Content:

Without a doubt, this course was laden with new computer-related content for me to absorb. Although I was previously familiar with how to use the computer for basic tasks, such as email, word processing, and library searches, I was quite nervous about the other topics covered in this course. However, the way in which the new concepts, such as subscribing to mailing lists, creating a personal weblog, and working with Power Point software, were gradually introduced, week by week, helped to alleviate some of my initial apprehensions about the course. The amount of content covered in this course is so extensive it is difficult to find a place to begin discussing it. One of the first tasks required for students enrolled in this course is to complete a weekly online journal. The journal provides a place for students to write about the processes used in completing the weekly assignments, to plan for and think critically about future assignments, and present any questions or concerns related to the course. In addition to the writing completed for the weekly online journals, students are required to write about past, present, and potential future learning experiences by responding to a variety of different writing prompts and articles related to information literacy and lifelong learning. Students are also required to subscribe to an online mailing list, participate in online discussion with other classmates by using the Northwoods MOO, evaluate credibility of web sites and other online information, and learn to be an effective navigator of the world wide web. Perhaps the assignment students hold in the highest esteem is the ongoing creation of a multi-genre research project, or MRP. The MRP is similar to a research paper because it examines a central question. Students must develop an essential question, along with a variety of foundation questions that must be researched in order to help answer the primary question. However, the MRP differs from a research paper in many ways. For instance, information is presented by way of different genres, or perspectives, on the central issue. The seven completed genres must also be written in at least three different voices, whereas a research paper is generally written in only one voice. The author must create fictional characters to assume the various different voices. Creation of fictional characters is a way for the researcher to relate his/her research to people, and in turn, present ways in which the given topic affects different people. The genres in my MRP include a webliography, poem, power point presentation, email exchange, interview, journal entries, and a letter to the employer. The first three genres mentioned were required for each student’s MRP. However, the genres following the initial three were personal choices of mine. My genres included the voice of the clinician, the clinician’s supervisor, the client, and the client’s wife. By including many diverse points of view in my genres, I feel the reader gains a greater perspective on the feelings and beliefs that many different parties may possess regarding one central issue. The seventh and final genre is created to connect each of the previous genres and to further develop a central theme, hence the name, “unifying genre.” Along with posting genres on my personal weblog, I also had to create various other MRP writings such as the preface, about the author, acknowledgements, table of contents, and references sections. All assignments in this class build upon each other and help students to become more computer and information literate. This is evident in the way that the computer-related skills students learn throughout this course are essential in order for the students to create a thorough, well-researched, and credible multi-genre research project.

Process:

One of the first processes required in order to be successful in this course was to access the CD. 315 home page early in the week in order to find the assignments that must be completed throughout the week. I learned to be very flexible in regards to the times I completed my assignments for this class. My other courses frequently dictated when I had the time to work on my weekly assignments for this course. Sometimes I completed the easy assignments, or rather those that didn’t require an extensive amount of time to complete, early in the week and left the lengthier assignments for the end of the week. Looking back, I’m not sure that this was the best way to approach the weekly assignments, but it worked for me. I probably should have started on the harder, more time consuming assignments first instead of putting them off until the end of the week. I undoubtedly learned a great deal about self-discipline this semester. Since this was a class primarily conducted online with no actual physical classroom environment, I had to learn to discipline myself to complete my weekly assignments and conduct research on my own time, without being reminded by attending class. This particular semester was a very difficult one to have this class and I would recommend that any student take this course prior to the fall semester of their senior year. I eventually realized that my work always got completed by the deadline, no matter how much or how little I would stress about it. Therefore, I learned not to get so worked up about the assignment deadlines for this class because my assignments always got finished on time and I always had the option of making revisions to my original submissions. After researching my essential question, I had the information I needed to write all of the different genres, so it was just a matter of getting the motivation to write them. I loved the MRP for the fact that it allowed me to be creative in presenting my research information. I felt this made me feel more connected to my project and the research I conducted. It’s always easier for me to remember information when I connect it to myself in some way. There’s nothing quite as personal as my own thoughts and feelings, so integrating them into my different genres was a great way for me to not only remember the research I conducted, but to also give it a personal flair. Another process I utilized throughout this semester was becoming proficient at posting writings on my blog. I always typed everything out on Microsoft word and then copied and pasted to my blog page. This is probably one of the most important pieces of advice I would offer to future blog creators. I actually became very proficient with the copy and paste process throughout this semester and when I created the links in my genres and table of contents, I frequently drew upon my knowledge of this skill. I also refined my peer reviewing skills by completing frequent reviews on my group members’ genres. In regards to topic selection, it wasn’t difficult for me to arrive at an essential question for my topic, yet, it was hard to come up with the corresponding foundation questions before I had researched my topic. I found myself frequently revising my foundation questions when I came across more information that I felt was critical to present in order to answer my essential question. The three required genres provided me with a good starting point for my MRP, but the other genres required a great deal more thought. It was an interesting process to create fictional characters and write from their perspectives, while still including pertinent research information into my genres. This definitely took a lot of thought and planning to accurately present the genres written from different characters’ points of view. I’m still unsure if I accurately presented the feelings and thoughts of a client learning English as a Second Language and a clinician planning therapy for this client, but I certainly tried my best. The genres that focused primarily on the client’s feelings were the poem and journal entries, while the email exchange, webliography, letter to the employer, journal entries, and power point were mostly written from the clinician’s perspective. In the email exchange, I also presented the perspective of my fictional client’s wife and in the letter to the employer, the clinician’s supervisor’s thoughts were depicted. I used the letter to the employer to tie all aspects of my project together because I wanted the clinician to inform the client’s employer (who initially requested services for the client) of all that has taken place in therapy throughout one semester. Looking back, I feel that this letter really provides a sense of cohesiveness to the project and I am proud of how it turned out. It was tricky to incorporate all of the links to previous genres in the body of the final letter, but I think I created scenarios where the links fit quite nicely. Another process that I constantly used for this course was revising. It seemed like every other day I went back to my blog and made revisions on my previously submitted work. I learned that the sooner I completed a revision, the more progress was made on my project. Even though all work for this project must be submitted by Sunday, December 8th, I still feel that I will go back to my blog to make some minor corrections or updates in the future, so that readers will continue to value my work as credible and current.

Premise:

Not only have I learned more about accessing online information, conducting research, working with weblogs, judging the credibility of information presented online, and creating a new type of research project, I have also learned a great deal more about myself as a student. I have learned how to manage my time more effectively and I’ve learned how to create quality work under pressure (something I surely must know how to do when working in the “real world”). Often times I feel that the quality of my work improved due to the deadline because I was forced to focus intently on the content of my work and efficiently utilize a variety of different processes in order to arrive at a strong finished product. Also, while I often regarded my online journal as a hassle, I now realize just how important they were to my research project. I was able to adequately reflect upon and plan for changes in my project, as well as, use it as a constructive way to relieve frustration about this project. Therefore, I’m glad that I took the time to make each of my online journals thorough and complete because now I have a great chronicle of my journey in researching and creating my MRP this semester. It makes me proud when I compare what I know right now to what I wrote about knowing in my first few journal entries. The changes in my thinking and my level of confidence with computers and online researching have been tremendous. Establishing the credibility of online sites learned a lot more about using the library search engines and I’ve taken advantage of using the advanced searches several times throughout the course of my research. Previously, I believe the word, “advanced,” scared me and I thought that option was too “advanced” for me. Now, I feel confident with my ability to use the internet and library search engines, such as EBSCO Host and PSYCHINFO, to research almost any topic. It is a very empowering feeling to know that I am able to confidently search for the answer to almost any question that is presented to me. Of course, this doesn’t mean that I will always find the answer, but the skills that I have gained from this class will certainly allow me to gain a greater perspective on any given topic. Learning to evaluate the credibility of internet sites and other online sources of information is perhaps one of the new skills that I value the most. Prior to this class, I never really thought about the credibility of sites for some reason. Now, I look for the criteria I learned about on almost every new site I visit and I regard a site’s credibility with the utmost importance. Learning about HTML code was also quite an experience for me. I had absolutely no knowledge of HTML before this class, but now I feel comfortable working with it and with locating sites on the internet dedicated to its use. Although I certainly will not miss the extensive amount of work required for this class, I will miss chatting on the Northwoods MOO. At first, I was uncomfortable freely conversing and sharing my thoughts online, but the more I did it, the more comfortable I felt. I think that more professors should consider online meetings because I think they can really help increase unity and support within the classroom. In regards to new library search engine information, I expanded my knowledge of conducting research online. I also discovered how much I appreciate the speed of the MU library computers and how frustrating it is to work with a computer with a slow connection (like my home computer). After frequently working online this semester, I am seriously considering investing in a digital internet connection in the future. I think that the faster connection would definitely be worth the extra money, as I plan to continue to complete a great deal of work online. Another realization I made after completing my MRP is that if I ever have the opportunity to work with an English as a Second Language client, I will most definitely adopt a needs based approach to therapy, rather than one based on the results of standardized testing measures. That is unless, more standardized tests become normed on non-native English speakers in the future. Researching this topic has really enabled me to feel comfortable with the needs assessment process used for ESL clients. Exposure to a new wave of researching has allowed me to become more excited about the research process itself. This type of research project let me think through issues in an entirely new light and it challenged me to be creative when developing different perspectives on my essential question. As much as I hate to admit it, I actually had fun creating many parts of my project. In sum, this project has caused me to be more open-minded in terms of researching and has immensely improved my critical thinking and reflection skills

Future plans:

Without a doubt, in my future as a student and as a practicing clinician, I will frequently utilize the information that I have learned in this class. Possibly I will be able to converse with other speech pathologists by way of the MOO or some related program. I think that would be a wonderful way to share experiences and ideas with other professionals in the same field. Just as my peers kept me motivated for this class throughout this semester, I think that making use of email exchanges, mailing lists, or online meeting places such as, Northwoods MOO, would really kept me motivated and enthusiastic about my career as a speech language pathologist. While researching, I found many sites created by licensed speech language pathologists that were dedicated to their clients and the client’s parents. These sites provide the clients or parents of the client with ways to contact the therapist, speech and language ideas to work on at home, and overviews of the therapy process. I may consider creating one of my own in the future because I found the sites very informative. As a future graduate school student, I will surely be able to research virtually any topic with confidence due to the knowledge I’ve gained from this course. I only hope to continue researching, sharing ideas, creating work online, and learning new skills, so that I can always consider myself computer and information literate.

Provided below is a final quote to summarize my experience in this course.

"It is good to have an end to journey towards; but it is the journey that matters in the end."
--Ursula K. Le Guin

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