Thursday, 24 October 2013

3rd PDP entry

Since my last blog, i have improved upon various skills, which i was able to develop during doing a presentation on communication barriers, amongst other things.

The areas for improvement which i have improved upon are as follows:
  1. Speaking in Public/ infront of a group, through the recent presentation, i am now able to stand up infront of an audience better, with more confidence in what i am doing.
  2. I am also better at time management, as i am able to keep ontop of work better now than earlier, and in september at the time of my last post, as i can now keep up with deadlines more efficiently, thus giving me more time to complete new assignments, and also for any other work which arises.

These are the main things which have changed over the past month or so since my last blog entry.

Tuesday, 17 September 2013

M3


Types of learning style:

By understanding your most apt learning style, you can  focus more on that style; thus, you will be able to learn more in the time/ space you have to study the topics. By doing this, you will understand topics more, unlike if you focused on the styles that do not aid you, which would only slow your progress.

 

Also, if you know your learning style, then you will be able to find your optimum work time, i.e. working in the evenings more than the mornings may help you to absorb the information better, as your brain can function easier on the task at hand. Thus, by knowing your peak times, you hand in assignments which receive higher grades, as your brain is able to function the full information better, thus will be able to both grasp the concept better, and will be able to output work at a more efficient rate.

 

My own learning style is kinaesthetic, which means I learn best when I can do the physical work or practice of any given subject, rather than learning out of a textbook or other such resource.

 

Thursday, 12 September 2013

Strengths and Weaknesses


1st BLOG – 05/09/2013

Introduction

My name is Craig; I went to Bishop Rawstorne C of E High School, wherein I did a double distinction star ICT course. After which, I moved to Runshaw, and completed the AS year of Computing, unfortunately my other subjects’ grades disallowed me to continue with the course, so, as I wish to go onto a career within IT, I chose the Level 3 extended diploma in IT. I aim to continue my high attendance this year. My main hobbies are reading, of which I mainly read ancient war novels, i.e. Roman, Carthagian, etc; gaming, which I do to pass the time, and also to have fun; and Sailing, for which I have a 31ft westerly Berwick leisure yacht and sail upon the river Ribble.

Strengths

1 – Computer/software skills – I am well versed in using computers for most of my life, so the usage of computers and their software comes naturally to me

2 -  Resilient – I am strong minded, thus I can keep going when I carry out tasks, such as if something goes awry, I am not put off or “down” about it, I just carry on and get it done

3 - Imaginative – I have and I do read a lot of books, thus my imagination has been expanded countless times, enabling me to understand most things I come across. Thus, I am not held back by language problems as a lot of my generation tend to be, and can get on with work swiftly and efficiently.

4 - High Standards – I always keep my standards high, since, if a job can be done well/ carried out well, then it should be done so

5 - Fast typing skills – I am able to type correctly quickly, thus I can complete work faster

6 - Strong minded – I often debate with people over various topics and can always defend my own ideas, no matter who it is that I am arguing with

7 - Punctuality – I always keep up a high attendance and turn up on time, in accordance with my high standards, of over 99% attendance over my high school/college time

8 - Mature – I try to always be mature about my work, and not mess around when I am completing work, or tasks I have been given

9 - Respectful – I believe respect is one of the most important factors of life, however, I believe that respect must be earned, not freely given, else it is meaningless

 




 

 

Areas for improvement

1 -Speaking in public – I have never been very good at standing up infront of an audience and speaking, whether it be presentations or other. It is important for both the rest of my life, likely in jobs in the IT field and also, for my course at college, where presentations seem to be a normality to getting the grades/ assignments. To improve this, I should do more parts of any speaking presentation to improve my own skills at speaking.

2 - Pessimism – I do tend to be rather pessimistic with things in life, always seeing the worse aspects, “the glass is half empty” and such. To improve this aspect of myself, when I am completing work, to perhaps have a break after doing so much, or to listen to music to keep myself fully interested, lest I get pessimistic about it, thus, I don’t get distracted so much.

3 - Time management – I do get distracted via playing games etc. Thus, I tend to run out of time in a day to be able to complete work and do not realise it. To improve, I will plan my work, so I can always keep on top of any deadlines, and also, will do work before any recreation, and use study times in college wisely, so as to minimise any work to be completed at home where there are more possible distractions than in college, which also helps me to keep ahead of the work/ get it in on time.

4 - Easily distracted- I get distracted very easily and so I often complete part of my work and then become distracted by something or other, however, a way I have found to keep my concentration on the task I have, is to listen to music, in order to both drown out background noise which often distracts me, and also to fully set my mind on the task, which also ties in with my time management skills.


I shall hopefully have improved somewhat on each of these areas for improvement by the end of december 2013.