Week 10 Journal PSYC 1300-004

Why do people drop out of college? Why would anyone sacrifice their education and their future? Why, why, why?

This question has been pondered, discussed, and dissected over the years by counselors, educators, and parents alike. There really is not a single, concrete answer.

Life happens, things happen, plans (however well constructed) change. Sometimes things are just out of our control. Sometimes things become too much to bear.

No, this is not a cry for help, I am most definitely not considering dropping out of school, but I have been there before, I have made these tough decisions and I am hoping to shed some light on the reasons why students drop out.

I see it everyday at my desk, a student comes in and says they want to drop all their classes, we are trained to talk them through their options, not ask why or tell them that it is a terrible idea. We are there for support, to help them realize the resources available to them, and to help them understand the future repercussions of dropping their classes (financial aid, completion rate, etc).

In that moment, I wonder what could be happening in this persons life to make them feel like they cannot succeed in their classes, are they overwhelmed by the course load? Perhaps they have had a change in their work schedule, or family structure. Maybe they just don't think college is for them. The makeup of this population is also interesting, it is either very young, first time in college students, or the middle aged population who are trying to balance full time work, family, and school. I rarely see people my age (mid-late twenties) dropping out.

My dorm room!

Personally, I was there. I was that student who feels like they cannot succeed and they have no options left. My first experience in college, I was living in a dorm room, far from home, with no roommate and a bad, bad case of stomach issues and anxiety to boot. I lasted 3 days, I never even made it to my Thursday Algebra class. I was ashamed and upset that I couldn't last. To be fair, I did have a debilitating stomach problem that made it very difficult to eat the food on campus and sit in the classroom. But I also felt as though I had not been adequately prepared for this massive upheaval in my life, which I'm sure only accelerated my sickness. Everything I had known for 18 years changed over the course of a weekend and I found myself standing in the doorway of an unfamiliar building waving goodbye as my family drove away. I felt sad, helpless, and alone. I did not yearn for the experience of being away from my family, partying, and living it up at college, as many of my peers did, I just wanted to stay the same.

Looking back, as a student about to graduate, while I am still slightly embarrassed by my "college sleepover" as I will call it, I feel as though it made me a better student in the long run and helped me realize that I would rather live at home and commute than be on my own. I have a lot of friends who loved their college experience, I love my experience too, but in a different way. But hey, that's okay.

Week 8 Journal PSYC 1300-004

Standing up for yourself in academics is similar to standing up for yourself in a workplace environment. If you've never had a job, perhaps you can compare it to standing up for yourself in a large group of people whom you don't know very well.

Standing up for yourself can be pretty terrifying, especially if you are not the confrontational type. HOWEVER, this is my plea to you: learn how to speak up and say how you feel. Here and now is the time to do so because once you get into the "real world" this particular skill can be invaluable.

It took me a few years to realize how important it was to ask questions and demand answers, to not just slink back into the corner and accept what I got. People value my opinion and look to me for answers because they know that I am straight forward and honest.

When I get an exam back and I see a question that I was marked incorrect on but feel as though I should have been right, I will talk to the professor and explain why I answered that way. I have found that most times I will be given partial credit because I was able to say, "Hey look, I was marked incorrect but can I explain why I answered like this?"

I have had the same thing occur with papers, presentations, group projects, and even in my job. Never think that your question is stupid because it's NOT. The only stupid question is the one that you didn't give a chance to be answered.

If you have received a lower grade than you thought was fair, you should always talk to your professor, but remember to keep a level head and hold back your emotions. The same rules apply in the workplace. I had a coworker once tell me, "When you're here working, you are business, you are the face of this office. If you need to, go out to your car and let it all out, scream and cry. But never allow yourself to show emotion in front of others at work because they feed on it, like a cancer." She was absolutely right.


Even though you may be upset and frustrated, never let that emotion rule you, especially if you are meeting with a professor or a boss. Personally, I find that if I am having to make a point and if it is a touchy subject, one that is sure to make me emotional, I will go into the situation with an actual list of bullet pointed reasons behind why I am there in the first place.

You really only get one life and one chance to make it count. Don't ever discount yourself, your ideas, beliefs, hopes, wants, dreams, or work. If you feel as though you aren't being given a fair shot, SAY SO, no one else is going to stand up for you in the real world.

-Kelly

Unrelated to School

This is my first post that I have done that is unrelated to the original purpose that this blog was meant to serve.

I think over the past week or so, since my birthday, I have really begun to realize how quickly time seems to pass.

For example, I was just looking at facebook and stumbled across the profile of a girl I used to babysit while in high school and she is now about to graduate high school herself. I flipped through her photos and saw her younger brother and sisters and realized that the youngest is now TEN YEARS OLD! Wow, time certainly has FLOWN by.

I look back on the last ten years of my own life and struggle to think of moments that stand out to me as  substantial and life-changing. I cannot come up with more than three.

I promised myself on my birthday that I would live this life with more freedom and say yes to things I normally would not. I live my life in a bubble and my hope is to bring myself out of my comfort zone.

I had this plan for what I call "My Great Adventure." Where I was to take Christmas Break and drive across the country. Those plans were cut down though when I learned that I was going to be working until December 20th and I have orientation for Southwestern on January 10th.

I was hoping to drive from Austin to Baton Rouge and stay a night with a friend who goes to LSU Law School then make it to Gainesville, FL to be with my family for a weekend or so to celebrate my Uncle George and his life after his recent passing. After that my plan was to drive up the East Coast and to see my grandparents in Maryland then make my way to my parents house in New Jersey.

I wanted to make the trip to prove to myself that I am capable of doing things on my own. I have always been a homebody and I am sad to say that I regret not going out more and having more friends throughout college. Sure, it has paid off in the way of grades, but when I look back, that is all I can say I have achieved. Do I want my life to be like a corny coming of age movie? No, but I do spend a lot of time thinking about what could have been.

From here on out, this blog as my witness, I hereby swear to put myself out there more. Say yes to the opportunities that come my way, especially if they put me outside of my comfort zone. And most importantly, live my life like I have been afraid to live it.


-Kelly out!

Week 5 Journal PSYC 1300-004

Sorry I have been M.I.A. for the past week, when the wi-fi goes down it a foreign country, it is not apparently a simple fix. However, I am back now! This week, we are going to talk about social media, ironic.

Envision a world where you can log into your virtual classroom without leaving your bed, where you can work in real time with fellow classmates; posting information and collaborating on projects. What if you could take exams from your kitchen table, and never have to waste money and gas driving to campus.

Oh, wait. That’s already happening. I am doing it right now!

Regardless of how you attend class, do your assignments, or work with classmates, we all use social media. Don’t think of yourself as the social media “type?” Well, you are reading this, aren’t you? Yeah that’s what I thought…

Personally, I have a private Facebook account, Twitter account, multiple Gmail accounts, this blog, Instagram, and even a really old Neopets account. Social Media takes up a good portion of my downtime, and I bet it does yours too. These days it is hard to ignore social media, everyone wants you to “friend them” on (insert media site name here), and believe me, it gets awkward when you tell someone you don’t use social media. In this day and age, most people my age thinks it’s strange and that you must have something to hide if you don’t use social media.

In higher ed, social media is playing an increasingly important and potentially dangerous role.

Potentially dangerous, you say? We will get to that in a bit…

Most of us that are in college and possibly even high school use some form of online communication to work with professors and classmates between class meetings. My school personally uses Blackboard. This technology enables us to communicate quickly and effectively, work on assignments, and collaborate with each other. This is one of the definite up-sides to social media.

Dangerous, oh yes. Potentially, that is. With social media becoming the centerpiece for many debates, especially surrounding bullying online and suicide, it is important to use it for good, not evil and that can be difficult to do without breaching someone else’s privacy. Also, we all know it is important to keep work and home lives separate. I personally feel the same about school.

While there are many advantages to being so connected to others in this day and age, there are also disadvantages as well as I’m sure many of us know. How many times have you been sitting at dinner with friends and all they do is play with their phones? How many times have you made this offense yourself? I worry about how we continue to rely on technology in both personal and educational settings. Have you ever seen Wall-E? I worry we will all become the zombified humans in the hover-chairs with tv screens glued to our faces.

Until next time,

Kelly 

Week 3 Journal PSYC 1300-004

I'm coming to y'all from MEXICO!

This week, let’s discuss how we learn, what works, and what does not work. I believe myself to be an effective learner. I know what works for me, and I understand that the way I learn may not be effective for everyone else. I’m hoping today that I can perhaps give you some ideas to become a more effective student.

Regardless of the type of material I am attempting to learn, I always utilize four particular learning strategies: flashcards, specific note taking, reading aloud, and outlining.

Let me tell you, flashcards are truly a wonderful tool, more useful that just plain writing things down and it is easier to quiz yourself as well. Flashcards work well in all types of courses- ones where you need to understand the material as well as apply the material.

Specific note taking is a very useful tool to utilize, it basically means taking your notes and organizing them in a specific ways. What I like to do is use different markers to signify different things, and highlight definitions. This strategy is used both in class and while outlining my work at home. As discussed in week 1, I also color code basically everything as well.

Finally, I will read the chapter once to myself, then go back through and outline what seems to be the most important. It’s important to read the chapter once to distinguish what material is “fluff.” After I finish my outline, I will then read the chapter aloud. Sometimes reading aloud is useful because you tend to read more slowly, and it is easy to pick out more details that you may have missed the first few times.

For courses such as mathematics, if I am having trouble understanding a concept, I will use a website called “Khan Academy,” which has useful videos and instructional content that is very, very useful, AND FREE!

As stated above, I know everyone learns material differently, this is what works for me, and hopefully it can work for you as well. I also think it is important to point out that if there are tutoring services made available to you, I sincerely hope you will utilize those, because they can be very, very helpful.

Until next time,

Kelly 

Week 2 Journal PSYC 1300-004

In my opinion, academic transformation is a combination of things, both internal and external.

Internally, the process of achieving an academic transformation begins with realizing what needs to be done and mapping out a path to making those things happen. Basically, a game plan. 

There may be some sacrifices that need to be made in order to achieve an academic transformation, such as social life or work commitments. This is the point where one must evaluate and determine what is most important at this very moment.

Externally, the process of achieving an academic transformation begins with finding what works for you in the way of learning, studying, etc.

Personally, I learn best when I am able to experience it for myself with hands-on application. I also find that I would rather teach myself as opposed to sitting in a classroom listening to a lecture. 

As far as studying is concerned, I find that I am at my sharpest in the early morning, and that I almost always need music in the background to motivate me when writing (like right now)!

It is important to keep in mind that everyone is different and there is not a "one size fits all" approach to learning. 

I learn through visual cues!

At this moment in my life, I feel as though I have never needed to make that transition from a teacher-directed learner to an autonomous learner. From the very beginning of my schooling, I was constantly getting in trouble for moving ahead in assignments or doing things my own way, when I would always end up with the correct end result. High school was the worst, when the teachers attempted to force me into writing a research paper with all the steps (outlining, note card making, editing, restructuring, etc). I found these steps to be unnecessary and always received an "A" on the end project. Like I said earlier, there is no "one size fits all" approach to learning and I believe students in general would be more successful overall if they weren't forced into this sort of approach.

When it comes to being an autonomous learner, there are many areas where I am very proficient, including: 

• Having a realistic view of myself and my academic abilities.
• Setting a high level of academic values and ethics.
• Obtaining the ability to set realistic and appropriate academic goals.
• Knowing my learning strategies and weaknesses.
• Managing my academic behaviors.

With all good, there is also some bad, including:

• The ability to vary learning strategies.
• I think this comes from me being so anal about how I learn and knowing what always has worked for me in the past. I do not want to try and change that up and risk earning a bad grade.
• In the future, I can attempt to break this habit by perhaps studying for an exam in a different manner or taking my class notes in a different way.
• How I utilize (or don't utilize at all) academic resources.
• Every semester we have someone come into class and explain what the learning lab is and how to use it. Have I ever used it? NO, not willingly. Over the summer, we were offered extra credit for going to tutoring. I went, read my book to myself and then talked to tutor, who then signed my paper.
• In the future, and by future I mean in this course, I am going to step out of my comfort zone and work in a group for our Panel Discussions, much to my chagrin.

I am by no means a "perfect student." I know that I have many odd quirks and strange ways of doing things. Hopefully in the future, I can learn to let go a little and just go with the flow, except when it comes to my "game plan," that is non-negotiable.

Until next time,

Kelly

Week 1 Journal PSYC 1300-004

My goal has always been to earn my degree. The road to get here however, well, that's a different story.

When I first began college in my home state of New Jersey, I was pursuing Education with a minor in English.

I quickly learned however, that I was not actually interested in the idea of teaching at 18 years old, I didn't want to be responsible for anyone but myself.

While at ACC, I have jumped between Social Work, Paralegal, and finally settled for General Studies just so I can hurry up and graduate.

In the spring I will be attending Southwestern University and I finally feel like I am happy with my decisions. At SU I will be studying both Political Science, and Business. I was leaning towards majoring in Political Science but I know a major in Business is more marketable.

Having a degree is very important to me, I will be the first person in my immediate family to graduate from college; and I know that having a degree will open many doors that were previously closed to me.

After earning my Bachelors, my goal is to attend Law School. That is very far down the road at this point, so I am just taking it a semester at a time.

In the meantime, I am occupying what little free-time I have by doing volunteer work in my community. I work with a number of charities, including The Literacy Council of Williamson County, The Georgetown Public Library, Ronald McDonald House, AIDS Services of Austin, SafePlace, Capital Area Food Bank, and Meals on Wheels, to name a few.

Phi Theta Kappa Officer Induction

I am also a member and officer within the International Honor Society, Phi Theta Kappa, where I have been presented with so many wonderful opportunities that I wouldn't have experienced otherwise.

On top of all this, I also work 32 hours a week in the Admissions and Records office at the Round Rock Campus!

I know that if I did not have my family by my side and supporting me both mentally and emotionally, I would not be able to accomplish all the things that I take on at once (many times it is too many)! I currently live at home, with my grand-parents. I am very grateful for them because they also assist me financially; we have an agreement where they will pay my car insurance and gas if I keep my GPA above a 3.5. So far so good! There are always pros and cons to living with family versus living alone or perhaps with other college students. I find myself having to remind my Grandparents constantly that I need quiet space to study in so many times I will wake up earlier than them to get my work done. I find that I am definitely a morning person, much to my own dismay!

My Syllabi Matrix and Comprehensive Notebook-
look at those tabs!!!

In response to the final question that was asked (which I did not know how to seamlessly slide into my post), I found that most of the information presented within the pre-chapter was old information or tips that I have picked up over my three years in college. One thing I really liked, which I have never done, was the Syllabi Matrix. I always compile calendars and keep my syllabi in my notebook, but it never occurred to me to make a "master plan."

I have a slight obsession with YouTube videos where girls explain how they organize their notebooks and courses for school. There are also a lot of great tips on note taking which I have taken into my own practice as well.

This chapter is definitely a good refresher for us old pros and a very nice, comprehensive overview with many tips for the newbies as well. I enjoy the way our textbook is organized and it is quite interesting. I found myself 3 pages deep in Chapter 1 before I realized that the pre-chapter was over!


Until next time,
Kelly