Playing Catch Up

It was not my initial plan to be playing catch up on my research project. I have not posted to my blog in over a month and have not done to much research either. Working on my annotated bib so I can finish my rough draft of the ARP. got my survey finished, just waiting for approval to send it out. Finally finished interview questions gonna try and get the okay Monday to go  ahead with my interviews. Had a successful workshop Thursday with the first multi-modal writing. Gotta stay focused!

Prep "Interview 2"- Miami Gardens more than just the Home of the Miami Dolphins

Today we were asked to team up with another student in our class, research the city they grew up in and interview them on their homwtown.

My interviewee gre up in Miami Gradens, FL, home to the Miami Dolphins and Florida Marlins (until 2012, new stadium for Marlins). Sun life stadium where the dolphins and marlins play there home games brings in lots of tourism, as well as the Calder Race track and Casino next to the stadium. The city of Miami Gardens was just incorporated as a city a few years ago. The city also has two college institutions, St. Thomas University and Florida Memorial University. The city is also home to a megachurch, the Antioch Mission Baptist Church with over seven thousand  members. Miami Gardens is also the largest city in Florida with a majority of Black residents. The city has many programs to help their residents, one of those is the Miss Miami Gardens Scholarship Pagent. Moreover, grants are given to resident to improve repairs on their homes to keep city up to code and progressing. My interviewee told me she loves her city and plans to stay in the future, "I do not plan to leave", she told me. The city was a merging of a few city boundaries and made residents of other citys such as Carol City, Norland, Bunche park, and Scott Lake, to form miami Gardens. In the 1970s middle class African American families began to move to the area of miami gardens from overtown and liberty, the stepping stones of what the city is today. The city has some negative reputations do to crime, some link this to the section 8 low income housing. When I asked my interviewee about this she told me that she "believes that more of the residents who receive these beneifts appreciate it,  however few individuals abuse these privileges." 

Prep: "Interview"

Today in class we were asked to do trial interviews. The topic of the interview was our experience with literacy, here it is:

My interviewee has had a well  rounded experience. She lived in Brazil until she was six and started out learning how to read in Portuguese. When she came to the states her reading took off. She grew up in a religious family and read the many book of the bible. In elementary school she realized that in reading she would transport herself into the world of that novel or story. This has been the fuel of her love for reading, she enjoys being able to place herself in a story and escape her surroundings. One of her favorite series is the Harry Potter series. When it was read aloud to her by one of her teachers she was intrigued and still reads the series for pleasure but is now looking into the symbolism of religion due to her learning of college.

Sports as Teacher

I believe individuals learn through experience, guidance, and teaching, in my research project I want to show how involvement, such as an active participant or as a spectator, in an organized system like sports, help individuals gain life skills and an overall understanding of society and their role in it . Especially with the youth, I believe sports can be used to teach our youth values that will be essential to their growth in our society, such as leadership, teamwork/team-building, and  how to follow rules and/or respect authority.Those who are surrounded or engage in sports gain experience that I feel gives them confidence when facing our society because of their involvement in the organized system of sports. As if they already experienced what lies ahead or that they have a knowledge of it.

Can sports explain the world?

I was sitting in my introduction to sports administration class last week when I heard something that caught my attention. My professor was lecturing on what sports administration is, plainly, the people that run the sports industry. As he continued his lecture he began to compare the way in which games and leagues are conducted  to how everyday society is. Theres referee's that officiate games to ensure the safety of players and fair play. In our society there is policeman who to ensure the safety of the people and so everyone can go about there day with equal opportunity to accomplish their goals. Is that the same? Can sports be used as a tool to understand the system of our government? Is this a way to reemphasize the role of each individuals role as a participant in the system of our society/ organization/ league?

First Thought/ Welcome

I never thought I would ever have a blog. Yet, I am here typing away. In this blog I hope to be able to keep track of thoughts as I begin my research.. WE WILL SEE!!!!