a "doc" chronicle

I took me a lot longer than what I initially though to complete the new revisions of Chapter 2. I had made the readings and was clear about organizing my ideas with an outline, but I was not able to go back to it. We usually say time is a factor, but I think it is more about taking the time, and making a conscious decision of writing whatever came to mind, using your notes to support your ideas.

Also, there is that sense of not being able to do the “right” thing. I was unsure if I had read enough or if I was able to organize my readings in a novel way. I did not want to repeat what others had said, I wanted to contribute to the literature and present my ideas in a different way. We’ll see how it worked.

So now I am going back to my data set, to continue analyzing and interpreting the data. Writing a dissertation is a slow process, but in general you just need to keep at it. :)

Labels: perseverance, review of literature, time management

Yes, more revisions are on its way and with it the Reference List has been completed (last July 23rd). Good that I had most of it done already! Still, completing the reference list made me find some articles I had set aside, a few that seemed not read. However, rereading these articles made me realize they were put aside for a reason, that they were not what I needed for this project.

I kept thinking on how I would organize the last part of Chapter 2. And it wasn't until yesterday that I realized one way of organizing the CoP section of this chapter is by its characteristics. CoP's are ‘Communities of Practice’, groups of people with a common goal, interacting with each other, even if they don't know each other, sharing ideas, collaborating, negotiating, and in some instances, agreeing in a solution to the problems posed by its members. With this section I will have a new version of this chapter. :)

Labels: communities of practice, reference list, review of literature

In preparation for the new revisions of Ch. 2, I went back to Robert's (2004) book, The Dissertation Journey. Looking at what I already have, it seems I have climbed the "base camp" and that I am moving toward the peak -- this being the oral defense. I reread Chapter 15, "Organizing and Presenting the Literature Review (Chapter Two)" and realized I need to reword the beginning of many paragraphs -- so that I don't start with the authors name and instead use an introductory statement. I also need to paraphrase more. Finally, taking time on the outline will help me organize my thoughts and the chapter's content. Still, I need to move on ... As Dr. Dawson says, it is better to have something to work with -- my thoughts need to be on paper instead of in my mind!!

For what I've recently read about writing in math, I think I have found a better way to justify my research. Finding a hole; that is, something no one has researched yet, something I can contribute with. Up to what I've read, writing in mathematics has been researched from a cognitive and constructivist perspective, but not from a social construction view. This opens new possibilities for (to) my work.

Concepts or ideas I want to keep in mind when I continue writing Chapter Two are the following: collaborative writing, inquiry in mathematics (ability to reflect), polyvocality in mathematics (algebraic, geometric, and numeric solutions / explanations/ contributions), negotiation, conversation/ dialogue/ discourse/ discussions.

I apologize for the way this post is organized. Writing my blog is helping me organize my thoughts ...

Reference:

Roberts, C. M. (2004). The Dissertation Journey: A practical and comprehensive guide to planning, writing, and defending your dissertation. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Labels: review of literature

Writing a general outline and adding the authors related to each subtopic allowed me to organize what I have read about 'writing in mathematics.' This also showed me I had too many articles about practices and too little research articles. So, I had to go back to the library and get a few more. Journals such as School Science and Mathematics and Educational Studies in Mathematics included research articles about this topic up to 2005. This is promising, since most of what I had before was from the eighties and nineties.

On Monday I started writing. I decided to read in the mornings and write in the afternoons. In this way, if I need to read something new to clarify my ideas I can work on that in the morning, while I keep writing the revisions of Chapter 2 in the afternoon. During the evening I can dig up an old article to clarify an author's idea or work on a specific recommendation. At first, I though I had to rewrite the whole chapter, but then I realized I can add a new section and insert references to it along the chapter. I don't know yet if this will work, but I am working on it!!

To push myself I am going to the library during the day and working on periods of time of two to three hours each. If I think I am done before my time schedule, I try to do something else until the clock tells me its time to go. Little by little ...

References:

Clark, D., & Waywood, A. (1993, October). Probing the structure of mathematics writing. Educational Studies in Mathematics, 25(3), 235-250.

Mason, R. & McFeetors, P. (2002, October). Interactive writing in mathematics class: Getting started. Mathematics Teacher, 95(7), 532-536.

Pugalee, D. K. (2001, May). Writing, mathematics, and metacognition: Looking for connections through student's work in mathematical problem solving. School Science & Mathematics, 101(5), 236-245.

Stonewater, J. (2002, November). The mathematics writer's checklist: the development of a preliminary assessment tool for writing in mathematics. School Science & Mathematics, 102(3), 324-334.

Stonewater, J. (2005, January). Inquiry teaching and learning: The best math class study. School Science & Mathematics, 105(1), 36-47.

Labels: dissertation, mathematics, review of literature, time management, writing in math