Fresh Ideas

So I have been thinking some more about the challenges that I will face when I am in Mexico attempting to apply some of these cross-cultural skills and actually do this project that I have been preparing for. It is quite difficult to figure out what to do when you don't actually know what it will be like and you kind of just have to wait and see. But as I was giving my presentation today one of the challenges that I am most concerned for is helping the kids be motivated to do the exercises that I have for them. I mentioned that I would try to find common movements that the kids do everyday and compare them to the movements that I would like them to perform. Someone suggested somehow making it into a game. I think that is a great idea. I'm not quite sure how I will do it but I've been brainstorming a bit. SOmething that I have thought of is explaining the exercises through some sort of story or rhyme. Kind of like the rhyme about the bunny when you tie your shoes. This is the rhyme that I found online: "Bunny ears, bunny ears, playing by a tree. Criss-crossed the tree, trying to catch me. Bunny ears, Bunny ears, jumped into the hole, popped out the other side beautiful and bold."
I'm not sure if I could come up with a rhyme but I think that I could come up with some sort of a story.
For instance, with the squat I could have them pretend they are ducking under something overhead. The bar they have to hold straight over their head could have some sort of food that they can't spill balanced on it. They have to keep their heels down- maybe their heels are on a mouses tail and if they lift them up the mouse will get away.
These are just ideas that came from the top of my head. I'd also like to incorporate cultural practices or other things that they are familiar with. For instance, I could have story with food they eat every day, or animals that are around the Ranchos. I could even use specific people that they know- like their teachers.
I'd like to come up with some ideas now of how I would do this with kids here in Provo just to have some sort of a base to work with. Then I can change the stories or rhymes to make them fit the culture of the Ranchos. Maybe there are already some rhymes or songs that the kids are familiar with. I could try to modify these somehow.
It's nice to have an idea like this because I have honestly not been sure what I can do to prepare myself for some of the difficulties that I am sure I will encounter. This gives me more of a concrete idea to work from. Maybe it won't work at all but it will probably lead me to figure out something that will work.

challenges

So from preparing my presentation I have been thinking about the possible challenges that I might encounter while I'm in Mexico. The challenge that I wrote down in class the other day that I'm scared of the most- or that would be the worst to encounter was that I would somehow offend someone to the point where I lost their trust and couldn't do my project and that this would cause problems for future field study students. Yeah- I'm just going to try really hard to not do that. I don't foresee any big problems that I could cause. But I guess my plan for fixing that would be that I would try and talk to someone within the community about how to repair what I may have ruined. I don't have bad intentions so I don't imagine I could do anything too harmful but I guess we'll see. I've been dilligently studying those mexican obscenities so that I know what words to steer away from :)
I was also thinking about the difficulties that I'll have trying to get the kids to do planks and things. I think that they will think it's really weird and stupid to try and hold a plank position for so long. So that is another challenge that I am worried about- getting the kids to cooperate. I have a few ideas in mind. Someone today suggested making it a challenge for them or some sort of a competition. I'm not sure if that is ethical or how to make it ethical.Maybe I could give a prize to the student that performs the best on each exercise. We'll see though. I'm not sure it that would even work very well. I just want them perform their best on the tests and not be lazy or unmotivated about them.
I was also thinking about entering the community and the gate keepers that I will need to get through. I think it will take some time to figure out how to present my project to them. Especially to the parents of the children that I will ask to participate. So I will have to figure out how to talk to people about it.

Culture Shock

So I really enjoyed the discussion in class today. I have a few thoughts about culture shock. First I think that it is important to realize that it is inevitable. Thinking that I will be somehow immune to it will not help me prepare for it. Also, this makes it so that I can realize that it is normal. Someone mentioned in class today that they would think to themselves- I'm not usually this grumpy/irritable- and this would help them understand that it was just a part of the culture shock. I think that this is a good thing to keep in mind. As well, it would be good that when in the honeymoon stage of the summer, to realize it and know that even though things seem so great now, ups and downs will come and that it is not biculturalism. Anyway, I think being aware that these stages and ups and downs are normal is a good way to cope with them while they are occurring. It is good to be self aware and not think that something is a bigger deal than it is.
With that said, I was also thinking of other ways to cope with culture shock. Someone mentioned not having too high of expectations or at least not too specific of an idea of what things will be like. We really can't tell beforehand what the experience will be like and when we have too specific of an idea it is for sure not going to be like that when we get there. So we will for sure be disappointed or shocked or it will somehow be harder to cope with it than if we had neutral expectations for the experience. Or even know that there will be some nights when I might cry or just be unhappy. This is not having low expectations, but it is being realistic and aware of the potential negative moments I might experience.
I also liked the coping mechanism mentioned- to use humor, or to laugh. I'm not sure which. I used this alllllll the time on my mission. I had a companion who said - you're either laughing or you're crying- so when we had hard days- which was often- we would laugh and joke around. Some of my later companions thought I was crazy but I was much more happy and could work better.
I also have a personal theory that when we're in a tough spot and are doing something really hard or uncomfortable just think of what a great story it will make someday. Even some of the uncomfortable moments that Ashley shared in class. They weren't pleasant at the time I'm sure but it was a great story to tell later and even a really unique experience that taught her a lot and she uses it now to teach us. I like thinking of the potential of a good story when I'm experiencing something really tough. It seems to give me a little perspective that the experience won't last forever- and even that thought can make me appreciate the experience a little more because I know that it won't last forever.

Proposal

Going over the proposals in class was really helpful to me. I have been a little bit confused as to exactly what it is supposed to entail- I think that is partly I already did the IRB protocol, and it is similar to that but encompasses a lot more of the cultural aspects of a field study. Also, its hard to propose a plan for EVERYTHING you are going to do in a three month time span in a place you've never been before doing something that you've never really done before. So, while I have more clarity on what I am supposed to put into my proposal, I still feel like I am just giving my best guess as to exactly what I am going to be doing out in the middle-of-nowhere Mexico :)
But I thought that I would share some thoughts that I have about my proposal- mostly this is just for my benefit in being able to write it down just after discussing it in class today.
First- I think that because we had to write the IRB proposal in sections without the more formal format of a regular paper, I have been writing the proposal in a similar way. It's been kind of hard. And now that I understand that it should have introductory paragraphs and conclusions etc, I think it will be a lot easier for me to organize my thoughts and help my reader better understand what I am talking about.
Also, I think that in order to incorporate the cultural immersion aspects of the field study, I have just been tagging those parts in a paragraph at the end of an explanation of my project. That is actually a very easy way to do it. Now I understand a little better that I need to include those things throughout my proposal and they shouldn't feel so separated from my project. I think this part will take a little more effort on my part. Especially with the nature of my project (I am not really using interviews or observations to collect data) it is a little less obvious how immersing myself in the culture is going to help in the project. But luckily, I think that it will. My professors are going to Hungary for about a week to do this project. I don't feel like that is a lot of time to really see how the differences in culture change the results from area to area. And I think that a lot of scientists (especially in the more biological and physical sciences) don't really see the need to get the whole picture when collecting data. I think that the data they collect will be good and valid. I just also think that it could be even better with more time spent there and more effort to immerse themselves in the culture. So I am excited about the different insights that I will gain as I really live among the people in the ranchos and do what they do. I think that it will personally benefit me as a researcher and a person. Still, I'm not sure exactly how I will do this or what I will find so its going to take a little bit of brainstorming on my part to figure out how to incorporate it into my proposal. I think it will come together though.
So those are the thoughts that I have right now. Have a great day :)

Language

I listened to "Where's my Babel Fish" yesterday and have been thinking a bit about language in general. First off I think it's great that we were given a list of slang and profane words and phrases to help us understand a little bit better what is going on. In addition, I have been thinking a lot about language from doing the translation work for my consent and assent forms. There are so many words that are just not common in Spanish. For instance some of the exercises and equipment that I will be using just are not common words in Spanish- at least not for a common person. I think I could say the same thing for English sometimes. If I start talking about lateral flexion of the I.S. joint, most people are not going to understand what I'm talking about. This is also something that I have seen when I work in the physical therapy clinic. The PT will explain certain structures of the body or procedures using words that I just learned in my anatomy class last semester. So, I am sure that the patient does not quite understand what he is talking about. This is just not too helpful for that person. This is something that I will need to be careful of when I am in the field. Common words for me may be uncommon to the people I will be living with. Even Spanish words that I have learned in class may actually be rarely used in rural Mexico and there will be other words that the people use for what I want to say. I imagine I will have frequent headaches while I am there trying to understand what is going on. So while this difficulty and problem is inevitable, I hope that it will not hinder me too much in my field study experience. In fact, I am excited to figure out how the people living in the rural areas outside of Irapuato speak and communicate differently than I have imagined here. It will be neat to learn some of the appropriate words and phrases that are unique only to Mexico and even only to Irapuato and the Ranchos.
In addition, it is not only language that differs between cultures, but as Liann described, there are concepts and ideas that vary greatly. Some ideas in American English just do not exist in India. I anticipate that there will be some similar difficulties that I find in Mexico. I am especially interested to find out the differences in their understanding of health and physical activity and then see how these differences in ideas bring about differences in behavior. At the end of Liann's discussion she mentions that she wishes she had emphasized the qualitative data more because it helps interpret the significance of the quantitative data so much more. This is something that I have been thinking about. I hope that three months in Irapuato is sufficient time to shed some light on the cultural reasons for physical differences between Mexico and other areas of the world.

insights from class

I really appreciated the things that we talked about in class today. The problems that might arise while I'm in the field are inevitable but I just have this feeling that I cannot possible guess what they will be. Or at least there will for sure be some things that come up that I never would have been able to prepare for. So I liked the thought that Ashley gave about the importance of being flexible. I have a project pretty well planned out and it almost seems like the way it is set up - especially the fact that it needs to match other projects that will be done in other countries in order to be effective- it seems that there is not a lot of room for changes to the project. This thought makes me a little stressed. But at the same time, I am coming to realize that this is not necessarily true. No project is perfect, with perfect methods that match completely from every side. If the project was too rigid, in fact, it would become less valid. I have to account for the differences in site and culture that come from being in Mexico. I have to adapt my project to fit to Mexico. If I am too rigid, there may be something that I miss entirely. --- Even if this means that my project ends up being useless after I'm done- or even completely failing- I am excited about the learning experience of being in Mexico and attempting to do something that I've never done before, with people that I've never met, in a place that I've never been, speaking a language in a way that I never have before. Just being able to do that in itself makes the experience a success.
Still I imagine that I will have moments of panic and worry as I try to figure out how to make sure that my project fits in with the culture. Or I'm even sure that I'll have difficulties in many of the areas that I listed on my paper today. How to prepare for them- be flexible- roll with the punches, as Ashley said. This is similar to what I said in my earlier post about just being patient. So maybe that makes this a reiteration. Really though, I think patience and flexibility are different and so it is good to be ready to have both skills when I get out into the field.

Understanding language and culture better in my study

I have a few thoughts concerning what we talked about it class today. For one thing I am grateful that Spanish does not seem to be quite such a complicated language as Tamil- however, I'm sure that it comes with it's complications. I was thinking about my own Spanish and while I am not fluent in it by any means- I can get by here. However, I'm sure that there is lingo that I can't learn here and I will only hear when I get there. I was thinking aboput that article that we skimmed over in class- where different groups of people had different language that they used and the researcher, without knowing what those words or phrases meant could get really lost. Already I know that there will be times that I get lost just because it is in Spanish- but I'm sure that there will be other times when someone uses a word that I've never heard before that no one uses anywhere else. I know that this happened to me quite a bit on my mission and sometimes it could be quite frustrating. I think what helped me the most was when I wasn't shy about asking for clarification- I had to be careful because sometimes people weren't patient with me- but for the most part if I didn't try to pretend like I understood but I respectfully told them that I didn't understand- things went a lot better. In addition, I had to be patient with myself. that is pretty key.
I was also thinking about some of the suggestions that I was given from my journal entries on how I am going to cope with misunderstandings that occur. Right now I don't really have a great answer. I think one thing that is important is again- patience. I need to be patient with myself and with the people that I'm with. I have to make sure that I don't get mad or offended- I don't feel like I'm the type to do this anyway. I also have to not get frustrated to the point that I don't want to continue or work through it. Taking it with the attitude of "this is a learning experience" rather than a "this isn't what I thought it would be" attitude can make a big difference when in the middle of turbulence.
I have one more thought- I have had issues with whether to do a questionnaire or not. I talked to Amy- she likes the questionnaires and didn't think that they took up too much time. I do think that they can be a good way to take into account more of the cultural aspects of physical activity and health in Mexico. However, looking at the questionnaire- I can see that it is probably not the best anyway. So regardless of whether I use the questionnaire or not for the study, I think that it is important to make observations and take notes regarding physical activity in Mexico in order to draw my own conclusions as to why they might have the posture or body composition that they do. I'm not sure how it will fit into my project- or even if it will- but I feel that the information that I gather could help us modify or tailor the project a little better to whatever locations we might go to mext. It could also bring up ideas or questions that we hadn't really thought of before.
So I'm not sure exactly how I will do this, but it is something that I am going to think about a bit in order to make sure that my project is looking at as many aspects as possible and not just those physical aspects contained within the study.

Rethinking/phrasing hypothesis

Something that has recently come to my attention is the news of the obesity epidemic spreading to Mexico. I did a little bit of research on it and have found a significant amount of articles describing the increasing number of obese people in Mexico as well as the increasing number of Mexican children with type II diabetes. There are a couple of things that I think of with regard to this information. First- originally the hypothesis for this project has been that Mexican children will show an increased amount of core stability when compared to American children. This stems from the assumption that Mexican children are more active than American children because they lack the advanced technological sources of entertainment (tv, videogames, internet surfing/chatting etc) and because their culture requires more activity (walking to school or other places, engaging in manual labor at an earlier age, participation in sport- mostly soccer, which they are known for.) It seems however, that some of the same couch-potato habits may exist in Mexico at this moment. The kids and adults are getting fatter, at least in the bigger cities. The article, Bryan, L, & McLaughlin, H. J. (2005). Teaching and learning in rural mexico: a portrait of student responsibility in everyday school life. Teaching and Teacher Education, 21(1), 33-48. describes the transition from the more aboriginal lifestyle to the more American lifestyle explaining that with this transition comes the resulting poor health that has been increasing in the United States. So, some more thoughts come to my mind. First, will the rural villages outside of Irapuato be experiencing the increasing obesity trends? If so, why? What activities are they not doing and what are they doing to cause this? I feel that it is likely that the children are in a rural enough part of Mexico still with heavy traces of "aboriginal" culture and activities. But who knows- I will see when I get there. Nonetheless, I will still need to be sure to rephrase my hypothesis to emphasize more the type of physical activity that is being done and that correlates with decreased or increased stability and posture. So the hypothesis should read more like this "Higher levels of physical activity and longer durations, lead to increased core stability."

  Well, this leads me to realize that I need to rethink my thesis a little bit better. Instead of saying that Mexican children will hav