class cancelled

1/28/2013

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I feel that grading contracts are more so positive than negative; however, I feel that there are also things about them that may be slightly unnecessary. Positively, I like the distribution of power that a grading contract provides. It's easy for students to not feel confident about a class when their personality clashes with that of the teachers, or they have a different writing style. This makes it easy to know that if one does the things the contract entails they will be guaranteed a specific letter grade. This takes some of the edge off, but for students like me who obsess over grades and GPA and whether I can graduate as cum laude or magna laude, it is still slightly nerve wrecking. 
I like knowing where I stand in terms of grades, I don't like being in the dark when it comes to how I did on a paper or an assignment. I like specific feedback that will help me improve, and unfortunately I feel that grading contracts don't necessarily cater to that. Overall, I think grading contracts are a great idea to help students gain responsibility, but they don't exactly help students live up to their utmost potential. 
I actually feel that I'm much more comfortable via online technologies than in person. I feel more open and willing to talk about things that I wouldn't normally discuss if I was sitting in a classroom full of people. It's easy to get distracted when I'm is sitting in a classroom, but when I'm alone it's easier to focus and remain focused, therefore I can connect what I'm thinking to what I'm saying. Consequently, I feel that a weak blog presence doesn't connect with the reader, it's too formal and stiff. I like reading blogs that know what they want to say, and say it in a way that the reader can relate to. I feel that blogs, like any type of written medium, needs to have a specific audience in which they are talking to. Therefore, it's easier to make a stronger connection while also keeping the reader entertained and wanting to read more. A good blog presence has an idea and sticks to that idea throughout the blog. Whether it be a specific design, topic, or style of writing, it has to be consistent. 
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ms. techno Unsavvy 

1/26/2013

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I do not like technology. It's that simple. My negative opinion towards the technological world has come from a wide range of bad experiences mixed with confusion and self-doubt. I have never been someone who was naturally savvy when it came to working with any type of technological medium. On the contrary, I have always been quite the opposite. I view technology as an entirely new language, and even though I've been around it my whole life I still only know how to say hello and goodbye. It still seems so foreign that over time instead of submerging myself in it or learning step by step I've only distanced myself further. 
As a writer my only saving grace is that I know how to work Microsoft Word, and even then I am still learning new tricks and ways to implement different things that I never knew before. I recently manuevered my way through the Rowan Library Services tab on the Rowan website and was able to find some great sources; however, when it comes to writing academic papers, I'd choose a great book to cite over a document found on the Internet. Besides my Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram accounts, all of which I'm still somewhat learning how to use, I know nothing about technology. These mediums I'm comfortable with because I'm used to them. Their simple, which makes my life simple. 
I'll try anything at least once; however, I will never dive right into anything unless I have explicit instructions. I don't necessarily like to explore things outside of my small comfort zone in fear that I'll become confused and overwhelmed and fail miserably, only reinforcing my negative viewpoint on technology. Therefore I remain in the small confines of the digital world, never straying from the most simplistic technology available. 
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