Thursday, April 19, 2007

Blog Buddy Work With Mark, Author Of "These pretzels are making me thirsty"...

1. Where has your Blog buddy shown strong analytical work (be specific—is it a particular post, a type of analysis, a site for analysis that seemed to click more so than others, etc)?

2. How could your Blog buddy use this strength for the final Blog post and presentation?

3. Think about the following statements in relation to your Blog buddy’s Blog and then provide feedback on each area (constructive praise/criticism):
  • The Blog is on a topic that has been clearly evident in the Blog posts throughout the semester
  • The Blog is on a topic that seems to interest my Blog buddy
  • My Blog buddy’s topic is one that has produced a good set of posts that were analytical used gender as a primary category of analysis
  • The posts make analytical arguments. The posts are understandable and each post logically outlines and supports the argument presented. The posts were clear, provided insight, evidence, and analysis to connect the topic with the assignment for each of the posts
  • The sources cited in each post are relevant to the topic and help to aid the understanding of the argument and/or assisted in proving the argument.
  • The quotes used illustrate a broad range of course readings throughout the semester.
  • The quotes were clear and succinct; additionally, the material was presented so that I could differentiate the Blog buddy’s ideas from that of the author cited.

4. Finally, complete the following:

  • I thought it was great when you...
  • I found it confusing when you…
  • You’re really great at…
  • I wish you could focus (more) on/alter/edit/explain/expand on/etc these three things…

3 comments:

Mark said...

In response to the first two questions, I think your strongest analytical work came in both your posts about Disney movies. Both these posts seemed to have more convincing arguements than some of your other posts, and both raised some interesting questions regarding their messages. I really began to think about the messages they might send to the intended audience; children. It shows how people are exposed to certain ideas at a young age, and grow up thinking nothing of it. I think that for your final blog or presentation you should focus on another Disney movie, because they seem to be filled with the most interesting topics of analysis.

Mark said...

In response to the third portion...
- It seems to me that the weakest part of your blog is that you do not have one clear, concise topic. Since you do a nice job analyzing Disney, it seems to me that it would have been more advantageous had you made this your topic from the beginning. I think you may have gotten more feedback and/or traffic this way.
- Despite the lack of one topic, each topic you chose to write about was definitely of interest, and part of the large realm of popular culture that would interest many other people as well.
- I think you did a nice job of sticking to topics that dealt with gender throughout each post, and most of the posts were very analytical and made some strong points.
- As mentioned above, I feel that most of your posts were very analytical and did not attempt to make a stand or take one side. The only post where I thought you let your opinion show was the one on "24" where your arguement was that it is just a show.
- Nice job using a wide range of appropriate sources, but be careful that these sources and/or quotes used are conveying the same message you are trying to make. I ran into some problems in my blog with this as well.
- Also, I thought you did a good job of being sure to cite each quote and made it very clear what source you were using and when you were using the author's words as opposed to your words.

Mark said...

And last but not least...
- I thought it was great how you brought up some interesting topics to analyze in Disney movies (as I've mentioned a few times already).
- I found it confusing in a few of the posts when you tried to tie in the readings with your personal analysis. Just be sure to choose quotes that clearly support what you are trying to say.
- You're really great at picking topics that are relevant to today's popular culture, making your posts interesting topics to most people who visit your blog.
- Again I apologize for sounding repetitive, but I think you brought up some nice topics of analysis when dealing with Disney movies, and I wish that you would have chosen this as your particular topic sooner. You still have time though, and I would suggest focusing on this topic for your final blog and/or presentation. All in all, I think you did a nice job with your posts and the overall appearance of your blog....Nice work.