What did you learn from creating a professional portfolio and using it in ITM 352?
1.1 Acquiring basic programming skills in an IT context
To make the professional portfolio for this class I had to learn how to use Github and register for an account. Through this I learned how to create files to write my essays and post them publicly on my portfolio. I posted multiple essays throughout the semester usually after finishing big projects to write about those experiences.
What did you gain from doing the WODs?
1.1 Acquiring basic programming skills in an IT context
The WODs taught me basic programming. Each WOD was difficult and challenging but it was nice to see that I quickly learned how to understand and identify the code to the web pages. I practiced using VS Code and writing CSS for the WODs.
Were the quizzes helpful in preparing you for the labs?
1.2 Understanding why MIS people need basic programming skills and knowledge
The quizzes were helpful in giving me an idea of what the lab was about. I never prepared for the labs because I was always catching up from the last class lab. The prep for the labs was trying not to fall too far behind.
What did you learn from doing the labs?
1.2 Understanding why MIS people need basic programming skills and knowledge
What I learned from doing the labs in class was how to copy code. I learned how to use loops and arrays that I later used in the assignments. Labs were most helpful with assignment 1 and 2.
What did you learn from doing the essays?
1.2 Understanding why MIS people need basic programming skills and knowledge
Essays in this class were about reflecting your challenges and knowledge about the WODs or assignments or projects we worked on in ITM 352. I learned that I can use the same format for each essay so it was nice not having to customize those.
What did you learn from doing Assignment 1 and Assignment 2?
1.4 Experiencing first-hand MIS problems and solutions
Assignment 1 I learned that coming up with code is difficult. Having a website that can process user input and generate responses on a server is difficult. I used Chat GPT to help me identify my problems or errors that I would encounter and help me solve them.
Detail the specific challenges you encountered during the course, such as understanding new programming concepts, completing WODs, web application development assignments.
My first challenges were with understanding the new programming concepts such as HTML, CSS and DOM. Creating Invoice 1 was hard because we had to calculate the tax rate. Conditioning was a hard concept to understand too.
Explain how you overcame these challenges and the strategies that helped you succeed.
For the invoice my problems were as simple as remembering to use the ${} syntax and placing “.toFixed(2)” to only reflect two decimal places for the price amounts and taxes. I used the help from the labs, friends and Chat GPT to help me with the Invoice 3.
Highlight any particular achievements or milestones in the course that were significant to you.
Creating the store and having my products display was a nice achievement. A milestone for me was having a webpage with an invoice page, login page and registration page. After completing every project felt like I completed a milestone because of the amount of time I took to complete it was hellish.
Reflect on the three skill levels outlined in the course (syntactic, algorithmic, application) and discuss your progression through these levels.
Syntactic formating code so that it executes properly. I would often make many syntax errors like missing commas, semicolons and misspelling. Chat GPT helped me identify and solve these minor syntax errors.
Algorithmic sets rule to solve problems or to complete a task. I worked through this by thinking about what I need to do, thinking about how I would do it, and applying small chunks of code.
Application involves us strategically applying our MIS experience in IT content. For example being able to pass a query string from one page to another page.
Describe how the hands-on experience with web-based e-service applications enhanced your understanding and confidence in handling MIS issues.
This hands-on experience did give me more confidence in handling MIS issues and helped hone my ability to identify, diagnose and resolve issues efficiently.
Discuss how use of AI enhanced your learning and productivity. Give specific examples of how you used AI effectively.
I would use AI in class when I didn’t understand a concept, it helped me follow along easier and participate in class discussions.
Discuss how use of AI inhibited your learning or and productivity. Give specific examples of how you used AI ineffectively.
Some of what Chat GPT provided had a lot of code that didn’t change anything on my page. Or the specific problems I had did not know how to generate the right code for my problems.
Explore how the skills and knowledge gained from ITM 352 can be applied in your future academic and professional endeavors.
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I am sure that in the future developing a webpage or conducting test and debugging code would be very beneficial working for my own business.
Discuss the potential impacts these skills will have on your career, especially in terms of understanding and addressing MIS problems.
In my career I can see my problem solving approaches that I learned in this class. As I plan to work as an accountant in the future, this will sharpen my analytical skills and give me a solid foundation for technical problems.
Reflect on the overall value of the course in your educational journey and future career.
Overall this course was very challenging and very fast paced that I don’t believe I will be able to take much moving forward in my future career. However, I will know the different languages like HTML, CSS, JavaScript and I can design a website.