Annie Mazzarella

Reflection Paper Assignment

EDT 180 Section A
April 26th, 2017

I was not wholly sure what to expect from EDT 180. To be completely honest, I was not very

excited or interested in the class, I was simply enrolled in it to fulfill a CIS requirement for my

major. However, I am a truly positive person, so I came to class every day (minus only two days,

both of which I was sick) with a positive attitude, prepared and engaged to learn. This turned out

to be a self-fulfilling prophecy; I learned so much, and even made friends with some of my

classmates. Thank you, Mr. Lewallen, for a great semester filled with growth and learning.

As far as the actual material and objectives discussed in the syllabus, one of them is defined as

Be able to discuss issues surrounding computers, software and the use of technology in the

classroom and workplace fluently. I definitely think I achieved the goal of this objective. I

learned a lot about Microsoft Office, (fun fact: halfway through the course, I edited my

professional resume to say Microsoft Office: full proficiency) Photoshop, screencasting, and

computer programming. These are all topic areas that dont necessarily interest or excite me, and

ones that I would have never pursued on my own, but topic areas that I can now say I know a lot

about. I understand the importance of being literate with several of these programs as they

pertain to the modern business and educational world, and definitely think I have achieved

sufficient literacy in order to succeed in both business and school. For instance, my newfound

Excel proficiency helped me make spreadsheets of clients for my internship this semester, a paid

position at a digital marketing firm. My newfound Photoshop proficiency helped me design

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banner images for blog posts and articles my boss wrote for our clients. The importance of

computer literacy in the professional world has already come to fruition for me, and Im glad I

was simultaneously enrolled in this class while completing my internship this semester.

The second objective defined in the syllabus is Demonstrate your ability to use computer

applications for productivity, data analysis, and problem solving. As a personal anecdote, I have

a few close friends who are Computer Information Systems majors, and who absolutely love data

analysis, coding, computer programming, and IT consulting and cybersecurity. They were so

excited when I told them about the coding assignments I received through this class and how I

learned the basics of programming! Admittedly and totally honestly, data analysis and problem-

solving are not my strongest skills, even after completing this course. However, I am better at

both of these applications after completing this course. I had to think about the most efficient and

productive ways to solve problems and get from Point A to Point B during our Star Wars game

coding assignment, which definitely helped me improve my own personal problem-solving and

critical thinking skills. I can say the same about Excel, I had no idea you could plug functions

into that thing! I expanded the scope of my knowledge to increase my productivity and

efficiency, as well as gained skills I feel like I can apply to other areas of my life, such as the

problem-solving and critical thinking skills I mentioned earlier that are relevant to any difficult

situation, academic or otherwise.

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Thank you, Mr. Lewallen, for an interesting and pleasant semester, your kindness and positive

attitude made all the difference. I enjoyed your class and I have so many technical skills (and a

pretty snazzy portfolio) to show for it!

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