LevinReading+Responses

I enjoyed the beginning of Freshman Year. I think it's a really interesting way of studying college life. As the author mentions, her experience will not be the same as an actual college freshman. She is not a teenager and she is not in school for the same reasons as the other students. She is very dedicated to her work, actually moving into a freshman dorm and abiding by the rules of the university even though she is a professor herself. I think her actually living in the dorm woul affect her observations. I'm sure the students acted differently around her since she was so much older and came off as a "motherr figure". I ws surprised how quickly the other studetns began talking with her and inviting her to activities.I am interested in the rest of the study and I do look forward to reading more.

The ethnography reading is very dry and straightforward. It is nice that they try to make it more interesting with the juggling examples, but other than that it's quite boring. I do like the topic of cultures and how there are so many cultures that are so very different from each other. People can get very protective and defensive about their culture. I like that it expllains that culture is more than just religion or background, it is the groups you associate yourself with, and one person can hve multiple cultures. People absorb a great deal of culture through reading and pictures.