Although the reading material that I’ve chosen to discuss in this blog is not a peer-reviewed research article, it’s still a novel that I found to be enjoyable and relatable to certain educational goals of WAGSFP. Recently, I’ve read My Oxford Year by Julia Whelan, which is a fictional romance novel that follows the life of an American Rhodes Scholar. The young American woman’s academic and professional experiences are entirely centered around American politics and political science for the purpose of educational advocacy. When she obtains a Rhodes Scholarship, a lifelong goal of hers, she attempts to pursue her passion within the field of English Literature and ends up falling in love. As it relates to WAGSFP and my research, I think this novel is representative of collaboration amongst disparate fields. I think to achieve a broader research goal and becoming a true learner, it becomes necessary to explore outside of academic comfort zones. Prior experiences uniquely define our ability to process new information, so diverse perspectives are contributing greatly to discussions about discoveries. I think I need to take more academic risks and personal risks, so this novel serves as personal inspiration in a sense as well.
