Author Archives: asalat2

How College Students Should Approach a College Level Project

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Abass Salat
Engl 1102 + Section 312 – Weaver
Major Project 4
Date Due: Apr 25
asalat2@student.gsu.edu

How College Students Should Approach a New Project

            Getting assigned a major project in college can feel very overwhelming. The increased difficulty of projects in the transition from highschool to higher education makes college students feel like they can never get it done. What can really get rid of this anxiety of college level projects and boost productivity is for students to approach projects like this strategically. Thinking ahead is critical to the completion and quality of this sort of project. Students should approach the project by opening up time in their schedule, breaking the project into smaller tasks, effectively combating against burnout, and having a support system.

            At the start of the project, students need to plan how they are going to get it done. Students should identify exactly what time they have available and allocate time to the project. They should also identify at what location they will work on the project. According to the study done by Sean Humpherys and Ibrahim Lazrig in the article “Effects of Teaching and Practice of Time Management Skills on Academic Performance in Computer Information Systems Courses” in the journal Information Systems Education Journal, when students identify the how, when, and where of a plan, they are considerably more productive in executing it (Humpherys and Lazrig). The authors mention this planning benefits students in many ways. They say doing this will lessen the chance of distraction killing the student’s working hours which helps against procrastination. Additionally, Humpherys and Lazrig say that when students preplan the how, when, and where of their plan, their grading results for their goal is likely to be positive. Also, students should make the plan as specific as possible according to Alain Samson, an economist with an expertise and PhD in social psychology, in his article “10 Ways to Get a Big Project Done” (Samson). What Dr. Samson means is instead of a student planning they will complete a specific task the project calls for on Monday, they should plan that they will complete that task on Monday from 10 a.m. to noon in a specific spot at the library. This will lessen the chance of a student having the intention to complete the task throughout the day but not being able to do it because they didn’t allocate a specific time of day for it, or a distraction came up.

            When given a project, students are never expected to get it all done in one day. College level projects are simply too complex. What students should do is approach it strategically and break down the project into pieces. Doing this has many benefits and will facilitate the process. According to Dr. Samson, breaking projects into smaller pieces will lay out the specific things one would need to get done (Samson). Dr. Samson adds that the person will also be able to analyze the difficultly levels of each piece of the project which is an advantage. This is because now the student has smaller workloads to complete rather than trying to tackle the project as a whole. Additionally, now the student can avoid unproductively pausing progress on the project due to a freighting challenge up ahead. Dr. Samson says ending a work session because of a demanding piece of the project up ahead is the opposite of what one should do when working on a project. This is because the student might avoid the next work session because of such a demanding piece of the project waiting for them as soon as they get started. Students should start with the less demanding pieces of the project and end with the slightly more demanding ones. This will help the students against unproductively pausing and will give them the fulfilling feeling of ending a session with hard work.

            Although some pauses on projects are unproductive, there are pauses that are highly encouraged if not necessary. When a student is feeling overwhelmed or just feels stuck, its best for them to take a break. According to Dr. Samson, students in this situation should do a completely different activity from what their project is about (Samson). For example, if a student’s project is about the French Revolution, they should go for a walk or knit a hat. Students can highly benefit from this because when they return to working on the project, they get rid of all their brain fog and their ability to work at their best is not compromised. This will help students avoid burning out and will help them get satisfactory results on the assignment.

            Also, when students are so deep in the project and they deprived themselves of taking breaks, they can’t notice the mistakes that they make. According to Jennifer Oliver, a writer, a speaker, and a creative project consultant, taking a break from working on a project can help students detect the faults in their work (Oliver). She says that sometimes someone is so deep into their project that they do not see the things they are doing wrong. Oliver says that when a student is in this situation, they should take some distance away from the project. Stepping away from working on the project might take away from a student’s work time but it will boost productivity in the long run.

            A student being overworked on a project is not the only thing that can lead to burnout. Lack of encouragement can be a major drag on a student’s ability to complete a project. Also, students are susceptible to procrastinating on doing what they planned to complete. The way students can combat both of these issues is by involving someone or multiple people to act as a support system. According to Philip Oreopoulos, Richard W. Patterson, Uros Petronijevic, and Nolan G. Pope in their article “Low-Touch Attempts to Improve Time Management among Traditional and Online College Students” in the journal Journal of Human Resources, having a system like this in place has been shown to help students achieve the goals they set out (Oreopoulos et. al.). The authors say that the support group should act as reminders for the student. This is because having a person or group of people that care about the student reminding him or her to not fall short of their goals reinforces the student’s commitment. Also, the students should share their progress on the project with their support system. According to Dr. Samson, just sharing their progress can help them achieve their final goal (Samson). He says that a student might also benefit from the positive reaction of their support group.

            Approaching a new project strategically is the best way for students to approach completing it. Instead of students simply starting the project and hoping all goes well, they should think things through. Students just jumping right in can lead to negative results due to lack of planning. The common occurrences like students saying they did not have enough time when they did, or the project was so mentally draining they just gave up are born from lack of planning. Applying these techniques can lead to satisfying results for students and are highly recommended to implement next time a student has a major project.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Work Cited

Humpherys, Sean L., and Ibrahim Lazrig. “Effects of Teaching and Practice of Time Management Skills              on Academic Performance in Computer Information Systems Courses.” Information Systems                      Education Journal, Information Systems and Computing Academic Professionals. Box 488,                         Wrightsville Beach, NC 28480. e-Mail: Publisher@Isedj.org; Web Site: Http://Isedj.org, 31 Mar.               2021, eric.ed.gov/?q=time%2Bmanagement&id=EJ1297703.

Oliver, Jen. “5 Reasons to Take a Break from Creative Projects.” J Oliver Designs, 16 June 2020,                     www.joliverdesigns.co.uk/5-reasons-to-take-a-break-from-creative-projects/.

Oreopoulos, Philip, et al. “Low-Touch Attempts to Improve Time Management among Traditional and                Online College Students.” Journal of Human Resources, vol. 57, no. 1, 2019, pp. 1–43.,                                 doi:10.3368/jhr.57.1.0919-10426r1.

Samson, Alain. “10 Ways to Get a Big Project Done.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, 23 June                     2021, www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/consumed/202106/10-ways-get-big-project-done.

 

Final Hacks Group 2 Section 312

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Group 2

Abass, Mohamed, David

 

Preventing Procrastination During Finals

The worst thing you could do in finals week is wait till the last minute to do things. From personal experiences, procrastinating could lead to you being totally overwhelmed. Things just pile higher and higher until getting an F is inevitable. This is why you need to take steps prior to all of the chaos of finals weeks.

 

  1. Get organized

 You are more likely to procrastinate if you don’t have a set plan or idea for completing your work

 

  1. Eliminate Distractions 

Put your in a non-compromising Environment so that you can maintain focus

 

  1. Prioritize

Make a checklist that differentiates larger value tasks (Testing periods) from smaller value tasks (getting a haircut). 

 

  1. Set deadlines

Set deadlines that earlier than the required time so you stay ahead of schedule

 

  1. Take a break

Don’t burn out. Give yourself a break from studying every 45 minutes and do something interesting.

 

  1. Reward yourself

Pat yourself in the back every now and then. It’s important to reward your good habits so that you have more incentive to strive at your best.

 

University of Minnesota

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Abass Salat
Engl 1102 + Section 312 – Weaver
SAR Major Project
Date Due: Mar 9
asalat2@student.gsu.edu

Analysis of University of Minnesota’s Website

Summary

            The website of the University of Minnesota appeals to ambitious over achievers by using the case study strategy. They also use the purpose strategy by carefully using phrases that attract a student that is not content with being an average person in society but rather someone who wants to change the world. A student that fits this profile would also really enjoy their experience in the University of Minnesota. There are a multitude of opportunities and programs over achievers could benefit from at this university.

 

Analysis

            What really indicates that the website is trying to appeal to ambitious students is the first phrase that viewers see on the website, “Bold minds don’t wait” (twin-cities.umn.edu “Landing Page”). The website used the purpose strategy here to draw the eyes of ambitious students. Saying a phrase like this would make a student that wants to have a great impact on the world feel as if this university was for them. Another example of the website of the University of Minnesota using the purpose strategy is how it says on the student life page “Something big awaits you” (twin-cities.umn.edu “Student Life page”). Similar to the other phrase, this phrase excites the mind of an ambitious student. It reassures them that they will achieve their goals and makes it seem to them that the University of Minnesota is the vessel that will take them there.

            The website also uses the case study strategy to pull-in ambitious students. It shows the ambitious students what could happen if they decided to attend the university. An example of this would be how the website highlights that the University of Minnesota has had twenty-five Nobel Prize recipients (twin-cities.umn.edu “Research Page”). This signals to the ambitious student that this could be them. It tells the ambitious student that people who did great things have walked this path so they should too. Another example of the website using the case study strategy is how it also highlights that seventy percent of health professionals in Minnesota are trained at the University of Minnesota (twin-cities.umn.edu “Health Sciences”). The website said this because this statistic would make it seem to an ambitious student that going to this university is an obvious choice. The website would attract that student because it is telling them that if you want to work in a health profession this is where to be.

            The way the website tries to persuade prospective students to come to their school is by using the purpose strategy and the case study strategy to appeal to ambitious students. The website uses the purpose strategy by saying phrases that excite ambitious students. The website also uses the case study strategy by highlighting statistics that tell ambitious students that this could be you someday. With these tactics, the website for the University of Minnesota appeals to ambitious students. As a result, this attracts the ambitious students to the university and will think that attending this school is necessary to achieving their goals.

 

Response

            The University of Minnesota seems like a wonderful place. There are many opportunities and programs that I could benefit from. If distance, tuition cost, and other technicalities were not an issue, I would for sure choose to attend the University of Minnesota. The University of Minnesota just seems like it fits well with my preferences. This is mainly due to the community around health professions, the ambitious environment, and the emphasis on diversity at the institution.

            Considering that I want a career as a health professional, this is a major attraction for me. I really admire that seventy percent of health professionals trained at the University of Minnesota. Having a community around health professions would help me make productive connections and be around people with similar interests. This would boost my career as a health professional and would make making friends easier.

            Another reason why I am drawn towards attending the University of Minnesota is because of the ambitious environment. There seems to be an atmosphere that promotes successfulness in this institution. An atmosphere in which everyone wants to achieve something great could benefit me. The competitive environment could make me feel a sense of a necessity to compete and even make me more engaged in extracurricular activities. This could fuel my motivation and make me strive harder.

            Another reason why the University of Minnesota feels like a good fit for me is because it cares about diversity. It says on the University of Minnesota website that diversity is considered a core value at the University of Minnesota (twin-cities.umn.edu “Life at Minnesota”). This is something important to me because I would not want to go to anywhere in which I am not welcome at. Diversity is even part of my values inventory. The University of Minnesota emphasizing this makes it that much more of a good fit.

            Going to the University of Minnesota looks like a good choice. I like that there is a massive community of health professionals and I see it benefiting my personal career. The competitive environment could also act as a motivator. Also, the emphasis on diversity makes me feel like I would actually be welcome there if I ever decided to attend the University of Minnesota. With all of these factors at play, it makes much more sense to go this university than to not go. If there were no technical issues in the equation, I would make the choice to attend the University of Minnesota.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Work Cited

University of Minnesota Twin Cities, twin-cities.umn.edu/.

Academic Profile of Thomesia Williams

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Abass Salat
Engl 1102 + Section 312 – Weaver
Academic Self Analysis
Date Due: 9 February 2022
asalat2@student.gsu.edu

Academic Profile of Thomesia Williams

            Thomesia, who goes by Tee, is an ambitious, resourceful, and adaptive person in her academic life. She bettered and matured her academic self greatly since highschool. Her response to the Covid-19 pandemic and transition from highschool to college was not to depreciate or make her academic self less productive. Rather, she pushed herself to better her academic self and increase her capabilities. She gradually became more ambitious, adaptive to new circumstances, and resourceful.

            Ever since the first semester of college, Tee started to become academically ambitious. During her remote learning period, Tee was among the 80 percent of students that the article “COVID-Era College: Are Students Satisfied?” mentioned were unmotivated during remote learning (Ezarik 6). Tee’s story fits really well with the chemistry student that was quoted to have said, “It’s kind of hard because you can see your bed. They don’t mandate video and don’t know if you’re listening” (Ezarik 6). This environment promoted Tee to put in minimal effort. When Tee got to college and classes were mostly in-person, she was no longer in that low effort promoting environment. She had to increase the amount of effort she put into school, and she started to become ambitious. She began to make sure to be attentive to assignments and deadlines and even developed a system to avoid having late work. Tee works on assignments before the regular time to start to stay ahead of her class. This gives her a safety net that she can fall on incase she has to put off when to start an assignment. This increase in ambition made Tee much better off and boosted Tee’s productivity.

            Tee also takes advantage of all the resources given to her. For example, she takes advantage of office hours when she needs some talking time with a professor. She also studies with a network of other students which helps her understand and learn the material of that class better. In a situation where an assignment is confusing or there is a concept Tee did not fully grasp, these resources come in handy for her. Tee prevents herself from falling behind the class because of her full utilization of these support structures and resources. Overall, this leads to Tee having better grades and feeling less alone in class tasks.

            Tee is also very adaptive to circumstances when they change. She has the capability to change her schedule to accommodate for unprecedented changes to her free time and how much work she has to do. In a situation where her workload is increased or responsibilities take up more of her schedule, Tee does not crumble under pressure. Instead, Tee switches her schedule around, identifies windows of time, and plans work for those windows. Because of her adaptive skills, she avoids procrastination and does not go under system failure whenever her schedule is altered.

            Tee combines her ambitious character, her full utilization of resources, and adaptive skills to boost her academic productivity. With these abilities, her academic self can achieve the goals she sets out. They reduce the likeliness of Tee experiencing setbacks such as not having adequate time to study, failing an exam, and failing balance her academic life with the other parts of her life. Tee has a finely tuned academic self and it did not appear out of thin air. This academic self was built, and one has to appreciate the strategic creation of it.

 

Work Cited

Ezarik, Melissa. “Student Experiences during COVID and Campus Reopening Concerns.” COVID-Era College: Are Students Satisfied?, Inside Higher Ed, 24 Mar. 2021, www.insidehighered.com/news/2021/03/24/student-experiences-during-covid-and-campus-reopening-concerns.