Blog #3 - May 28, 2012

This past week I ran off into the unknown parts of the city that I had never been to. I was searching out specialty dentists. The hard part is that directions are very general. For instance, one of the directions of the dentist was the name of this huge and long street with the adress being "opp old Shanthi Theatre, Shahi Grill". So when I got to what I thought was the right part, I just had to look around and ask people. If I wasn't close to where I needed to be then people often looked confused, had no clue what I was talking about, or would point in different directions. The closer you get to right location, the more people start to recognize the name and when you are pretty much standing on it, the people can finally point you to the clinic. What may be seen as a polite gesture is if they do not know, they will just sort of point or say its a certain way. They may think I am talking about something else, but I have been led the wrong way various times. This process happened for a day, where I would ask for directions and be led all over the street until I could find it myself. It was fun being able to completely find things on my own, but there was also a feeling of uncertainty because I was in areas that I hadn't been to, looking for things I wasn't sure if they were still there. We got our surveys professionally translated and typed. We put together consent forms to help the natives understand our seriousness and professionality. We also purchased business cards to give the informants so that they could feel free to email or get in contact with us if they had questions after taking the survey. We are pretty sure we know where to begin finding informants for our research. The job shadowing is going great. The general dentist is teaching and showing me a lot. They love having me there which is evident from the food they bring into work for me, the regional treats they bring to have me try, and all of the information and help they give me. I am going to try and set up a few other clinics to go to so that I can compare and contrast. It will help me to see if people go to those clinics for the same reason, or if different reasons spring up.  We have made some sweet friends from the local branches. One of the guys speaks great English and he goes around with us helping us so that we don't get hustled and showing us sweet places to go. He is going to sit us down next Friday and go over anything that we want to cover. He will explain culture and customs, religions, history, and anything that we want. It should be good and I'm sure it will help us with answering the questions for our IAS class.  Our neighbors in the village love us, as much as they can. We can't speak to each other but they will fill up our water tank with a hose while we are gone. They say hi and bye to us. Some of the kids that can speak will come up and talk with us. They have tried to teach us as much as they could about how to do things.  The buses are great. You get a good 2 hours each day to read or listen to audio books. We are getting some good reading done. It's a little awkward how close you all are to each other, similar to being thrown into the middle of a mosh pit, but you get more and more used to it. Especially because they try to help you to find a seat when one opens up so that you can sit down. Once you sit down, its easy coasting for the rest of the trip. While standing people are bumping into you, the bus conductor is trying to walk past you to collect tickets, people are going in and out of the bus, so it is just pretty hard to get comfortable.  All is well in India though. We are having lots of fun. As doors keep opening and we keep finding opportunities, it becomes more and more fun.

India - Post #2 - May 15 2012

India is awesome. I'm not going to lie, eating with my hands at first made some of the food unappealing and I even lost interest for eating. I can finally say that those feelings have left. I love eating with my hands. You can pick up exactly the size of bites that you want to put into your mouth, you can mix the rice with the correct amount of curry ratios, you can pick up more chicken or drop chicken depending on how much you want in that bite, it's great. We have had some great food and the more I eat, the more I enjoy it. At first, I despised the style of food and conned myself into thinking that I only like North Indian food, but that is adjusting. I keep trying new things and keep liking them. Aside from the food, we are all settled into the house and it feels great. Although it's not exactly like home, it is pretty darn close. In fact, the change is rather fun and enjoyable because it breaks the routine. I love camping and I am not even joking, it partially feels like we are camping. We have to pump for water, light mosquito coils, sweep the dirt away, cook on a kerosine stove, and squat to use the restroom. The nice features are that we have electricity, a closed brick house, neighbors, etc. I had my research translated by a younger member in the family. After finding an individual who is great at English and Tamil and who writes novels, he said the translation was okay but it could be clearer and more precise so that when people take the survey they don't get frustrated and confused. I agreed and I asked him to retranslate my survey so that I could gather the best results. I am going to pay him for his work and it will be totatlly worth it. He is actually a good friend of ours now and we see him often. Once I get this finalized, I can really begin pounding the streets and malls for individuals to take my survey. I will also ask a lot of the individuals who I have become friends with to help me by taking the survey as well. I hopefully will be able to find a lot of people who are willing to take it. They may be willing to do it for the simple reason that I am white, which is a good enough reason for me, as long as the data that I gather is accurate. It's fun though because we have made a lot of friends without the intention of having them take our survey so they have a friendship with us and trust us. We are staying active and trying not to get burnt by the sun. It scorched my face yesterday so I should probably be a little more careful to wear sunscreen or stay in the shade more. What can I say though, playing sports was totally worth it.  Everything is going great in India and time is flying by. If it weren't for the freezing cold shower that I take right before I go to bed each night, I might go crazy because of the heat. Otherwise, the bugs are finally beginning to leave me alone and my skin is healing from all of the bites!

India - Post #1 - May 7 2012

India! I can't believe we are finally here. As much as it is nice to see pictures of what India is like, there is nothing like actually experiencing it. Taking in each breathe filled with all the fumes from the hundreds of cars, auto rickshaws, and taxis, the piles of trash letting off their rotting smells, the jasmine stands that provide beautiful smells of flowers, and the food stands each competing for your stomachs attention. It truly is an amazing place. At the same time you find it to be an amazing place, you also realize the other side of it. The extreme poverty, the poor conditions, individuals begging for food and money. As far as my courses are concerned they are going well. I am already established in a dental clinic with a great dentist that has agreed to have me shadow him. I have already been able to observe some great things, from root canals to extractions to fillings. I have already clocked in 9 hours and need a total of 90 hours over my stay in india. They are great because they speak great English and are very easy to learn from. They were born and have grown up in India so I can ask them questions about anything and they are great at answering them.  For my research I had to get a footing on the culture before I started to give out surveys. I feel like talking with people and settling down has helped me a lot. I understand a lot of the norms and what people do or do not do. I understand things that are okay to ask and others that are not. I know how to word questions so that they will understand them. I have also gone through and Edwin has helped me to translate key phrases in case I need to use them to help the informant to understand. I haven't done a full translation but I hope to work with people that will be able to help me to explain words.  Once I get my survey finalized it will be easy to find boys to take it. We talk to them all day, every day. I am still trying to figure out how to approach girls or if it is even appropriate for me to do so. If it is appropriate, we have a hard time even finding girls that we could approach to talk to. If anyone knows proper ways to approach girls to take my survey that would be helpful. Maybe I could approach girls in Brookefield Mall and request their assistance.

Learning Journal 35

For class on Monday we went over what would be on the test. It's surprising how much we have covered. Some of the topics apply more to me and my project than other topics that we discussed. While we reviewed interviewing, I realized that there were a lot of good points brought up and they would be very helpful if I was sitting down to interview. I remember reading that article and thought that the interviewer was great at interviewing because the informant was talking away. The interviewer also made it very easy for the informant to talk because their conversation with very easy to understand questions. It was interesting to see how much of the material came back to me and how much seemed foreign because I had forgotten it all. The hard part is that we will talk about something and then it won't come back up again until the final. I have a lot to study for to prepare myself for the final. The cool part is that I'm not only studying for the final, but I am studying and reviewing things that can be helpful for me while in India.
I am putting together the last of my proposal and wrapping up the last of my survey questions. This whole semester of preparation is coming to a close as we get ready to actually go out and apply what we have learned. It will be interesting to note how many things I do in India that I realize came from this prep class. Or it will be interesting to see how all the time I put into study or understanding the culture becomes beneficial when talking with people.
Here we go! India in 17 Days!

Learning Journal 34

This past weekend I was able to work on more of my proposal. I am specifically looking at my survey. It is the most important part of my research. If I do not gather the correct data from my survey, I will go home with results that won't mean anything to me. It is important for me to gear my questions towards answers that I am looking for. The answers that I am looking for deal with the question that I asked in my proposal. How does education, family size, and the economic condition affect oral hygiene habits. My questions needed to be focuses towards four things; the three sociodemographic facts and the hygiene habits of my subjects. So I went through my survey and revamped the questions. They are now a lot more focused and will help me to get the answers that I am looking for.
What I am planning on doing is printing and taking about 20 surveys. Once I get to India, I can hand out a few surveys and see how people respond. If I think that there needs to be clarifications then I can simply fix my survey and print off more copies. I don't want to print off so many copies that I feel obligated to use that survey, even if people aren't answering the questions the right way or are confused about the questions. I want to make sure that when I get to India that most people can understand what the questions are asking and be able to answer them.
I look forward to analyzing my data based on the results I get from my surveys!

Source 38

MUMBAI: Across the world, India is seen as an education powerhouse - based largely on the reputation of a few islands of academic excellence such as the IITs. But scratch the glossy surface of our education system and the picture turns seriously bleak.

Fifteen-year-old Indians who were put, for the first time, on a global stage stood second to last, only beating Kyrgyzstan when tested on their reading, math and science abilities.

India ranked second last among the 73 countries that participated in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), conducted annually to evaluate education systems worldwide by the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) Secretariat. The survey is based on two-hour tests that half a million students are put through.

China's Shanghai province, which participated in PISA for the first time, scored the highest in reading. It also topped the charts in mathematics and science.

"More than one-quarter of Shanghai's 15 year olds demonstrated advanced mathematical thinking skills to solve complex problems, compared to an OECD average of just 3%," noted the analysis.

The states of Tamil Nadu and Himachal Pradesh, showpieces for education and development, were selected by the central government to participate in PISA, but their test results were damning.

15-yr-old Indians 200 points behind global topper

Tamil Nadu and Himachal, showpieces of India's education and development, fared miserably at the Programme for International Student Asssment, conducted by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Secretariat.

An analysis of the performance of the two states showed:

In math, considered India's strong point, they finished second and third to last, beating only Kyrgyzstan

When the Indian students were asked to read English text, again Tamil Nadu and Himachal Pradesh were better than only Kyrgyzstan. Girls were better than boys

The science results were the worst. Himachal Pradesh stood last, this time behind Kyrgyzstan. Tamil Nadu was slightly better and finished third from the bottom

The average 15-year-old Indian is over 200 points behind the global topper. Comparing scores, experts estimate that an Indian eighth grader is at the level of a South Korean third grader in math abilities or a second-year student from Shanghai when it comes to reading skills.

The report said: "In Himachal, 11% of students are estimated to have a proficiency in reading literacy that is at or above the baseline level needed to participate effectively and productively in life. It follows that 89% of students in Himachal are estimated to be below that baseline level."

Clearly, India will have to ramp up its efforts and get serious about what goes on in its schools. "Better educational outcomes are a strong predictor for future economic growth," OECD secretary-general Angel Gurria told The Times of India.

"While national income and educational achievement are still related, PISA shows that two countries with similar levels of prosperity can produce very different results. This shows that an image of a world divided neatly into rich and well-educated countries and poor and badly-educated countries is now out of date."

In case of scientific literacy levels in TN, students were estimated to have a mean score that was below the means of all OECD countries, but better than Himachal. Experts are unsure if selecting these two states was a good idea.

Shaheen Mistry, CEO of Teach For India programme, said, "I am glad that now there is data that lets people know how far we still have to go."

This is cool because I was able to read about a current issue in India. This is something that was recommended to us by margaret. Plus it shows the poor education level in India.

Learning Journal 33

In class on Wednesday I presented my research proposal. I felt like when you present your idea, you learn a lot about your idea. It helps you to develop what you understand about it and what you want others to understand. It is also beneficial because classmates can comment on your research and help clarify some points. It was nice to be able to present because I have a better idea of what is good to focus on and what I know well. It also shows me what I can work on and develop more so that other people can understand it. I don't want to sound like I am beating a dead horse by saying the same stuff over and and over.
I was the only one that presented in my section on Wednesday so it will be nice to hear other presentations. I think the methods and ideas of others will be interesting to listen to and it may help me to develop my project even further.
It will be interesting to come home and present my project for the inquiry conference. I will not only be explaining my project and the reasoning behind it, but I will also be presenting the results. The results and tying it all together will be a big part of it all. I look forward to making the connections and seeing the results of my project.
I feel like as I travel to India and begin asking my survey questions, that I will really begin to understand what I am looking for. I have a great idea of what I want to see, but I am not quite positive the answers that I will get. I may come to find that certain answers on my survey reveal a lot about why dental care is in its current condition.