What I Learned in IM 260

After completing the assignments and projects I did in this class, I'm glad I learned what I did and I will use the information from this class for use in the future. This class has honestly taught me so much information that I never thought about learning in my lifetime. I can now go and use the resources for my future job (teaching) and it will help me keep myself organized. Although I already knew some of the things we talked about in class, most of the information I learned was also very new to me and I had no idea that some of it even existed until now. I'm happy with the experiences I got from this class and I will use all the resources in my near future!

Finished Blog Project

Now that my blog is done for the semester, I'm happy with the turnout of it. I believe that blogging is a great way to show your progress and ideas on things. It gives people a chance to read on what you think of topics and how you get through certain things in life. I've also learned that there are various types of blogs and they don't have to just be used for certain purposes. There's blogs out there that are honestly the most random things, but they make sense once they're all put together. I'm glad I had the opportunity to create one because it not only showed my progress throughout the semester, but also allowed me to keep myself organized on assignments and projects of my own.

Finished Research Paper Project

Now that my research paper is completed and turned in, I am very stressed and overwhelmed about the whole thing. There is way more information involved in a research paper than I thought there was. It truly is a lot of work and needs to include a lot of information in order to be complete. After completing my paper, with everything included, I was very relieved to be done. I'm glad I went through this experience because it will for sure be used in my future life no matter what it's for. I'm glad I went through the learning experience and hours of work it took because it will be valuable for me in some way!

Research Paper Project

I have never written a full research paper in APA format before so I'm honestly not sure what to expect out of the whole thing. I'm ready to take on what it includes and write one just so I can see what it's like and use the information I learn for future use. I know there are a lot of papers for college so it will be valuable for me to go through the whole process. I honestly don't even know where you start when writing a research paper but that will be learned through class and asking questions. It will be useful not only through college, but throughout my whole life.

Finished Infographic Assignment

Now that my infographic assignment is complete, I can visually see the results I got from my survey that was created. It gives a whole different perspective once you add pictures to the results. I am a visual learner myself, so creating an infographic really helped me see everything with all the results I got back. I'm glad I created one so that other people can visually see my results as well. I will definitely use an infographic again sometime in my life for other results that I may get and need to see visually.

Infographic Assignment

When it comes to creating an infographic, I had no idea what it was before and I have never created one for anything in my lifetime. From what I've learned in class, I think it's definitely a good way to show results. I'm not quite sure how I'm going to set mine up yet but I'm ready to take on the experience and explore websites that can be used to create an infographic. I'm planning on using all of my results that I got from my survey just so that people can have a full idea on my research and what it's going to consist of.

Finished Survey/Cover Letter Project

After completing this project, I've learned that creating your own survey helps a lot with your own research. Once I saw the results of my survey, I was shocked on the various answers I got from several different people. The answers I got greatly helped me improve my research paper I was writing and they helped me get further into the research as well. I think the cover letter I created warmly invited people to take my survey and give their own thoughts on the whole topic. I'm very happy that I got the answers I did and I will definitely use the process of a survey again if need be.

Survey/Cover Letter Project

For this project, we are to create a survey based on our own research and then send it out for people to take it. I've decided to base my research on using technology within special education classrooms, since special education is my intended major. The survey is intended to be 10 questions long, but the questions should be open ended or have easy answers to them. The survey I created was 10 very easy questions and it's mostly based on people's thoughts and opinions just so I can get an idea on what people think of the whole topic. Along with the survey, we were to create a cover letter as an open invitation for others to participate and explain that it's voluntary to complete.

Finished Annotated Bibliography Assignment

After completing this assignment, I've realized just how hard it is to write a full annotated bibliography in APA format. I had to add a lot more information to my bibliography than I expected. You want to have full detail within it as well, otherwise it's hard for others to understand what you're doing and where you're coming from with your thoughts and opinions. I found the resource Refworks to be very helpful when creating a bibliography because it allows you to enter in all the details you need without having to think through the whole process. If I ever have to write another research paper for a class, I will definitely be using what I learned through this class!

Annotated Bibliography Assignment

For this assignment, we are to create a bibliography of our own that can be used towards our research. Along with the links and descriptions of the sites on the bibliography, we are supposed to write our own annotations as well. When annotations were first talked about in class, I honestly had no idea what they were and what was being talked about. I had never written a completed research paper before in APA format. I am looking forward to completing a research paper of my own and seeing what the whole experience is like being that I've never done it before.

Finished Twitter Project

I have now completed the Twitter assignment and I'm happy about the outcome it gave me. It showed me a lot of new things that I never knew before and taught me that the site can be used for multiple things. I got to see what a professional account looked like and followed it throughout the semester to see what type of posts there was. I also saw an example of an unprofessional Twitter account and it wasn't bad, just not something that would be used for a business or to show what's going on. I got to experience posting my own tweets, retweeting others tweets and using hashtags to participate in a discussion. Overall, it was a good experience for me to go through and learn because I haven't used twitter in my personal life only because it didn't spark my interest from seeing it being used. I am glad I was thrown into a new experience and came out of it happy!

Finished Tech Disconnect Project

Now that I'm done with my technology disconnect project, I have realized how much my life is actually based around technology. I use technology and my phone way more than I should in a day. I learned that I miss out on a ton of stuff that I should be paying attention to. Without having my phone or any technology for 24 hours, I was more focused on what I was doing during those hours. I spent more time with the ones I loved and was more focused on my job at work and getting things done. For example, I spent some time with my boyfriend and since I wasn't able to use my phone, he also put his away for a while too. We got to spend quality time with each other more than we ever have and were basically forced to find things to do together and enjoy each others company better than ever. Doing this project made me realize that, without having technology around, you can enjoy the things around you and be more aware of what's going on around you and in the world. It taught me so much and I'm actually very glad that I did it, even with all of the temptations!

Tech Disconnect Project

This project is definitely going to be a rough and tough one. We have to completely disconnect from all technology for 24 WHOLE hours. There can be no usage of anything related to phones, televisions, computers, radios, etc. For me, this is going to be hard because I use technology quite often throughout my day. It's what I go to when I'm bored out of my mind and can't possibly find anything else to do with my day. I also often find myself constantly checking my phone even if I don't hear it ring or vibrate, it's just a natural habit of mine I guess you could say. The only way I plan to and can accomplish this is to basically force myself to stay away from everything related to technology. I just have to tell myself no and I will be able to push forward and complete the project. I'm actually kind of excited to figure out the outcome of this project because me going without any technology for 24 hours is definitely a no go in my world.

Twitter Project

The project we are given is to create a Twitter account that is professional. I'm not very familiar with twitter because I've never had an account of my own and it never really sparked my interest to have one. Now that I created an account, it's going to be a new experience for me. I'm excited to be able to post and share things about my future career, my interests, my hobbies, etc. I think it will also be a good way to look at things in the world around me and be able to research certain topics when it comes or relates to digital media. It's definitely a lot harder to keep a social media account like this so called "professional" because most people use them as a personal resource. Being that I've never had a twitter and haven't experienced it fully, I think it will be an easier project for me to complete. I'm looking forward to the experience I will have and take using Twitter.

Blogging

When it comes to blogging and creating a blog, I am experienced with it.  During my senior year in high school, we had to create a blog for the fashion class I was in.  I chose to use the same resources I used for that class because that way, I'll be able to know how to navigate things when it comes to posting and everything else.  Even though I'm experienced, I'm looking forward to blogging about everything to show me new ways of technology and help me reflect on the assignments and projects done in this class. I am not the best writer and I'm not good at explaining things very well, but blogging and keeping simple posts on everything will help me become better at writing.  I am ready to try something new and take on the things that come throughout this course.