The Gr8pes of Wrath
Through the integration of fresh gr8pes, a little pressure, some time, and loving care, a completely new and different substance is produced - fine wine. But beware the Gr8pes of Wrath that stand ready to protect their brethern from the terrible fate that awaits them...
Sunday, November 21, 2010
End of the blog - closing remarks
I think that closing remarks are important, and I didn't want them to clog up the discussion this week.
I just want to say it's been a great semester. Thanks everyone for great comments and discussions throughout the entire project. This goes for the other 4 mentors and the mentees too - All of the students here again give me hope that the next generation will be strong, innovative, and contributing members of society. I've taken lots of online classes, and really - some of the discussions and messages I see (there, not here) could have likely been better written if I put the laptop on the floor and just typed randomly with my toes.
Also, keep all your files and everything you did for your Cornerstone Class. (These are called artifacts now). I don't want to be the one that gives away the ending - but all those files you've created for your e-port, and your resume, etc. all come up again in your college career.
Byron Faudie
Friday, November 19, 2010
Professional Opportunities & Job Skills
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Topic 9!
Alright guys, it looks like everyone enjoyed my first blog posting so much, they commissioned me to write another one! I kid, but, I hope everyone took a long look at last week's topic about the ePortfolio. I know that topic was a major stressor for me during my Cornerstone experience. This week, we'll be discussing our personal philosophies, career goals, and the academic opportunities that relate to your goals.
No matter what job you work, your personal philosophy is going to 'seep in' to your work. In example: authors will always use their personal slant in their writing. Your personal philosophy is an important part of your life, so you're always going to want to share it with everyone around you. The next important step is deciding just what your personal philosophy is. Once you identify your philosophy, you can see how it relates to your future career.
So, take a few moments to sit back and think of what drives you. It could be the desire to help others, the desire for material possessions, or even the desire to 'out-do' your family members. Regardless of what it is that drives you, identify with it and make it yours.
The next part of this week's blog is identifying whether or not your philosophy is interdisciplinary, or if you can MAKE it interdisciplinary. This is important to note, because you're being trained to look at things from an interdisciplinary standpoint. When you tackle problems from this standpoint, you can generally overcome them due to the extended coverage provided by each discipline, as well as the increase in critical thinking.
Finally, after you've identified what your philosophy is, and whether or not it is interdisciplinary, you have one last option to consider: what academic opportunities are available to me? There are a host of different internships, partnerships, and post-graduate options available to you. You should do the research necessary to identify what those options are, as well as what you need to do to obtain those opportunities. Using the Experiential Learning and Career Services offices, you can find a host of opportunities available to you.
Here are a few topics to discuss this week, but remember, you don't have to answer ALL of these questions:
1.Discuss your personal philosophy concerning your professional life
2.How is or isn't this philosophy interdisciplinary?
3.How have your career goals altered?
Have a great week!
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Topic 8
Expressing yourself Electronically
The Making of The E-Portfolio
The e-portfolio is a documentation of your learning and work experiences, that is put together to highlight your knowledge, skills and abilities. It is a story written and told by you, with the goal of developing a purpose and delivering it to a specific audience. The purpose of the portfolio is going to be either professional or personal. If you will be looking for a job, then your purpose will be professional. If you will be applying to graduate school, then your purpose will be personal. Once you have decided your purpose, then you can focus on the story you want to tell, along with the experiences and skills you wish to highlight.
Your portfolio should contain a message that will be specifically tailored to the needs of your audience. For instance, if you are looking for a challenging career: Why should they hire you? What sets you apart from the other candidates? What skills and talents of yours could this company benefit from? Your e-portfolio experience will consist of uploading and revising artifacts that will emphasize who you are and what you are capable of.
What are artifacts? They are a type of evidence that you can use to showcase your interdisciplinarity. Artifacts consist of pictures, papers, projects and any other work that is unique and reflects your best abilities. You will be introduced to the e-portfolio in the cornerstone course and be required to upload all of your assignments and projects to the portfolio workspace. It is a good idea to keep a variety of your work, not just the assignments form your IDS classes. Also, do not be worried if you are required to upload assignments that you do not particularly like, or feel are unnecessary. Ultimately, you will have the final say with what documents will go into your portfolio. It is also important to mention that you will not be putting random assignments into the portfolio. Instead, you will choose work that will highlight a specific experience of some kind, whether it be based on volunteering, your job or something to do with your education.
In the beginning, the e-portfolio can seem a little overwhelming. But, you may find that taking it one assignment at a time is a good way to approach it. I recently began writing my portfolio story and putting my artifacts together. At first, it was very confusing. But, after playing around with it for a while, it kind of became fun and I began to see the benefits of it. For two nights in a row, I was obsessed with changing the templates and editing my story and images. Honestly, for me it was a lot of trial and error. It is not hard to put together but, it can be a time consuming project. I now feel that the finished product will be worth it, and I am hoping that this portfolio will give me the something extra I will need to stand out in my job search.
Click here to view my e-portfolio(note: this is not the finished product)
Note the elements of my e-portfolio:
Purpose: to find a job after graduation.
Audience: Prospective employers
Message: I am eager to find a challenging job, where I can utilize my best skills.
Parts:
1) About Me:
Intro
Personal Statement
Resume
Course of Study(List of classes taken)
2) Content Pages with Artifacts:
Painting a Purpose
Downloading a Dream
Learning as a Leader(Yeah, it's about this mentoring project. I ran out of ideas, but I am glad I
included this)
Note: That all my artifacts reflect the experience that I am highlighting.
When you are creating and modifying your artifacts, make sure that you read the feedback from your professor, so you are aware of the revisions that you will need to make.
These artifacts are a reflection of who you are, so make sure that they are creative and reflect your interdisciplinarity. If you plan to look for work after graduation, then your portfolio can have a similar feel to my own. However, if you are planning on applying to graduate school, you should focus on making your portfolio a tad more personal. For instance, if I was applying to graduate school, I would probably touch on my experience of being a mom to a 3-year-old, which is not something that I would present to a prospective employer. Remember, you are trying to stand out, so take this time to put a unique and personalized spin on why you would like to pursue graduate school. Why are you different from other applicants?
Now that you are more familiar with the e-portfolio, answer the following questions:
Did you notice the images that I used in my portfolio? They were all used to enhanced my story and were relevant to the things that I was talking about. What are some images that you think you would use to enhance your portfolio?
Are you thinking about applying for graduate school, or starting a career? If you will be looking for a job after graduation what type of work are you interested in pursuing?
What is an experience that you would want to include in one of your content pages?(If you are unsure, you can always use the mentoring experience as one, like I did.)
Sunday, October 31, 2010
It's all about you!
This week we are talking about my favorite topic – me! Well, you will be focusing on you . .you are your favorite topic too right? Again I am attacking a topic that many of us do all of the time, but we all clam up when we put a name to it – Reflective Writing (cue the violins!).
Reflective writing isn't straight-forward description or conveying information (Moon, J Reflection in Learning and Professional Development, Kogan Page, London 1999.) What is it then? According to the Kentucky Dept. of Education - Reflection—the careful consideration and serious contemplation of past events for the purpose of evaluating or making sense of those past events. What does this look like? Diary? Blogging? Time when you want to write things down to help figure them out? Yes!
I think that spending 4 minutes with Parme Giutini from OTIS College will give better insight into the topic for us. Pay extra special close attention starting at 3:45 until the end.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRF8whWLjqc
Otis College of Art and Design Teaching Tips: Reflective Writing with Parme Giuntini. The Liberal Arts and Sciences Faculty share their tips on a variety of classroom suggestions to improve the quality of teaching. and therefore learning.
As I may have mentioned, I do work as a photographer and have my own company. One way that I use reflective writing is by keeping a notebook that I enter notes about every shoot that I’ve been on. There are some technical aspects – like who was there, what was the purpose, what are the expected results. After the shoot I also visit the book and list what went well, what didn’t go so well, and why, and most importantly, if it’s something in my control – how can I fix it for next time? This book has been great in that over the last few years it’s been a manual of best practices that I can revisit to increase the chances that my results on the next shoot will be better than the results of any in the past.
For the purpose of class, you will focus on reflective writing because it can be integrated into your e-portfolio. If not by writing, do you have a process in place in your life to reflect on past experiences?
Also, your e-portfolio has a specific purpose, and is basically a device designed for sharing. How would your reflective writing be different if you were writing privately?
Lastly, offer your thoughts on the how you agree or disagree with the definitions of what is and isn't reflective writing as they are written above. How would you explain how reflective writing is different than description?
Standard end of blog warnings, disclaimers, and reminders still apply – Per Ms. Spraker, you do not need to respond to all of the prompts presented in order to get credit. You do need to sign your post with your real name that matches the name in Ms. Spraker's grade book in order to receive credit.
Byron Faudie
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Your Foot's in the Door, Now Don't Put it in Your Mouth!
- Discuss the results of your interview practice
- Discuss the best way to answer some of the standard and non-standard interview questions
- How to deal with phone interview and panel interviews
- When is the time to talk about salary?
John Seybert