VISU Blog Post # 6

For each class ask yourself the following:

1. My greatest strengths in _[Class specified]___include:

1. Biology: perseverance, teamwork, drive to succeed.
2. Video Game History: Previous knowledge, genuine interest in course material, curiosity, analytical mindset
3. Visual Seminar: Past work/experiences to draw from, previous college experience.
4. Audio Design: a good ear, creative mindset, minor past experience with the tools involved
5. Ethics: critical thinking skills, previous exposure to course material, understanding of basic rhetoric – past education with high focus on morality/ethics (catholic high school)
6. American Dilemmas: Up to date on current affairs, politically active, past and current activism, debate experience

2. For greater success in this course, I need to:

1.  Biology: Set up more study sessions with classmates, spend more time taking notes and flashcards, and actually ask questions when our teacher goes too fast.
2. Video Game History: Get more engaged – go beyond class material to bring more discussion into the mix.
3. Visual Seminar: Make sure to arrive on time and get work done promptly.
4. Audio Design: More study sessions with classmates, more field work, asking more questions in (and out) of class
5. Ethics: Attend more extra credit opportunities, continue current activity level in class
6. American Dilemmas: Continue activity, get outside class requirements scheduled ahead of time

 

 

 

Computer skills:

1. My computer skills include:

1. Word, powerpoint, paint tool sai, partial illustrator and photoshop knowledge, visual basic, minimal knowledge of Java

2. I still need to learn:

1. Premiere, audition, unity, at least one modern coding language, industry grade software, etc.

Research & writing skills:

1. My greatest strengths as a researcher/writer include:

1. The strength of my arguments, the evidence behind them, and a style that is easily enrapturing to a variety of readers.

2. I need to work on these aspects of research and writing:

1. Limiting my word count. I tend to be a fluffier writer, and more generally speaking, a person who wants to say too much at once. I need to condense what I’m writing about to one argument at a time, and limit spill over from other subjects/thoughts.

3. I learn best & accomplish most when:

1. I begin in a very strict, scheduled learning environment – once I’m up to speed about the way I’m meant to interact with course material, I tend to speed up on my own – I need training wheels initially, but later like to rip them off. If I’m in an environment that allows for too much freedom initially (or assumes that I already understand the course material and how to go about learning more) I tend to becomes flustered and overwhelmed.

ACTION PLAN

To improve my grade/performance in my audio design class, I should

1. Schedule study sessions in close proximity to class times so I can reiterate what was learned in that time
2. Do field work with classmates, to get their feedback and otherwise learn from them
3. Edit alongside someone else – ask questions, compare, etc.
4. Do more independent reading/research into the actual profession of sound deisgn
5. Email my teachers about actually learning the software we’re meant to be using
6. Get ahold of my group members, and actually get ahold of the recorder I’m supposed to be using for once
7. Read ahead in the textbook to make sure I’m caught up when we discuss things in class
8. Stay on top of my recordings, and organization of my Box folders
9. Stop letting my anxiety control me – going to class even when I’m having a panic attack about my work not being good enough
10. Realize that I should not compromise my learning experience because I’m afraid of a group of nerds thinking that I don’t belong there.