Madelyn Diaz ENC 1101 0045 11:30-12:20 Discourse Community Analysis Walking into the largest university in the

nation is no small feat. You are trying to adjust to a new environment along with over 60,000 other students around you. It can be very overwhelming to find a group of people you connect with when there are countless number of clubs and organizations this school has to offer. University of Central Florida as a whole, strives to provide the best opportunities for their students to succeed in their studies but also to grow and enrich student development through the programs available. Eventually, through workshops advertising some of the organizations at UCF or through a reference, everyone will find their place. Researchers have posed a special interest in groups of people who share a common interest and how they interact throughout what is called a discourse community. In Writing about Writing, authors Toni Mirabelli and John Swales studies individuals and analyzed their behavior in a discourse community. Discourse community can be defined as individuals trying to achieve a common goal through actions guided by a genre and possessing other characteristics that I will discuss further in my paper. Researchers want to learn more about discourse communities because this opens the gate to understanding how it

may influence writers as a whole. In Learning to Serve, Toni Mirabelli studied a group of waiters in a privately owned restaurant and the importance the menu had on the waiters skills and interaction with the customer. He differentiated between waiters with varied knowledge of the menu to see how that affects their ability to perform their job. Mirabelli stressed the significance a genre held in the discourse community of waiters at this restaurant. John Swales in The Concept of Discourse Communitymore so focused on what made a group a discourse community by defining 6 characteristics that would qualify a group as one. He also discusses consequences that come with defining a discourse community. Combining the work of Swales and Mirabelli, I set out to study one of the clubs offered here on campus called the Filipino Student Association, commonly known as FSA. Similar to Swales, I will define this discourse community using my observations while also studying how genre plays a big role on the discourse, such as Mirabelli. My researcher strives to fill the gap of the study of college students within a discourse at a recreational level rather than individuals in a work force. This could help explain the growth of students who participate in a discourse community within their college career and how that may influence them in the future, either as writers or in their future career. Methodology The discourse community I decided to study was the Filipino Student Association. One of my close friends recently became a new member of this

club and while she was explaining new and upcoming events that the club was involved in, I instantly became interested in learning more about what the club consists of. I observed two FSA meetings, both on a Tuesday evening. I bought simply paper and a pen to document my observations. During the meeting, I wrote down everything I saw, including flags hanging from the ceiling to the members sitting down around the room. I documented activities that the members participated, how the leaders handled the meeting and I gathered a brochure from a leader that all new members receive. After observing two meetings, I chose a member of the club, Abby Espanol, to interview about further questions I had after looking over my notes. I gathered about 15 questions prior to the interview. While asking Abby questions, I used my voice recorder app on my iPhone to record our interview. After the interview, I started the process of transcribing our interview by playing the voice recording and transferring my questions and her answers to a word document. From time to time, I played the recording over to make sure I transcribed everything correctly. Once I have organized all of the information I needed for my research such as my notes from the observation, the transcribed interview and the brochure for new members, I was ready to begin my analysis. Observations The Filipino Student Association meets on Tuesday evenings at the Barbara Yang Center at the UCF campus at 8. While I was walking up to the entrance, I noticed that there were people waiting outside of the building for

about 15 minutes. I found this strange, especially after discussing with a member of the association that this is the usual. It was easy to conclude before even entering the building that whoever ran these meetings were either always late, or unorganized. Once all of the members were allowed in the building, there was a clear division between leaders and members. For the leaders, there was a table upfront where they sat facing the chairs for the general members. Around the room there were flags from many different countries all around the world. This made me feel that club is very accepting of not only those with Filipino descent, but everyone. Before the meeting, members were conversing with other members or the leaders. Although the environment seemed very open, I quickly realized that these members have already formed a tight knit group of friends. While everyone was talking and catching up with one another, there was music in the background, more members coming in for the meeting, members on their phone, and everyone seemed to be doing their own thing. Before I knew it, it was about 30 minutes after 7, when the meeting was suppose to begin. It took a little bit of time for the leaders to get everything ready to start the meeting because they had to settle down all the members, which seemed to be a challenge. Typical FSA meetings start with an icebreaker, and this meeting was no exception. This week, they had a pie-eating contest and the winner would win a visa gift card. Three men volunteered to participate. This activity helped all of the members focus on the front table where the leaders sit, and

where the pie-eating was contest at that time. As the pie-eating contest was going on, it was easy to notice how much the members enjoyed coming together every week as it was place to hang out with all of their friends. Once the content was over, the leaders went on about new activities and events that the members could participate in such as an Intramural Basketball team and different ways to help all sorts of causes. The leaders introduced a film fest contest where members can make a film on anything they want and they would have to submit it to their website. Once everyone has submitted their video, they are going to have a get together to watch the short films and judge which one was the best. They discussed an angel wish list for unprivileged children to help give them a better Christmas and also a fundraiser for thanksgiving. At the end of the meeting, they showed a video of a dance that most of the members participated in at a recent competition in Gainesville. They placed 2nd against out of all the FSAs that competed throughout the state. It was obvious, it was a great accomplishment and that was gained through a lot of hard work and dedication. As an observer, I was very overwhelmed with all of the information the leaders were giving us. I was very surprised to see how involved this club is with the community; it definitely wasnt what I expected. Another surprising component with this meeting was the amount of time it took for the leaders to discuss all of the upcoming events. The members would very often talk over the leaders, delaying the meeting quite a bit. This was the case for the

second meeting as well. The second meeting however, was a lot more interactive and less informative than the first one I observed. For day 2 of observing, this meeting was about raising money for an organization through a Pie Day. For Pie Day, people placed bids so they can throw a pie in someones face. If that person wanted to return a pie to your face, theyd have to double your bid. For example, I want to pie my friend Sally in the face for 5 dollars, for Sally to pie me in the face instead, she would have to pay 10 dollars. This process will go on until the other person doesnt want to double the price to pie the other in the face. All of the members got so into who was pieing whom, how much money someone spent, and just having a good time. This meeting was so different than the first one I observed, I really got to witness the members getting closer through simply interacting and laughing with each other while raising money for a good cause. Some people placed bids as high as 80 dollars. It was so refreshing to see a group of people so willing to participate to raise money. However, similar to the first meeting, the leaders had to continuously ask the members to quiet down so we could all hear everyones bids. Keeping everyone calm was certainly one of the biggest problems I observed. All of the talking was very distracting, and at times, annoying. The leader very evidently lack control in the meetings but because all of the members have such a great time, I could see this easily being over looked by all of those who are in this club as a normal and acceptable interaction with a leader. Findings

The Filipino Student Association is more than meets the eye. Walking into the meeting, I had a preconceived mindset of what this club was more than likely trying to achieve and what the meeting was going to consist of. My initial assumptions were both right and wrong. At first I believed that FSA just wanted to embrace the Filipino culture and teach others about their traditions. While that is true, I quickly realized that as a whole, FSA strives to fulfill a purpose of building a family within its members. When I interviewed a member of FSA, Abby Espanol, she explained how participating in all of the events this club has to offer brought her a lot closer to the other members, specifically referencing an event called open mic. At open mic members gather together and truly open their hearts. Some sing, or play instruments, while others recite their own poetry. Abby stated that after this night, she felt unified with the members. She saw them as more than just Filipinos that happened to be in the same club she was in. Abby was shocked by the members sincerity behind the microphone, and really connected with those as her new sisters and brothers. Moreover, the big and little system contributed to unity. At the beginning of the semester, everyone fills out interest cards that are specific to you and your personality. By those cards, you are assigned a Big brother, and a Big sister. he introduced me to all his other friends that I wouldnt have met in the club myself and opened me up to more event and I got to meet other people.. this was more like a family eventually everyone is each others big and sister and stuff like that and we are all connected in one way. Abby Espanol Not only does FSA strive to become a family, they set out to help the community one donation at a time. By attending the first meeting, I was very

overwhelmed with the amount of fundraisers they actually participate in. My initial reaction to all of this was confusion. Why does FSA try to do so many things at once? What are they really trying to achieve? FSA tries very hard to reach out to all of the members. I believe they participate in so many activities to accommodate a large group of people with different interests. In doing so, this club gives so many opportunities to its members to truly connect to one another in someway. To inform all of their members of upcoming events, leaders constantly update their facebook and twitter, the two most popular social networking sites. Not only do leaders just pour out all of their information on this page, but the members post onto FSAs facebook and comment on their twitter as well. Whether they are posting inside jokes, or how they enjoyed the meeting that evening, everyone is involved in this page as the strongest form of communication when they are outside of the meetings. Members are easily updated with current projects they are working on, as well as upcoming ones, and past events that they participated in if you scroll down on the page. There are countless numbers of pictures that are posted from the events that new members can view to see what this club is all about. Facebook and twitter also serve as a feedback mechanism. On facebook, you can set up a poll, either checking yes or no if the leaders want to know of members opinion on certain concerns or possible events others might want to participate in. Members also have the ability to comment, like a facebook post, or favorite a twitter post. There are truly numerous ways to

voice your opinion in this club. The leaders are very successful in the fact of give the opportunity for members to reach out to them. At the first meeting I attended, at the end, one of the leaders recognized that I was a new member and I have never been to one of their meetings before. As a result, she handed me a brochure that all new member receive to learn a little bit about the club. Looking at the brochure, it is very overwhelming. All of the print is bold and the pictures were in black and white. Usually bold print is used to highlight text and used for text such as headings. Trying to read this was a challenge because everyone word was highlighted and capitalized. However after getting past the text, reading what this entire entire club does can be intimidating to a new member, especially if you dont know any Tagalog, the Filipino language. Some of the activities were introduced in Tagalog such as the Filipino dances and competitions. Strictly but looking over the brochure, as a new member that is Puerto Rican and Japanese, I felt very out of place. The brochure itself though, does radiate a sense of unity. In the pictures within the brochure, the members are laughing and having a good time while doing the Filipino dances such as Sayaw sa bangkd and Binasuan. On the front of the brochure, the title states, the age of FSA; past and present. It took me awhile to even realize the cover because I was so focused on reading what was inside the brochure and it started to click. I was confused on why this club participated in so many dance genres, why not just do Filipino dances? FSA wants to highlight not only traditional dances but

also modern forms of dance to accommodate everyones interest to get them to participate. Not only do Facebook and twitter serve as a feedback mechanism, it serves as a genre. They use these sites in order to unify the club all on these two websites, to give them a chance to meet other members in the club and really get to know one another. People have different personalities on the internet, these sites helps members associate with other in a new way outside of the club. Although this was the Filipino student association, the amount of Tagalog they used in meetings was very, very limited. In fact, the only sound of Tagalog I heard were from the people around me. During the interview with Abby, I learned a little more about the lexis used by some of the members. In the brochure there were 3 Filipino dances they participated in, Sayaw Sa Bangkd, Binasuan and Tinikling. Sayaw Sa Bangkd is a bench dance. Couples on a small bench, hoping from one end to another, typically perform it. Binasuan translates to with the use of a drinking glass. This dance began as a way for people to express thanks to the god, as stated in the brochure. This dance requires a lot of balance and grace. They dance to the music with one glass in each hand and one on their head. Tinikling involves two people rhythmically tapping bamboo poles on the ground while dancers dance over and between the poles. With more casual words used in the meeting, I had to ask Abby what they meant. With the big and little system called Ate Kuya Ading, it is normal to call your big brother, Kuya and big sister Ate. Abby also mentioned, outside of her interview about a

Balikbayan Box. She explained that this is a box that Filipino families fill up with canned good, clothes, toys, or other items to send to their families in the Philippines. This was very common in not only her household, but the club also took part in a Balikbayan Box fundraiser to donate to the Philippines. Aside from a few words and the name of the dances, FSA doesnt have much of their own language that is strictly unique to their club and they do this purposefully. They want to maintain an open environment for all different types of culture to join their club. To become a leader in FSA, you have to be qualified. There are different positions that are available and they strive to have the best people at the job. If you want to be in charge of the technological duties during the meeting, you have to show the current leaders that you have experience and hold a great knowledge for technology. Overall though, for the most part, you have to be involved and get other people pumped up to involve. The leaders were very enthusiastic and got the other members to get involved by cheering for people at the pie eating content and just trying to make them laugh and have a good time. Its obvious that it takes a lot of confidence and work to be a leader. You have to organize all of the events you participate in and help with fundraising while also connecting with all of the other members in the club During my observation, one of the biggest issues I

noticed in the meetings was the lack of respect members had for the leaders when they were talking. It didnt take long for me to understand why this problem was happening. Before the meeting began, I noticed how everyone

was a friend with everyone. It was obvious that they all hung out frequently in and outside of the club. Although, theyve achieved the goal of becoming a family, the very casual relationship between members and leaders comes with consequences. We spent a good amount of time each meeting to get everyone to quiet down and respect the leaders while they were talking to the club because the leaders to most members is just another friend. Most members dont see the leaders as an authority figure. For a leader to be successful, there is a time and a place to for everything. In the meeting, you have be on a more casual/professional level with your members. Conclusion Studying this discourse community was eye opening. It allowed me to witness a different type of culture and ultimately a whole different whole than mine. This culture is so prominent on unity, it was a pleasure to see all of the things they strive to accomplish within the community. From my research I conclude that being in this club can pose benefits and negatives for the future of the members outside of their college career. Being that they are all about unity, I see this being able to head into two different directions. Within the club, most members feel very comfortable with the other members and are easy to open up. In the workforce, they are not only Filipinos in every occupation. I could see a lot of the members being very closed off in the presence of non-Filipinos because they wouldnt think they have a lot in common with others. This could cause a problem because of the inability to unify with your coworkers. However,

this is an extreme direction. I felt as though, being in FSA can mostly pose many benefits. By participating in such a club that works at every angle for every member to feel apart of the family, that characteristic will carry with you outside of college. Your ability to work with others is greater. Giving back to the community in all of the fundraisers FSA participates in will also instill positive qualities in the members to have a giving hand. FSA can truly help an individual grow as a person and ready them for their future as can any club offered here at UCF. All it takes is one friend to convince you to go to one meeting instead of just staying in your dorm. Every student here at this university must take a look at all of the fantastic opportunities we have in front of us, because one day, itll make us successful.

Observations
Tuesday 6th 7pm-9pm Wasnt on time Disorganized? Obvious leaders sitting in the front Very casual between leaders and members Seems like a tight knit group Apparently assigned a big? Someone said they are never on time Music playing for awhile Many flags hanging in the room Open to other cultures Purpose: unity and learn about culture Showed a video of a competition they went to They have a foundation chart

 Makes a lot of donations Discussed a lot about upcoming events They participate in sports (FBA) Very open Filmfest Angel wishlist Brings people together Takes a lot of effort to quiet members Not very organized Tuesday 13th 7pm-9pm Pie day Trying to raise money this whole meeting Very interactive Members enjoyed this Very loud at times Unorganized Meeting ran late It does bring members together Not as informative as last meeting Members seem very wiling to donate for a good cause Confused about the purpose? Took awhile to get all of the pies together

Interview with Abby Espanol, member of the Filipino Student Association

Diaz: How did you find out about this club? Espanol: I found out about the club through one of my friends during the summer, Ashley, and her roommate and I remember her telling me about her roommate who was Filipino and so I was like oh my god Filipino and she wanted me to go out and meet all the Asian and I was like yes Asian time! Diaz: What did you think of the club when you first walked in? Espanol: umm, I kind of felt out of place at first because it seemed like everyone already had a tight bond, like at first I kind of questioned, oh how does everyone already know each other and Im just like here chilling in the back and I kind of still feel that way. At first it seemed organized and Im not trying to say that they werent open but it seemed like everyone had a to it clique already. Diaz: From attending the meetings, what do you think the purpose of the club was?

Espanol: To make it, it like a home away from home and that was one our mottos I guess and like before coming here I wasnt really in touch with my Asian self, like I mean like, I have an Asian base and I was raised in an Asian culture but until I left home it wasnt till I realize, oh I truly am Asian and I embraced my culture and I am happy I have the people I can express it with. Diaz: Do you think that during the meeting they achieved that purpose? Espanol: umm, yes but like all the events that we have and hold on a second. (I reread the question) the meeting itself doesnt really make me feel like part of the family, its when we do the actual events, that brings us together. Diaz: Do you think that your club tries to do too many fundraisers and events that may confuse your members about the purpose of the club as a whole? Espanol: Well what we are really just trying to achieve as a whole is unity like within our self and to freely express ourselves as Asian and I guess the events that we do, there are a lot of them but it just like gives us a variety like, of course, we are all Filipino but we are all different and so by doing all these different types of events like, we have the IM teams, we have just random film feast event and make videos we have an open mic and which is just like a talent show basic so everyone has their own way of contributing to the club. Diaz: I heard you say that you had a big, how does that work? How are you assigned them? Espanol: Well in the beginning in the club, in the first couple of meetings, they give you a paper where you fill out your interests like oh what do you for fun? And like, basically all that stuff. Its like eharmony. From there all the officers arrange to see who fits with who and actually my big is very similar to me, I think they did a good job because we get along and have a lot in common. Diaz: Did your big really help you feel more comfortable in the club? Espanol: Yeah definitely because he introduced me to all his other friends that I wouldnt have met in the club myself and opened me up to more event and I got to meet other people. Diaz: So eventually did you feel like this was more like a family? Espanol: Definitely because like eventually everyone is each others big and

sister and stuff like that and we are all connected in one way. Diaz: I noticed that there are a group of leaders in the front, how are they chosen? Espanol: umm, not really sure, Im pretty sure they have officer elections at the end of the year and some of the positions are qualification based so like oh, they the media people, are you qualified to do that, and you have to prove that you can do and you have experience and stuff. Diaz: I saw that during the meeting that a lot of the members were talking over the leaders when they were explaining all of the new upcoming fundraiser you guys have, do you think that the relationship between the members and the leaders are too casual? Espanol: Yes, because knowing outside of the meeting they are all one big group of friends and they always go out and party together it just like once it goes to the meeting it like oh they are actually officers and they have more authority than you .I feel like no one actually respects that because of their friendship outside. Diaz: There were other people in the meeting that were not Filipino, is this club very accepting of other cultures? Espanol: Yes because like I said, we are open to different type of things, and so like, some people are like hey Filipinos and some people are dragged in through their roommates and stuff and I think it gives people of different cultures an opportunity to experience ours. Diaz: How do you feel about all the activities you guys participate in? Espanol: I feel like it is all just beneficial to our just to the fundraiser that we do itself and it makes our friendship tighter. Before the meetins we usually do a lot of ice breakers because we know that there are people that usually dont go and so they just make it really easy for everyone to meet each other. Diaz: Do you think that the leaders organize the meetings very well? Espanol: To an extent yes, because I know they make the facebook events that they invite all the members to two weeks prior to the meeting and I know they outline of like what they do but the whole organization of how to keep everyone control and the time span of the meeting goes, its kinda out of line. Diaz: Do you thin they members lack respect for the leaders?

Espanol: Yeah, mainly just due to the fact that theyre close friends outside of the meetings. Diaz: What kind of events have you participated in? Espanol: um, I did the lake Claire barbeque, which was instead of the meeting, we met at lake Claire and ate, played volleyball and some of us went kayaking. There was an open mic night where some of the people record themselves and one night all of us gather around and the members sing, or play instruments, and recite poetry, and FOB, which is fresh off the beat which is a dance crew that we have. They perform this, like all of fall semester they practice to compete in Gainesville that is called DTJ with is all of the FSAs from the state go there and they do the competition and I was able to watch them before they performed there. Diaz: How do you think that it unified you with the rest of the members? Espanol: It just made me see that in open mic night it made me see more people than I expected to see like oh wow, no they are like, not just real people, but I didnt know what everything they went through and they were able to express and carry themselves that way. Diaz: Do you think that this is a club that you will be able to continue with within your college career? Espanol: Yeah, that and I am more willing to join more Asian organizations and hopefully get an officer position in them Diaz: Do you see this club as an opportunity for other things? Espanol: Yeah as a way to branch off to other clubs and like, I see other people joining our club, like not only Filipinos but Chinese people and so many other cultures and it makes me want to join their organization as well.