Reflection #1: Most Likely to Succeed & FIPPA

Here are a few points related to our first week of class:

1. I came across quite a few new terms and concepts while making my blog. There is a lot of information on the OPIC site and the worry of not understanding things and ending up infringing on the rules was one of my first feelings. I wasn’t sure exactly what to take away from reading the FIPPA Guide. I hope I will never have to know about the rules for after a complaint is made or if I need to make a complaint. I think some examples may be helpful. The last two pages about reaching out for research purposes seemed like it may be relevant.

The website Terms of Service Didn’t Read lists the shortened TLDR version to learn what the privacy policies are for a website. I am always overwhelmed by how long Terms of Services are but I feel discomfort signing without at least some knowledge of them, so I appreciate this kind of website immensely.

2. I really value the examples that are listed on the ISTE descriptions. I found it helpful for imagining being in the role and doing these things. I will definitely refer to these again later on.

3. I enjoyed watching the movie “Most Likely to Succeed.” Many points resonated with me and urged me to continue thinking about them. For example: The study that found 3 months after leaving school, most students failed tests that they did quite well on 3 months earlier. I always joked in high school and university that once I finish a test my brain flushes out everything to make room for the next test. This may not be completely off. One teacher in the movie mentions how he didn’t feel ready for team collaboration and open ended tasks after leaving Berkley university. I felt similarly unprepared when I was job searching and lacked many qualifications, and even once I started my jobs. I imagine that the student’s self-critiquing done at the end of their projects can help encourage more self and socially aware citizens.

My first thought after seeing High Tech High was ”Wow, this looks like a fun place to be.” I appreciated the variety of choices and how much conversation there was. The students were getting out of their comfort zones by designing new things without too much guidance from the teacher and having to problem-solve together. One mom was rightfully afraid of having “doors closed” for her son by not knowing the “memorized facts” that most other kids are learning for the SAT. Yes they are only covering about half of the content, but the traditional push for numbers discourages other subjective things like scientific inquiry and art. Society is currently stuck in a position where getting high grades with a shallow level of learning is more important that actually learning useable skills. I think a bit more training in group and soft skills would have allowed my self confidence to grow faster, rather than being so focused on numerical grade after grade that only incentivized a shallow view of myself. I have also learned how creating things can provide a lot more satisfaction than doing well on a test thanks to one night of cramming.