KaitlynGrantReadingResponse3

Today I read chapter 3 of My Freshman Year. The absolute first thing that stood out to me was that Americans would say “see you later” but that doesn’t really always mean you’re going to plan to see them later. I never thought about how confusing this could be for a non American. It’s really funny to think how things could mean one thing in one country and another to someone of a different country. I guess we need to be careful about how we talk to different people.
 * My Freshman Year **

I was surprised to read that Americans or American friends don’t ask their friends where they are from. I would be that person asking everything! That could just be because I am very interested in different cultures and I hope to travel to a bunch of places one day. I would have just assumed that more people would have been curious and asked. Maybe they just didn’t want to be rude and pry but it is still something I would be curious about.

I also found it interesting to read that in order to make friends you need a hobby. I never really thought of that before but I guess it’s true. I make friends at lacrosse, and other activities. However if you are just an open and approachable person I think you can make friends otherwise. None of my best friends play my sports but we still bonded and are really close. I also read in here that apparently Americans only call home once a week. That’s not true for me at all. I actually call my mom and dad every day. Though I am independent I like to stay connected. All my friends at school have met my family and I have met theirs. I enjoy reading My Freshman Year, I really do. However that being said, I think things are really one sided in it. The author never says “This is what I found, however it could depend on the person.” I conflict a lot with the statements made in this book and I find that it is true for some students but really not all! I wish this was pointed out more. Part of me feels like a lot of this book is stereotypical.

I was also really shocked when I read that wearing flip flops to class could be considered rude. I really never considered this before. I never thought that taking a sip of a drink in class could be rude either. I think in the United States, as college students, we have a lot of independence. If you don’t pay attention and you sleep etc during class that is your problem, not the teachers, and the teachers realize that.

One thing that I would really like to know is why these exchange students came to the United States. Many have things they like but even more that they complain about. I wonder what made them come here or stay if they aren’t completely happy. At times I was bothered when a sentence read “People here…” I knew the answers to every question Americans supposedly asked. I think people need to realize that for every educated American there is one who is not as bright and that we can’t all be grouped together.


 * Ethnography **

As I first read the next pages of Ethnography, it jumped right into questions that ethnographers need to ask themselves before they begin. Reading these ideas really helped me out because when I was thinking of my own Clue Project, I didn’t really know exactly what questions I should be asking. Now I have a bit more of an idea.

The statement made by non specialists saying “It is only one site how can you make generalizations?” Is exactly what I have been thinking this entire time! Some things seem like it’s true for some people but not all people. It makes me wonder how valid some statements are or if parts of ethnography are more assumption based on clues. I also really liked the idea of recording sessions as ethnographers. This makes a lot of sense to me because my doing so, you can look back on your findings. When you hear something for a second time, you may pick up on something that you didn’t notice the first time. This could lead to even more evidence to make a statement about something.

When reading the section on conceptual methods, I liked the first category “Problems and Setbacks.” I think it is very important as an ethnographer to record things that you didn’t expect to happen or to see. This could greatly change the way your research would be going, and it is important to use that new data.