Blog # 3

Gee:
"thinking and reasoning are inherently social. . . also inherently distributed" (Pg 196).

Diaz:
Through my experiences in life, I have seen many people struggle with the ability to make decisions or judgements for themselves. Gee is right on point when he says this. People too often look to others or various tools to think for them. I suppose it can be out of habit for some. If your family is set in their ways, they will pass their views on the world to you and eventually those views will be believed because there is nothing to compare them to. Ones community can do the same. When you are surrounded by a group of people or domain for a long period of time, you are set in the way of that group. That community, as Pratt says becomes an "imagined community". The group comers together through their self defined entities, that put them in the same domain so that they feel comfort within their group. I don't necessarily agree with this way of thinking because I am a firm believer that making your own choices, judgements and decisions between right and wrong will make life much easier and fulfilling. The opportunity to set ones own values and experiences will lead to a stress free and happy life but unfortunately there are some people who need guidance and acceptance from others so they fall into these domains and imagined communities.

Gee:
"She (Jean Lave) further argues that learning is not just a change in practice, but in identity, as well" (pg 203).

Diaz:
A writer is successful if they can bring their identity to life with their writing. Practicing the process of writing is a part of realizing when you have achieved your goal for yourself as a writer but it is not all there is to it. Establishing an identity as a writer is a difficult and satisfying task. A writer must know who they are and what they wish to have their audience perceive them as in order to be successful at what they do. Russell says, "The skills model of writing offered no intellectually interesting reason to connect the process of learning to write with one's own intellectual or professional development with the activity of discipline. . . " (Pg 6) The model will not be effective because to do well in writing you must realize that it is a process and that you have to make it your own. It is a difficult task in itself, to get students to want to write much less get them to realize that it is a developing process but without putting their identities in their writing than they can not say that they are successful in writing.


Reflection
This type of assignment is enjoyable and informative to oneself because you can make your self notes for future references. Students will probably not see this as useful, but if given to them as an assignment then they will eventually realize its purpose. However, as a college student, I enjoyed doing the assignment. It was not a burden nor was it difficult. The task was different than the usually assignment; it was more interesting. I would definitely use it in the future with my students. The assignment gave me the opportunity to connect all the text and the theories to come to a common ground and understanding of the many theories discussed in the text. It would be useful to get others to add to the assignment by commenting on their ideas of the quotes, as well. This would begin a conversation through text between students so that they can learn to communicate through the language that they have just learned from reading the text. The assignment poses many benefits for students as well as different techniques for teachers. As a new teacher, I am always looking for new ways to help my students. I look for ways that will not bore them but at the same time show them the significance in the assignment. I know from experience as a student, if something sounds boring or to complicated then it will not be a good task to perform but if they enjoy the task before they know the purpose then it may possibly work out and become a tool for the classroom. Getting things about reading and writing across to students is difficult because they either don't like doing it, they don't believe they can or they think its not worth wasting time. Too often students see no enjoyment in writing because they have been taught that it is all about correct grammar and structure. Giving them an assignment like the 2x journal, they can see how a fellow writer would word a thought, then they can create it in their own words. Therefore, they are using what they read from the text to respond and they are also looking at an example of how to write their thoughts. My main focus as an English teacher is to get my students to be themselves when they write, so identity in writing and new models of teaching it will always be a priority for me.

Blog # 2

Gee:
"Humans have experiences, store these experiences, and make connections or associations among them." (pg 71)

Diaz:
I agree with Gee completely. It is true for any situation or person, in and out of the classroom. I know my experiences follow me everywhere. I use mine to release my thoughts through writing and to make judgements on the rest of my life's situations as well. Therefore everything I do is geared around these experiences but my values and goals shape the new experiences I face. I think this is a big part of writing and I believe it should be brought into the classroom and discussed as coursework because it is a crucial part of the writing process.

Gee:
"Are cultural models 'good' or 'bad'?" (pg 154)

Diaz:
I find this to be a huge controversial topic because the views vary immensely. A model should be good and influential but the view of cultural groups tend to be stereotypical. As Gee says when not having to constantly think of what one does because their cultural models and their values are set, is a good thing but on the opposite side of that, their values might just benefit them. If a person values their race but discriminates against the rest because they are not the same, this will cause and does cause unnecessary conflict. Therefore the right models can be good but then you have to pose the question of, who is to say what cultural model is right or wrong and what do these words mean in the reality of others?