Sylvia Jarvis
South Piedmont Community College Associates in Art Capstone ePortfolio
Core Skills
Written Communication
The learner will exchange ideas and information with others using written text in a manner effective and appropriate for the intended audience.
For the Written Communication artifact, I chose my Narrative Report from Writing and Inquiry (ENG-111), as it had a multitude of new parameters that required me to adjust my writing process. I took this class during the fall semester of 2019. On the first day of class, the room had many unfamiliar faces, but in the center of the classroom was my best friend, so we were glued at the hip at the table in the back of the classroom. It was my first English class at South Piedmont, so I did not know what to expect.
Every Wednesday, the professor would walk into the classroom and begin the weekly tradition of a different quote on the PowerPoint for the day. After teaching us the basics for MLA formatting, identifying credible sources, and writing to fit parameters, he assigned us our first paper, which was an argumentative essay. Then, he taught us how to quickly comprehend scholarly sources, which led to this report.
The professor provided a list of subcategories or topics related to reading or writing to choose from. There were topics from a broad spectrum, such as narratives and literature. I chose narratives because of how many different directions it could go. I chose to discuss narrative applications, and because story-telling is such an important part of childhoods, I specifically reported about Narrative Skill Assessments of Spanish-English Bilingual Children.
To ensure that I retained some of the techniques and methodologies, I created two goals to hold myself accountable. My first goal was to “adjust the terminology and approach based on the given parameters for the intended audience.” For this type of writing, it needed to be scholarly enough to be submitted to a scholarly journal, which meant that I had to use scholarly sources. The other parameters that my professor provided was that the audience was a scholarly group of experts and students in the disciplines of English, Literacy, or Education. Although my audience would have some knowledge, I still needed to explain key terms clearly and provide examples as needed.
With that being said, I essentially needed to write this essay as if I were preparing a dissertation. It had to be formal, so I avoided the use of first and second person pronouns, such as I or you. I also avoided oversimplifying my language as if I were speaking to elementary schoolers. I merely utilized the appropriate terminology and defined key terms in a concise and professional manner. For example, after I detailed the factors necessary for assessing children’s narrative skills, I explained how they were evaluated. Macrostructure is one of the subcategories that the assessments evaluated to identify the children’s narrative skill level. I then provided its definition in my report, it is similar to “the big picture” mindset, and consists of logical chronology, plot, character mentality, and more. Additionally, with my topic, I provided examples of the narrative assessments, such as the “Home Literacy Activities Questionnaire” and the Multilingual Assessment Instruments for Narratives. In the end, I think that I was successful in accomplishing this goal.
My second goal was to “learn how to develop a thesis and elaborate sufficiently.” I used to always struggle with developing a thesis; elaborating enough so that my thesis was supported; meeting the length requirements; or simply organizing my thesis and making it cohesive. As a result, I made it a goal for that semester to overcome this struggle. I developed a strategy in which I identified a tightly-focused topic and analyzed scholarly sources for it before developing my thesis. I then would organize the information according to the thesis, as well as provide further support in the areas that were lacking by conducting further research. My take on “reverse” entropy helped me overcome this struggle. I created my thesis: “With the increase in Spanish-English bilingual children, assessing their language skills accurately is important.” I then proceeded to support this “argument” with statements along the lines of, “the ability to produce narratives is the bridge between the two modes of language, verbal and written.” Throughout the report, I went into more detail regarding these supporting points. I can now say that developing and elaborating on a thesis is not as difficult as it once was. I also have a solid foundation with writing papers thanks to the thesis developing skills that my professor taught me.
As one of the core skills, being able to communicate effectively in written form is so important. Whether you are writing in the workplace or in a simple text, delivering the right message could mean the difference between “Let’s eat Grandma!” and “Let’s eat, Grandma!” In modern times, communicating clearly through writing is necessary in any discipline. Understanding my peers and clients as well as presenting ideas to them in a concise manner will be useful for any direction my career path decides to go.
Critical Thinking
The learner will identify, interpret, analyze, or synthesize problems before developing and implementing solutions in a manner effective and appropriate for the intended audience.
For the Creative Problem Solving artifact, I chose my Natural Selection Lab from General Biology I (BIO-111) because of how different it was from the other lab simulations. Typically, the simulations did not require much mathematics, but this one required more analysis and understanding the logical connection between ideas. I took this class just this Fall 2020, and it was with a rather interesting professor. He compared his name to the sea bird, a seagull, and it is hard to forget the impression he left. He hosted class sessions where we could earn extra credit, and the purpose of these sessions was to show us the relevance of what we were learning. We discussed real world applications and examples of the basic biological principles he lectured.
The lab itself was basically a model of white and black peppered moths in different scenarios, specifically a clean forest and a polluted forest. For each scenario, I had to calculate phenotypic ratios, allele frequencies, and genotype frequencies. I then had to determine the frequencies and ratios for future generations of those scenarios using the given formulas.
That leads me to my first goal for this assignment, which was to “identify the appropriate formulas to calculate the required data sets to analyze various biological phenomena.” In this case, the biological phenomenon is natural selection. I was given the equation “p + q = 1” to identify the relationship between alleles, where p is the frequency of the dominant allele, and q is the frequency of the recessive allele. So, I used this to double check my calculations. For example, the frequency of the fifth generation for Typica, or the dominant allele, was 0.81. To calculate this frequency, I found the quotient of 851 and 1050. I was given the frequency of the dominant allele, which was 0.19, and I subtracted this from 1, referring back to the equation mentioned earlier, to ensure that the calculation I made was correct.
I was also given the Hardy-Weinberg equation: “p^2 + 2pq + q^2 = 1” to calculate the genotypic frequencies over time. In doing so, I could identify when the moth population began to evolve. In this artifact, there is a table of these Genotype frequencies where I synthesized both of the equations, and calculated the genotype frequencies of homozygous dominant, homozygous recessive, and heterozygous individuals in a population.
My second goal was to “apply my understanding of fundamental biological principles to complete a scenario analysis.” The calculations and data sets from this lab would be useless without an understanding of biological principles to fully understand the scenarios. I had to reference my notes often to comprehend both scenarios that the moths were simulated in. There was the Hardy-Weinberg law in which population allele and genotype frequencies do not change over time unless acted upon by evolutionary agents. There is also genetic drift; unpredictable changes in allele frequencies due to sudden environmental changes or accidental deaths; and genetic flow; the transfer of genetic variation through interbreeding, from one population to another. Of course, there are other terms and principles represented in this simulation, such as natural selection. Without this understanding, I would not have been able to identify the formulas and calculations that I needed to do. For example, the Hardy-Weinberg equation was the application of the Hardy-Weinberg law.
In this simulation, I successfully investigated the natural selection in the peppered moth and observed the environmental influences on the selection process; therefore, I believe I accomplished this set of goals. Because most doctors only see patients when they are sick or hurt, I do not think my heart could handle working in that profession. Although, having some knowledge on general biological principles has helped me appreciate the nature of the world. I can also use this understanding to held me protect this precious world that we live in. I can at least contribute with small actions, such as planting trees and picking up litter to allow the plants to photosynthesis more effectively. Even people cannot flourish in darkness, they stub their toes instead. Additionally, I can fully embrace hippie culture and become a flower girl… I’m kidding. I don’t think I could wear that much flower print.
Cultural Literacy
The learner will demonstrate a “set of cognitive, affective, and behavioral skills and characteristics that support effective and appropriate interaction in a variety of cultural contexts” (Bennett, M., 2008).
For the Cultural Literacy artifact, I chose my Calendar Project from World Civilizations I (HIS-111) because it was one of the most memorable projects I did as a sophomore. I took this class during the Fall 2018 semester, which was the same semester that I discovered Smoothie King had $5, 32oz. Smoothie Fridays. So, even though the classroom was like sitting in the large fridge at Costco, I still bought myself a smoothie every Friday before going to listen to the day’s history lecture.
I really enjoyed listening to my professor, as the stories and the way he went about narrating history was always interesting. To spice things up, he would sing sometimes because he was part of a choir of sorts, and it was almost theatrical some days. Sometime along the way, he assigned a calendar project in which we were supposed to research the history of a civilization’s calendar system. There were many fascinating options, such as the Egyptian calendar or the Malayan calendar. The civilization’s calendar that I chose was the Chinese calendar because I wanted to better understand both my ancestral roots and an aspect of the culture of one of the largest populations of the world.
If I recall correctly, the objective of this project was to identify the origins of a civilization’s time keeping system; identify the functions and main dates; and explain its importance. So, to hold myself accountable for this learning experience, I set two goals for myself. First, I wanted to “develop an understanding of traditions by exploring oral history and legends.” Legends and history are told and passed down from generation to generation, and over the course of time, they inspire traditions, rituals, and superstitions. I was able to identify the long list of traditional rituals and celebrations, but there were so many different perspectives and narratives to choose from. I incorporated the more common versions to better understand the majority of the cultural population.
For example, there are many versions of the Zodiac race because oral history allows room for various interpretations and perspectives. In the version I researched, it was the Jade Emperor who hosted the race, and some of the details of each animal’s journey to the finish are different from other versions I have heard. Although there are discrepancies, the annual celebration of the zodiac year remains. Another traditional celebration for Chinese New Year, also known as the Lunar New Year, was influenced by the legend of the Nian, or a monster of sorts. Because this spirit was afraid of three main things, people celebrate Chinese New Year with bright red, firecrackers, sparklers, fireworks, and of course dim sum, mainly dumplings.
My second goal was to “increase my cultural awareness by understanding historical contexts.” Culture and history go hand in hand, so in order to be competent in one, one must be competent in the other. Many of the cultural celebrations and events in Chinese culture originated from their calendar. I combed through six lengthy sources to identify and analyze the information I needed to better comprehend the historical contexts. Because of this calendar project, I was finally able to understand the synchronization between Chinese culture and its calendar. I learned of the astronomical analyses, historical figures, such as Emperor Yu, and years of revisions that led to the Lunar calendar that we know today. This calendar determines how the population goes about their year when it comes to culture, so the development of it is quite significant.
In achieving these goals, I was able to dig deeper into a variety of cultural contexts. This was able to broaden my perspective and improve my cultural awareness. With the progressive mindset of society, being culturally aware can lessen cultural barriers, prevent misunderstandings, and improve my overall outlook on the world. I can approach it with confidence if I understand why different cultures influence societies in certain ways, and communicate within it on a similar level.
Technology
The learner will select and use technology to access, process, and exchange information in a manner effective and appropriate for the intended audience.
For my Technology artifact, I chose to present this ePortfolio because it represents the journey I have traveled while going to South Piedmont Community College. I started this in College Transfer Success (ACA-122) four years ago, but I have revisited it in Critical Thinking (HUM-115) to finish what I started.
The first two pages of the ePortfolio are the welcome and introduction pages. On these pages, you will learn about who I am as a person in academic, professional, and personal settings. In addition, there is a subpage that has a few different pieces of art. Though they are not masterpieces, they are signs of improvement. On the goals page, there are a few short-term and long-term goals in academic, professional, and personal settings to further elaborate on my growth and development plans.
Aside from the establishment of my foundation, core skills and program outcomes pages provide evidence and insight to what I have learned over the years. Here, you will find assignments that I have completed to expand my competence in communication, critical thinking, and various other expertise. The reflections on these pages reveal the learning objectives I had for myself as well as context for the significance of the artifacts that I produced and skills that I acquired. Under additional educational experiences, there are two pages, NSLS and Cyclone Mentor Support Program, in which I took a step out of my comfort zone to contribute to the community. Lastly, my career specific résumé can be seen on the last page of this ePortfolio with what is essentially a summary of my experiences. There is also contact information on the résumé page if a viewer was interested in reaching out to me.
While I was in the process of finishing my ePortfolio, I struggled with two aspects of this assignment, so I created two goals to hold myself accountable for improvement. My first goal was to “adapt to and effectively use the tools provided to identify and develop my identity for viewers.” When I had first received the task of making my ePortfolio, it was scary to say the least. The WIX platform was new and organized differently from other website builders. Additionally, I had never created this kind of record before. I explored many tutorials and figured out the logistics of this platform so that I could focus on the content at hand. The challenge was the decorative and design elements, as there were many setting options to tamper with, such as opacity and interaction. In the end, I decided on an easily navigable layout. The background is not too busy, so that it does not distract from the content. I also added visual elements to prevent viewers from getting lost in walls of text.
For the second part of my first goal, “identify and develop my identity for viewers,” I had to ensure that my online platform would suitably represent myself. I discussed my upbringing and how that shaped who I am at present. I also stated my academic, personal, and professional experiences to exhibit my personality and characteristics. I provided further detail about myself in describing my hobbies and interests as well as my learning style. My artifacts and résumé are solid evidence of my identity as a student and professional.
My second goal was to “develop and maintain a concise and cohesive theme.” Finding a clear direction was difficult, similar to finding a specific topic for a report. I did not want my ePortfolio to be too broad, and in the end, vague, with a muddy purpose. At the time I was exploring themes, I noticed that many of my peers made their ePortfolios revolve around their careers. On the contrary, I did not have a specific career that I had in mind, so I found a theme that had seemed to echo itself throughout my life. Self-confidence was a specific concept that I could easily express and provide evidence for from the events that I have encountered over the course of time. I introduced this concept on the welcome page with a quote from Ayn Rand. I then weaved my theme throughout my ePortfolio like a web through reflections, personal history, and other experiences, such as art and NSLS.
With that being said, I feel as though that I have accomplished these goals. This ePortfolio is a way for me to create a network, as well as have a record to show my growth in various areas. This technological skill as a whole is significant especially with COVID-19. With the uncertain future, many platforms and services have migrated online, so being able to process and exchange information with technology will prove to be useful. As a student, it will allow me to navigate and easily comprehend mechanisms for educational applications. As a future engineer, it will prove useful in a multitude of circumstances, such as identifying technological issues or interacting with different technology formats.