- For my response to this question, I chose to focus on “Shaping and Ethical Workplace Culture” because of the way the authors present information in a way that will make it usable for the readers of the article. I believe that the intended audience of this article is anyone in the workplace. In this article, the authors process what they have learned and make it actionable to the reader by typing main ideas in green, including bullet points that help explain their claims in an understandable way, including graphs and charts, and adding examples. All of these things that are incorporated into the article allow the reader to easily find the purpose of this article, and make the information easy to understand so that the suggestions being made can be taken by the readers. For example, on the side of page 9, there is a block of green titled, “Hallmarks of an Ethical Workplace” with a bulleted list of things that make a workplace ethical. This allows the reader to get an idea of what an ethical workplace is supposed to be. This block of ideas is actionable because it says things like, “Employees feel empowered and energized to reach for ethical and technical excellence in serving customers, clients and each other” (p. 9). When an employee or leader looks at this bullet point, they can reach out to employees and/or take a look at what they are doing as a leader, and think about what they can do to make their employees feel empowered at work.
- Some of the options that I have begun to consider for my unit 3 assignment include:
- having parents/guardians be my target audience, explain to them what it means to be inclusive, and give them examples of the benefits of inclusive classrooms → the readers would probably engage with a presentation/essay the best, and would most likely expect a longer text with lots of detail and explanation, as well as examples.
- Having young students be my target audience, and find a way to explain inclusion and differences to them in a way that they can understand → the readers would likely engage with their teachers or parents through a story, powerpoint, song, etc. because it may help them understand the information better. The readers of this topic, since the target audience is young, may expect a short, colorful, and interactive source or presentation.
- Having teachers be my target audience, and give them suggestions/advice about how to successfully teach an inclusive classroom → the readers would likely engage with a presentation, essay, etc. The target audience may expect a longer essay with a lot of examples and evidence that proves the point being stated.
Discussion Posts Week of 7/13
- My linked article under “hold decision makers accountable” is all about how employer practices has a big effect on workplace inequality. It focuses on sensitivity and the article argues that women can evoke more sensitive behavior from others. So much so that men as well as women contribute to an increase in sensitivity in mixed gender interactions. One of the biggest problems facing organizations today according to the article is that there’s currently a lack of interpersonal sensitivity. This can be defined as the act of caring and respectful treatment towards others. Organizations don’t often help themselves when it comes to inequality. When determining pay, employers are the ones at the forefront of that and should be held accountable when there are situations where equal pay is not met. This connects to what Wynn is saying in her article titled “Individual Change Wont Create Gender Equality in Organizations.” She argues that there are many factors that go into this and many steps organizations can take to reduce the inequality that women are facing in the workplace. It is up to the higher ups and employers of these organizations to take the necessary steps to create a safe working environment for women, and less inequality all around.
- In the article, the authors are talking about the environment in the workplace initiated by the employers. I feel that first and foremost, the employers of these companies would benefit the most from reading this article seeing how some of them are the reasons for this inequality. In addition, I think that this article appeals to everyone who works and more specifically works with people of the opposite gender in groups. The article talks about sensitivity levels differentiating when in a group with people of the opposite gender. The researchers found that “the willingness to act with interpersonal sensitivity increased in interactions with women.” This is just an interesting fact that I feel people who work in groups would want to know about and read the rest of the article. This quote was in the first paragraph of the article.
Discussion Prompt Week of 7/13 – Samantha Danylchuk
- My linked article under “biases can infiltrate the process” is about the lack of women in tech. Along with Wynn, other researchers attended several introductory sessions a few years ago at West Coast University, and the observations were astronomical. These sessions provided women with uncomfortable settings, as the females received sexist jokes and imagery, geeky references, and a super competitive environment. Most women were seen setting up the venue with refreshments or raffling off tickets, while the actual presenters happened to be male. If a female engineer was invited by a company, she often did not speak or if she did, would get cut off. Wynn and a research partner Correll described “one session in which men asked 19 questions and women asked none.” This article is extremely valuable as it highlights the gender stereotype within the tech field, specifically among recruiters. For example, the article explains that “presenters often made comments that disparaged women or depicted them as sexualized objects rather than talented technical colleagues.” This Stanford research proves that first are impressions are essential in bringing success to a company, and in order to attract a more diverse workforce, companies must present themselves as diverse communities of professionals, which adds to Wynn’s larger article.
- I think “Why Are There Few Women in Tech? Watch a Recruiting Session” would be most beneficial to engineer recruiters of companies in the tech industry who host/attend these sessions. She talks a lot about recruiters and people within tech firms because that’s what the article focuses on, so they are meant to be the target audience. Broad and dramastic change, like having more women in tech, cannot happen through one individual person’s actions. A few sentences from this article that I believe would work well in capturing the point that is being made here for this group of readers is “Wynn says she has presented this research to recruiters and people within tech firms. ‘They’re astonished. They often just don’t know what’s going on in their recruiting sessions,’ she says. Another quote is “The paper also describes recruiters using gender stereotypes. One online gaming company showed a slide of a woman wearing a red, skin-tight dress and holding a burning poker card to represent its product. Another company, which makes software to help construct computer graphics, only showed pictures of men—astronauts, computer technicians, soldiers.” Creating a problem like this one and adding onto a stereotype that’s already existed for so long does not solve anything. Instead, it adds fuel to the fire and promotes this kind of humiliating representation of women in the workforce. Gender stereotypes are used so commonly now without the creators (in this case tech engineers) even recognizing them.
Week of 7/13 Discussion
- The resource I followed is a program called Al4All which works to teach and provide resources for minorities interested in STEM and AI. It works to expose them to the uses of artificial intelligence in every day life and give them the skills needed to pursue careers and broaden the field. Not only do they teach the basics and give them the tools required to be young innovators but they provide them with teachers and a community of organizations that will help them along the path to success. This program is so important because it provides minority students access to the stem world and allows them to develop their passions amongst a more diverse community. It adds to Wynns article because she speaks of broadening the science community in terms of representation for minorities. This program provides the opportunity for young kids to learn the traits and have the resources required to excel in any field despite their backgrounds.
- In this article the author is mostly speaking towards either minorities or those with disabilities who have been discriminated from a position due to things like race or gender. When she writes this article she attempts to sympathize with those who feel they have been treated wrongly for something they can’t control and wish to see a monumental change within the industry. When she says “Organizations regularly engage in practices that can reduce or reinforce inequality—such as hiring practices, performance evaluations, promotion procedures, project allocation, compensation, and termination. For women who experience multiple forms of bias (e.g. based on race or sexuality as well as gender), these practices can amplify inequalities even further.” she specifically points out the discrimination faced in each environment and how these individuals are affected by it. In this passage she attempts a call to action by asking the audience what changes can be made and whether or not they wish to see the next generation have more rights than in previous years.
Overview for Week of 7/20
We’re moving into Unit 3 this week, with just a few weeks to go before the end of the summer term. Read on for an explanation of where we’re headed in this final segment of the semester.
Over the course of Unit 2, you’ve assembled a body of sources that cover a range of perspectives and ideas related to your research topic. You’ve spent some time thinking about how these texts fit together and how you fit into the subject–what you find interesting and significant about what you’re learning.
So now it’s time for you to jump into this conversation–to develop an argument based on the research you’ve compiled for an audience and purpose of your choosing. Over the next week and a half, we’ll be working through the process of selecting an appropriate audience and articulating your purpose in addressing that audience. Be sure to read through the unit 3 assignment sheet in preparation for this work.
Along the way (this week and next), we’ll be looking at some examples of different genres, considering how writers bend their texts stylistically to suit their purposes and the needs of their audiences. Towards that end, here’s what’s up this week.
Reading
- “How to create a culture manifesto for your organization”
- “Shaping an ethical organizational culture” (note that this is a change from the original Unit 3 schedule–NYS took down the document I had planned to work with)
- Chapter 10 of TSIS (originally on last week’s schedule, but I accidentally omitted it from last week’s overview)–this will be an especially important chapter for your upcoming work, so make sure to read it!
Writing
- project proposal (due Sunday, 7/26)–this will be a brief blog post in which you plot out the basics of your project, including what audience you think ought to hear about what you’ve been learning (i.e. what group would benefit from hearing the argument you plan to develop)
- discussion posts in response to this week’s prompts (due Wednesday, with follow-up comments, as outlined in the prompt due by Monday or Tuesday at the latest):
Discussion posts for Week of 7/20
I am working my way through your research portfolios and will be getting you some feedback as soon as I can. While you’re waiting for that, please review the unit 3 assignment sheet and get started on the week’s readings, a couple of texts on building healthy cultures within an organization that look rather different from the essays/articles we’ve been reading.
Our focus is on genre this week and next. To refresh, “genre” refers to the sort of reasonable responses we make to recurring writing situation–need to reach out to a prospective client? a formal business letter can be a good way to initiate contact. Need to show what you know to a teacher on an exam? a 5-paragraph essay might get the job done. Need to impress a potential employer? An organized, clean, easy-to-read resume is a good plan. Have to make a sales pitch? A snazzy Prezi might be just the thing. Genres take shape because we find them to be helpful, audience-centered ways to accomplish a particular kind of communication task. The demands of the writing situation dictate the sort of genres that might be appropriate. As you move toward presenting your research, it’s time to explore possible genres for that work.
For this week’s discussion, please respond to both of the questions below. Categorize your posts as “Discussions,” and tag them with “week of 7/20,” “unit 3,” “genre,” and [your name].
- Notice the practical focus of both of this week’s readings (these aren’t just about sharing information for curiosity’s sake but rather about rendering it usable for a particular audience and purpose). Select one of this week’s readings to focus on, and examine how the authors do that–how do they process what they’ve learned to make it actionable for a reader? what readers? what writing/rhetorical strategies do you see them employing to make this information usable for their readers? Be specific and analytical–why do you think they go about it in this way? How effective do you think it is for that particular audience?
- It’s time to start imagining the possibilities for your own research writing in Unit 3–given what you want to discuss, for what purpose, and to whom, what are some of the options for you? What kinds of texts would this sort of reader be likely to engage with? where/when/on what platform do you see them getting this info? what kinds of expectations would your readers have about
- level of detail
- writing style
- length of text
- time spent reading
- citation method
- types of evidence/sources
Your response work might carry over a little into next week–you can either respond to their answers to #2 above, or read through a couple of your classmates’ project proposals after they’re due on Sunday, 7/26. Either way, please comment on at least 3 of them. Try to offer up your suggestions for what forms their work might take, given the parameters they’ve outlined.
Unit 3 Project Proposal, Isaac
In my research portfolio, I analyze articles with their main focus on the inequality taking place in the United States education system, as well as the varying education systems across the world. The inequality that is prospering in the United States has created a societal life cycle that is very difficult to break free of for the disadvantaged minority groups. The injustice also has a powerful effect on the formative years of a child’s life which are very important to developing the moral code and opportunities one needs to live an optimistic, successful life. This cycle has also helped the white privilege flourish because of the majority amount of biased mindsets in positions of power that strengthen the grip that racism and discrimination have on racially/ethnically diverse people. The injustice taking place around the world is significantly damaging the human race, especially the people struggling to live a life without the hardships that follow them because of the color of their skin and the toxic organizational culture that they are forced into.
I used many sources that contained studies and experiments that shared the firsthand accounts from the participants. These included student-teachers, teachers, and professors, and they helped me make sense of the deeper problem at hand. The primary sources I’m missing are the perspectives of people of color, an article from someone who has a personal connection would help me comprehend the problem monumentally. Our education system is failing for so many children because our higher education system is not providing the preservice teachers with adequate multicultural awareness and openmindedness that is crucial in the role that a teacher has for these children. My target audience I plan on writing for is the educators of our lower and higher education systems in hopes to inform them of the complex issue they are a large part of. My paper will act as a policy framework for an educational organization, with a main focus on informing the workforce of the complexity of the situation and how to improve their organizational culture. This will allow me to appropriately address my audience without leaving them with more questions, it will also help me stay within my boundaries of knowledge which limits me in creating a longer scholarly article. I will use conciseness in smaller paragraphs giving the quotes and infographics a larger role. It is clear that the biased mindset that is held by much of our population is the cause of an unfair culture that only works for the systemically privileged white community, and we must address it with a stronger urgency if we ever want to see real change.
Research Portfolio – Samantha Danylchuk
Unit 2 Research Reflection
At the start of this assignment, I had no clue where I was going or what I wanted to do research on. But as I read more into my classmates’ posts, the generational gap in the workplace stood out to me right away. This is something I know I will be experiencing for myself in a few years after I graduate college, so I focused on looking for sources that covered generational diversity in the work environment. As far as the tools and strategies that I used to locate my sources, I spent time going through the helpful links and handouts tabs on our blackboard and searched on Google Scholars, SAGE, EBSCOhost, GALE, and ted.com. Some of my sources go into depth on the different habits of each current generation in the work force and how the conflicts need to be solved, while others focus on the similarities among the generations and what other initiatives that offices or other working environments can implement to bring a more successful atmosphere. Additionally, some include experiments and data tables focusing on a specific career industry while others explain the broader idea.
I really enjoyed the two note taking techniques I did which included free – writing and organizing a double-entry journal. These two techniques were very different because I felt my thoughts go all over the place when I did a 5-minute free write, but the journal helped me stay organized and on topic. It was really interesting to me how I enjoyed both of them (probably the free-writing a tad more) yet they are completely different approaches at annotating. The research plan has guided my work to search for articles that I think would answer my questions. Having this plan ahead of time really helped me in the whole process of researching because I started typing in keywords that led me to what I was looking for, rather than just any article that would be lacking in information I needed. My plan has begun to evolve based on the data I’ve found, references I’ve read that my sources include, and all the knowledge I have already learned from the entirety of this assignment. Some additional sources I would like to locate are those that challenge my thoughts in some way, making me question and counter the ideas that they demonstrate. I have yet to disagree with anything I’ve found, so this is a gap that I see in my research which I am prioritizing in searching for with my project proposal.
The idea that one day in the next 5 or 10 years, I could be in a work environment filled with people from all different generations is the most intriguing concept about this topic to me. I’ve already had professors of all different ages in just one year at SU, so to think that my topic is even happening around me is so exciting! For a club I belong to at school called The Women’s Network, we visited the headquarters of Bloomberg in New York City early last year, and I spoke to a recent graduate of SU who is working in finance there now and she explained to me how most of her colleagues are older men so she was extremely intimidated when she began her job at first. To actually know of experiences and see my topic be exemplified in the real working world is super intriguing and I can’t wait to go further with my research on this!
Research Portfolio, Bryan
At the end of unit one I had come across an article speaking about the interactions between both native and nonspeakers when they communicate in the workplace. Amidst the research I was doing on office discrimination, I found myself very intrigued by this related topic. Here was where I first heard the term linguistic (or language) diversity being used. With a few quick google searches I began to wrap my head around larger issues that surrounded the subject. As I continued to read more sources and find articles that covered a wide range of perspectives, I slowly began to realize how significant these discussions became for understanding the development of how organizational cultures come to be. Moreover, I wanted to learn why this form of diversity isn’t as commonly discussed when compared to other types of diversity and inclusion efforts such as racial, ethnic, or gender motives.
The development of my research was founded on this groundwork which continued to evolve as we proceeded into unit two. While some sources reiterated similar findings to my first study, one notable article helped me understand these topics applied at a more global scale. This text, along with the others I annotated below, widened my position on the topic by looking at language diversity further in individual, community, and international levels (along with relating past articles we’ve read in the class). Additionally, in order to round out and complicate my work I decided to look at studies in specific environmental settings different from the workplace. This led me to uncover interesting and insightful perspectives from a classroom and governmental context. These sources were accessed off of Google Scholar, TED.com, and a number of Syracuse Library Databases that focused on Linguistic/ Applied Language collections.
To my discovery, I found most authors and professionals consensus that there was not much research on the impact of language diversity out there. Only in recent decades has the public increasingly been made aware of the potential issues and societal benefits language (particularly multilingualism) can have. Given our trends in globalization and increased mobility in transnational countries, however, it makes sense that some areas of research (such as figuring out why linguistic diversity isn’t as openly discussed) can be because of the limited discourse on a relatively new subject.
Despite the gaps within the overall body of research, I still managed to collect a substantial amount of knowledge to develop my portfolio. The oppositional research I did for example changed my one-way view of how I saw language. Instead of all the pubic acclaim language diversity typically receives, the article offered an alternative point of view looking at language diversity not only as a resource but also as a problem. It informed me of areas commonly overlooked thus making it critical for assessing this type of diversity. Overall I found many of our mini writing exercises reinforce my initial writing interests by staying on top of and coming back to main, central ideas. Eventually I’d like to find more potential sources on the oppositional claims I’ve found since it’s an area that is especially underrepresented.
Project Proposal
The issue I am examining is the need for universal design in the workplace for those with a disability. I am working with sources that are close studies and first hand accounts mainly. The studies I have gathered provide evidence for how beneficial universal design is, while debunking many of the well known beliefs. I am also using sources that utilize current policies or organizations that help those with disabilities get the help and care that they need in the workplace. The first hand accounts will provide relate-ability as humans and give the readers a first hand look into living life in the eyes of others. My analysis is planning to go in a direction towards statistical evidence, providing numbers and concrete examples of the benefits of universal design. As I already have found sources that reflect a surface to deeper level of analysis, I am looking for sources that provide the counter to my argument or sources that take my analysis deeper. I am also hoping to find sources that contradict the belief in designing for all, or provide barriers that some companies or workplaces may view as being too big to overcome. The audience I am planning to write for is those who have overlooked design in institutions or have not given a second thought to those in need around us.