Blog reflection

Blog reflection

First impression

While looking over the available classes to pursue my degree over the summer, the format of a weekend class appealed to me. Commuting from Denver to Greeley has proven to be quite a burden. Limiting my number of trips seemed ideal. As a somewhat newer member to the field of student affairs, I was hopeful that exposure to current events would bring me more up to date. Living in Steamboat Springs, CO for the past four years I feel as though I have been isolated from life outside my community college on the mountain. While we definitely had current issues of our own, I was unsure how they fit into the grand scheme of things. Were other institutes of higher education struggling to get their students to attend class when it snowed over a foot the night before? I was eager to find out!

Upon entering the class our first meeting time in Loveland I was not sure what to expect. At first, the sheer number of people in the classroom was a bit overwhelming. When I discovered that a large component of our time was going to be spent blogging I was a bit uneasy. Although I am familiar with some of the newer technologies out there, blogging was not one of them. Over the past year I have taken two classes online. One was a great success, and the other, well, was not.

When I was told that a blog would take about an hour to an hour and a half, I thought piece of cake. I can do this with no problem. I even got a little excited about entering the blogging world I have heard so much about.

While further reading into the syllabus I found several other assignments that I was unfamiliar with. A letter to the editor? A memo to your supervisor? Although I have seen the editorial column in the newspaper I had no idea what a letter to the editor actually was. A memo to your supervisor, I was totally lost with that. But I guess this falls into the topic of current issues. Not everything you write needs to be a research paper in APA format.

As with most endeavors that are unfamiliar I did expect to encounter some problems with blogging. At first I had no idea what these problems would be. I was most concerned with actually learning how to post a blog. My writing style is more to the point, and I don’t consider my self to be very creative. With this said, another concern of mine was creating a post that was both informative and engaging.

Top Blogs:

While all my blogs were a valuable learning experience, some stood out.

My blog on Slutwalks was one I thoroughly enjoyed. Reading about a movement that has been coined the most successful feminist action in the past 20 years was something I consider to be very important. Sexual assault is a prevalent issue on college campuses today and should demand attention.

A second blog on Iranian students was fascinating. The Obama administration is planning on creating a virtual embassy in Iran to rebuild our relationship with this country. The aim is to target college age Iranians and make it easier for them to study in the US. I enjoyed learning about our turbulent history with Iran in the process of writing this blog.

Like many others I posted a blog in regards to Obama’s plan to assist with student loans. I am proud of this blog mostly because I have learned so much about this topic that directly effects me. My opinions were challenged to say the least. This gave me an opportunity to reexamine my stance on the issue.

Learning Reflection

Looking back through the hundreds of posts throughout the semester I am certain that I have learned a lot. To begin, I have learned that there is a lot to learn. Reading the Chronicle of Higher Education and Inside Higher Ed has been proven to be a valuable experience, which I plan on continuing. Although our blogs have covered a wide range of topics, there is still so much not covered. The blogging process has reiterated the significance of life long learning and being familiar with hot topics.

I have appreciated learning from my colleagues during this experience. I have found that my peers have a wealth of knowledge and opinions to share. Hearing perspectives from students at other institutions and how there experiences vary from mine at UNC has been eye opening.

In addition to writing and reading blogs, I appreciate the commenting component as well. Throughout this process there have been several blogs expressing views that are significantly different from mine. Although I hesitate to admit, at first these opinions made me a bit angry. Comments questioning my views were a bit though to read. It took a while, but I have learned to value these strong opposing opinions. In fact, they have led me to question my own beliefs. Breaking up into small groups during our class sessions enhanced the blogging experience. During these discussions I was able to hear what people had to say once again and ask questions. During most discussions we never “found the answer” and the topic only become more controversial and complicated. I did learn that if the solutions were easy we would have one by now.

I value the diversity in this class as well as the other two classes I am currently enrolled in. People with different ethnicities, genders, political views and socio economic statuses have challenged me to think from different perspectives. How would I respond if I stood in their shoes?

Was this class what I expected? My answer to this is yes and no. I have learned a great deal about current issues, in fact more than I anticipated. I loved the change of pace in regards to reading information from different sources. An alternative to textbooks and journal articles was welcomed. At times I enjoyed the format of the class and at others I did not. While in class I feel as though I benefited a great deal from the engaging discussions and controversial topics. On the other hand, the lack of meeting times led me to feel a bit disengaged. My other two, more traditional classes, have given me the opportunities to get to know my classmates primarily due to the time we spend together in class. Consistent with classes in the past, I struggled with the online component. I chose to leave an online degree program knowing a classroom environment works best for me. It would have helped me if this class was advertised as a hybrid section. Difficulties I have run into during my blogging journey were what I expected. I have had comments and post simply disappear. At times I have been at a loss of words. The time commitment involved with blogging was a lot more than I anticipated. While I do not think it was an unfair amount of time to invest, it well surpassed the hour and a half time allotment I originally set aside. Most assignments take me a lot longer than others. From my experience, it took me an hour to even find a topic to write about. A little excessive I know. In conclusion, although I ran into some difficulties, I now know how to blog! I have learned a tremendous amount about current issues in the field, have had some great discussions and am walking away more knowledgeable than before.