Summertime School

My summer semester ended on the 23rd of June, leaving me more than two weeks off between semesters.  This is a nice change.  Plus, my final grade was posted yesterday; I managed a B+ in my Introduction to Earth Sciences Geology course.  This fulfills my final lab science requirement for graduation; that part is still a bit of a way off.  I have my fall semester lined up, and it is a bit of a doozy.

–Kiyoshi “The Prototype”
Your #1 Canadian eh?
Respect the Technique, Triangle Army

Final finals are finito

Well, for this semester anyways.  And while I wait for my final grades to be posted, I think I’ll forget everything in favour of video games, food, and this last week of coaching before the rest of the schools let out for Christmas break.

Congratulations to all of those who have completed another (or their first) semester of finals, and to those who will graduate!

–Kiyoshi “The Prototype”
Your #1 Canadian eh?
Respect The Technique, Triangle Army

 

The First Week … ish

I was planning on a “first week back” post after the first week of the Fall semester, but it ended up being a different first “week” than what I’ve associated with “normal.”

• I have two Biology labs now.  Fun.  Right now there’s a huge difference in the skills required: I have a couple of weeks of microscope stuff that Anatomy & Physiology I has already run me through, but on the flip side Anatomy & Physiology II has thrown us in the deep end.
• We had our “Violent Intruder Drill”, which I thought was usually in October.  This one was less terrible than the last two I’ve sat through.
• We had an unexpected fire alarm.  Even this early in the semester, we took our sweet time evacuating.  Hooray for the burning alternative?
• I’ve completed my first Fieldwork session, and with the schedule I can accommodate, I have plenty of leeway in my hours.  I hope my next Fieldwork placements allow such scheduling ease.
• I could have waited until I had my first quizzes, but by that point I wouldn’t get something up until October.  First month is more like it.
• I’ve missed an alarm already — user error — but had a cat as backup.
• I’ve experienced first-hand what happens when the parkade closes and your car is still inside.

So there is my first extended week.  Maybe the semester won’t get any worse.

–Kiyoshi “The Prototype”
Your #1 Canadian eh?
Respect the Technique, Triangle Army

The journey never ends

And while I would love that to apply to my jiu-jitsu journey, currently it is more applicable to my academic journey.  Yes, the summer semester begins today – not Wednesday as I had previously believed.  Fortunately I have given myself a lighter course load that will give me some advice and skills to apply outside of the classroom.  And who knows, maybe next week I’ll have a post that doesn’t apply to school.

One can dream, right?

–Kiyoshi “The Prototype”
Your #1 Canadian eh?
Respect the Technique, Triangle Army

Pass the shovel

Winter 2015 classes are over, but I am not out of the rabbit hole just yet; exams loom over my head.  The end is in sight, so someone pass me the shovel so I can get to work.

–Kiyoshi “The Prototype”
Your #1 Canadian eh?
Respect the Technique, Triangle Army

Cry ‘havoc’ and let slip the projects of school!

I know I’m already short a regular post, but this is essentially a notice that I may be short more posts this month.  The end of the semester is nigh and I have five projects due before then.  Catch you on the flip side!

–Kiyoshi “The Prototype”
Your #1 Canadian eh?
Respect the Technique, Triangle Army

The Marks!

Well, the due date for final grades was the 18th.  And true to their word, the rest of my final grades were up Thursday morning.  The handy-dandy – and nearly accurate – GPA calculator spreadsheet had prepared me for the worst-case scenario, and I knew I could pull a 2.9 GPA back up to 3.2 or higher by next fall.  Fortunately, there was some good news in store for me:

• ENGL 1106: Reading Fiction = B+
• MATH 1160: Intro to Statistics = P
• PSYC 1200: Intro to Psychology II = C
• SPSC 1164: Motor Skill Acquisition = A+

So it’s across the board for my grades, but Fall semesters seem to be where I learn the most in terms of life lessons.  I now know that I can handle four courses, including a lab section for one, and still do well.  Yes, I could have done better in Psychology.  Yes, I would love to blame it on my schedule, but I made that schedule myself.  My winter semester schedule is already better, and I’ll be able to do better in the four courses I’ve chosen.

For now, I’m going to enjoy the Christmas break, play video games, and eat lots of food.

–Kiyoshi “The Prototype”
Your #1 Canadian eh?
Respect the Technique, Triangle Army

The Exams!

They are finally over!  All of my four courses had a final exam or project, and fortunately my Psych prof – Dr. Cera – had us write our final exam in class.  At the end, he would quickly mark it, return our summary essay, and give us our final mark.  If you passed, then off you go.  If you didn’t, then he had you stick around.  I passed, so I can only assume as to what the others talked about.  Motor Skill Acquisition had final project for pairs, and while it wasn’t difficult, it was a bit of a slog to get through.  I would have enjoyed being assigned the project in week 10 to give us a little more time, but wishes are not fishes.

My finals were all in the same week, and scheduled to start at 3:30PM, which makes for a long – and somewhat stressful – day.  I prefer to write earlier, 8:30AM if possible.  It goes with that “get it over with” mentality, and it allows me to concentrate on other things after the exam: other exams, or what beer I’m going to buy.  Very critical.  Hopefully my professors are able to read my chicken-scratch hand-writing that has been polished thanks to my southpaw pen-grip.

Some marks have already been released – which means those professors are beasts at getting through marking – and thanks to a handy-dandy GPA calculator I estimate my cumulative GPA will be around 2.90.  I believe that all marks have to be in by December 18th, so it won’t be long until I see how my assumptions go.

In the meantime, anyone want to buy my Stats textbook?

–Kiyoshi “The Prototype”
Your #1 Canadian eh?
Respect the Technique, Triangle Army.

Exam rituals

One thing they don’t really tell you in high school: you’ll get a lot of exams in post secondary.  Of course, they might have mentioned it, but high school was so long ago that I’ve forgotten.  Regardless, in 13 weeks, a student will typically see 2-3 in-class exams and then final exams.  I’ve written in-class essays, multiple choice/true-false on scan tron, short answer, and long answer; I’ve used pens, pencils, erasers, protractors, and rulers.  Studying prior to the exam is fairly key – which I would state is obvious, but I don’t always study if my understanding is already excellent – but the moments before starting the exam are crucial.

• Liquids: If it’s a morning exam (8:30AM or 10:30AM) then I have a coffee with me.  Regardless of the start time, I always have a bottle of water.
• Bathroom: Even if I feel like I don’t have to go, I go anyways.  It’s tough enough to sit in a room for 150 minutes, much less if you have to pee.
• Hands: This goes hand-in-hand with the bathroom, but I always wash my hands before an exam.  I hate being distracted by sticky hands, especially if I’ve been handling a coffee cup.
• Fingernails: Alright, so I’m pretty odd with my fingernails, I like them very short.  But as a nervous habit, I start “cleaning” my nails, which makes them a tad longer (to me) and then serves as a distraction because I want to trim them.
• Writing utensils: I try to have two pens, two pencils – sharpened, because dull pencils suck, and mechanical pencils hate me – and an eraser; plus any other required tools.

And gentle pre-test banter doesn’t hurt: for my Academic Writing final, we talked about craft brews and good pub food until we were given our exam booklets.  But it’s not necessary, just really fun.

What are some of your pre-exam rituals?

–Kiyoshi “The Prototype”
Your #1 Canadian eh?
Triangle Army, Respect the Technique

Requirements

The summer semester is long over, and the fall semester has begun, marking my fourth semester in college.  Thus far I’ve taken a veritable mish-mash of courses, essentially just whatever I could get my hands on.  Near the end of the winter semester I started to track and plan what courses I would need, and now I have a better understanding.  Technically I’m juggling a diploma course and a degree at the same time, with slightly different requirements.  The Sport Science diploma requires 18-30 credits in Sport Science courses, plus 24-36 credits in electives, and 6 credits in English.

The BPEC degree also requires 6 English credits, 60 credits in Sport Science courses, 12 credits in Applied Methods courses, 27 elective credits, 3 Philosophy credits, 3 Math credits, 9 Science credits, and 8 Fieldwork and Portfolio credits.  I’ll have to juggle some of my electives around, but I can make it happen.  The Academic Advisers at Douglas College have thus far been prompt and helpful with their answers.  I’m sure they don’t hate that I’ve organized all of my questions  Just one or two more things to clear up, and I should be good until I’m nearly done my diploma.

Apart from writing down what courses I must take, I’ve also written down some of the electives and made note of what sounds interesting.  I’ve also asked former and fellow students what courses they enjoyed and added them to the list.  I’ll have to see how well I manage four courses plus a lab this semester, and if it goes well then I should be able to hit up another four in the winter, and possibly do the summer semester again.  I don’t look forward to the summer hours of the cafeteria, for whatever reason the Tim Horton’s closes about halfway through the semester and leaves us all stranded in an ocean of caffeine withdrawal.

The research has also gleaned some other interesting information: I must obtain two separate NCCP certifications, my basic C-level First Aid and CPR, my BCRPA certification, and my High Five certification for Childhood Development.  I foresee a busy summer going for those.

–Kiyoshi “The Prototype”
Your #1 Canadian eh?