Blog 8

The Research Plan:

Statement of Purpose

Ethnographic report on cheerleading, particularly the Bayonne Elite Seniors.  I will show the positive and uplifting aspects of a well rounded cheerleading team.

Detailed Statement of Your Research Question

The media portrays cheerleading in a very negative way which in turn, gives cheerleading a bad stereotype.  My project will focus on one team of 23 girls and one boy and how they are positively affected by the cheerleading world.  I will also focus on how their characteristics make the team positive.  Overall, I believe my ultimate questions is what or who makes makes cheerleading a positive experience.  (I have so much information that I could talk about so this focus is still a little rough and most definitely may bloom into something more or different)

List of Information You Need to Gather

First, I will have to agree on a solid focus of this paper.  Once I find this, I can then look at other scholarly papers and find out how they can or cannot correlate to what I am trying to do.  Also, I would have to use a little bit of Swales in my literature review because ultimately, I am still showing how cheerleading is positive as a discourse community.  Once I have all my information set for my literature review, I will then have to physically observe the practices and gather valuable data that will be used within my paper.  Such information may consists of how practice goes, the lexis which is used, body language tones, and how they communicate with one another positively (or even negatively).

A Preliminary List of Resources

I have started looking at other ehtnographic reports that others have done on cheerleading.  I have also started to study closely Swales discourse community.  I think I am on to something.  I just need some more information.

Plan for Gathering Your Information that Includes:

•  Who/What you will be studying?
• I will be studying the Bayonne Elite cheerleading team (seniors).  A team that consists of 23 girls and 1 boy.  I am an advent member of this group and serve as a coach for them.
• Where will you collect your information?
• I will collect my information through observations of the community as well as interviews from the coaches and the girls.
• How many subjects will you study?
• 23 girls, 1 boy, and 4 coaches (I make the 5th coach)

What Methods Will You Use to Gather Your Information

For my project I will use discourse analysis and interviews.