Junior Theme: DONE

Today, marks the end of junior theme... or at least until revisions come around.  Regardless, it feels good to have have turned in the paper!  After countless hours of reading articles, pulling quotes, conducting interviews, writing, peer editing, and editing more, I feel relived to be done!

That's not to say I didn't enjoy the process.  Actually, I liked it a lot.  While at times I got tired of reading some of the articles, and at times I could not physically look at the computer screen without hurting my eyes, I felt it was a great experience.  I loved being able to research any topic of my choosing, and thought it was so interesting how each of us choose such a wide variety of topics.  It was so cool to see that by the end, we all were experts on our individual topic.  I thoroughly enjoyed this project because of the independent study/ research aspect, and because it was unlike anything I've ever done before.

After weeks, days, and hours of working on this project, I can certainly say I feel accomplished to be done.   While there were days when I felt so frustrated and lost and unsure where to go with the research/ paper, I was able to steer through and complete the task.  And, I would just like to say, good job to everyone who finished their junior theme!!

Junior Theme: Blog #4

This past week has been exciting, yet also a bit frustrating.  After researching a ton, and really getting to understand my individual topic, I was looking forward to presenting my work through my paper.  However, easier said than done.  As I am finishing up my paper now, I am starting to go back and take out some excess detail, clarify others, and make some sentences more concise in order to have empathy for the reader.  I have found this particularly hard because I feel like sometimes when we know a topic so well, we forgot that others may not be as familiar, and are not as empathetic.

I also conducted my interview last week, and felt it went well.  I interviewed Mr. Ottaviano, the assistant principal of administrative services at New Trier.  Although his job entitles many different types of work, one of them is that he is in charge of school safety and all lockdown procedures.  He works hand and hand with the Winnetka police department.  However, after transcribing the recording, a somewhat lengthy process, I have only found a few quotes that I will actually use in my paper.  Nevertheless, I'm really glad I had the opportunity to talk to him, and felt he provided the best information he could in regards to my topic.

We are approaching the final hours of this huge project.  I am finishing up some editing and what not, and looking forward to turning it in tomorrow!  Good luck to everyone as they finish up their papers!

Junior Theme: Blog #3

Over spring break, I visited a few colleges and then went skiing with my family.  I also had time to work on junior theme.  It was nice to have the free time away from school, with no homework other than some reading for junior theme.  With this time, I was able to read a whole book, start another, read through a few articles, and watch a film on a school shooting, “Elephant” (directed by Gus Van Sant).  I have started to keep track of important quotes and statistics as well.  It was nice to have this time to learn more in depth about my topic before I tackle the actual writing of the paper.  This next week I hope to begin the interview process; I am starting to brainstorm who I will interview, as well as what type of questions I plan on asking.  However, this part of the project seems a little harder for me because I’m still having a tough time deciding exactly who to interview.  Again, my topic overall topic is “school shootings”, and my specific why question is “Why are school shootings on the rise?” So far, I was thinking of interviewing either a police officer or a faculty member of one of the schools in the district.  That way I could maybe hear about if/ how serious school violence seems to be around here, compared to other districts, or maybe if they an increase in violence over the years?  Or not only has it gotten more frequent, but is it also more severe?  However, I’m not positive those would be those most beneficial interviews.  Anyone have any suggestions?  If so, please let me know, thanks!

I plan on working heavily on the interview process, as well as continuing to read through more and more articles to make sure I am seeing as many relevant sources as I can.  Hope everyone had a great break, and good luck with the rest of the junior theme process!