Tag Archive for CAT

| September 28, 2011
Comments Off on Reflections Week Before 9.18.11

Reflections Week Before 9.18.11

Working at CAT and Info Commons has been going alright. This past week I had to finish up on a video editing project for Paula Saffire. The main thing for this was that she had short documentaries (about 15 minutes each) that she wanted cut into sections so that when presenting them in class she didn’t have to fast-forward and guess when to stop to show a certain section. She was not showing the movie in sequential order, so the clips would allow her to jump from one topic to another within the movie very easily. This was not difficult to do in iMovie, simply cut the clips up. The problems (of course there is always something that comes up) is that once these clips were done, they took much longer to export than previously expected. Also, she only had a 2 GB USB drive to put them on at first, but then I asked for something larger and she gave me a 4 GB. Regardless of these issues, as well as the fact that we could never get our schedules straighten out, the project is finished.

 

As far as technology overlay in my life; three of my classes now are using technology in two different ways, all three classes are Poli Sci class. For Dr. Brabant’s PO490, we still have three people assigned each week to work with technology. One person is to be a webmaster that shows a clip, article, picture, any sort of media to the class and then we discuss it. The other two people are notetakers in class that transcribe the discussions in class then post the notes on BlackBoard. That is the extent of the technology in that class, but it is a great leap forward from what used to happen in a Brabant class. My other two Poli Sci classes are now actively using Facebook for class discussion. Dr. Craig Auchter and Dr. Su-Mei Ooi both have begun using Facebook as a forum for class discussion. It very much surprised me that 1) Dr. Auchter had a Facebook and that 2) he used it with such ease. He must have took our emails and found us online because my privacy settings make my profile unsearchable. But nonetheless he found all the students, created three separate groups, invited us, and now twice a week we have student led discussion on the groups wall. Likewise Dr. Ooi has just switched from using BlackBoard discussion page to creating a Facebook profile specifically for the class. I feel this is not as nice and neatly done as Dr. Auchter. Dr. Ooi created an entirely new profile for use to post and comment on. I get the feeling that people will be less active commenting on a profile made for a class rather than a group made for a class. Group activity is more easily displayed on the sidebar of the newsfeed, a profile just acts like a profile. It may or may not notify me when a new post or comment is made; it would definitely notify whomever’s profile that is. A group will let me know in my notifications that ‘so-and-so’ made a comment/post. Either way it is reflective of our professors to realize that BlackBoard is not something we check regularly (not as regularly as expected). I see functionality of BlackBoard, but it’s not something that a student is gonna check twice, thrice, or more times a day. Using Facebook keeps me more in the loop of both with my friends and with my classmates. It only makes sense to me to facilitate discussion in a forum that is already being used for conversation. It is the commonality between real life and digital life. Just as in the public sphere of my day to day life, conversation with my friends/classmates may be personal but it might also pertain to discussions so too may the digital sphere of my day to day digital life reflect what my real life is doing. Often it has without incentive/requirements by my professors. My friends and I already have a Facebook group for just us that we post links to, create discussion threads on, and generally come up with ideas for the next Thursday meetings or weekend plans. Since we are all Poli Sci, IS, Philosophy, or Anthro majors much of what we discuss is relevant to not only to our personal lives but also to our educational lives. Therefore the fact that professors have caught on to the forum we already are using to communicate makes the incentive/ease to communicate in class discussion that much easier and more likely than on another forum such as BlackBoard.

Category: Reflections | Tags: , , , ,
| September 12, 2011
Comments Off on Reflection Week 9/11

Reflection Week 9/11

Everything has been moving along just fine in class and work. Work has been steady but also slow. We have just now started getting projects to do. On a few occasions I have had to assist someone that comes into CAT. Thursday night of last week I taught my first class on iMovie, that went pretty alright.

The overlap between work and school is still coming in hand very nicely. All my professors know that I work in CAT and IC so they often ask me for technical support. Which is nice, but honestly the questions they ask anyone that is a ‘technology native’ could answer.

I find it difficult to keep up on my blogging. It is something not familiar to me, and will take a while before it becomes routine.

Category: Reflections | Tags: , ,
| August 31, 2011
Comments Off on Projects 8.31.11

Projects 8.31.11

Today I finished the training on the Info Commons blog (iPad, familiar programs list, handbook), except for the MS Word Survey, I was interrupted when someone came in to ask for help on iMovie/iDVD stuff. That took up the majority of the time today in CAT.

Category: Projects | Tags: , ,
| August 26, 2011
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Reflection 8/26/11

Hello readers,

This week has come to an end. Classes and work in Info Commons are starting up and about to be in full swing. After only working a few days in the library, and of course after the retreat, I have realized how valuable it is being apart of Info Commons. For example: my PO 490 Senior Seminar class is a writing intensive class in which we work on a series of short writes and discussions that eventually lead to our “senior thesis” as it were. One goal of my professor is to become more active with technology. This is unusual because she is very ‘old school’, does not allow computers in class and will not post power-points online because she states that it deters from people paying attention and taking notes by hand, which she says has a direct correlation to memory retention. However, in this class, once a class we draw a lottery for the next class to see who will be ‘webmaster’ and ‘note taker’. Webmaster starts every class with an interesting article, song, movie clip, etc. and explains why or why not it is political (the title of the class is Everything is Political). We as a class then discuss this media and debate from our previous education and personal experiences whether or not it is political in nature, what the political relevance is, and how it influences society. While everyone is taking their own notes by hand, the note taker takes the classes notes as a whole and uploads it to BlackBoard. It’s the best of both worlds, a fair compromise between the student and the professor. More updates to come on the success or failure of this experiment. As an Info Commons assistant I feel well prepared to do these tasks, and have told my professor that I can assist in helping students in class.

Category: Reflections | Tags: , ,
| August 22, 2011
Comments Off on Reflection 8/19/11

Reflection 8/19/11

What things do I like to do?

I like what I was doing last year in CAT. I worked on media editting projects with iMovie, iDVD, Toaster, Panopto, etc. It was difficult not because I worked nights, but because I worked nights alone so if I had a question it was too late for someone to help.

What skills do I have?

I learn quickly. I’m not an expert in all programs, but I enough of a basic understanding of software, and most programs designed now are user friendly. So as long as I understand what I’m trying to do, then the figuring the interface shouldn’t be too hard. Further skills I have are problem solving skills, critical thinking, creativity, and a sense of humor (yes it’s a skill).

Goals?

1) What goal do you have for this year to make your Info Commons experience a success?

To become proficient in all social media outlets (Facebook, Twitter, WordPress, Tumblr, Linkedin, Google+, Blogger) within a month of school starting. Gain more knowledge about programs that will for CAT and Info Commons.

2) What goal do you have for this year to make Info Commons better as a whole?

Establish things like QuickGuides and templates for future Info Commons and CAT students. The best way to make a strong and useful program is to build upon the work of those before you. We have a responsibility as current students to progress the program for the next generation. Whatever work I can do today to better tomorrow is to be considered good work.

3) What is your feedback on the whole life values and experiences session we had on Thursday?

I come from a background that preaches ‘whole-being’. That is to be a well rounded person. I really appreciated the session on whole life values because it’s an important aspect of doing good work. I believe there is a harmony to life, and while work, school, and life may be separated; it is difficult for the parts of your day to not overlap. Promoting good lifestyle habits and balance will optimize not only work, but also life outside of work.

What do I like that we do and what do we need to improve on in IC/CAT.

Last year, working nights in JH 048, there was some projects that Jeana would have me do. But unless I was given one big project, day-to-day there was nothing I did regularly. What is new to me, are the libguides that correct this exact problem I had. It provides a database for on-going projects, checklists, and helpguides which is exactly what I need if I’m working alone and have questions.

Category: Reflections | Tags: ,