To-Do List Re-Do

Well...I can't quite believe that it's been two weeks since AI. I don't have much to show either. I still need to finish compiling my data. I'm soooooooooo close to being done, but I apparently can't quite bring myself to finish. Maybe I have such attachments to the data that I don't want to be finished with it...not exactly. I just need to sit down for about an hour and finish it. argh!

So to answer where I am now... same place I was two weeks ago. I haven't moved much. :)

Here's what I think now...I'm a slacker who still has a to-do list.

These are the questions I still have...umm...why am I a slacker?

Still To-Do...Again

*go through all of my data --both online and in paper format -- combing for some sort of pattern *define terms [constructive feedback, purpose of writing group

*read the articles I emailed to myself

*outline of a deadline draft

Keep your fingers crossed in hopes that I'll have more to report next week!

To-Do List

One week ago today, I apparently had very lofty ideas! :) Why does everything seem to take longer than you think? Everyone needs more time. Hmm… maybe I’m just hard on myself since I really didn’t get done what I had planned to this weekend. Yet, looking back over my original to-do list, I have completed more than half of it. So, that makes me feel better. Oh, I also need to add a few things that I have completed, but they weren't on the list!

However, I realize that one important piece isn’t done – going through the data. Without that I realize that it will be a bit difficult to actually accomplish the other items done.

I’ll also be adding to my list since today I want to head to the library to find a some more recent articles on writing groups. It shouldn’t be too difficult – just time consuming. Again, the issue of time. Maybe I’m just annoyed since I feel like I lost six hours of time when I couldn’t sleep.

Completed
☼revisit my initial research question
☼read what I wrote after the interview
☼added an addendum to the initial interview write up [I wonder how much work this needs?]
☼read Acts of Revision
☼decide what I really want to know [is this ever really decided?]
☼refine RQ: [adding the what happens, how, and what is… from the T-R book]
☼review Peter Elbow’s Writing Without Teachers

Still To-Do
*go through all of my data --both online and in paper format -- combing for some sort of pattern *define terms [constructive feedback, purpose of writing group,
*have a rough article by the end of the institute
[I'm thinking the interview write up might be able to go somewhere?]
*outline for the conference presentation

The Plan
Today – library articles
Tonight – data analysis
Tomorrow –with the help of our open activity outline conference/demo/paper

Questions

Prompt in progress:

Background knowledge
previous exposure
what you bring to the table as a teacher and a researcher
How does your investment in your research question and the students’ background about your topic affect the research?

Interesting prompt this morning, Steph [and Renee!]. Last night I just posted something about how long I’ve been infatuated with writing groups. While not nearly as long as Cindy has worked with book clubs, it seems like I always come back to the complexities of writing groups. I know that I sometimes make assumptions –things that I think I have told students, or assume that other teachers have told them about writing groups. While with behavior issues, I can just tell kids not to be idiots and they get that since I’ve been at the school for awhile. Apparently my reputation precedes me. J Imagine that! But with writing groups, it seems as though I’m always forgetting to tell them something, show them something, remind them of something.

My lack of experience with writing groups as a student certain has influenced my passion? about setting up authentic? autonomous writing group experiences for students. Yet, ironically, I’m not too consumed when a group doesn’t work. Or when one student opts not to participate fully. However, I’m also the teacher who believes that my job is to provide students opportunities to learn. --whether they take that opportunity is completely up to them.

Sometimes I wonder if students think writing groups are stupid or dumb because they really don’t get the purpose? or they have yet to see the benefit of such groups? or they simply see it as a time to be with their friends and it becomes a blow off time. argh! Yet, have seen students –mostly girl groups? or equally mixed groups – have completely autonomous writing group experiences. Interesting that I’ve simply always? understood that all boy groups were going to be my dysfunction junction group. Weird.

I’ve also noticed that I sometimes gloss over the importance or how-to with a group second semester. I think I’ve just gotten lazy in that last two years. My first group of ninth graders at EHS received much writing group instruction. I guess that’s why I’m curious how next year’s group of college research students will handle writing groups. Do I need to start from scratch with explanations, purpose, how-to, do’s and don’ts? I suppose I could survey students each semester to give me an idea of where to start.

A few suggestions include… a new norming…agree to a new set of standards…explain to them the purpose…have them figure out the purpose…

I just noticed how many question marks this post contains...it is certainly reflective of my thinking right now.