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  • Chapter 6 The I Search Paper by Ken Macrorie

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    Tapasya
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    Personal Experience and Reflection as primary research

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    Personal Experience and Reflection as primary research

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    319 views6 pages

    Chapter 6 The I Search Paper by Ken Macrorie

    Uploaded by

    Tapasya
    Personal Experience and Reflection as primary research

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    of 6
    Where there is curiosity, mouse may be tough chapter 6 the i-search paper Loox at ceoyearold grabbing books off shel, seeing how they open, ripping pages, nding out how they taste, Not much diferent from a kitten frst time out of his box. Ap. parently wee all born curious. Thside or outside school, research should be like that, but usually icin AsT write, 'm Tooking ata term paper “study aid" one of thove masterpieces of dull directions, “What lea Term Paper” isthe fir line—no question mark alter that question, 0 1 gues I'l take 5 percent ofthe grade. "A term paper isthe writen result of diligent research into a pariular subject” That's the answer. [cant walt t© Star, nothing 1 ike better than to be diigent—one of those words you never hear but from a schoolteacher’ lips. "The writer wtlites what ‘others have writen, and organizes this material into a new, original produc,” Original School term papers that are writen from the di Tections in English composition textbooks or study aids are the mos ‘anorginal writings the workd har ever sen, What grinds me about thee directions Ti looking ati their hypocrisy. I Know the authors don’t mean to misrepresent, but they've never thought im 2 lage way bout what theyre doing, This dy aid is jazzed up by istration for example, gil lying in bed on her stomach, bare legs waving bandonedly in the ir, She's peering at a book propped. against = pile of other books and a file box, at if she's giving a male student Inthe snack bara comeon, and yet on the next page the instructions ay: Py Perera crear reece tir eet tart oO en Poarsmoctts, NH Zour tery 198 Use clear and competent prose. He restrained, impersonal ‘objective, and factual, Avoid expreaing personal opinion tnd feelings ‘Av ateacher I've been that hypocritical without realizing it 1 thought [vers heping stodents learn to use the brary and master the forms of research reporting | had been told that people have to kaw them in ‘rder to ge through college, graduate schoo, and make a go of 2 profession, Now I reali that other teachers and Ihave given so many Inuctions to students about the form and length of papers that luce destroyed their natural curiosity. They don't want to grab books Of the shell and tate ther. think of how my wile consumes books while searching for some ‘hing. Several years ago, I was given a sabbatical leave fom my uni very. She and T decided to spend it in another country. Africa founded exciting, x0 she ate nine books on Alriea and wrote a friend tho had spent ueveral years there studying the songs of diferent “Countries, We read! the newspapers for every mention of Altea. Ever tually we concloded that 00 many people were reporting. that traveling there wae dangerous or awkward because of wars and in sorecions. Joye found that auch a long trip would be exoritanty ‘expensive for our family of four would be getting only ball pay daring the year's leave. So the next possibility was Mexico, closer, less expensive, and Td always wanted to go there, But where ahould we live when we got there? Like most ignorant North American, 1 thought Mexico was together Hat and hot. Reading books from the Iibrary Joye found ‘that in many parts ie wa mountsinows. That meant we could pick four climate, stcording to height. But what cin? She phoned two fends who had recently vsted Mexico. They told her of other focal perio who had just returned. These people suggested other books Joyce might read. ‘They bnew which ones in the Hbrary were out of date or gave fale pictures of the country. We watched the newspapers Sand university blletne for announcements of talks or fms by au {Moritie in Mexico, We were zeroing in om our choice “Joyce thought that the ieal for both of us, and our daughters aged ten and thirteen (although T must admit we thought more of ‘ourselves than of them), would be the city of Oaxaca, capital ofthe sate of Oxxacs, far south, just before Mexico turns til up into ‘Yucatan, There the temperature is 60° to 80° throughout the yea loc of sun, 2 rainy setion (but only thunderstorms conveniently short and in Tate afternoon) Tike ruins and Joyce needed to sce people in villages doing craft. We read that in ight of Oaxaca sand 6 ‘wr seamen pare ‘the remains of Monte Alban, a mountaintop ceremonial city that goes back to about 700 nc In the valley of Oaxaca and on its slope nese ‘dozens and dozens of Indian villages, many of which specialize in a ‘aft. Joyce had checked out other more mewopalitan cer and abo isolated provincial places. Twentycight books and a doven informants helped us choose Oaxaca. All that searching, was fun for Joye. She brought home each arm fl of books excitedly and opened them with anticipation. She does ‘the same sort of search when she needs new vacuum cleaner. When 1 thought of her habie of searching, I asked mye, "Why couldn't school research be like that" So I asked a. number of college and highschool teachers around the country if they like their students to uy such ISearching, Kirk Moll's paper in Chapter 2 of this book in one that was dane in a cllege cat Such papers have meant @ {reat deal to the people who have written them. The writes felt a excited as Joye did searching our trip to Mexico, but thet searchers found the job more diffeut because they had o break themelves of the habit of writing fr teacher and in Engfih, In Search clases they were asked to write papers that counted for them, andi such a way that they would eount for others in the class alo, indluding the teacher "What good lifetime habit Searching would be, Not just a casa, foneglance investigation, but a thorough search like those Joyce ci tomarily makes, lke that which Kirk Mell made about procuring and leeping a wolf like that made by Kathy Stacknik in the follwing paper: COULD I BECOME A FIREFIGHTER? Kathy Stacknik My mother had heard a woman was recently hired asa Srefighter in Noonan, a city nearby. 1 thought I would talk to her to get an idea af hhow I mighe like working as SeeRighter. I started my search atthe ‘Noonan City Hall Personnel Department and received a Freighter Applicant Information Sheet. Lived at the top are sven unvwaivable ‘qualifcations, Number five read: Eyesight—not wone than 20/40 uncorrected and must be corrected to 20/20, My vision ix 20/200 wocorrected. Well, thats the end of my “Eye: search" Fortunately I started early enough to pick another topic: Dur he necked yponged around ba nce wp wi any set iste Ted tr aod et dcedw hn why he {ou spinon wesnpotn I end at raed Soa "Wondeting ihe vohmcer Sete required theme quai sone fae Willa Vora, Cet oe Raver Von Pie eT we request you pat goed phy and are able 0 ante wt ot” nc men rep profiad each india! ep © inca a hie I ker, Vomes ad le the Nos Fc Depermee Tar eamnsed to Unvrtnt Rey aod ed ns ay te unk vt renee “hrl tron ing Yr go tsb he owe what ou ing and tary, yuan wear fer snr» St Ae Pak He Piel etging a xe py joo fant move etme co gute dol of When opens ened ne ar fang fora pi a wes wets ton mich ne “So ede mme spa recone wenhing sparen The tn ond ere ce sod eter witht eas be td jel ne tan ny meted Te i us eed hereby accumula of masses ten Ye {nto por and mat ad best i wpe ahead tee Webbed tearnig ane Tole Ligne Kemsey weufleun by ery be entered my enemy, wang weeny el sens ed was swt os esi ake point the mad the seo We age Men ‘ty oming at "yep ele morning ope. fou ee fom 90am. 0 ron tek nn then Nonaymevsng ce rund wa gray, Yael nd ids elie ig Toned wo rem poy and be cy bef tee ul lok ne Tp om my open maar cute tine pics cme hal oar ery a woe oat teding GE waton, bet pking donee Wins pia Tome fake ure thd eum ine to na Wace. Ar ituned rt ped arom the etd walled na, ‘ahr en mero Thay come ight Terdewed © chase me cle, onda own hh. asd genera uri Frcs prevention and ney an aot =e care ofthe saities and Inter Seer. Dunn's lite overbearing, but youl ike bi.” Twat looking forward to Dunn. Overbearing peopl can he eying they Keep me awake, Lieutenant Kenney wat anxious for me wo sce the entre station and ‘began atthe dispatching room, I time and transportation permit, Tike to take you to one ofthe oldest singleengine fre houses, built in 1007" We agueezed in with a fourplug switchboard, dispatcher, and tape recorder, Every call is taped. This serves a a record to check om an adres or a voice. People footing around calling in false alarms are provecuted by voice prints made from the tape. "We throw the book tiem" On the svitchboard ae four “ht lines" one each from an fmbulance, Civil Defense, police, and Mid State Univesity. Mid-Seate has its own re crew and is immediately noied of any fres on campus “The downtown wtation (#1) is the largest with ten fefighters, three fice: and three equipment operators forthe engine, ladder truck, {ind mini pumper. The mine-pamper caries its own water and is used for small rex The engine was the newest but I couldn’ tell They al Tooked new. don't think there was Rngerprint anywhere, The un- Alrsides ate the same way; in fac, the whole sation i spots. ‘Hardshats and cons ate piled on the euch, with boots nearby. We awed the kichen where the men were having coffe. I peeked in and ‘Caught afew men peeking back. Taaw the equipment room and where the hows are hung 10 dry. then on up the nats o the dorms. ‘Not far fom the stairs was the rst of four fie poles. I looked down and expected to see the Noor below, but saw instead a covering around the pole: A man on his way ¢o the ground floor demonstrated how the Covering opened with his weight. Ireminded me ofa blood cll going through the tricuapid valve in dhe heart. T almost asked if T could slide down, vate bath, Everything looked prety seri ‘om the wall, not even tn the Lounge "Any particular reason why there arent picture?” “rank has privileges” “But the ofcers don't have them. "They don't becase they don let the men.” ‘Sounded lke military logic [Night gear consi of black fire pants pulled down over knethigh rubber boot. ‘The combination i placed about sit inches from the mide ofthe bed Yo seen raren ” “When the alarm goes ff you jump into your boots and pall up on ther hoot and frepante™ ‘ack on ground for the liewtenant introduced me tothe secretary and told her Iwas interested in becoming a fireman. Can you slide up the pole? That's requirement” ‘After ew minutes we were on our way tothe od Bre house. Felt Important riding inthe oficers ed aqua car with a big red NED. on the door, Incidentally, fre equipment gradually changing from red to's mid-spectrum greeny color Experts claim the new color can be seen beter ‘As we drove, Lieutenant Kenney gave a week at any fre station "Men arrive at the station in sret clothes, change into fatigues, and Tine up for rol call at 7:00 a.m, AU7:0 they receive orders and ave ‘affee At 100 asm. the men are asked what they want co eat for lunch ‘and dinner, changes in orders are announced, if any, and maintenance ‘work i tated. Daly duties ae varied from sation w station, but ‘each week the tracks are completely cleaned, top and underside. Floors late wathed and waxed, apparatus in checked and leaned, even drains in the garage ate ushed of sand. The men take curns coking all he seals for one week each. AC 1:00 pam. the mem will engage in some {orm of training, either book work or going over new procedures. Fr days and Saturdays are yard work and catchall days. On Sunday the ‘men do what they want ‘With the summary completed, the lieutenant called in to report his postion at Station 48. Two engines are kept but ove is reserved 282 pate. The cement foor showed sig of grese ad il from the daye ‘his sation was responsible for mechanical repairs on all the equlp- sent. The stables were long gone and the hay loft was converted in {mini basketball cour. “ArT handled the ick rundown of 9 eypeal was ok with them as Tong a she pulled her men were sure a woman couldn't da. Maybe they have a valid pont. (Could I move a refrigerator blocking » door? What if my buddy col lapsed, would T have time to go for help, or should T take him out ‘myself, risking both our Lives? The fie iene going to walt for me to make up my mind. think T could carry 50 fee of empty hose, only 4550 pounds, but dragging one filled with water in 39 pounds heavier and harder 10 handle “Were close than husband and wife, don't argue half as much, and ‘gt twice as much done, At home you can walk out on your wife. Not Ire, you have way.” ‘Already T was imagining myself avoiding the shower room and

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