009.

These notes were taken while observing various games offered on Facebook. It ponders the ideology and nature of Facebook while gathering information on specific features offered by the site. At times, I focused my attention on the conversational features of these games. These fieldnotes give yet another perspective on the informal usage involved with Facebook. They also offer a view of the occupied chatter and his specific usage of language.

11) Martin, Adam. Observational notes. Nov. 30, 2009.

These notes were taken to compare the usage of informal literacy in the various areas of Facebook. They cover the specific language used by various users in various areas of the site. In my reflection on the notes, I began to analyze and compare the different areas. These notes provide information on the changing word choice throughout movement about the various features offered by Facebook.

12) Martin, Adam. Observational notes. Dec. 2, 2009.

I took these fieldnotes while examining my cellular phone’s text message inbox. I found many different instances and styles of “informal literacy.” This provides a testimony of usage from a source other than Facebook. Also, it provides information from an artifact rather than the specified site.

13) Sunstein, Bonnie Stone, and Elizabeth Chiseri-Strater. Field Working: Reading and Writing Research. 3rd ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2007.

This is one of the assigned texts for the class this project is intended for. It discusses the methods and practice of field working. It provides a background for the field working process and examples of its practice. It is the text involved with my entire knowledge of field working.

14) Carter, Shannon. Literacies in Context. 2nd ed. Southlake: Fountainhead Press, 2008.

 This is the other side of the text assigned for the English class. It contains various essays and articles involved with the scholarly conversation on literacy. Assigned readings in this book influenced a large portion of my research direction. Also, the ideas in this book influenced a major portion of my ideology on literacy presented in this study.

15) Facebook.

This site is a major networking site used by millions of people all over the world. The major goals of this site are to provide people with a place to calmly sit and communicate with each other. It is a superhighway for sharing ideas. This is my major research site and area of focus. Also, some of the information on this site provided me with a few necessary statistics for my research.

16) Martin, Adam. “RJ4.” Online posting. Sep. 15, 2009.

 This is an assigned research journal reflecting on articles from the assigned text. I begin to go into teaching ideologies and practices during the early years of TAMU-Commerce. This journal is specifically relevant because it is the first that pertains to my final research goal. It provides many solid arguments and points that are involved in my research question.

17) Martin, Adam. “RJ10 (b)” Online posting. Oct. 5, 2009.

This research proposal was assigned to present the proposal of my research question. It discusses the points of my question and my methodology for obtaining an answer. This provides insight into my goals for this project. It also serves as a first draft for my formal research proposal.

18) Martin, Adam. “RJ [5-9, 11]” Online posting(s). Sep. 17, 2009-Oct. 6, 2009.

 These are the remainder of my online research journals. They are varied in content, mostly analyses of assigned readings. They are not entirely relevant to my research goal, but should be included because they were part of the process that brought me to point in my research that I am at now.

19) Bailey, Rachel, Samantha Reece, and Caroline Carlson. Front door dry erase board. 2009.

 Prairie Crossing Apartments, Commerce. This is an artifact that I pass on my way to my car every day. On my neighbors’ door, there is a dry erase board and marker. People will just write comments as they walk by, every day, something new and creative. This is a very interesting piece that provides insight into the random everyday use of “informal literacy.” It is without doubt the most non-conventional piece in my portfolio.

20) Unknown. We Want Your Story. 2009. TAMU-Commerce Hall of Languages, Commerce.

This is another artifact very similar to the dry erase board. In the Hall of Languages, there are posters covered with blank index cards up on the support columns. They are intended for students to walk by and write whatever may be on their hearts. This contributes to my project due to the nature of the language used by the majority of the students. It also is another place where simple communication is encouraged.

21) Martin, Adam. Cell phone. 2009. Personal collection of Adam Martin, Commerce.

This artifact is my personal cellular phone. I am focused on my text messages primarily, but some of the features can provide other information. This is another source for tons of informal language. Also, it is another connection to Facebook.

22) “SMS Language.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Nov. 28, 2009.

This is an online article that discusses “informal literacy.” This is Wikipedia’s page discussing my research topic. This provides a very useful source of information for my project. It is a much more structured version of the information I am pursuing.

23) “Text Messaging Abbreviations.” Webopedia. Nov. 28, 2009.

 This page is basically a giant list of all of the abbreviations commonly used in informal literacy. It is an alphabetical listing of these abbreviations and their respective definitions, with a small introduction to the topic. This provides a rich source of information for my project. A massive list of abbreviations proves very useful.

24) Suler, John. The Psychology of Cyberspace. Nov. 28, 2009.

This article provides a more educated perspective on the subject matter. Rather than simply defining “informal literacy” or listing its uses, it provides a discussion of why we use it. It gives me something to reflect on and presents many valid arguments that prove to be directly relevant to my research.

25) Orwell, George. 1984. New York: New American Library, 1949.

This novel is based in the future (from when it was written) in a world entirely controlled and surveyed by the government. In this novel, the citizens speak with a shorthand version of the English language. This is the portion that is relevant to my research. I am comparing Orwell’s fictitious world with the one we live in to see how close we are to his nightmare.

RJ11

Moss’s essay gives very good advice to fieldworkers working in their native communities.  This advice includes numerous references to the themes of objectivity and subject compliance.  Some major ideas I noticed were: keep your subjects comfortable, associate yourself with the society (without becoming too much of an impact), continually analyze your research throughout the research process, and be flexible with your research goals and consider the data as you collect it to determine how to tweak them.  The example presented in Mamma Day, considering it to be an example of a failed research process, is solid proof of the ideas presented by Moss as necessities for the ethnographic fieldworker.  “Reema’s boy” did not reassociate himself with the society, adhere to the needs and wills of the members of this society, check up on his research to discover his errors, or allow any possibility of alteration to his research goal.  Because he neglected these principles, he not only failed to obtain the knowledge of the society he sought, but he was also oblivious to the fact that he had failed and went on to publish material that falsely represented the culture he studied.  As researchers, we must be flexible and open and have the ability to be involved just the right amount.  We also cannot forget to analyze ourselves simultaneously to ensure we stay on track with our research goal, even if that means changing what the right track is.  These are the keys to becoming successful researchers.

RJ10(b): Research Proposal

My formal research question at this point is:

What are the major differences in literacy in the informal and formal settings and:

• why are they separate?
• is one method more effective than the other concerning teaching and learning/developing literacy?
• which form is more prevalent in society concerning impact (not usage)?
• is the informal aspect of literacy acting as an abomination of language and/or destroying the minds of the youth?

I plan to conduct this study in the networking centers of the students, and some faculty, at TAMU-Commerce, strictly, text messages and Facebook.com.  These areas are perfect breeding grounds of informal literacy that can be compared to the classroom works of the subject individuals to gain insight on the effectiveness of the styles comparatively as communication and on the effects usage of either style has on the subjects.  As an avid user of Facebook and the real world “Newspeak” (Orwell, 1984), I am sure that these sites will prove very useful to my research.

I have an account on Facebook and over 200 friends I can access quickly and easily to conduct field research.  I also can record my text messages on my phone (about 30-50 per day), and I have friends on campus with similar resources that would be glad to allow me to study their actions.  I also have an interesting source of unique developments in the informal English developments in the form of a friend that invents and chronically speaks with text message style abbreviations.  Usually he’s just kidding around, but it would still be an interesting thing to look into.

I will conduct my research on Facebook and cell phones by monitoring my friends and myself.  I will take field notes over the conversations that take place in these areas and possibly take an abbreviation count.

As far as permission is concerned, I will be fairly blunt and up-front about it.  I don’t think this will be a problem considering the fact that the majority of my research subjects are my close friends.

RJ10(a): Article Analysis

Brandt’s Study:

Brandt’s research of literacy sponsorship took place in the dwelling areas of individuals, specifically including, but not limited to, a college town in the midwest, a mining town in the same area, and the clerical work field in general.

The members of the studied group are ordinary people in varying circumstances.  Brandt studies the differences in an immigrant woman of low socioeconomic means and an upper-class white male.  She looks at a second generation factory worker tossed about by a shifting industry.  Also included in the study are two women struggling to make a decent living in the same industry with different motives.

These subjects are all in some way applying and/or developing their literacy to give themselves a better career life.

The actions that make up the general act of literacy development include learning to read and write, reading and writing for a job, learning to deal with new ways of reading and writing on the job, questing for the materials to read and write, and reading and writing in a competitive sense.

The most common theme of actions carried out by the individuals in this study is that of adapting to literacy as it changes in the workplace.

The events of this study take place largely in the greater midsection of the twentieth century.  The studies covered events over periods of more than twenty years.

These individuals were all questing after a better understanding and usage of their respective literacy and the competitive edge that comes with it in the job market.

RJ9(a): Response to Fieldworking Chapter 3

I found chapter 3 to be somewhat in disagreement with chapter 1.  Where chapter one focused mostly around the idea of objectivity, this chapter seemed to somewhat shun the thought.  Personally, I agree with chapter one, but it is true that there is no possibility of perfect objectivity from research.  In order to be close enough to something to effectively study it, one will make some sort of influence on the culture’s specific practices for the time he is conducting his research.  The fieldworking technique I have drawn from this is the ability to identify my influence on the subject(s) and either find how it would turn out without my influence, leave it out completely, or at least mention that I influenced the behavior recorded.

From the essays I found that when a researcher fails to blend with society, (in these cases, with their society of origin) he is either rejected by the society and can learn nothing about its common practices, or he approaches the research in entirely the wrong way and obtains no information of value at his own fault.

RJ8: Thoughts on Fieldworking (Chap. 1 and 2)

The first two chapters of Fieldworkinglay a good basis for the practices of the developing ethnographer.  Chapter one focuses heavily on the principle of objectivity, which is definitely a characteristic required of any fieldworker before he can ever even begin his research.  It also focuses on the theme of relentless research.  Due to the nature of ethnography, one can easily see that a researcher must be willing to work late and get his hands dirty if he expects any results.  Chapter two introduces a principle of what I see as “research differentiation.”  When someone takes field notes, when done correctly, the researcher can find lots of insight and information where another researcher will probably just see gibberish.  Through the process of repeatedly analyzing and rewriting the notes, one can find the truest core of meaning in his research, and thus the portion that can be added to his publication that any reader will make sense of and learn from.  Objectivity, determination, and “research differentiation” (I’m sure there’s a better term for someone who doesn’t like math): necessary ethnographic research skills.

Fieldworking Chapter 1: Groundwork Activity

For my research on the formality of literacy, I will make my focus in the university community primarily, but also I can shift attention to businesses in the area.  Retail stores, convenience stores, restaurants (fancy, fast food, and everything between), banks, and government offices are all major centers of literacy work if you know where to look.

Mostly, I will be working with the university, but there are many subculters to consider in this particular area.  I will focus my attention on English majoring stundents, non-English majors, professors (of any subject), and the online networking community (Facebook in particular).  I need to gain more insight on a prfessor’s daily literacy usage, and I would like to investigate the difference in English majors’ literacy and that of non-majors, how much of a difference there is, and the poarity of that difference.  I may need to look into an outsider perspective of the networking community to gain a more well-rounded understanding of it’s role in society.

I am partially concerned with the compliance of teenagers to talk about writing.  Also, I am worried that I may not find enough professors in the right fields with enough time to spare for an interview.

I am already established in the networking and non-major communities.  Maybe I can contribute to the teaching community with specific oppurtunities at insight (dependant upon the teacher), and, if nothing else, teach English majors that they aren’t necessarily better at reading and writing than everyone else just because it’s thier major.  They may discover a disadvantage.

RJ7: First Glance Summary of Archives

The archives at Gee Library are facinating and informational, but also more extensive than requird by the project.  As I looked through the articles, I noticed many different topics, few of which were relevant to literacy in general.  However, there are many oppurtunities for background information and extraprospesctive insight on selective fields of literacy studies.  A look at my comments and reinforcement from the digital section of the archives has centralized my research question around the idea of formal versus informal literacy.  This idea has been further reinforced by the oral history transcripts.  The teachers in these interviews were very passionate about learnig and teaching, and Ms. Bowman was particularly excited concerning English.  The common theme in these personalities as exprexxed through the interwies seems to be a general distaste for standardization and selective information.  Mr. Jackson was, in his terms, “old school,” and used to being in a learning environmenr focused more around knowledge of concept than of specific instance.  He idolized a teacher (W. L. Mayo) who once said, 

“The pupil sits at the feet of the instructor and accepts without thought or question, everything that is said. He takes notes on the lecture, then goes to his room and memorizes them. He learns to follow, not to lead; to accept the opinions of others, not to think for himself; to read the results of their investigations, not to make these investigations for himself. Such is not education.” (East Texas Normal Catalogue 1896, 71)

People learn more efficiently on thier own than entirely out of a text book.  My research is geared toward comparing the two environments.  How do people use literacy on their own, and how are they taught differntly?

Unconditional Love

Zechariah 13:9

Many people in the world are afraid of religion.  People think they aren’t good enough.  “How can God love me in His position of power over the entire universe.”  “As messed up as my life is, there’s no way whoever’s in charge of it cares one bit about me.”  We judge the bad experiences in our lives as punishment or God not caring for us.  Or no one looking out for us at all.  We come to questions like, “Why me?” and think, “Man, I just have the worst luck.”  These depressive states aren’t healthy, and are not the ways God wants us to feel.  He puts these situations on us because He wants us to grow from them.  When something bad happens, God is working in many more lives than yours (and the person involved in the event, if it is someone else).  However, that never means that He is not working in yours.  No matter what you do, who you are, what you believe, what happens to you and the people around you, what somone did to you, what you say, what you think, or any other variables that could possibly influence you, God loves you.  Completely, and all the time.  God knows (and probably played a major role in) everything about us.  He knows our potential, what can make us better, how we feel and react in certain situations, and what can make us bounce back from a bad experience in a way that we can still learn from it.  He wants good things for us so that we can do good things for Him by doing good things in other peoples lives.  And He can shape us into a very efficient tool for doing so.

When tough times come our way, and eventually pass over, we remember well how much it hurt, and how we got through it.  Later on, if we find someone experiencing similar problems, we know how to help.  Wouldn’t it be grand to find out that you helped someone with a problem you had already experienced and cleared his mind enough that he listened more intently at his weeknight bible study he attended with his friends and gave his life to Jesus?  Such is the work of God.  Furthermore, He refines us in our faith in such a way that we can tell people His story directly rather than wait for them to find out on happier terms than before they met us.  He makes us soldiers in His army, speakers in His courts, defenders of His truth, and preachers of His gospel.

However, it’s not always so clear what is facing us.  Many times we find ourselves avoiding what we believe to be the enemy, when it is in fact God testing us.  Many times we also place ourselves in situations that please the enemy while God watches us fail His tests.  But, rest assured, no matter how many tests you fail or mistakes you make, God still loves and cares for you and will answer you every call.  No matter what.

Sweet Relief

Psalm 123

The world is full of pain and suffering, fear and doubt, fatigue and anguish, the goes on and on.  As citizens of this world, we take some pretty rough shots with all this bad stuff flying around.  God tells us that He wants our burdens, He asks us to give our worries and needs to Him.  We can find peace, comfort, and rest in the Lord.  All we have to do is lift our eyes to Him, and He will heal our sorrow.

Everyone has bad days.  Today was a bad day for me.  I woke up late for one class and had unfinished homework due in another.  I prayed about it before leaving my room for the first time toward my second class…and I had still missed a class and needed to do homework in another.  There was no flash of light and new set of wonderful circumstances involving straight A’s, perfect attendance, and chocolate.  But my day was better.  My second class went well, I had a good choir rehearsal, and my homework got pushed back a week.  Plus, my assignment in the night class was much easier than normal, allowing me to finish before class was over.  These are subtle changes, and stemming from changes in other people’s lives, but they made my day so much better.  And regardless of the events of the day, God has a way of warming the heart when the world has iced it over and His children cry out to Him for mercy.

The better you know God, the easier it is to find His help.  With one plea, He will turn whatever trouble you’re dealing with completely around.  Remember always to thank God for the good times because that’s His work in a sense of prevention, but any time you need Him, call and He will answer.  God asks for our company at any and all times, no matter the circumstance, so spend some time with Him.  You’ll find yourself a lot happier.