Reply | Original | Permalink | TweetHmm, perhaps Wordle like you better!
Reply | Original | Permalink | TweetThank you, Arjun. Appreciate your words of encouragement and support!
Jeffrey
Reply | Original | Permalink | TweetAnne Marie, thank you for visiting and for asking this question (one which I had not previously considered).
Indeed, a number of people I interviewed for this project told me that they did not wish to remain anonymous, though we did not have a conversation about publishing the audio interviews, nor the transcripts. Lesson for the future to ask about this. I can only guess that they do not mind being linked with the findings, though I will not presume that they would (or would not) want everything from our exchange to be public. As that will significantly go beyond the ethical approval I received (and which I discussed with each participant), I think this may be a question to raise with everybody on another day (especially after I finish this paper itself!).
Thank you again for raising an issue that helps me to further push the boundaries of research.
Jeffrey
Reply | Original | Permalink | TweetSarah, these are great slides -- use images to tell / support your message, rather than endless text.
I only wish I could hear what you said during each one!
Reply | Original | Permalink | TweetHelen, now that we are chatting a bit, I wanted to comment on this posting before we get too far away from it.
I think this is a fascinating Wordle idea. Did you include everything you have written, or just the writing toward your thesis (dissertation?)?
How did you filter out the more common words (the, a, for, etc.), so they did not show up with any great prominence?
Thank you.
Jeffrey
Reply | Original | Permalink | TweetThank you for the link to Conference Alerts, Helen. What a wonderful service!
Reply | Original | Permalink | TweetAilsa, this is a wonderful reflection, and is indeed one of the reasons I blog, Tweet (thought I was following you, though it appears not), and is a fundamental shift in the way I think and act. I can relate with the democratizing issues you shared about the Internet, and while reading more and having the opportunity for more informed thoughts, I also find that I learn more by trying new things--reflecting with blog posts that are not fully formed yet, engaging others to help me think through issues of research and practice, and even by reaching out to engage in conversation in ways I would not be able to do F2F.
Thank you for sharing this and helping me to get my own thinking flowing.
Reply | Original | Permalink | TweetSarah, having started and left more than one program over the years (I am quite happy with my program at Lancaster University right now; look into it!), this is never easy. I found that so much of my own identity and self-image was wrapped into my doctoral studies, and the fact that I told so many people about the programs while I was in them, made leaving such difficult experiences. It is easy now to see that such alignment issues would only lead to problems, and now I am happier for having had the experiences (though my student loans are quite large), yet I can't help but wonder what would have happened had I continued. While I would be done, I do not think I would be happy, and certainly know I would not be hear reading your blog or otherwise doing the many interesting things I find myself doing along the way.
See what musing you will ultimately be able to share!!
It will work out nicely, I have no doubt.
Jeffrey
Reply | Original | Permalink | TweetSarah, these are very helpful suggestions. The only two I would add from my own experiences having started and stopped more than one, is to understand what it means to have time commitments that can stretch one to the breaking point, as well as to have a stategy for how to handle differences: paradigms, career, goals, and WIIFMs. This tolerance for differences is something that I have found critical, and as we are often not aware when these sorts of things will really get under our skin, it is something that is easy to assume until all the little frustrations we face suddenly push us to the edge.
You will be much stronger through these experiences, Sarah. Not consolation now, but they may make you even more sensitive and compassionate with others . . .
Jeffrey
Reply | Original | Permalink | TweetStephanie, my second comment concerns how you understand the central element of the film (and how you are somewhat alone in not liking it; I do not advocate following the crowd, but the fact that you have written so much about that which you do not like is interesting).
You said “My thesis is that the challenge presented by Avatar is not how well or poorly so many groups come to use, misuse, or abuse it, but what we do – specifically how we talk with each other – about the fact of such diversity.”
How do you think this talk should occur, especially since diversity and oppression have been so often discussed that we (here is my generalization) are numb to the discussion until something major happens?
Very thoughtful posting, Stephanie. Glad to be a reader!
Jeffrey
Reply | Original | Permalink | TweetStephanie, you are raising a number of interesting points about Avatar, and there are two things you said that made me want to know more about your thinking in this context:
1. When you speak about what you consider the confusion between “whiteness” and ideology, I was wondering what term you can consider being more applicable, especially for those ideological areas where being “white” is not the context.
I think I will save #2 for a separate comment, to make responses more targeted.
Reply | Original | Permalink | TweetLilia, this is quite interesting, and provides a nice introduction to your work for those who may be new to it.
One of the items you mentioned that struck me during this reading is “bloggers have to figure out how to deal with socially awkward situations talking to strangers who know them pretty well.” I have had this happen with friends who I only speak with on a monthly basis or so, though who follow my Twitter updates when they get posted to my blog. They often know exactly what I have been doing, and makes for some awkward pauses when I hear, “Yes, I know.”
Have you had any of these experiences you can share when this has happened to you?
Reply | Original | Permalink | TweetVigdis, this is one of the first topics in my studies that I can recall is what I now refer to as having a transformative experience. I initially learned about these issues, which I refer to by the term of research paradigms. I recall reading about these in Guba's The Paradigm Dialog http://bit.ly/7N5sVS, which I still think is one of the best books on the topic. I also know that the Guba and Lincoln chapter in The SAGE Handbook of Qualitative Research http://bit.ly/8Yke7U addresses these concerns as well. What I remember most was when, after studying quantitative work for a number of years and never finding it addressed the complexities of the human experience, or really ever spoke to my experiences, I came across the issue of research paradigms. I had only seen the positivistic / postpositivistic ones prevalent in the natural sciences and as they also were forced into the social sciences. What a breadth of fresh air!However, I am somewhat new to the concept of using these within the language of ontology or epistemology. I am not clear on how this language can be used. Jeffrey
Reply | Original | Permalink | TweetMark-
Thank you for your kind offer to assist and for your New Year’s wishes.
Can you share a little about your work and studies either here or by emailing me directly –
My email is:
jeffrey AT silenceandvoiceThank you, and the best for the New Year right back to you.
Jeffrey
DOT com
Reply | Original | Permalink | TweetStephanie-
It looks like you have done a lot of interesting work; I have found that whenever I try to spiff things up, i (personally, of course!) tend to focus on getting things just right, and thus tend not to move forward for some time. I hope the best for you in this process so you do not follow in my footsteps.
Can you email me directly so I can learn a little more about your work?
My email is:
jeffrey AT silenceandvoice
DOT comThank you.
Jeffrey
