WAW Post #5: Academic Research

WAW #5 will be this summary along with your answer to this question: What makes academic research so difficult? Is it necessary for it to be? Why/why not?

Photo belongs to: EKU Noel Studio

When you are preparing to do any form of academic research there are a lot of things that you need to remember to do. EKU has created a way to make academic research happen in a much easier and organized way. On the EKU Library's webpage you will find a search bar that allows you to select the subject you are searching for, along with many options regarding the medium you want to use and the keywords you are focusing on. Once upon filling the search bar out with all of your research needs you will be linked to articles, books, and magazines within the library's reach (meaning that it's either already in the library's circulation, or they have the ability to loan it to you from another source)regarding your research topic.

There are so many ways that you can receive research in the library. Sometimes there are full texts ready and available in PDF form on the database website. Other times the database will find the call number for the book and tell you where you can locate it within the library. Then there are other items that EKU's library may not have ready at hand but allows you the option of doing an inter-library loan, which requires nothing of you other than your student log on information.

 Although EKU gives you many options of finding research easily, this does not mean that academic research is always simple. You must pinpoint the focus of your topic to make your search narrower, otherwise you may receive many things that will not necessarily help you when you are writing. Personally, I think by making it harder for academic research it makes me very picky about the documents and information that I use. I want my research to be relevant to the matter I am writing about for I want to remain focused and not drift from my true purpose. It also gives my writing more creditability if I am using proper, intellectual academic sources instead of using sites like Wikepedia. ( I mean, c'mon, who really trusts wikepedia?!)

 To learn more about EKU's Library check out their youtube channel at: http://www.youtube.com/user/ekulibraries?feature=watch

WAW Post #4: Big Box Stores

Using the strategies we discussed in class, find an article, story, essay, poem, or text of any kind and answer read the article for the conversation. 

Here are the questions: a. To what other arguments is the author(s) responding? b. Is the writer disagreeing or agreeing with something? If so, what? c. What is motivating the argument? d. Are there similar ideas you’ve encountered? In the article "Big Box Stores Are Bad for Main Street"

 Betsy Taylor discusses a lot of the issues regarding the economy and the "mom & pop" stores in America. Betsy's claim that Big Box stores, such as Walmart and home depot are negative for for American economy because these stores attract people away from smaller shopping areas, such as downtown. She disagrees that these places where you can buy everything in one stop is a good idea.

(Photo from Google Images)
 I believe her motivation for her argument is that she has witnessed the change in America... these large stores do not truly cater to the needs of the consumer, and can take away the charm of smaller communities. It then becomes about hyper consumerism and meeting a status quo with other cities. Being born and raised in Richmond, Kentucky, I can definitely see the point that Betsy Taylor brings to the table. Downtown Richmond used to have so many small shops and stores and until recently the majority have closed down due to the fact that it can not match the competition of other stores such as Walmart or JC Penney. The mens shop Jett & Hall downtown is literally barely hanging by a thread.

  Over the past four years or so Richmond has started an effort of reviving these old mom& pop style stores, but it's a giant leap of faith. Usually most places close before even making it an entire year. For example, Regal Beagle in Richmond, a newer bar/restaurant closed this past summer after barely being open a year. It's rather sad to me. Yes Walmart is a faster option, but the personal experiences or the one on one quality of these smaller shops is something that can leave an impression for a lifetime.

WAW Post #3: Inventing the University

Write a narrative about a time when you had to "invent the university" or why you never have. Why is it important to be aware of this? How has it affected you?

 A Professor named David Bartholomae wrote an article in which he describes many of the troubles that his students face when entering an academic community. In this article he states:

[A student has] “to invent the university by assembling and mimicking its language while finding some compromise between idiosyncrasy, a personal history, on the one hand, and the requirements of convention, the history of a discipline, on the other hand.”

His ideas are mainly focusing on writing capabilities of students in English courses, but I feel that it could easily be related to other subjects regarding universities today.  In his article, Bartholomea focuses on the fact that students have to navigate their way through the university by "pretending" they know how to accomplish the writing task they have been assigned to do before they have actually learned how to do it. Basically saying that a student is at a disadvantage because they have “to take on the role–the voice, the persona–of an authority whose authority is rooted in scholarship, analysis, or research.”


A time that I had to create the university would most definitely be my freshman year of college when I first began working the theatre shop on campus in the Campbell Building. Like the students who have to invent the university through writing by relating their own personal knowledge to the expectations of their professor, I had to use my own previous experiences without the proper training to begin building set pieces. In this case I had to work to the expectations of the director of the current theatre show at the time. One of the tasks that I had to complete was putting up a vintage style wallpaper to wooden flats and then painting an intricate design on top of the wallpaper. As simple as putting up wallpaper may seem, there were a few places where the paper didn't quite remain secured to the flat. After numerous attempts it became evident that the adhesive I used wasn't applied properly. This mistake was made merely because I had never used this medium before, nor had I ever placed any form of wallpaper on another surface.

David Bartholomae argues in his article that students make errors due to lack of familiarity, not because they are incompetent. I believe that this is a nice thought, especially during the time I mentioned where I invented the university because it would be extremely discouraging otherwise. What I mean is that for a student working in the theatre shop it is trial and error, some things we are asked to do have yet to be taught to us.

I believe that if more professors realize students are having to frequently invent the university, that they would have more patience with us on some matters.Although it seems Bartholomae's writings are slightly condescending in a sense, they also shine a light on a matter that is affecting education institutions everywhere.

WAW Post #2 They Say/I Say

Write a short "They Say/I Say"argument by picking a part or whole of Graff's argument and responding to it with your own opinion. Basically, this is a summary and response practicing the textbook's suggestions about summary writing. 

They Say, I Say: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing

This is one of the books that we are currently using in Advanced Composition.

Book Description 
Publication Date: December 22, 2009  
| ISBN-10: 039393361X | ISBN-13: 978-0393933611 |

Edition: Second Edition

"The book that demystifies academic writing, teaching students to frame their arguments in the larger context of what else has been said about their topic–and providing templates to help them make the key rhetorical moves. 
The best-selling new composition book published in this century, in use at more than 1,000 schools, They Say / I Say has essentially defined academic writing, identifying its key rhetorical moves, the most important of which is to summarize what others have said (“they say”) to set up one’s own argument (“I say”). The book also provides templates to help students make these key moves in their own writing."

In Graff's essay, Hidden Intellectualism, he advocates the belief that "street smarts" are just as important (if not more) as academic schooling. He starts off the essay by describing a person who is young and is impressively "street smart" but does poorly in school(198). He states in his opening paragraph that in some cases it is the learning institutions fault for a student being this way for not taking the chance to take these street smarts and focus it on academic work.

Graff argues that street smarts regarding sports in particular is more compelling in school than standard academic work. He states that "the sports world was more compelling than school because it was more intellectual than school, not less" (202) Although I admire his effort in trying to explain his full thought process, I would have to say that I disagree with the fact that sports are more intellectual than school. I do celebrate the fact that there is quite a bit to learn regarding the sports world, but that doesn't qualify the idea that sports alone is more intellectual than all of the subject matter taught in school.

I will admit that Graff's writing was during a different time than my own personal schooling and that we probably have had two completely opposite experiences, but I feel like education today has a lot more to offer than just learning the rules and regulations of a sport. Along with more interesting topics, personally speaking.
Graff then continues on to end his essay by declaring that colleges and institutions are missing an opportunity by not encouraging their students to take a nonacademic interest and make an object of academic study. Although I disagree with his statement about sports, I do agree that he is making a valid point here (204). Having different mediums, subjects and ideas that a student enjoys can stimulate interest in things they once pushed to the side.

WAW Post #1: The Rhetorical Situation

Welcome to my Writing About Writing Blog!  

My name is Brittany Webb and I am currently a senior Theatre/English major at Eastern Kentucky University. This semester I am enrolled in Dr. Jill Parrott's English 302, Advanced Composition course. This blog will be used for my Writing About Writing project, and each post will be for each assignment! 

My first post is about the Rhetorical Situation.

Photo created by me. The Rhetorical Situation is a great tool that Dr. Parrott shared with me during class that is a tool to help my writing be well-organized, audience focused and strong. In this case it is set up in a triangle outline.

Author: I am the author in this rhetorical situation because I am the curator of this blog.

Audience: My audience is Dr. Parrott.

Purpose: The purpose of this blog is for me to grow as a writer during my senior year of college. Although I am entering my fourth year I still have the opportunity to continue to gain knowledge, especially with my writing.  

"The day you stop learning is the day that you die." -Unknown

Text: The text is web-based in blog form and easily accessible to others via the internet.The reason why I chose this medium is because I have never successfully continued a blog... I have started many--never fully stuck with one though. I was hoping that since this is a required assignment and it's completion would affect my grade, that I would strive to stick with it.

Context:  This project is a social-independent project, currently happening now, at Eastern Kentucky University where I can explore my thoughts and express them for others to see.

Hopefully the use of this diagram will help me remained focused on my current task at hand.

For further research regarding the rhetoric situation feel free to check out the Purdue Owl website: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/625/1/