Choosing your tool (right click on pictures then click view image to see the original size)
I think I'd prefer my ePortfolio to be private. Before I make it public I want to finish it and add all the fine details to make it look presentable, so having it private would be a start. I looked at the Canvas ePortfolio's, they look plain, but organized and straight to the point without a lot of pictures to clutter up the page. On the other hand, Weebly looks like a web design page that can be used by professionals depending on how well you made your ePortfolio. Based on the options, I think I'll choose Weebly over the others simply because I've used it before, so I'm kind of familiar with it. Then again, Canvas seems like a lot less work... - Nov 2nd
Reflecting on your learning
I'm reflecting on the first part of the three part midterm assignment. It didn't exactly help me out on improving or developing skills but it did point out some flaws. While doing this assignment, I looked at it as a simple research assignment, I followed the instructions accordingly. However, I was careless and went through the assignment too quickly to notice that I forgot to save the final touches. Therefore, I need to be more careful instead of just trying to finish quickly. If I had to go back and redo the assignment, I would at least take a little bit more time and be more cautious before submitting the assignment and check if I saved a hundred times before submitting it. If there was something outside of this class that could help me on future assignments, it would be work from my other classes, it's like a check on me to keep me alert and busy and to keep my priorities straight. This assignment necessarily did not help me study or improve any academic skills rather it helped to point out a serious elementary flaw, in that it's being careless with my work. In the upcoming assignments, not only do I plan on being more careful, I'll take a bit more time on them to make sure everything is correct. - Nov 23
Share your progress
I've decided to reflect on the Campaign Recommendation midterm. I like to think that this specific project helped me develop more efficient research techniques. Since the project was divided into parts, I could direct my focus on each section individually rather than doing each section at the same time. With the research divided into smaller sections the finished product came out more organized, refined, and overall better than it would have if it was clumped together. I also learned how to type up a basic memorandum, so that's a plus. Although, I like to think I put my best effort into this project, it seemed rushed. It may be because of how the final assignment was just to put everything together and summarize, so that's what I did. I believe this project was the best project I've done since the beginning of this semester, I actually enjoyed doing it because of how organized it was, everything flowed into place, and I wasn't stressing myself out by doing it the last minute. What I can take away from this assignment is the work I've put into it, and it's work that I can appreciate. - Dec 7
Final Check-In
For my final reflection I'd like to reflect on the final project that's been assigned. I dislike the fact that this project was assigned on finals week. But whatever, I just have to keep on pushing and keep my focus. So after doing the outlining for this report, I've realized that I'm pretty good at organization. But besides that, I can't brainstorm properly for main ideas or create solid thesis statements. I like to think English is my strong point but sometimes the work doesn't click and I'm stuck with a writer's block. In addition to having writers block, while coming up with content for the outline, it just took me so long for some reason to come up with decent information. Probably because I chose a topic I thought was interesting but later learned was a difficult topic to gather information for. Finally after completing this assignment, I just looked out how effortless it really was to create the outline produced, given that the content wasn't all that lengthy, and that's a weakness that shows in all of my work. I tend to do things quickly, and the result ends up botched or incomplete; it's a flaw in my skills that I've been trying to overcome by slowly working through the assignment, but then I end up procrastinating until the last minute which forces me to pick up the pace and produce half-assed work. Overall, this assignment shows how much effort I put in to some of my assignments whether they be projects or homework. In the future, hopefully, I won't be such a slacker and at least try to produce work that's presentable and intelligent, unlike some of my recent work.
Semester Reflection
Since the beginning of the semester, I didn't know what I was getting myself into choosing this short term class. I thought it was going to be much harder for the reason being it's a compacted course. It was somewhat difficult but not what I expected. I didn't really set goals for myself specifically for this course, but I did achieve a general goal which was too do better than a C, so that's good. I think politics should be taught to everyone, because the people should be knowledgeable about their government and what they're voting for, and especially how the system works. So many people complain but they don't do anything to fix it. I can at least say that after taking this course I know a bit more about the political system and how it functions. I can't give thorough explanations on specific subjects but I can probably provide someone with the gist of things. As for applying the information I've garnered during this course, I'd apply it when I would watch the news, maybe. Or, I would be able to apply it when I'm having a debate with someone on future elections or bills that are trying to be passed. I won't know when I'll apply the information from this course in my life, but I know for sure there will be a time in the near future that I'll actually understand what's happening and then I would be able to give my own opinion on the matter rather than just sitting by listening. From this course, my skills in comprehension has improved, not by much, though. There was a lot of reading and a bunch of new words to understand within the proper context; it was pretty difficult understanding what the law terms meant even after looking up their definition. In the future I'd still like to improve on my comprehension skills as they seem to be lacking, because when I read material such as summaries of cases, I don't understand what it's trying to say the first couple of times, so that's a huge flaw, in my opinion on my academic skills. I'm actually kind of thankful for this class.