Week 15 Famous Last Words

The End.

I wanted to use this week's Famous Last Words to say thank you. This class has been so much fun and i've really enjoyed it. I can't believe i'm already done. I'm looking forward to graduation and feel relieved to have one less thing on my plate, but I wish the assignments I had left weren't so stressful and were as delightful as the ones for this class. So, I want to say thank you to Professor Gibbs and to all of my classmates for making this semester a great one. Everyone wants their senior year, particularly their last semester before graduation, to go smoothly and though i've had plenty of bumps I think this class has definitely been a positive experience. 

Congratulations to all of the other seniors! You're so close to being done! Graduation is in only 25 days! Can you believe it? Are you ready? I'm ready to be there, but i'm not ready to turn in everything that is due between now and then. Anyway, good luck guys and gals! 

With that, I will share my philosophy with y'all and say my goodbye. Create your own bliss and see the beauty in everything around you. Accept things as they are. Tolerate and accept people as they are. Keep an open mind. Let love fill your heart. Find your own truths. Live life. And don't forget to love yourself because you matter and you can do anything you put your mind to!

I hope y'all keep in touch. You can find me on tons of social media sites (except Twitter, I just cannot get into that). 

Facebook me: Bria Waters

Follow me on Instagram: Testiclefestival

Check out my tumblr: CreateYourOwnBliss

Let's swap stuff on Pinterest!

Go to Tanzania with me on my blog: Bria In Tanzania!

Watch weird/funny videos with me on Vine: Bria Waters 

I'm also on Snapchat, but if you want that one, you can tell me on any of the above social media sites.

Made using PicMonkey

GOODBYE AND GOOD LUCK!

Love, Bria Waters 

2015 BSW Senior 

Week 15 Online Education Review

Please share your thoughts about online education in general and also your experiences in particular.

• I love online classes. I think it gives students an opportunity to learn on their own time and gives instructors an opportunity to get creative with coursework. I loved that this class was set up where we had to keep blogs. It was so fun and didn't feel like a chore to work on! However, I do not think language and math classes should be taken online only because they are so difficult and do not offer that one-on-one assistance that may be necessary to help people (like me) understand math concepts. As for language classes, I think the back-and-forth interaction in a physical classroom really helps you learn the language. Hearing it spoken throughout class and having to speak it conversationally just makes a huge difference in how you store that new language information in your mind. 

What features of online courses are most/least valuable to you?

• Most valuable: ability to work on it in my downtime or anywhere that has access to internet
• Least valuable: with harder concepts, I prefer face-to-face interaction and explanation

Would you take more fully online courses if they were available?

• Oh, definitely! I really have enjoyed my online courses at OU and felt like they were a great asset, especially since i've had to work while i've been in college. 

If you were to design a fully online course, what would it look like?

• I would probably steal your idea of using a blog to turn in assignments. You really helped me learn how to use internet resources by having us use the site and do tech tips. Also, it seems less formal and more like a fun activity. I also would like to incorporate the Famous Last Words assignments, because it helped me, as a student, decompress from the week and gave me an outlet to talk about what i've been up to. It also helps the professor and other students get to know each other which is a little tough to do in an online class. I liked your use of social media too. I wont lie, I think your style for online classes is perfect. You have an online textbook made of awesome resources/stores, your assignments are a great length, you have variety in what we are supposed to do, there's plenty of extra credit opportunities, and the blogs let our personalities shine through. I love it and was so lucky to have gotten the opportunity to take both your Indian Epics and Mythology and Folklore classes. They have been some of my favorite classes and i've really enjoyed them! 

P.S. I liked the picture of the cat on the page where you told us how to do these posts, so I decided to post some awesome cats too!

Zombie Cat

found on LOLFactory

Doctor Who Cats

by Jenny Parks, found on The Laughing Squid

Waffles the Cat as Sherlock Characters

found on Tumblr 

Week 15 Gen. Ed. Review

Please describe your experience with the General Education experience at OU overall and with Humanities Gen. Ed. in particular

• Gen. Eds seemed like a pain, but it was only because I was excited to start my major's coursework. That being said, I think it was a good thing overall, particularly the humanities gen. eds. This is because I took fun courses that taught me about other cultures and countries which I think is important for students, especially if they cannot study abroad and/or have never been abroad before. 

Has Gen. Ed. been an important part of your education at OU?

• Gen. Ed. has been a huge part of my education at OU. It took up all of my freshman year, a chunk of sophomore year, and a few electives following. 

What have you liked best/least about your Gen. Ed. experience?

• I liked the humanities courses (Revenge Tragedy, Indian Epics, Peoples of the World, Intro to Native American Studies, Intro to Non-Western Dance Forms, Mythology & Folklore, and Intro to Religious Studies). These classes were interesting and kept me engaged. I enjoyed the classes and felt connected to my coursework. However, English I, Geology, American Federal Gov't, and Biology sucked. I know the government class was important, but i've heard it so many times! English I sucked only because it was so boring. Biology should have been cool, because I enjoyed Biology in high school and find the typical bio content interesting. However, this class seemed to spend an unnecessary amount of time on corn and how it's all around us. It seemed like we were in a political class about the problems our country is experiencing because of our reliance on corn, a substance our bodies cannot break down. 

What do you think you will remember most from your Gen. Ed. classes?

• I will remember the stories and dances from non-western countries the most. I love learning about other cultures and feel like I would have been more into other humanities courses if my professors had been passionate, knowledgeable, and engaging. 

Also, you might want to take a look at the OU Gen. Ed. website, especially if you have not done that before!  The website is new-ish, and rumor has it that OU is considering a big revision to the Gen. Ed. program.

• I wish I had known about this freshman year! Or really any year before I was about to graduate! It seemed like a pain to find classes that counted. It's a simple site, and I see no real problem with it, but the design is lack-luster. 

If you were to design a Gen. Ed. program, what would it look like?

• It would be a program designed to "take you on a journey around the world." It would talk about world cultures and each unit would center on a certain part of the world. The assignments would be aimed at showing society, values, culture, and the arts in various regions. It would be an into-level class that would be an introduction to world cultures and would not heavily focus on one area or "weird" cultures, but give a little information about a lot of them! 

This just made me laugh, hopefully it makes you laugh too!

Uptown Funk You Up

found on Tumblr 

Here's the song it made me think of:

Uptown Funk ft. Bruno Mars

by Mark Ronson, found on YouTube

Week 15 College Writing Review

What is your major and what role do writing courses play in your major?

• My major is social work and writing is incredibly important because we don't have many tests. Our papers are long and weighted heavily so we are expected to be able to write well. However, we do not get the chance to write creatively. Our papers are almost always research papers that are written in APA format. 

What kinds of writing-intensive classes have you taken both inside and outside your major? 

• I've taken this, Indian Epics, Revenge Tragedy, Expository Writing, English, History pre-civil war, and multiple research classes. However, all of my social work classes have had long papers and were writing-intensive. 

How have your courses helped you to grow and develop as a writer? 

• My courses have helped me become very efficient at finding and evaluating sources for research purposes, as well as for real-world application. As a social worker, I will have to be able to find resources and information to refer clients to all the time. I feel like i've also grown in my creative writing because I have to really evaluate my writing for class. It's made me a more conscious writer, however, I still have trouble editing my creative writing as compared to my research writing. I think it's because I love writing and I love writing imagery-heavy stories, but am really discouraged to do that in my major's classes because they emphasize being concise and (often) clinical. 

What has been most/least helpful about the writing you have done for this class? 

• The most helpful part about this class's writing has been the ability to write for fun as well as the feedback. I think it has really helped me become a better writer. The least helpful part of this class was probably the backup and checkup. Overall, I loved this class and thought it was really helpful.

What have been the most meaningful writing experiences that you have had in college? 

• My most meaningful writing experiences have probably been my research papers into the effects of nonpharmacological treatments on dementia patients because it's something I am very passionate about and is opening doors for me at Valir where I volunteer. 

If you were to design a writing class for your major, what would that class look like? 

• It would be a mix of short research assignments that would be about finding resources in your area. They would teach you how to sift through the online sources and find important information. It would also feature short posts about particular subjects related to social work/social welfare that interest the individual students (geriatric work, mental health, social welfare policy, international events, human rights, etc.). I think it would also feature a few assignments where the students had to go out and volunteer with an agency then write up a short paper about their experience. Last, I would want them to write about the code of ethics to ensure they know it and can apply it. 

If you were to design a writing class for students from all over OU, not specific to any major, what kind of writing class do you think would be most useful? 

• A class that featured creative writing prompts and some research-based prompts would be nice. Also, maybe assignments that help prepare us for what life is like after college (for instance: how to apply for loans, resume editing, budgeting, healthcare, etc.). I feel like even with college i've been left on my  own to figure it all out because I was the first to go to college and the only family member I know who went to college went long enough ago that things have really changed. 

Don't Forget To Take Care of Yourself!

Self Love Koala

by Alexandria Brooke, found on Tumblr