Week 11

Happy Thanksgiving!

This week was short, but I will attempt to produce as much quantity as possible.

Pretty much to sum up the week it was all testing. I mean seriously, we had testing on Monday (didn't go too good), Tuesday, and we (5th hour) didn't even have the class on Wednesday, so that's going to be the subject about this short week.

Making the project was a little irritating. Why it was so vexing can be seen in my previous post. But I did manage to get it done, surprisingly. I wanted to make mine as best as possible, meaning using one of those styrofoam coolers, that metallic-looking insulator, etc, but I didn't have that around. I wasn't willing to spending money on such a trivial assignment, so I went with the things I had around me: Some foam coffee cups, extra packing foam from one of my Dad's recent jobs, tape, and even a mini towel. To my surprise, this thing performed well, keeping a 97.9% retention rate. I hope that's good enough, but I must remember that these standards don't really count for any sort of cogent grade. Oh well, it was good I guess. A better way to pass the time I suppose?

Anyways, I was happy to also see that everyone else was getting into the project. I don't think anyone opted out, which was great (I guess that's just an expectation). I wonder if the sense of competition made them much more immersed. If that were true, is that such a good idea? Yes they are working harder, but they are also working against each other, yes? There are teams, but as a whole maybe this discourages teamwork. I can't be sure, but I believe I saw this attitude in at least a couple people directly. I guess I'll have a better idea with more of the upcoming projects.

untitled

Going into unit three I'm not really 100% about the last unit. I'm still iffy and maybe this is translating to this unit. I don't really know what we are even studying right now (a few classmates agree), and how it will expand into a larger unit. We've gone over the fact that heat is not energy, but it is rather a form. Makes sense to me, and that temperature is very much different in the sense that is simply a measurement of temperature.

Regarding the class I am now a lot more comfortable with the people and it seems like everyone is okay with each other. It's not like a lot of other classes where people can easily turn on each other. Maybe that's because this environment is more constructive? Maybe so. Still, it's good to see the constructiveness of the other students. I am actually a little glad to switch seats every unit. It lets us meet new people and we aren't grouped with the same people for such a long time, vs classes that *may* offer us to switch seas every quarter, or even every semester, or even all year...not cool.

Concerning the recently assigned project, I'm not too happy about the whole thing. Why? I remember last year I did many pointless, time-consuming projects from H Physics that only frustrated me and taught me nothing. I guess they were supposed to make the class 'fun' but I never saw any fun it the activities. The best part is, if it doesn't work, this 'fun' project affects your grade. The previous project was easy, but that doesn't change anything. It was still pretty stupid. It didn't really teach me anything, and it consumed time. This is the same thing. Only this time, it is taking more time, and more work. And now the grading is competitive? The project better be weighted very little, because some people won't be very happy.

Week 9

So the first quarter is over.

I think I already emphasized on how crazy fast it went by, so I won't keep rambling on that subject. Instead I will elaborate on my quarter's success.

It was such a success, because one day I went on pinnacle to find an A+ in this class. Well, that's interesting. I am certainly happy abut it, as anyone would be too. How did this happen? It could be because of the new classroom standard system, and how it allow for better success for every student. If that were the case, is everyone getting a similar grade? I am really curious how this is working for everyone else. But my other thought is, maybe its a mix of the new system and my last-year strategy. My last year's strategy was created while taking H. Physics with Mr. Pata. The strategy is simple. Learn along with the class, but ease of the pressure of assessments. Normally this stresses out people, but it's no problem for me because I know I can always re-assess, and I know exactly what to re-assess. This helps because often times I am stumped on some questions that seem to have a totally different scenario with what we learned in class when taking tests in other classes. With this, I know exactly what to study with good examples provided on the original assessment. But the other half of this strategy is to always re-assess. Even if it's a 3, I typically re-assess to get the best possible grade. If I get a 1 or a two, that's a guaranteed re-assess. No compromises. No matter how long it takes for me to learn, I always do this. That's just a general belief that I have. It's important to realize that effort can typically balance my abilities.

With that, it's a good probability that I will continue the same strategy in the upcoming quarters. My only concern maybe that I tried too hard too early and I am already tired of school. Seeing as my grades are of admirable quality, I fear that this may not be the case when I begin to experience academic fatigue, or aka Senioritis. I kind of did the same last year, where I saw a significant drop in grades the 2nd quarter. Hopefully I can learn from my mistakes and continue this year's success.

The class itself is going alright. For a time I was a little confused about the stuff we were learning about, and those work sheets that we never really got into. Those are gone now, but they still worry me if they ever come back someday. This unit is now over, and for the most part it's all good, but I guess I will see how true that statement is when I am returned Friday's assessment.

Week 8

Done with first quarter. Feels like I won a war, but it's just getting started. Times have been flying. I'm very eager to see how my grades will turn out.

With our class, it's working out well. Nothing has seemed to pick up pace in terms of the concepts and materials to learn. Difficulty remains the same. Last assessment was interesting though. That was a cool way to assess, how everyone pitched in. Looks like a future form of assessment perhaps? Maybe not though because it does not  focus on an individual's understanding. So I guess this will slide this time? Oh well. I hope the science department gets more paper! But besides all that fun, there's something that I've been wanting to discuss but I never had the time to talk about it nor did I have the experience on the topic. I was actually going to write this into the additional comments section on the survey, but it was too long so I put it here:


It seems like technology is very frequently used in this class. Maybe I'm a little slow to technology, but it's crazy to think that just 4 to 5 years ago that if someone had an iphone, they were the coolest person in the class. Now, it's so commonplace. I remember one arrogant student (in another period) asking the question: "Who doesn't have an Iphone?

That really upsets me. All because you and some friends possess something doesn't mean the whole world does! I for one don't have one for some reasons. Mostly because of economic reasons really. For starts the thing is expensive by itself, and not even including the monthly plan. But my parents are losing hours, my Mom's might be laid off, and my Dad now has to work two jobs to get the same income we were getting a few years ago. So with that in mind, it's not the most efficient choice in terms of cost. But the other reason why I don't have one, or any other apple product for that matter, is my own choice. I'm not big on these cliche, sheep devices. I'm not going to shell out big bucks on a product just because everyone has one. My money goes to the best product, or often time the one that will suffice. That's why I spend 1/4 of $1200 for a laptop, 1/3 of $200 for a media player, or 1/10 of $1000 for a phone. Most of the time it's funny to see the costs of these things for silly things like (call me an idiot, I don't care) for the NAME, or an OPERATING SYSTEM. Seriously. I've got no hate towards Apple products; I only disgust the superfluous pricing. 

But, back to the original topic of thought, I am surprised on the amount of tech used in this class. Often I feel left out when everyone in the class is doing work on their devices, and I'm just sitting there...
But hey, maybe that won't be a problem when Christmas comes around?