10/28/10

WoW! It's been over a month since my last update? Time flies when you're having fun. Oops, did I just mention fun on my "boring blog"?

Anyways, here goes the update.

I have made my 100 hours in the classroom mark. Yes, I have observed this one class for over 100 hours. WoW. I wrote up my report and have yet to hear back from my advisor, but the teachers and headmaster at the school have read my report. They had some concerns so I was pulled into the office once again. Basically, the headmaster was a bit concerned about the things I was observing because it "shouldn't" be how I explained it. *shrugs* I mean, I wrote what I saw...what can I say? Hopefully things will work itself out soon.

Oh, and why have I been busy? Hm...events after events after events, perhaps. So I had my University of Tokyo Graduate School of Education's Foreign Student Overnight School Trip. Then I participated in Nikkei Youth Exchange (NYN) Summit Japan 2010, which was also an overnight event. Then I participated in a Foreign Student Cultural Experience Trip that my scholarship sponsored. *whew*

As for University of Tokyo, it's been awesome. I got accepted into the Japanese language program. So along side all my data collection, reading, and writing, I can work on improving my Japanese as well. This is a total bonus since I really wasn't planning on taking a class.

All-n-all, I'm loving my time here. Too bad I didn't think ahead and ask for the 2 year scholarship rather than just 1 year. I guess after I graduate, I can always come back to Japan. ^__^

4/27/10

A lot has happened in the past few weeks I thought I'd write an update. (I make this sound like I shouldn't be doing this everyday. LoL. In reality, I SHOULD do it daily. So much for that idea.)

1) Dissertation Proposal is now at 30 pages. I turned it into my advisor on Monday with a feeling of accomplishment. Of course it still needs LOTS of work, but just turning it into him was a relief. That moment of relief should've been cherished because the next morning, my inbox had my paper with comments and suggestions, and sections of the paper that must be re-worked. No time to breath is probably life of a phd student, right?

2) Working Title! Yes, I have, or shall I say, we have a working title! (I say, we, because I'm working on this with my advisor.) It is Educating Children in Two Languages: A Multiple-Case Study of Dual Language Instruction in Japan. Of course, it is a working title meaning it WILL change. See, I even used the word WILL, instead of MIGHT. LoL.

3) Destination Japan. So, I'm looking at different schools to apply to as a research student in Japan. You know, to fulfill my scholarship opportunity of $45,000. I was initially looking into Keio University, my alma mater, but I also have my eye on Tokyo University. Why? Well, not that it really matters to me since I live my life in America, but in Japan it's all about the brand. I already have the Keio University brand attached to my name, why not also get a Tokyo University brand? LoL, simple as that. (For those reading thinking what's so special about these schools, it's like Yale, Harvard level. Why not get both attached, right?)

4) IRB. Institutional Review Board is a hurdle that all research students much overcome. It is a board that oversees all research done at the university to ensure that we're not harming humans. There are three levels, full, expedited, exempt. Most education related research is exempt because it's not like we're poking anyone with meds. However, if you do work with students under the age of 18, minors, then you'd need to submit a expedited full review. So, in my case, since I will be observing students who are minors, I must go through the expedited review. Basically, I need to turn in a bunch of paper work saying I will not harm the people I decide to observe.

5) Comprehensive Exam. I thought I needed to take this exam BEFORE I left for Japan in August, but I have been since notified that I may take this WHILE in Japan. Sweet. This exam is basically 3 super-duper-long essays. You're given 10 days or so to complete all 3 essays, each being anywhere between 15 to 20 pages. Oh my, not looking forward to that.

6) Now what? The class I'm currently taking marks my LAST course required for my degree. Yay! On to taking Independent Study with my advisor. It's called the 699 course where you register for 1 credit just so that you can "stay in the system".

Whew. What an update. There's probably more, but this is all I could think of as of now. I will attempt to write more often. No promises. LoL.