ICW: Pre-Writing Primary Source Workshop

2-4 overall concerns about research at this stage in the process.

• I don't have too many overall concerns at this point. The thing I am always wary on is whether or not the source is a true primary source. There were some that I had thought were primary, but I was told they weren't. Another thing that concerns me is if I am narrow enough on my topic. I think I am, and I would just appreciate any advice.

Source Questions:

My sources dealing with vaccinations and Autism are definitely primary sources. One is a court ruling and the other is a message board. I chose these sources because they deal with personal experiences from vaccinations and Autism. The court case took the stance that vaccines didn't cause Autism while the message board displayed both opinions. The message board is my favorite due to its personal feel and the testimonies that are there. The court ruling was the most recent one and its final view was that vaccines didn't cause the autism of little Cedillo or the other 2 families. While that may be the case, the mothers who post on the message board still have their own strong opinions on that matter. What I noticed most about the court ruling was its strictly logical presentation of fact. No emotion entered into the 183 pages until the last little section titled "Conclusion." The message board, however, was very much emotionally driven. It is a very personal and passionate topic for many of the posters and this raw emotion shone through in their writings.

My sources dealing with autism and its genetic causes are primary sources as well. They differ from the ones for vaccines in that they take a more medical and scientific stance. One is a paper from Washington University where a major study was conducted by Dr. Constantino looking into the genetics of Autism. The other one was also a medical site, Medscape, that published their own genetic studies into Autism. I chose these sources because they provided easy access to the information I needed as to the genetic influences of this disorder. The study at Washington University was conducted May of 2007 while the Medscape studies were done in 2005. It was great seeing how things have changed over the years as new technologies have become available. The Medscape site was more in depth and scientific than the article on the study at Washington University. I am very intrigued about how the years have affected the take on the genetics of Autism. Since both of these concern very scientific material, there is a strong sense of logos to them. They are fact based and do a great job of backing up those facts.

My last source is a website that details the statistics of Autism. Since it deals with statistics, it is a primary source. I chose this site over other ones due to its easily accessible information. It was the only stats site I found that listed them in a very simple to follow manner. I didn't have to search around for the statistics. The source lists all the known statistics of Autism in general, it doesn't specifically follow only the vaccines or the genetics. It is impartial to the cause. The statistics of Autism are a very fact-based thing and therefore is very affected by logos. Their information is gathered from such sources as the Center for Disease Control, CDC.

Unit 2: Post 11 (February 25, 2009)

One big thing I discovered during my research was that I didn't have a clue as to what a primary source was. I did manage to find multiple sources that I believe are both applicable to my topic and are primary sources as well. Two of my favorite ones include a court ruling and a message board concerning vaccines and their possible connection to autism. Both of these were verified as primary sources so that reassures me.

My sources are divided down the middle on whether they are behind the genetic cause of autism or the vaccine-induced view of autism. I have 2 for the genetics and 2 for the vaccine. The 5th source I have is a great page with multiple statistics on autism. It was the only site I could find that actually listed all the stats together in a very accessible manner. As my paper will focus on both these potential causes of autism, these sources will nicely compliment my topic.

Unit 2: Post 10 (February 18, 2009)

Well, the topic of my choosing is that of Autism. It is an increasingly occurring problem among the children in this country. I specifically wish to concentrate on the causes of the disorder, such as genetics and vaccines, as well as the outlook the families have for their children. I would like to include the varying viewpoints different people have who are affected by Autism, this includes the doctors, the family, and the person. Source wise, I would concentrate on medical journals, testimonials of the families, and statistics.

I really feel strongly about Autism. I was originally interested in majoring in Special Education so that I could specifically work with children who had Autism and Down syndrome. I have changed majors to Speech Pathology, but I still anticipate interacting with these populations in a professional manner. There hasn't been a lot of research done on Autism in terms of Speech Pathology. There is currently no graduate level course in this disorder like there is in voice or articulation. As the population afflicted continues to grow, the education of the providers of services needs to expand as well. I hope by working on this paper, I will expand my knowledge of this and it will help me once I am on my own in the working world.

Unit 1: Post 9 (February 16, 2009)

Author's Note on Portfolio:

I have to say that I am rather pleased with my final draft. The road was definitely a long one frought with multiple pitfalls, but I think that those were necessary to have the paper arrive where it has. A consistent thing that was pointed out to me everytime someone read my paper was that I had a LOT of great observations, but I just didn't have much analysis of it. It is really hard for me to separate the details and the analysis. I believe I have accomplished this in my final draft as I cut out a lot of my observation notes and spent the time adding more analysis of the space and making sure that I kept tying things back to my primary idea.

I think that this draft is as best as I could do. I tried really hard and cut a lot of information from the paper, something that was very hard for me to do. However hard it was, I feel it was worth it because this finished product is pretty much where I want it to be. Hopefully, a balance has been acheived between the observations and the analysis of the space.

Unit 1: Post 8 (February 11, 2009)

My first draft got some mixed feedback from the people who read it. The first half of the paper got a lot of positive feedback on how much description I included to help the reader view the events I was speaking of. My introduction, despite some spelling errors, received more positive feedback than other parts. I took into account the various grammar and spelling errors that were pointed out to me and made the necessary adjustments.

The most negative feedback came from the second half of the paper. I think that this was due to my exhaustion when I was typing it. I am having a hard time figuring out how to cut back on the detailed observations to more analysis of what is happening there. I am a detail-oriented person and can't just ignore the facts of what happened there. I have tried to leave out some of the detail I had in Spradley's List of Concerns and deleted any duplicate information I came across. I have tried to include more analysis and hopefully I think this draft works out better.

Unit 1: Post 7 (February 9, 2009)

Author's Note on Public Space Analysis.

Ok, this is a definite first draft and will seem that way to any who read it. I really liked my introduction and the first three or four pages of it. I'm worried about the later pages though because I tried incorporating my notes to try and give a better feel of the space and I think I lost my 'voice.' Hopefully, it still flows smoothly as I tried to change up some of the stuff and insert transitioning information. I would really appreciate any advice and feedback on the last few pages. They just don't sound right to me, not that I really have an idea on what's 'right.'

Unit 1: Post 6 (February 4, 2009)

The meaning of my space to the community and its audience is multi-fold. The audiences for this space include the teachers/aids, the children that attend it, and the parents of those kids. The teachers and aids love these kids and want to give them an education and help them integrate into a regular classroom for kindergarten. They take care of the kids there and care about them so much. KinderFrogs is especially meaningful for the students. These majority of these kids have Downs Syndrome and wouldn't be able to find the opportunities offerred by KinderFrogs anywhere else in Tarrant County and the surrounding area. KinderFrogs is their best chance for integration. Similarly, KinderFrogs is very important for the parents of these kiddos because it repesents opportunities for their children.

Observation Notes

Observations: Public Space Analysis

The first day I observed was supposed to be Wednesday, but due to the bad weather and KinderFrogs closing, the first opportunity was Thursday afternoon. I went there at 3:00 as soon as I got back to campus. I knew this was the pick up time for the children and I wanted to see how the parents and children interacted at this point in the day.
The kids go out to the front of the school and sit in a line until their parents come up and get them. The parents often are already parked in the drive in front and simply walk up to get their kids. The kids were very happy and excited to get picked up; their faces simply lit up when they recognized their parents or whoever was taking them home. Sometimes, the kids are picked up by babysitters and nannies because their parents are working. These kids were so cute pulling their little backpacks that were still as big, if not bigger, than they were.
There were always at least four adults out with the kids to monitor them. The aids were always ready for anything whether it was a runny nose or a child that wanted to wander off instead of sitting down. They carry plenty of tissues with them because most of the kids have sinus problems and constant streams flowing from their noses. The aids use sign language to communicate with the kids as well as encouraging vocalizations. The kids love the teachers and vice versa. The parents and teachers have a similar relationship. The teachers interact with the parents when they come to pick up the kids and give them updates on how the day went. The pick-up process was completed by 3:15 and after speaking with the aids, I know that I will be back around 8:00 in the morning for drop-off.
Some children are dropped-off at 7:15, but the majority of them are dropped off closer to 8:00 as school officially starts at 8:15. At the time of my arrival, 8:05, there were two children in the room and another one was being dropped off. It is very refreshing to see the interactions between the parents and the teachers. These kids are very special and are in this school for years with the same aids following their progress. This consistency allows a special bond, almost a friendship, to develop between the aids and the parents. They interact and talk about what’s happening in their families and they also discuss what signs the kids are using. For example, one father helped the teacher out by saying that the sign his son was using meant “harmonica.”
As children continue to arrive, some of the aids keep newcomers entertained while two others work on oral/motor stimulation and speech sounds like /u/, /i/, and /a/. It took until 8:40 for all six of the students to arrive and get settled. Several students don’t attend KinderFrogs on Fridays and one child was ill. The group I observed is aged four and five. Some of them will return to the Leaps classroom next year and others will integrate into a regular kindergarten room. I believe it depends on how well their language is and how they interact socially. They want to make sure that the kids can handle a normal school environment before integration happens; the kids need to be able to go to the bathroom on their own and eat their food without too much assistance.
I used Spradley’s List of Concerns for a lot of my notes. This list includes: space, actor, activity, object, act, event, time, goal, and feeling. The space in the classroom was arranged in a very kid-friendly manner. The furniture was child-sized and arranged into interest centers. There was a kitchen, library, blocks, building table/light box, cubbies, music area, dress up, and a pet area for the guinea pig Whistle. There were also multiple bulletin boards showing the work of the students. Everything was very colorful and very appropriate for the age of the children.
The actors in this space include the children, the teacher and aids, and the parents. The kids interact with each other and the teacher and the teacher interacts with the parents. Granted, the parents are not constant participants in this space, they are only present in the morning for drop-off and in the afternoon for pick-up.
The activity in the classroom was quite varied. Two children would participate in oral-motor stimulation while the others played in the various centers. The oral-motor stimulation consisted of various things for the kids to chew on, whistles for them to blow, bubbles, brushes, and vibrating objects. All of these are designed to help the kids chew properly and to make the needed facial positions for speaking. For example, the bubble blowing poses their lips into position for sounds like /w/. Some kids would go out of the room for occupational therapy and physical therapy throughout the day. This morning, kids went to OT (occupational therapy) one at a time.
There are multiple objects in the classroom. There needs to be because of the age of the children. A particular favorite center for the kids was the kitchen. It had little appliances that made noises and acted like the real things. For example, the little toaster actually popped the toast up after they were pushed down and a dial was turned. There was also a blender, a coffee pot, and a bunch of fake food. Another favorite object was the drum in the music section; quite a few kids enjoyed banging on it and making music. Several kids played with the dolls that were in the house section and pushed them around in little strollers. A couple of them read books with one of the volunteers at the table.
One of the main acts of the morning was their morning circle time. They had the child-sized chairs arranged in a half circle by the calendar and dry-erase board. In order to better get the attention of the kids, the lead teacher turned the lights on and off and then told them to start cleaning up. The kids finished cleaning and went to the circle to start singing songs like a “Hello” song and an alphabet song. The teacher used each child’s name in the “Hello” song as well as corresponding signs; majority of the kids know sign language, sometimes more than the teachers. They did a song that said A thru E and then had the children say their names. Some kids were able to say their names in complete sentences, about half could and half couldn’t. After singing the introduction songs, the teacher reviewed the days of the week and had one of the kids use a pointer to help count out the days in the month. They started winding down with another alphabet song that had actions for each of the pictures; “d” for deer, “g” for gorilla, and “h” for horse just to name a few. They ended with the pledge of allegiance and washing up before morning snack. I had to leave and go to class at 9:30.
I returned to KinderFrogs after my social work class at 11:05. The event the kids were participating in was cooking. It was great watching the children help the teacher make cupcakes. The children poured, stirred, cut, mixed, dumped, and even broke eggs with the aids assisting as necessary. Due to a need for confidentiality, I cannot say the names of the students in the room. Therefore, I will use their initials to distinguish them; TL cut open the bag of mix, J dumped it, A broke eggs, TD poured the eggs in, C poured oil into the mix, K poured water, and everyone had a turn stirring the concoction. The teachers helped put the dough into the tray and took it to the oven to cook. The kids will get to eat the cupcakes during their afternoon snack.
Spradley’s “Time” section basically is the classroom’s schedule of events:
7:30-8:30
Arrived and had free time, some had oral/motor stimulation
8:30-8:40
Clean up
8:40-9:20
Circle Time
9:20-9:45
Fine motor activities/centers
9:45-10:00
Toileting/Snack
10:00-10:25
Outside play
10:30-11:00
PE
11:00-11:30
Cooking
11:30-12:00
Lunch
12:00-1:30
Quiet Time/Nap
1:30-2:00
Music/art activities
2:00-2:20
Toileting/snack
2:20-2:50
Science/guided exploration
2:50-2:55
Pack up
3:00
Dismiss at front of the building
The goal of this space is to educate the kids and work towards getting them ready to integrate into a regular kindergarten classroom. They work on speaking, eating, going to the bathroom, and other social interactions that are going to be needed. While the hope is always integration, some of these children are probably never going to be able to be in a totally regular classroom; they are simply too severe and require too much attention.
A pervasive feeling of happiness was in the room the entire time I was in the room. The kids were happy as the learned and interacted with each other, the teachers were definitely happy when the kids listened to them which occurred fairly often. The teachers are very caring and obviously enjoy their work very much. This is apparent in their interactions with the children. They never show any sign of aversion when hugging the kids that have boogers and are always overflowing with snot. It takes a strong heart and stomach sometimes in this line of work. I know that the first time I volunteered at KinderFrogs, I was told to not where white because it wouldn’t be white by the end of the day.
A visual argument that the room presented was the bulletin boards that were all around the room. They were very colorful and appropriate as well. There was a particularly colorful one located in the kitchen area that had pictures of various foods on it. I enjoyed watching TL point to the toy hot dog and then point to the corresponding picture on the board. He was so excited! There was another bulletin board by the blocks section that showed different shapes. A few of the other boards contained displays of the children’s artwork that they had done. One board had an activity that required the children to cut a line leading to different colored sweaters. This activity helped develop their fine-motor skills.

Unit 1: ICW Ch 7 and 8

What arguments of fact and definition did you notice in your space?

Well, my space is a classroom. There are about 9 kids there on a good day and only 6 were there when I observed. One thing that sets this classroom, and this school, apart from others is that it is for special needs children. This leads to an argument of definition in what exactly qualifies as special needs. Are children with special needs only those kids who are in wheelchairs with cerebral palsy or can the child simply not be able to use speech? These children all have Downs Syndrome. They can walk and interact in their own way, but most of them cannot use speech. The majority of them do know sign language, but this doesn't help much when the teachers can't interpret what they are trying to say. One thing that would make a child designated as special needs as these kdis are is that they cannot go to the bathroom alone. They all wear diapers or pull-ups and need assistance, more so than an 'average' child. The kids also need help eating. They are getting a lot better, but it is quite common to have a child overturn their tray if the teachers are distracted or make some other big mess like spilling their drink. I believe that what qualifies a child as 'special needs' is whether or not that child can function in a normal environment without too much supervision.

An argument of fact is that there are normally 9 kids in the room, but there were only 6. One child was ill and two kids are considered 'normal' and go to a different school on certain days.

Unit 1: Post 5 (Feruary 2, 2009)

I observed KinderFrogs for my Public Space Analysis. I absolutely loved it! Those kids are so awesome. They just were full of smiles and surprises such as the boogers that most of them had. All of them had very runny noses the entire time I was there; I believe they go through at least a box of tissues a day. I especially liked watching the interactions of the various people in the site.

I managed to get there for pick-up on Thursday and drop-off on Friday so that I could see the way the parents interacted with the teachers/aids and the children. The aids were very respectful to the parents and vice verse. You could tell that there was a bond between them; it wasn't uncommon to hear them discussing their families and the news. One of the teachers told me that this is possible because these kids are in the program for years with the same teachers around them. This continued exposure allows relationships to develop that don't happen in a typical school setting. The bond is very important between the teachers and parents for these kids because a common topic of discussion was the signs the kids were using. For example, one boy kept making a sign that the teachers couldn't figure out. When speaking with the father, they learned that the sign meant "harmonica" and that the child was wanting to play music.

The bond between the teachers/aids was equally, if not more, powerful as is the bond between the parents and the aids. Those teachers love the kids so much and are incredibly patient with them. They are always willing to reach out and give them a hug, no matter if the kids have snot hanging out of their noses or not. I was told back in freshman year when I started observing that I should never wear white because of the bodily fluids that tend to be present with these kiddos.