Double Triple That!

Study update for those who care.

Whilst most other teachers have been on holiday over the past two weeks, I have not... meant to be. But somehow I seem to have had a lot of down time. Can I blame some on being a good, kind responsible person who takes care of nieces and nephews in holiday time, and tends to friends who need post operative love and support? Sounds like a feasible explanation, so I'll take it!
I have achieved two major things; discussing my intentions with the two lovely teachers I hope to work with, and getting my Ethical Approval Application away. A meaty document supported by several letters to a range of stakeholders - students, parents, teachers. principal - and the data-gathering design that I can create at this stage of the process. Six copies (hence the title) clipped together and posted away in plenty of time - I hope.
And now once again, a little girl waits. The documents will not be reviewed until May 9 I discovered today. A fellow Masters student told me he had heard that only 10-15% of applications pass the ethics committee in the first reading. I am hoping those ones come from the A grade average students!
Until I have approval I am unable to proceed with any consent forms or data gathering. But I can chew away at my Methodology chapter (not a fun prospect) and my Literature Review (a much nicer task IMO)
I am hatching a plan to do some of this in another locale... watch this space.

Thinking Hurts!

...ergo it looks as though it is going to be a 'painful' year lol!
Two weeks of 'Research Methods' learning is behind me. Not that I know all I need to know yet, in fact I am now aware of how much learning (and thinking) I need to do before I can even begin my Masters' thesis.
Unlike my previous full semester, online papers, which eke out the content over a four month period, interspersed with assignments, all dissemination of 'knowledge' from the experts has been done, and now it is up to us - me - to add to, deepen and process that knowledge in order to complete the assignment requirements over the coming weeks.
More importantly however, is the thinking I need to do as I synthesize and clarify all I have been exposed to as it is all critical to the development of a) my Research Question, b) my Research Proposal and c) my planned methodology. All of these things need to be thought out before I can process, develop and submit my thesis application.
I am not a fast thinker, I am a reflective thinker. No, actually I am an over-thinker. So I think I need to get my thinking sorted out smartly or I am going to be in a lot of pain!
A timetable for the next month is going to be a priority for me to develop over the weekend to ensure I plan out what I am going to think about and how long I can spend cogitating one thing before I have to move on to the next - OUCH!

The photos today I took with my phone as I walked to my final class this morning. Thirty - YES 30 - years ago this was home for a year. T Coll Hall of Residence. D Block. D44 to be precise. Don't remember a lot of thinking going on back then!

No. 1 Fan

Some people are nutty about their sports teams. Warriors fans certainly are generally a proud and sometimes obsessed lot, and a guy that is doing the same uni paper as me is a prime example. I think that he has worn some kind of Warriors clothing every day on the course (it's been nearly two weeks) and this is the car he drives. Today I had my phone in my hand as I returned to my car, and seeing as we were parked in close proximity, decided I would snap a shot to show another ardent Warriors fan I know, my friend Kate.
Well, it seems that I was snapped too, as the car's owner also returned at that moment. A small, not typically 'manly' car, he told me that it was originally his sister's car. That explained the Warriors soft toys in the back. He had bought the car from her after she had suggesting selling it, following a stroke which left her unable to drive. She, he said, was the biggest Warriors fan of all. She even had a car seat in the back with a Warriors doll-baby strapped in it! Number One Fan indeed. The Mad Butcher would be proud.

Some things change, some stay the same

First day back on Campus at Waikato University today. It is 30 years since I first enrolled. Things have certainly evolved.
The picture on my ID card sure looks different. When I get home I might just dig out the old ones for comparison and a laugh...
I still remembered my ID number off pat after all those years.
The car-park that it was recommended we park in did not exist in '82.
The main library is apparently BRAND new - I would never have recognised it, least of all as the place my then flatmate entered wearing my Ali Baba basket as a disguise to commemorate our last week. Other pics I must dig out maybe.
Sushi was not sold on campus. I am glad it is now. Mine was delicimo.
The entry to the Education space has changed.

But the corridors are vaguely familiar.

And the smell is exactly the same.

University of Waikato Library