final post
A class on blogging sounds…. interesting. The first day of blogging destroyed my expectations, I remember myself imaging sitting in a class distinctly based on computers and an indirect form of journalism. I was expecting to learn the basics of internet journalism and the usefulness of a blog. This was obviously not going to be the case, which was apparent within the first five minutes of the class. I was instead presented with a roundtable discussion, and more collaborative thoughts flying through the air than in any previous class. I carry with me a distinct memory from the first week of this experiment where the class participated in a two day long debate on legalizing marijuana. The class was set up perfectly for debates, a favorite of mine, and a format revisited several times through out the semester. Later debates covered the right to defend yourself, boycotting the Beijing Olympics, and everyone’s favorite fridge balls. Leaving this class we did ultimately cover some form of journalism, but I personally gained much more; most noticeably this ability to defend my point of view. This skill is invaluable later in life and worth learning at this age and if possible younger. This class provided a great platform on which to do just that. I am graduating with the feeling that I can stand up for my own thoughts.
This class was based around a personalized journalistic style of writing. I wrote one post on March 31, 2008 entitled The Olympics, A Great Time for Protests. This blog is the best example of my writing in this class. I was able to identify a broad topic, the Beijing Olympic protest, and also focus in on certain issues surrounding this controversy. This step was easy for me since the topic its self was interesting and a major current event. Well writing the blog I was also looking to learn more about the incident myself in order to be more informed. This ultimately helped since the next day in class we had our historic Chinese Olympic Debate, which I will declare my team, the winner of. This style of writing worked best for me, find an interesting topic and well writing on it learn more about it not only to have a better piece, which was the ultimate out come, but to also be more generally educated. I took a sharp stance throughout this blog, it was clearly in favor of boycotting the Beijing Olympics, and this idea was introduced early in the blog and carried out through the end. Having this cohesive stance during the entire post made for a more focused and sharply written entry. This blog exemplified my personality, since it is provocative and I am always looking for a good debate. Most times in class I would choose the opposite side of an argument from the majority, just to force myself to lok at the discussion from another angle. This specific blog demonstrates that, along with my interest in foreign policy and current events. The one part where this blog could improve was on a personal level, I did a good job of making a community, and global connection, sighting reasons why boycotting would work in the favor of the U.S.A and the rest of the world. This was one of my best proofread posts allowing it to be one my most accessible posts, creating an easier read and smoother expression of ideas.
I would highly recommend this class to any senior looking for a creative outlet, who is also interested in current affairs. They must be willing to put in the minimum work load required, nothing to substantial, and be ready to participate with energy in class. This class is designed well for the creative and open-minded, since it provides the students with the ability to shape the class. We provided the topics, and the discussion in sense we ran the class.
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