2013 ← Teaching with Engaging Communities

“Walk Like a Fish” by Alexandra Horowitz

Dec

26

2013

An interesting way to think about observing: NOBODY in their right mind visits Midtown Manhattan during the holidays. The reason is simple: everyone, it seems, is in Midtown Manhattan during the holidays. Drawn to the scene like lacewings to streetlights, tourists jam the sidewalks, the crowds slow-moving, veering, shopping-bag-laden, and only vaguely walking forward. New Yorkers ...

Ethnography Beyond Text and Print

Dec

9

2013

Are you thinking about encouraging your students to move beyond print for their ethnographic inquiry research projects? Check out Wendy Hsu’s piece in Ethnography Matters: Ethnography Beyond Text and Print: How the digital can transform ethnographic expressions

Transom.org: A Showcase and Workshop for New Public Radio

Nov

23

2013

Transom.org channels new work and voices to public radio through the Internet, and discusses that work, and encourages more. Transom is a performance space, an open editorial session, an audition stage, a library, and a hangout. Our purpose is to pass the baton of mission and good practice in public media. Check it out for ...

Moodle Syllabus Available

Oct

14

2013

If you’d like to check out how I put together my last Ethnographic Inquiry WRII at Columbia College Chicago, my Moodle course site is open to guests: http://lms.colum.edu/course/view.php?id=6485 I am constantly tweaking and revising, so I welcome your thoughts and ideas.

Harper High School- This American Life

Mar

21

2013

Harper High School, Part One | This American Life. Harper High School, Part Two – This American Life I have been using excerpts of the reports on Harper High School in Chicago by This American Life to highlight how expanded fieldnotes can work to reveal real stories that have meaning. I ask students to listen ...

Spin Cycle: The Social Realm of the Laundromat | Anthropology in Practice, Scientific American Blog Network

Feb

7

2013

A way to see research on norms and “codes” in action: Spin Cycle: The Social Realm of the Laundromat | Anthropology in Practice, Scientific American Blog Network. by Krystal D’Costa in the Scientific American “Anthropology in Practice” section.

Curious City on WBEZ

Feb

2

2013

I used a piece from WBEZ’s series “Curious City” on the Chicago accent on the first day of class to highlight how much fun inquiry can be and to share an example of how questions generate questions, not just answers, as well as the integration of “expert” information with primary data collection. It is also ...

Anxious Interviewers

Feb

2

2013

One week into the semester, I am already fielding anxious questions about having to interview, or even talk to, people at whatever research site my students come up with. I am going to have them read Interviewing for Introverts by Rachelle Annechino as a primer.

Don’t Miss Ethnography Matters

Feb

2

2013

Ethnography Matters: exploring what it means to be an ethnographer today a collaborative blog founded by Heather Ford, Jenna Burrell, Rachelle Annechino, and Tricia Wang is a great resource for your students to see ethnographic research, thinking, and methods in action in really interesting ways. Visit the blog or follow @ethnomatters and the team members ...