It has been too long since I wrote a learning journal on this blog. I never thought I would say that... but really, SO much has happened in two weeks.
First, let me say that I think that the inquiry conference was a great success! My presentation went smooth, I actually won first place for the people's choice contest in the art show, and there were so many great presenters that aided my understanding of field studies. Stay tuned and we'll get some recordings up!
Vice President Rogers gave a great presentation that had a lot of great advice and lessons that corresponded with field studies. She talked about nurses wanting "good patients," or patients who were nice to them. She found this interesting, because it meant that the patients were the ones taking care of the nurses. In a field study context, I think this could work with a good informant. What makes a good informant? I think that it might be a little different than a patient, but it certainly is not someone who is just there to make sure you are taken care of and sheltered in your world view. You need someone who genuinely cares but who is willing to tell you the truth and tell you when you are doing it wrong.
There were tons of great things she mentioned in her presentation, but for me I really enjoyed what she said about inquiry happening on both sides. The people do not know us just as much as we do not understand them, and I think this is something I emphasized in the pieces that I selected for the art show this year. I really tried to capture that questioning going on from the other side of the story.
And good news? I FINALLY finished my 201R coursework from Ghana. I was just waiting to get this presentation in. Here is a copy of the write up I did for it:
Vice President Rogers gave a great presentation that had a lot of great advice and lessons that corresponded with field studies. She talked about nurses wanting "good patients," or patients who were nice to them. She found this interesting, because it meant that the patients were the ones taking care of the nurses. In a field study context, I think this could work with a good informant. What makes a good informant? I think that it might be a little different than a patient, but it certainly is not someone who is just there to make sure you are taken care of and sheltered in your world view. You need someone who genuinely cares but who is willing to tell you the truth and tell you when you are doing it wrong.
There were tons of great things she mentioned in her presentation, but for me I really enjoyed what she said about inquiry happening on both sides. The people do not know us just as much as we do not understand them, and I think this is something I emphasized in the pieces that I selected for the art show this year. I really tried to capture that questioning going on from the other side of the story.
And good news? I FINALLY finished my 201R coursework from Ghana. I was just waiting to get this presentation in. Here is a copy of the write up I did for it:
Inquiry Conference Presentation
Yes, I know this is coming in late, but I think that my experience presenting at the Inquiry Conference was much more rewarding than almost anything else I could have done to share what I learned in Ghana last summer. I am glad I held out for it, and I am grateful for the chance to articulate on paper some of the things I discovered through this experience.
First, I was amazed by how many people came. My audience made up a great mix of people. I was surprised to see that both Gideon Burton, my faculty mentor, and Aaron Eastly, who worked with me on a course contract, attended my presentation. In addition, my family, friends, and the students coming with me to India were in attendance. This meant a lot to me, but I think even more surprising was the amount of people that I did not know that came to hear what I had to say. I was pretty nervous by it all, but by the end of my presentation I think I got my act together.
As far as the presentation goes, I learned a lot about the art of presenting. That, of course, does not mean that I mastered it. Attending the workshop for presenters was beneficial because I learned about some of the common problems with presentations and how to avoid them—i.e. apologizing, saying um, etc. The discussion on PowerPoint’s was particularly influential. This conference forced me to experiment with Prezi’s, which are just a really interesting way of presenting findings because it is not so linear and is more interactive. It helped me organize my presentation by likening my experience to a camera. The lens and camera body were shapes that I included in my Prezi that made up the metaphor for what it was I was sharing about my experience.
It was nice to get all of my findings into one single presentation. I felt like I could have talked for hours on end, but the process of limiting what it is I shared really helped me to frame my project within the realm of the experience. It was great to see that some people enjoyed it, and Kristen, a girl going with me to India, even posted an entire blog post on it! The Inquiry Conference was definitely one of the best experiences I have had in my undergraduate career, and I will be recommending it to all students who have had cross cultural experiences.
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