Research

1. I am having trouble finding sources about my specific subject. I am trying to argue that study abroad is crucial to the college experience. I have been able to interview people and then I also used the TCU website, but I do not think that I have another primary source that is really beneficial. Most of the sources that I found were secondary and even though they had useful information, I cannot use them.
2. I also do not know how to link my different sources together- they are mostly testimonials. I cannot seem to find any written sources that argue specifically my subject.
3. The experiences that I have been able to document seem so similar that I a afraid I will not be able to make a rebuttal against the argument I have chosen.

I interviewed two Dutch exchange students because they have experienced study abroad and therefore, they are primary sources. I mostly asked them about actually living in the United States and going to school here and what they were going to be bring back with them to Holland. They were able to tell me both good and bad experiences. They were able to tell me about living in another country, not so much about the logistics of coming to the United States. I think they were able to give a very emotional appeal because they are living it right now; therefore, many college students can relate to them.

The TCU study abroad website I think qualifies because it had many digital testimonies about various study abroad experiences from many different people. There was not only a written summary, but also a verbal summary of their unique experiences abroad. I chose this source because I wanted to be able to relate my argument back to TCU students. This way, they can see all the opportunities that they have through TCU. The source is about showing the TCU study abroad experience through the eyes of those who have experienced it. It used a pathos and ethos appeal because the students lived it and TCU is a credible name.

I chose an Israeli-Palestinian story from BBC because I wanted to relate it back to the world as a whole and to prove how study abroad changes more than just individual people; On a large scale, how countries are effected by study abroad. The source is about how the current middle-eastern conflict affects the students in those countries opportunities to study abroad and learn more about different cultures. They were able to use the Pathos appeal because most Americans are sympathetic towards Israel and also Ethos because it comes from BBC America which is a trusted source on the world stage.

Research Thoughts

I found researching to be a very difficult task because there is so much material that could possibly be used but I never knew if it was a primary source. I had a difficult time with deciding what to use because what I thought might be a primary source, was later described as secondary. It also seemed that all the useful information was that from secondary sources. I do not think that secondary sources are less useful; in fact, they proved to not only be easier to find, but easier to interpret. I felt that having to narrow my search to primary sources headed me in a direction with weak sources.The sources I used were primary accounts and gave detail, but did not seem to be nearly as detailed as the secondary. Which seems contradictory to everything we talked about in class, but just from simply researching, that is what I have observed.

The connections among my sources all point in the same direction because it seemed impossible to find any conflicting information. I could never really find exactly what I was looking for, and that was a primary source reflection from someone who had studied abroad in a document form. I had no problem finding people who I know are studying abroad or even reading testimonials from TCU. ButI wanted a perspective from someone not affiliated with TCU, so that other college students could relate as well. With the same approach from all my topics, I am forced to create my own approach from interpreted data.

Topic Choice

For this unit two essay, I want to focus on the current state of the nutrition in the United States. More specifically, I want to compare it to other countries and discuss how our culture affects our nutrition. I also want to focus on the negative affects of poor nutrition and how it makes people more susceptible to diseases, like diabetes and high cholesterol. I think that this topic would be interesting because it is something that we all deal with on a day to day basis. The media also affects us because the amount of advertising put into trying to persuade people to eat certain kinds of food.

Or, I am also considering doing study abroad and the effects a different culture has on a person's education. How adjusting to a new country can be both difficult and exciting and how foreigners meet new people. I cannot decide between the two subjects right now, but I think I am leaning more towards nutrition and healthy living.

Author's Note-Final draft

This is the final draft of my public space analysis essay for unit one. I am confident in this piece because I feel I was able to connect the space with an argumentative analysis that will help guide the reader to an understanding of Alice Carlson Elementary School. My only concern is that the reader will not be able to immediately make the connection between these two schools. Hopefully though, my descriptions and analysis together, will prove that these schools need each other because of their shared physical space.
Overall, my essay explores Alice Carlson as a whole in relation the TCU and Fort Worth community. I think that I was able to incorporate my personal views and experiences with the space as well as giving an accurate description of the actual physical space. I feel my arguments are clear and well developed.

Author's note #2

This is my second draft of my public space analysis and I am moderately confident in my paper this time around. I feel like I was able to elaborate more on the actual physical space and how it relates to TCU. I still wonder how to conclude this paper to tie in both schools and the community. I would also want to correct grammar that I often overlook when I elaborate.

Effective Public Space Analysis

I think an effective public space analysis would not only describe the physical space, but also how that space effects those people who use it. Or how the community as a whole views and uses this space either positively or negatively. This space is obviously public, but I think there should also be an element of personal attachment or experience with this space. This way, the reader can see it through someone who does actually use it.
I also think that an effective analysis has to think about who the reader is and how they would react to this claim. Using pathos, logos, and ethos, seems important but I do not think that all three have to be used to make a legitimate argument. As long as there are examples to back up the author's claim, no matter how far fetched it may seem, the analysis can be effective.

Think about qualities of an effective Public Space Analysis

Finn-author's note 1

This is my first draft of my public space analysis. I am still trying to figure out the organization of my piece because right now I feel like it is comparison and contrast essay when I want it to be an analysis.
I would like some help trying to organize my ideas better in relation to public space. Also, I don't know if I should be saying "I" and things of that nature when I describe the space. Do I make it seem like I am comparing these two schools? Because my goal is to analyze/argye how their shared space effects both schools in different ways.

Public space/community aspect

Alice Carlson effects the community because it creates learners for the future. Having TCU right next door creates an opportunity for those children to see what college is like. It shapes a generation of children into young adults. And even though the traffic usually annoys most people in the TCU community, I think most of us would agree that it is a beneficial space. It is a place for students to learn and ask questions, just like we do here at TCU. obviously the level of academia is different but it is the same concept, it is a school, made to teach it students. On a formal level, TCU's tax money goes to fund this school, making it responsible to the TCU community.

annotated notes

Tara Finn
Eng Comp
2/2/09
Alice-Carlson Observation Notes

As I began to observe this school so close to TCU’s campus I began to narrow down what exactly I would be focusing on during this analysis. I decided to focus on the outside of the school because not only can more people see the actual environment, but also because getting into the school felt a little uncomfortable. I was planning on observing with my educational psychology class but because of the weather, we had to forgo our observations. I want to be able to relate this school to the larger TCU community, not just the Stadium and Cantey intersection.
I went o observe on January 29 around 3:25 p.m. The very first thing I noticed was the line of cars waiting to for the children to come out. The line went down most of Cantey and began to loop around University Drive. Every kind of car seemed to be in that line. There were ones ranging from 2009 Ford-150 to Toyota Camries that seemed a bit older. As I began to look to see who was driving the cars, I noticed that it was mostly women who I would safely assume are mothers. But as I began to think this, I caught myself because of the situation that I have been with the children I babysit for. I pick them up from school and while I wait for them to come out, I can feel other mothers looking at me as if I am a teenage mother. I decided it would be best to begin focusing on the actual school itself.
Even with the students inside, I could still here their noises from across the street on TCU’s campus. Within the reddish-brown brick walls and the red roof with the white pillars were hundreds of children excited to get out of school. There were stairs up to every entrance with the thresholds being white with lots of windows. I noticed that the building itself looks very professional, almost to the point as if it were a business and not a school. I thought it could have used some more color and playfulness. All around the school there were trees and shrubs filling in the gaps between buildings. I noticed the stop sign with the TCU purple street signs. And the silver fire hydrants located all along the intersection. There seemed to be a lot of TCU students crossing the street as well. Then I began to notice the actual physical weather environment. It was sunny and warm with a light breeze. It was quite noisy and there were also birds chirping.
Then the students came out and the noise escalated and the grass seemed to be flooded with children coming from all directions. The car line began to move and children seemed to leave fairly quickly. Soon, there were not more children left and the place seemed empty.

Saturday January 31, 2009

I decided to observe again on the weekend to see what the building had to say for itself when there were no children in it. It was severely more quiet and all I could hear was the occasional car and the few birds. It seemed like the school was lonely with no children inside of it learning and exploring.

Arguments of fact/definition

While observing Alice Carlson I noticed a few arguments of facts. One would be that children should attend school and maybe even children should attend public school. The school's location could argue that being next to a TCU's campus benefits the children and could motivate them to want to attend college. This school is called an elementary school, but is it really what people think of when they think of elementary schools? It is a school, but what kind of school and how does that effect how people view it? That leads to the question, what is a school? There are many different types of school and with that, many groups of people who support each one.

Observation Reflection

While observing the elementary school, Alice Carlson, I felt extremely awkward. I was the only TCU age student simply standing there watching the school and I began to feel the stares from the parents. I simply stood there with my notebook and pen and looked around. I walked around the school and began to take in the smells and air. I began to realize things that I never noticed before as I occasional strolled down Cantey. For instance, the windows of the school have the student's artwork all over and each grade had a project to create. Having been inside this school before, I began to remember the smell of cafeteria lunch and the loudness of a normal classroom, I even remember the smell of the office. It was a mix of the brown paper bag smell and rust mixed with food. A pungent smell that reminded me of my own school. Walking around the halls, I realized that this elementary school is just like TCU; only with thousands less students and obviously not as difficult subjects. But the overall function of a school remained the same.