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In this semester’s study, there are some important online technologies for us to use in our study in university. The first useful technology is correct using email and other online communication software. It is important to communication with professor by using official university email and with my full name. Also we need avoid sarcasm, jokes, or demands/assumptions. And we should using the polite words to asking question through email. Moreover, discussion board in Carmen is also a very important communication tool among classmates. I seldom use that before because I have not realize how useful this tool is.

Blogs is an interesting tool for classmates to exchange ideas and learn things from other classmates. For this semester’s blog posting. I learned a lot from my classmates’ blog post about how they thing about the model and what their opinion for the model and their tips to using online tools efficiently. For another, the Google Doc is amazing! It provide our group members a platform to communicate efficiently and change our document accurately and efficiently. It not only an online Microsoft Office, but also a efficient group working room.

At the beginning of this semester, I have not realized about procrastination. Based on the online test score, I have some procrastination. So I tried using the different online study tools to help me overcome this bad habit. For instance, before exam some of course are hard to remember the terminology. So I tried to use the online flash card and matching game. I input those difficult words and knowledge in the website and created my own study database. After that, I just play those games several times per day, and I can remember the study guide very well by using this method. At the end of the semester, there is a same test about procrastination and time management for us, and my score is higher than before which means I did a good job through this semester.

The meaningful experience in the course are blog posting and searching. Blog posting is amazing for this is an online course. All I thought before was do my job on my own and I will never communicate with my classmate and I probably never have interaction with them. But blog post is really a helpful tool for me to know my classmates to understand how their feeling to learn different models and to know the difficulties they faced when learn the model. When I was a freshman, I don’t even know where to search the source to prepare my paper. The only tool we usually use was Google, but only focus on web search. This course teach us lot about searching a useful sources. Such as using Google Scholar, how to correct using library sources, and how to efficiently filter the sources you want.

For the knowledge I have learned in this class, I will apply them in the future study of my academic life and will apply it when I go to work. For example, the knowledge for learn new things, remember difficulties, working efficient, and online share documents. Those are very close to our lives. It can using everywhere. Such as in home, you can using Google Docs to share your travel plan and your economy plan etc. For future study, those online technology tool will provide me more way to solve a complicated problem.

In this week’s module I learned the searching & Researching strategy when we finding information online or in Library. And this strategy will be very helpful for new college students. The academic writing paper is not easy to do and require sufficient research and preparation for it.

When you trying to get the source online or in other places, you need make sure the reliability, quality and utility of the source. Just asking yourself when you picking up the source: is the contact information available? Is the author credible? What the reputation of the organization? And is this source has been peer reviewed? Be aware that Wikipedia is not a good source for you to write a paper! You can only use it to know the background information about the knowledge, just don’t put it in your paper for those information are not credible enough.

Another useful information you should know is the searching basics. When you start to search information online, you probably want try Google, Yahoo and search.com. Those are the most efficient online search engines in the world. Here are some small tips for you to make an efficient search. For instance, If you put more ANDs, it can narrower results, like Washington D.C AND White house AND Obama. If you searching white house, the results probably will show Obama which the results you don’t want. You can search by white house – Obama, then the search engine will delete the results that contain Obama. More efficiently, you can using Google Scholar to search the journal articles you want.

Here are the strategies you may interested in this week. Hope you enjoy them. 🙂

The first thing I want mention is the note taking strategy in class. This is the first time that I learn note taking in my life. I never told before how to take note efficiently. For example, when I use computer and ppt to taking the note, I can write the commons and notes of the bottom page and powerpoint. This technology just give me another way to let the lecture become more interesting and efficient. For I using pen and paper to take note will take a lot of time and can’t even pay full attention to instructor. As for taking note for online video and audio, I never tried because I think it much harder in lecture and I just listen. However there are the strategies for taking notes for online video in this week’s model: 1, write the key points. 2, break the video and note to each section. 3, If available, copy and paste the URL of the video. This bring more fun when study the online stuff because it will become easy to understand.

Another useful tool is the podcast, I never heard this terminology before but I had use that. In one of my Environmental Science class, we use the iTunes-U to take notes, view lecture slide, to preview the lectures at home and come up questions. This tools is  fabulous for college students that can help them preview new things at home, and keep the notes forever in their system. For example, instructor will put some important note in iTunes-U, if you miss a important lecture you don’t need to worry about it. Open the iTunes-U and every important point is written in. So it is so helpful for us to know more about these high technologies to enhance our learning experiences and it will be the tools for us to become successful.

For this video it teaching us the basic ideas of Microsoft Excel, it is good for new learner. It shows how to create a new spreadsheet, and entry of text and numbers.  It gives a very detailed step to show add text to different cells. How you modify the entry if you type wrong. It also teach you how to expand the cell space if you running out of space for one single cell. This video by create a simple table to tell us that how to insert different numbers and text which is very efficient and easy to remember.

The video also shows something that I never learned before.  It gives some very detailed issues, like how to adjust your cell and the text. For example, if you create a table, and you want it looks in good order. You can switch the positions of text and numbers in cell, such as move up, middle and move down. Also you can make the text to move left, middle and right. By using this method, after you printing your table in a piece of paper, it will looks more tidy than before.

Here are such useful tools that I learned this week

Schedulizer Course Planner: http://www.schedulizer.com This website provide you a online schedule to managing your class time and set event alert. For example set different examination time and project due time.  You can manage your schedule by changing different colors, or even  calculate the total credit hours of classes that you taken. It is very convenient for college students managing their time and help to build their time management skills.

Memorize.com Learning Materials: http://memorize.com This learning website provide you a very interesting learning game which you can design by yourself. Basically, it helps you to easy remember the stuff that you feel very hard and boring. It contain multiple choice questions, true false selection, and matching questions. For Example, you can set different capital cities on left column and provide answer of countries on right columns and match them. If you did right, there will be score added, which greatly help you to understand the memory staffs.

Study Stack Flashcard Tools: http://www.studystack.com This website is very similar with memorize.com Learning materials. It provide the flashcard for you to memorize the difficult words and sentences. When you created your account, you can created your own flashcard and manage the content of cards. Those technologies are pretty flexible that you can learn whatever the way you like. There are so many learning games through the learning progress. Such as Bug match, hungry bug etc. If you can remember your learning staffs well, you probably can get a very good grade on those games.

Purdue Online Writing Lab: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/ This is the most important website for college students especially for those who don’t know college writing. You can learn the basic elements that how to write a successful academic paper, like correctly use citation, references and paper style. Also this website provide more details things about the differences between MLA and APA writing style. It giving lot of information about reference from newspaper, magazine, journal article, and even videos. If you just get in college and confused about how to write a successful paper, don’t forget to visit this webpage.

Dartmouth Academic Skills Center Resources: http://www.dartmouth.edu/~acskills/success/index.html This webpage give information about how to successfully manage college time and the strategies that you need when you go to college. There are lot of suggesstions and resources for maximizing your academic experience that conveyed by video, handout, and 0nline readings. For example, you may want know how to succeeding in your first year, or you may want know in class how to taking note efficient, how to better participate in class. Or may be you want learn foreign langue and culture, this website can provide you the basic materials to warm up before go to class.

Those tools can help college students manage their time efficiently and help them build a good time management skills.

This learning blog is focus on students.

The module 3 talked about how to efficiently using online communication tools and establish your digital reputation through the communications. Here are few tips for you to understand how to deal with online communications.

First, show etiquette on the web. In internet world, it is same as you in this society to show your communication skills and reputations. Using polite word and sentence when you send email or post comments on other people’s blog, website, and Facebook. For example, avoid all caps, and add emoticons to convey tone, but use sparingly. Try to eliminate opportunities for misunderstandings.

Second, pay attention to your email. Please write accurate subject lines, using signature at the bottom of your email. Before send your email, please check the recipient and consider if that email is appropriate to send. When you send email to instructors in University, please be official and using university email and avoid sarcasm, jokes, or assumptions.

Third, writing an effective discussion post. When you trying to post a discussion online, try to compose in Word which it can help you check spell, save, and count word. Also you need add formatting and break main ideas into paragraphs. Then you need create effective subject lines and preview your pose. And don’t forget to reply your friends and classmates’ discussions on blog and Carmen.

Those are the effective ways to help you be successful in online communication. I hope you guys enjoy it.