Week 7 

In week 7 we learned how to create a power point presentation that would be most effective in conveying the information we wanted to convey to our targeted audience. When you are creating a power point there are a few helpful tips I have found that will insure you have produced a power point that will be most useful to your targeted audience.

Tip 1: Keep it Simple. When creating a power point you want to make sure you only add the most important information. Giving to much information can leave your audience lost and as a result uninterested in your presentation.

Tip 2: Make sure you are mindful of your slide structure. When making a power point presentation make sure you that it is easy for your audience to follow. Be sure to list the title at the top and have all text from top to bottom.

Tip 3: Avoid fancy fonts. Use fonts that are easy to read. Avoid fancy fonts as this will be difficult for some readers to view if they are sitting far away from the screen that the power point is displayed on.

Tip 4: Use Visual Aids. Using visual aids such as graphs, charts, and pictures are a great toll to utilize in efforts to keep your audiences attention. However you must not use them in excess as this could distract your audience for the information you are trying to deliver.

Tip 5: Make sure that your power point can run on any computer. This I must say is the most important tip. When creating your power point you want to be sure that you are using the most up to date software to insure that anyone that needs to view your power point can do so with ease.


 
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Week 6

 

In week 6 we learned the fundamentals of preparing for, and taking objective as well as essay exams.

When preparing for an exam you want to begin by gathering as much information as you can about the exam you will be taking. Doing this will help you better prepare for your exam. A list of helpful information to gather prior to your exam is listed below:

·         What type of questions will be on the exam i.e. essay, multiple choice

·         How many questions will be on the test

·         What chapters or lectures will be covered on the exam

 

When preparing for an exam, using a 5 Day Study Plan is also a very helpful tool. Using a 5 Day Study Plan allows you time to prepare for your exam, as well as study for it over the course of 5 days, leading up to your exam date. A 5 Day Study Plan allows you to break down the information that you are studying down in smaller chunks, and work on each chunk for a few hours each day leading up to the exam. When setting a 5 Day Study Plan remember you can always revise it. If you find that you have overestimated how long it would take you to study a particular section, you can transfer the remainder time to an alternate section.  An example of a 5 Day Study Plan is shown below:

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Week  5

 

In week 5 we learned the importance of effective goal setting, and the 7 characteristics of a successful goal setter. When setting goals you want to make sure that they have these characteristic. I will list the characteristics below:

1. Set your own goals. When you set your own goal you are more prone to accomplish it. A lot of times people have goals for our lives that we are not ready for, or not interested in all together. It may be your mothers goal for you to become a doctor. This is a goal she has set, but in actuality, you've always wanted to be a musician. Starting medical school would not be a good ideal, you would be less likely to work hard because this is not a goal you have chosen, so you are not fully invested in attaining this goal.

2. Choose a moderately challenging goal: Be sure to choose a goal that is challenging but attainable. When choosing a goal, a good way to know how high to set the bar is to look at your previous behavior. Although we can change, and improve our work ethic over time, this is still a good tool to use when setting goals.

3. Choose a realistic goal: When choosing a goal you want to make sure it is realistic. You want to make sure that the goal you have set is attainable. When you set a realistic goal you are more likely to achieve it.

4. Choose a measurable goal: Always choose a goal that has no gray area. When setting a goal be sure that you will be able to easily determine whether or not you have attained the goal. Setting a goal like "I will try to lose 10 before summer" is not a measurable goal, because if you don't  lose the 10 pounds you set out to lose you could still say well I tried. A better goal will be " I will lose 10 pounds by summer". Setting a goal in this fashion will insure that you have a clear answer as to whether or not your goal has been accomplished.

5. Set specific goals: When setting goals you want to set specific goals, where as to insure that you know exactly what you are trying to accomplish. The  more specific your goal is the more focused you'll be on accomplishing the goal.

6. Set goals with time frames: You want to be sure there is a deadline on your goal. Without deadlines we often put off our goals, and fail to achieve them. Setting deadlines keeps you focused on what you are trying to accomplish and holds you accountable to a certain schedule.

7. Set positive goals: In my opinion this is the most important characteristic of a successful goal setter. A positive attitude is essential to ones success in any aspect. When it comes to goal setting, there is no difference. Setting positive goals will motivate you to achieve the goal at hand. Instead of saying " I will not miss more than 1 Sunday this month from church". A better goal would be " I will make it to church 3 times this month".

If you follow these characteristic when setting goals it will increase your chances of achieving your goals.

Another helpful tool to use when setting your goals is to use The 5 step approach to goal setting.

Step 1. Write down your goal
Step 2. Write down you obstacles. Your obstacles are the things that could hinder your from accomplishing your goal
Step 3. Write down your resources. Your resources are the things that will aid your with attaining your goal.
Step 4. Write down the thing, or things that will motivate you to accomplish this goal
Step 5. Revise your goal statement.

Using this 5 step approach is a great way to insure that you have clearly weighed all you options when setting a goal.  Below you will find a example of The 5 Step Approach to Goal Setting.

 Goal: Get at least a B in all my classes this semester

Obstacles	Resources
Long work hours	1. I will get a head start on my assignments
1. Just started a Part time Job	2. I will read on my lunch hour
2. Several vacations scheduled this summer	3. I will take my work with me on vacation
3. C average in high school	4. Ask for help when I don’t understand
4. I Have not attended school in several years	5. Take a refresher course
5. Fall behind because I don’t have to report daily	6. I will set a schedule and stick to it
6. Hanging out with friends	7. I will cut back on socializing

Motivation: Keeping a “B” average will be helpful when applying for nursing school.

Revised Goal: I will keep a B average in all my classes this semester

 Week 4

 In week 4 we leaned strategies for successful note taking, and how to be critical reader. When reading there are several different note taking strategies that can assist you greatly with comprehending the information that has been conveyed.

One strategy is called P2R Reading/Study system. This system works well when reading easy to average textbooks. The first step is to preview. You do this by reading the title, introductions, headings, and bold print; also use this time to look at the visual aids. The second step is to read actively. You do this by doing something active as you read. You can highlight important parts on underline them. After your have read a chapter pause and think about the information your have read. You may want to go back and highlight things that you would like to review before an exam. The last step to the P2R Reading/Study System is to review. There are several different ways you can review. You could review by using the headings. You do this by covering the heading and reciting the information in that section. You can also review by taking the end of chapter test. This will test your understanding of the information you just read.

Another reading comprehensive note taking strategy is the S-RUN-R Reading/Study System. The first step to this system is to survey the entire section. Read the title, introductions, headings, subheadings, and chapter summary; be sure to look at any picture graphs and charts if they are provided.  The next step is to read, before you start write the heading on a piece of paper. Writing the heading down will help you pay closer attention and focus on what your are about to read. The 3rd step to the S-RUN-R Reading/Study System is to Underline. After you have completed reading a paragraph, brainstorm on what you have read. Think about all the key points in the paragraph, and then underline them. Once you have done this go back to your notebook paper and take notes on the things you have just underlined or highlighted. Be sure to put the notes in your own words. Don't just copy the text book. Writing notes in your own words will insure that you fully understand what you have just read. The last step is to Review. When you have finished reading the chapter do the end of chapter test to make sure you completely understand the chapter. Also use you notes to help you test your knowledge.  

     In week 4 we also learned the importance of being a critical reading, and what qualifies you as one. The qualities of a critical reader are as follows.

1. Ask questions

2. Gather information

3. Examine information

4. Evaluate evidence

5. Form your own opinion.

When you do these thing while reading it forces you to get involved with the text. If you only read and never ask questions about what you have read you will never be able to form your own opinion. The author is not always right. A critical reader, reads the information, evaluates it, then make up their own mind about whether they want to believe the information they just read. Being a critical reader will help you tremendously when reading text books and listening to lectures in college.

Week 3

 

In week three we learned a lot about the American Psychological Association guidelines, paying close attention to in-text citing and Reference pages. There are several different styles of writing but we focused on APA this week. APA style is most commonly used to cite sources within the social sciences. There are several different guidelines you must adhere to in order to write an APA compliant paper.  There are 4 major sections to an APA style paper. I have listed them below:

Title Page: Your title page should include the title, the author’s name, and the name of your            institution. You will also need to include a page head with the title of your paper, and the words running head.

Abstract page: Abstract page should be on a page of its own. It will need a header and page number. The word Abstract should be under the header and centered. Your abstract page gives your readers an overview of what the paper will be about.

Main Body: This portion of the paper can change depending on what type of research paper you’re writing. If you’re writing an essay, the main body of your paper will include the actual essay itself. This is essentially where your research will go.

Reference Page: The reference section of your paper will include a list of all of the sources that you used in your paper. This page should have a header, and the word reference directly underneath it.




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Week Two

 

Week two covered the basics of word processing. It also introduced our week 8 comprehensive assignment. The Word Processing tutorials were a great refresher tool. I have not used a lot of the word functions in quite a while, so this week’s lesson really helped me brush up on my skills. Adding a header and footer was a function I have not had to use in a long time, so learning how to perform this function was essential for writing college lever papers.

In week two I also learned what a blog is and how to create one. I’ve never created a blog, so this was all new information to me. After reviewing the resources provided by my instructor, (the YouTube tutorials being exceptionally helpful, as I’m a visual learner), I decided to review some blogs online. Reading the different blogs online helped me get a better understanding of what a blog is all about. Initially I was slightly intimidated at the ideal of creating a blog but after learning what it is and how to create one I discovered it’s fairly easy if you can follow simple directions. I have listed steps to below for creating a blog on blogger.com

Step 1: Login to www.blogger.com If you do not have a google account you will need to create one prior to starting your blog.

Step 2: Click New Blog.

Step 3: Choose a name, address and template for your blog.

Step 4: Click Create New Blog.

Step 5: Start Blogging!

Week One of Online Learning

Week One

Week one definitely improved my confidence level with online learning. I haven't been in school in about 8 years. I have also never taken online classes, so to say I was a little intimidated, is an understatement. I’m grateful that Shorter University required that I take the course Introduction to Online Learning; I feel this class will really help me get back into the swing of things as far as undergraduate studies are concerned. Week one helped me get familiar with Moodle, different learning styles, as well as the seriousness of plagiarism. Getting acclimated to Moodle was extremely important, it helped me to navigate thru the classroom much more smoothly. I also found the learning style quiz to be a very helpful lesson. The results of my learning style quiz are listed below:

 

 

Credit: Ian Roberts

Bodily-Kinesthetic

Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence is about thinking in movements and includes the ability to use movements for either self-expression or precision to achieve a goal. It is crucial for surgeons, athletes, mimes, choreographers, and directors.

This type of intelligence helps one to retain information when it is associated with an activity, such as dance, acting, and sports.  Relating what you are trying to learn to one of these activities will help you retain information and gain a better understanding (Edutopia Staff, 2013).

 I’ve always been aware that I retain information better when finding a connection to an activity that I enjoy, but it was neat to learn that there my preference in learning is defined by a particular learning style.

Another topic discussed during week one was the severity of Plagiarism and the repercussions that can be associated with the act. Reading the article “Plagiarism Lines Blur for Students in Digital Age" was helpful in understanding how students today do not fully understand what qualifies as plagiarism.   In week one I was also given the 9 habits of a successful online learner. These tips were very helpful.  I feel that if these tips are applied success a sure thing. I have listed some of the tips that stuck out to me below and explained them in my own words.

1.      Get an early start: Getting an early start is imperative to a successful online learning experience. Doing so allows you time to prepare, proofread and revise your work if necessary.

2.      Organize: Staying organized is a very important learning habit. Getting in a place conducive to learning, and free of distractions helps you focus and absorb information easier.

3.      Plan: Planning is also a extremely important learning habit. It allows you to prioritize your work load and come up with the best course of action for completing your work in a timely and efficient manner.               

4.      No Procrastination! Stick to your plan: Avoiding procrastination is key to online success. Procrasting leads to poor work quality. Managing your work load will help you advoid this habit.

5.      Believe in yourself: Believing in your own abilities is the most important habit of a successful online learner, the mind control all so if you think negatively that's what your end result will be. We a capable of anything, we just have to believe it.

 

 

 Reference:

Source: http://www.edutopia.org/your-learning-styles#bk