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During this class, the most useful technological tool I learned about was google docs.  Before this class I had never used them, I had only heard about them.  I had no idea how much you are capable of doing on google docs. Another helpful tool was being introduced to different types of brainstorming techniques, like the web technique for example.  Being introduced to new learning techniques and new information can be so helpful, especially when you have the chance to try these tools out first hand.  That is really why these tools were so helpful because I was taught the proper way to use them and how much easier these tools can make everyday projects.

I think the most important thing I learned about myself was how to confront my deficiencies as a person.  One example of this is that I never realized how much time I spend between finishing a homework assignment and starting the next activity.  This was something that I never wanted to admit to myself, and because of that it was a constant struggle that I did not want to handle.  This class really helped me to be honest with myself and “look myself in the mirror” so that I could improve wherever I needed to.  Not only did this translate well in this class, I also became more transparent with myself in other settings.  So from this class, I improved in the classroom and in the work setting because I was able to confront my deficiencies and work on improving them.  I learned something that can be applied in any setting and have true benefit whenever used.

The most meaningful experience during this course was the time management sheet.  This was where we tracked our daily activities for an entire week and then categorized them at completion of that week.  I have never done an activity where I paid so close attention to how I was spending my days.  I would have never known how much time I spent eating in a single day or getting ready for work or navigating through the internet.  That experience really helped me understand that I was not being efficient with my time and that there was room for improvement.  Personally, I am always looking for ways to improve myself and it never occurred to me that recording my daily schedule could lead to so much improvement so quickly.  Because of the time sheet I have been able to make the most out of every day because I know just how much time I spend in every area, so I can limit my time in certain areas and increase time in more important areas.

As I have stated, the part of this class that I will most apply to the future is understanding how to be transparent with myself.  This is a great way to improve yourself in whichever way you want.  This is a tool that I will be able to use in any setting and will truly hold a prominent role in my development as a person.

Throughout college you will have to write some type of research or academic paper.  In my opinion, these are some of the toughest papers you have to write.  Even though there is a plethera of information at your disposal through the internet and libraries, finding reliable, credible, and useful information can be difficult.  The good thing about all of this information is that you can gather a numerous amount of view points on the topic you are writing as well as support for those view points, but distinguishing which pieces of information meet the criteria of “credible” is not easy.  My suggestion is focus on academic papers.  You know that these were written by a well informed person at a credited university.  This is a great first step to applying your research to your paper.  Now, there are still other qualifications the papers must meet before citing a source, but you have to start somewhere.  By focusing on academic papers, you can also pick up on what the most important part of  a topic is because many papers, despite having varying view points, typically will focus on the same information that is hotly debated.  Focusing on these types of topics will make it easier for you to write your paper.  With all of that knowledge you will also have a number of reliable sources that support the stance you have taken.

No matter what class you take in college, you are going to have to take notes during a lecture.  The type of lecture, the pace of the lecture, and the interest level of the lectures will all vary, but you will always have to pay attention and take notes.  Some lectures will provide power point notes, which is always very helpful.  Normally, these types of notes outline the most important points which leaves you room to insert your thoughts and questions.  Personally, whenever there is a class that has power point slides available online, I bring them to class and take notes on them.  I think this is a very easy way to stay focused on the material being presented because most of the information is already written down.  Because of this, you can take additional notes, as stated earlier.  Classes that do not offer power point slides present an additional challenge.  For these types of classes, you have to find which type of note taking strategy works best for you and for the class you are taking.  I usually use a form similar to the Cornell method, which involves an outline and some type of review of the lecture at the end.  This allows you to remember what the keys point in the lecture were while providing supporting information and examples.  In some cases though, other forms of note taking are more helpful.  For example, classes that allow creative thinking often are more effectively written down through mind webs.  This allows you to build off previous ideas and understand what those ideas stemmed from.

Many people trust television doctors event though they have been known exaggerate effects of supplements.  The FTC and the FDA have limited authority in regulating the nutritional supplement industry which allows companies to advertise supplements that do no always do what the bottle suggests.  Often times, the ingredients listed on the label of the bottles are not even found in the bottle.  This can happen because companies do not have to have approval from the FDA before marketing a product, they can make health claims without approval from the government, and do not have to prove the safety or the effectiveness of the product before selling it.  This allows nutritional companies to make outlandish claims about their products effectiveness without any regulation or consequences.

This video really gives you insight into what the nutrition industry is truly like, while presenting it in a very entertaining way.  I think this video provides great evidence to support their claims and makes it very easy to understand.  In addition, the video explains why companies are able to make outlandish claims and how it has evolved through the years.  The information provided is greatly informative and really gives you a great understanding of a global industry that effects people every day.

With an increase in technology usage, many classes require students to read online texts.  I know personally I have had to this at least once in every class.  Luckily, I read online information through twitter and yahoo, just to name a few, frequently so I am familiar with this type of learning.  I always find that trying to read a plethora of information online can be difficult because 1) it can be painful for your eyes and 2) there are so many other things you could be doing online instead of reading.  Staying focused is always an issue for me.  So what I have learned to do is break everything into pieces.  If I have a two page article to read on line, I will read the first page and then take a little mental break.  This allows me to recall the information I just finished and make sure I understand what I have read.  It also allows my eyes some rest before moving on to the next page.  By breaking the information into pieces, I am giving myself time to refocus and to make sure the previous information makes sense.  And if it doesn’t make sense I can go back and read it again.  This way if I don’t understand something I don’t have to read the entire article over.  I only have to read the part that I previously misunderstood.

In college, many classes require you to complete in class projects.  These types of assignments help build communication skills involving academic materials as well as trying to expose students to differing opinions from the classmates they work with.  Because students are so busy with other classes and extra curricular activities, it can be difficult for an entire group to meet at one time and discuss the project.  Luckily, technology is at our fingertips and allows for us to interact with classmates even if we cannot be face to face.  This type of interaction can build relationships with the other students and be a great learning experience of how to build a good relationship through technology.  From personal experience, I know that when I am writing an email I have to word things a certain way because things like sarcasm are difficult to pick up on when expressed through technology.  The most important thing to take away from that is that building a relationship through technology is different than it is in person and it does take practice and experience like anything else in order to do it successfully.  For those people that are extremely busy though, this type of communication is key when in a work place because there is so much going on and it is very tough to routinely meet with people.