Reflections of December

My first semester of blogging is over. Reflecting on the past months I can't remember what learning was like before this semester. I remember spending money on books just to sell'em and forgot'em after a couple months. I remember spending lots of time in Microsoft word trying to perfect my assignments for lots of classes. Everything I did was based on fitting professors requirements and getting the grade.

Now learning is very different to me. I like doing homework because there is something I can do to better the world around me. My education is fading from the me-centered, impress-the-teacher-to-get-the-grade sentiment to an attitude of improvement that lasts longer than the deadline. Case in point, to study for a final exam, I translated content from a PowerPoint lecture to a Prezi that I can invite my professor to edit. The Prezi will make his lectures a little more visually appealing, and it helped me study for the test. (I got a 95% on the final; I haven't completely got past caring about grades.)

Digiciv was a remarkable experience because it taught me to learn in a whole new way. The focus of a civilizations course is the history of civilization and at times I feel like a normal civ course would have been easier. In my other civ course, the grade was decided by three written exams that hurt my hand and the lectures beat my brain with boredom. However, I didn't have to do hardly anything, and I got the grade. Digiciv has taught me to keep on learning and to spread my knowledge. Education is not about stuffing my head with soon-to-be irrelevant facts just to dump them on a paper and forget them; education is about learning to make a difference in the world through whatever path I choose. I can't say that I have mastered all the historical content discussed in the course, but I've learned how to skim works and decide if it's worthwhile to share.

There is so much that I've been thinking about in context to this class so I made a Prezi to map my thoughts.

So what does the future hold for me? I plan to use this blog as a launch pad to further collaboration with Backpack 2.0 and other educational ventures. I've just got into a lab for the winter semester which will afford many blog posts as I learn what novel research in Bone Morphogenic Proteins is like. I feel like the blog format is nice because I can publish my ideas from the start and ask for reviews from my research advisor and other professors with whom I have a relationship. Digiciv opened my eyes to what the real world holds and I know that the principles that I've learned will govern my profession as I collaborate with peers and strengthen professional relationships through openness.

And to finish, I want to link to my favorite posts and tell a little bit about why I felt they were good posts.

1. MCAT Reformation - I really liked this post because it shows my efforts towards social discovery. I haven't published the group enough, but I figure that can come later when I'm not bogged down in finals. Just making the group was the first step and I really like the idea of saving a couple thousand dollars and helping other people do the same.
2. Web 2.0 Project continues - The post wasn't absolutely amazing, but it had an applicable screenshot to make it a little less boring and it examines my opinions between two web 2.0 formats (blogs and wikis).
3. Stupidity is Science + Sweet Stupidity - I liked these posts because first I like science; it's where I feel most comfortable. Secondly, I revisit an old idea on my blog in "sweet stupidity" and show an application of that idea (rereading research materials). It was nice to see my application of my own ideas.

I think the greatest thing about this course (and especially the blog that it requires) is that I can see myself growing from post to post and blogging for this class has helped me make connections in other classes. I know that I have grown from this class because I am accountable forever (or at least until the internet crumbles) for the things that I wrote. Accountability has made my education a sharing experience instead of just a learning experience. Thank you for reading this post and for growing and sharing with me this semester.

Open Healthcare

So I've just finished a pre-med class that constituted doctors coming once a week to tell us about the health profession. One professional after another would say in reference to the healthcare bill "No one knows what's in the bill!"

I think that someone must know what is in that bill. (As a side note, I don't believe that anything good can come from nearly 2000 pages of compromises of the simple notion "Love thy neighbor".) So how can we publicize it. I figure we need to read it. (We also need to set a word limit on crazy politicians who think anyone is going to read a bill with a quarter million words in it.)

Bills of this size make politics closed by the huge barrier-of-entry that requires one to read it for days of ones life. Bills like this one try to make democracy a monarchy where power lies in the hands of rich politicians (who typically spend millions of dollars to get elected).

So here it is, a crazy bill (seen above in one hand) and a crazy idea. Check out the open congress website for the bill and then read a page yourself from the full text. I'll read page one. This bill affects us. Take this chance to read a little for yourself.

Education from the Bottom Up

I just watched this awesome video that Kristen Cardon found and published through Diigo. Sugata Mitra spends 17 minutes showing how kids in developing countries are teaching themselves via the internet. If you're the type that wants to bridge the gap and make things more equal, then watch this movie.



This video shows the internet to be the most powerful means of teaching children what they want to know. I think it validates Marshall McLuhan's idea that "the media is the message". Students around the globe are hearing the messages that interest them and if Sugata Mitra is right, then we really can change the whole world in a matter of years, in a single generation.

MCAT Reformation

I attended a seminar on MCAT preparation. I'm considering going to medical school, but I'm not made of money. Now, I do recognize that expenses for a good education are an investment. I can understand the $230 price tag on the MCAT, but another $1800 for prep courses is too much for my budget.

I feel like Martin Luther in a way. I'm pounding my 95 theses on the internet door (I do know how to hack the MCAT Prep class sites; and I'm not that hard core). Getting into medical school should be hard, but don't believe that it should cost a lot of money. So I'm eliminating the monetary barriers to success. I first sent an e-mail to the MCAT officer in BYU's premed club to solicit ideas for forming study groups. I've also begun collecting free online resources in a Diigo group appropriately named "MCAT Prep Resources".

Next semester I'll become a member of the premed club and seek out premed students who want to save money on MCAT preparations. By finding free resources in groups and studying in groups the knowledge of the group will spread to the group members.

My hope is to reform the way students look at test preparations, turning it into a weekly study habit from the start of freshmen year until the week of their MCAT. The power to form groups and benefit from the social knowledge is far greater than any attribute tested in any assessment test. The reform isn't to save money. The reform is to change minds.

Contemplating the Beauty of Complexity

Good blog posts are not just aesthetically pleasing. Good blog posts are beautiful. But how does one define that beauty? There's lots of measuring sticks: attractive visuals, well-written content, an obvious purpose fulfilled. Trying to include everything you want creates complexity.

Like the human body, complexity can still be beautiful and natural. Ariel Szuch made a great case when she published about her book club on her blog. Ariel integrated several great outcomes into one post.
First, she read a historical book that gives context to the content of our class.
Second, she created a Prezi of her own accord. This shows some self-directed learning.
Third, her Prezi was a remix of the section of the book she read. It sounds like she is embracing the digital culture by remixing content.
Finally, she spread the love by publishing the simple steps to familiarize her readers about Prezi.

The blog hit so many points of our class that it needed a nomination for great blog posts from this semester. Way to go Ariel.