Research Project Proof of Learning Report

This Final report is a summary of my research activities. This course was an enjoyable one, especially when it came to the research project. I was appreciative of the fact that we were allowed to choose the topic we wished to research and tie it back into the course content.

The reason I chose sheet metal fabrication was largely due to my familiarity with it. I have worked at the same place since high school and have geared my degree (Engineering Technology) to working there. What this project did for me was to study the growth of the industry since the "good ol' days". This research further lead me to believe in how crucial our business is to everyday life.

Of all the research I did, I value the testomony of the four men cited in my annotated bibliography above all the rest. While the literature proved beneficial, the personal spoken opinions of people, in my opinion, far outweigh any text or written knowledge.

This class opened my eyes to technology in a different light. I had taken two online courses before this and had found them educational, but stripped down. This class proved to be both challenging and enjoyable. I particularly enjoyed the online style of debate amongst us. Overall, I believe that this is a quality course that I would recommend to anyone needing to satisfy this requirement.

Proof of Learning Report Week 3

This week's subject matter centered largely around the use of discussion boards. Before this class, discussion boards were a new thing for me. I wasnt too sure how they could be effectively used to stimulate learning. What I found was that the discussion boards actually stimulate learning by showing all points of view. One classmate may be in agreement with me on the topic of asynchronous learning for example, but usually we were in agreement for different reasons. These boards have made the subject matter more interesting and fun to learn about and debate.

Through the discussion board, a debate as to whether mixed mode classes were more effective than strict online or strict in-person classes. Joel Steichen raised a good point when saying, "One of the shortcomings of online asynchronous forums is that they do not “promote the coherent and interactive dialogue necessary for conversational modes of learning". One could say that discussion boards make up for this, but truth be told, nothing can take the place of verbal discussion. I further added that, "The content matter discussed out loud between us would be much easier to understand for some of us auditory learners." Many others shared in our agreement.

I was also through our discussion board that I decided to make a website on weebly.com for our research project. I can include videos and other demonstrations on this page to accurately describe the information I intent to present. This, in my opinion, is a great way to submit a project as the majority of our class has been directly or indirectly tied to today's technology.

E-Zines (online editions of magazines) were discussed toward the end of the week. This was of particular interest to me because I subscribe to some E-Zines myself. I feel that they are a great asset to students for several reasons. First, reading a print version or an electronic version are no different. The same opinions are formed as the content matter doesnt change. Second, they are more portable. With today's technology in mobile devices and notebook computers, having thousands of pages of information is common and easy. Third, e-zines are easy to get around for research purposes. I have used magazines for many projects and papers over the years. The ability to search for a particular article or subject matter save students time and effort. Plus, with today's search engine technology, it is easy to filter out inaccurate and uncredible information.