Except it won't really be my last one, since we have to keep blogging about things in the field...but it is my last one in Provo, Utah, and that is exciting! So today in class we did a little exam review and went over all the different concepts we have learned this semester. There really has been a lot of good information! I hope I can remember all of it and really put it to use in the field. Some thoughts I had during our review:
Being a participant observer - I have to try to not only participant in the activities - be it church, working at the zoo, doing stuff with the Thomases - I also have to remember to be an observer in those activities. It is more than just getting involved: it is paying attention to how people act, what is culturally acceptable, how do I react to things that are different from my culture, what is different and why is it different, how do people treat each other, the list goes on. There are so many things to be aware of, that if I can observe, will really help me gain a better understanding of the culture and be better prepared to enter other cultures in the future.
Conducting successful interviews - we went over all the different ways to interview, the different structures, probes, etc. I can do so much more than just ask my simple questions and I need to remember to tie some of those descriptive questions or probes into my interviews. For example, I didn't list any grand tour questions on my list of possible questions. But I do really want to know what a typical day at the zoo is like. Grand tour question! I'd forgotten some of the language stuff, like asking people to define words, even if they are in English. That could definitely be important. And maybe the word has a similar surface meaning in both cultures, but a different meaning deeper down...like Jackie asking about relationships and what a relationship is in South Africa - I'm sure the surface meanings are the same in both cultures, but do people act differently in relationships in South Africa - is love or caring portrayed a different way? This also reminds me of the Christmas in the Kalahari reading. The researcher thought he was doing this great thing but he didn't get the reaction he expected at all, even though I'm sure the people in the community still appreciated his large Christmas bull, even if they didn't show it like he was used to.
Something else I thought about was entering the community. So far the zoo has not contacted us back...what do I do if I don't reach them before I get to East London? My plan is to just go to the zoo and try to find someone in charge or an administrator type and discuss my project with them. Will this be sufficient? And from there how do I meet the zoo keepers and really build rapport with them? Will it be possible to "hang out" with them while they are working? Is there a break room where I can go and talk to people during lunch breaks? I guess I was counting a lot on the administrators or bosses of the zoo to introduce me to keepers. Who is in charge of the zoo? Is there a main boss or a group of people that decide things? I need to figure that out so I know who to approach.
So yeah, some good thoughts provoked by today's review, I still have some things I need to work on!
Showing posts with label in the field. Show all posts
Showing posts with label in the field. Show all posts
Monday, April 9, 2012
Monday, March 26, 2012
Issues in the Field
Today's class was great - I really appreciated it. We had a panel dicussion with the facilitators who have experience in the field. They shared many of the problems they had the field and ways to get around those problems. Some of the issues that concern me the most: I was not really worried about having issues with the people in my group, but it sounds like that is quite common. I just feel like Holly and Emily are going to be so great to have around, familiar faces in a strange new culture. They are both really smart, likeable girls, so I really hope we do not have too many problems. Another thing that concerns me is culture shock. Everyone talked about being overwhelmed and how little things that are different really start to bother them. This is a bit discouraging to me. I want to hear that everything is just great and an amazing and fantastic experience.....I know this is not realistic, and it is good to hear about these issues so that I do not go into the field completely naively. Anyway, back to culture shock, I really like Heather's approach to this problem, and to the problem of lost motivation. She would make a list of the things she loved about South Africa. It might be the only time I ever get to go to that part of the world, and I certainly want to make the most of it, to enjoy and treasure that time.
Other things that worry me - I am worried about meeting people and becoming part of the community. I feel like with our field experience that is a little harder - we are not going to some small rural village where everyone will know us, we are going to a fairly large city. So that means identifying communities within the city to join - I know I will be part of the church community and I hope to be part of the zoo community. Then there is our host family and whatever community they are apart of; hopefully I can enter into that community and get to know their family and friends. Anyway, a big part of our in-field class is getting out into communities and working with people. I guess I am worried that since it is a bigger city that it will be harder to find the right communities to work with....but church and the Thomases should provide enough opportunity to meet and befriend other people. And I would like to go to Mama Yoyo's school, so there is another community!
I haven't been too worried about language, but maybe I should? Heather and others have mentioned that the accents can be quite hard to decipher. And of course there will be new vocabulary. Maybe I'll just listen to a ton of youtube clips of people speaking with various South African accents...I did watch this one video where a guy was trying to teach how to talk with a South African accent - I don't think he did a very accurate job, but what do I know!? Anyway, it was good to discuss these and other issues that arise in the field. I really want to work on adding more safety-nets into my proposal, like Ashley suggested.
Other things that worry me - I am worried about meeting people and becoming part of the community. I feel like with our field experience that is a little harder - we are not going to some small rural village where everyone will know us, we are going to a fairly large city. So that means identifying communities within the city to join - I know I will be part of the church community and I hope to be part of the zoo community. Then there is our host family and whatever community they are apart of; hopefully I can enter into that community and get to know their family and friends. Anyway, a big part of our in-field class is getting out into communities and working with people. I guess I am worried that since it is a bigger city that it will be harder to find the right communities to work with....but church and the Thomases should provide enough opportunity to meet and befriend other people. And I would like to go to Mama Yoyo's school, so there is another community!
I haven't been too worried about language, but maybe I should? Heather and others have mentioned that the accents can be quite hard to decipher. And of course there will be new vocabulary. Maybe I'll just listen to a ton of youtube clips of people speaking with various South African accents...I did watch this one video where a guy was trying to teach how to talk with a South African accent - I don't think he did a very accurate job, but what do I know!? Anyway, it was good to discuss these and other issues that arise in the field. I really want to work on adding more safety-nets into my proposal, like Ashley suggested.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
I really enjoyed the reading we did for Monday's class and the discussion and examples we had in class. There were several things we talked about that apply to my field study experience. Ashley threw out a bunch of vocabulary words. One of them was defocusing. I think this is an important concept to remember for several reasons. Defocusing allows you to step back from a situation and check out what your emotions are doing. What judgements are you making? It also helps you refocus your observational skills. What things have you allowed to become commonplace, that are really very important? This can help a stagnant situation gain some pizzazz. A point that Ashley brought up was that defocusing can help with safety. People keep asking me if my parents are worried that I am going to South Africa. I say a little, but I am going to be careful and follow the rules BYU has created to help keep us safe. I'm sure that as we get more used to East London safety might be less and less on our minds...I hope to use defocusing to step back, remember that I am in a new, different culture, and keep on being aware of my surroundings - as that pertains to my project and to staying safe.
The reading was entitled "Choosing a Site and Gaining Access". In class we focused mostly on the gaining access side of things. We listened to a really great interview that was the perfect example of someone gaining access to a community. Applying this to my project: I do not have 18 months. I have three months. So I am going to start working with the "gatekeepers" now. Gatekeeper was another vocab word. For me, I do not have to worry about going through some tribal chief or the CEO of a business - my gatekeepers are going to be the zoo administrators. I am preparing a letter of introduction to send to them. This is my first step in gaining access to the zoo. Once I arrive in East London, I will continue to work with the gatekeepers, but I will also need to start establishing rapport with zoo keepers. It sounds so clinical and sterile to be describing it this way - but I really am excited to meet new people and just learn about their lives as South Africans and as people who work with animals. Something from the interview that I appreciated was that the woman who was doing the study tried to make the community comfortable around her...I genuinely want to make friends with the people who work at the zoo, and I want them to be able to rely on me to help out with things. I do not want to be the superior outsider. I realize this might take a little time, but I am willing to put in that groundwork before I pounce on people to start answering my questions. Rapport is going to be really important for me... I want to gain their trust so that I can have a little bit more of an insider's access - to the enclosures, the animals, and the interactions that the public doesn't always see. I can practice some of this stuff now by practicing being a good friend to the friends I already have, and I can make some new friends. Whahoo!
The reading was entitled "Choosing a Site and Gaining Access". In class we focused mostly on the gaining access side of things. We listened to a really great interview that was the perfect example of someone gaining access to a community. Applying this to my project: I do not have 18 months. I have three months. So I am going to start working with the "gatekeepers" now. Gatekeeper was another vocab word. For me, I do not have to worry about going through some tribal chief or the CEO of a business - my gatekeepers are going to be the zoo administrators. I am preparing a letter of introduction to send to them. This is my first step in gaining access to the zoo. Once I arrive in East London, I will continue to work with the gatekeepers, but I will also need to start establishing rapport with zoo keepers. It sounds so clinical and sterile to be describing it this way - but I really am excited to meet new people and just learn about their lives as South Africans and as people who work with animals. Something from the interview that I appreciated was that the woman who was doing the study tried to make the community comfortable around her...I genuinely want to make friends with the people who work at the zoo, and I want them to be able to rely on me to help out with things. I do not want to be the superior outsider. I realize this might take a little time, but I am willing to put in that groundwork before I pounce on people to start answering my questions. Rapport is going to be really important for me... I want to gain their trust so that I can have a little bit more of an insider's access - to the enclosures, the animals, and the interactions that the public doesn't always see. I can practice some of this stuff now by practicing being a good friend to the friends I already have, and I can make some new friends. Whahoo!
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Must Have Chocolate
In Wednesday's class we talked about several different things, including our weekly group meetings while we are in the field. Heather brought a bunch of chocolate to class, it was awesome. In my opinion, group meetings must have chocolate. We decided to have our group meetings on Monday evenings and sort of do family home evenings with them...so there will be a spiritual thought, game, etc. as well as discussion on our projects, progress, issues. We also talked a lot about ownership of this project. Field studies are so amazing because they really do depend on the student for success. Holly, Emily, and I are going to be in a foreign country with no one to tell us what to do or keep us on task. We get to decide what we do every day and whether we really rock our projects or just goof off. On top of that, we will have to solve any problems we run into. Projects might have to adapt if we can't get the resources or access we wanted, and it will be up to us to come up with a good alternative (I really hope this doesn't happen to anyone). We won't even have a field facilitator, not that it is the facilitator's job to tell us what to do, but it will all be up to us!
On my part, I really want this to be an amazing experience....I have wanted to go to Africa for as long as I can remember, and I always planned on having some kind of international experience while in college. I am excited for the traveling and the culture. I am excited to work on my project. I know that putting in hard work now and going to the field and working hard will be extremely beneficial to me - I will learn how to work with people and survive in a completely new environment. I get to see a different world than the one I have lived in and hopefully have my eyes opened to things I never considered or knew existed. Heather mentioned attitude and how that will affect our project and living arrangements...ha, I have a testimony of attitude, really. I firmly believe we as humans can decide to see the glass half empty or half full. But even though I believe that, it can still be hard to do all the time. I am sure this summer will give me ample opportunities to practice having a good attitude. In my World Religions class we just talked about Taoism and their concept of wu-wei. Wu-wei is inaction....it is accepting what comes and not getting frustrated or put off by hardships. If you are practicing wu-wei, nothing can really be that upsetting. Wu-wei and deciding to have a good attitude are really the same thing and both will come in handy this summer, whether there are travel, project, or personal issues.
On my part, I really want this to be an amazing experience....I have wanted to go to Africa for as long as I can remember, and I always planned on having some kind of international experience while in college. I am excited for the traveling and the culture. I am excited to work on my project. I know that putting in hard work now and going to the field and working hard will be extremely beneficial to me - I will learn how to work with people and survive in a completely new environment. I get to see a different world than the one I have lived in and hopefully have my eyes opened to things I never considered or knew existed. Heather mentioned attitude and how that will affect our project and living arrangements...ha, I have a testimony of attitude, really. I firmly believe we as humans can decide to see the glass half empty or half full. But even though I believe that, it can still be hard to do all the time. I am sure this summer will give me ample opportunities to practice having a good attitude. In my World Religions class we just talked about Taoism and their concept of wu-wei. Wu-wei is inaction....it is accepting what comes and not getting frustrated or put off by hardships. If you are practicing wu-wei, nothing can really be that upsetting. Wu-wei and deciding to have a good attitude are really the same thing and both will come in handy this summer, whether there are travel, project, or personal issues.
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