Personal Skills

I don't watch Glee very often but I do remember watching an episode where Sue and Will get into an argument.  Sue mentions her PhD and Will counters with the fact that she got it on-line.  For whatever reason on-line degrees are often not taken seriously but after working on things this past week,  looking at the surveys about readiness for on-line learning, and listening to the lectures on teamwork I can tell you that this degree program is not going to be a casual in and out adventure a la Facebook.

So, do I have what it takes?  When I looked at the checklists I felt very confident.  I am very good at time management (I just wish I had more time to manage).  I am a very organized person but will need to learn more about organizing materials on my desktop and on-line.  I am highly motivated.  I wish I could take these classes faster.  I am independent person; I prefer to work on my own and not have to rely on anyone (more on that later).  I am fairly comfortable with technology.  I am fortunate that my husband is an IT person.  I'm glad he's around to help if needed but I am determined to work my way through things and only use him as a last resort :)  I enjoy a challenge...it scares me to death but I love it!! 

One thing that struck me was the fact that a course could take up 10 - 15 hours of time each week.  I had hoped to take 2 courses a semester but I'm not sure I can manage that much time.  We'll see.

I enjoyed watching the two lectures about teamwork.  Teamwork can freak me out and as Erid Irwin said it is about "lack of control".  I tend to be a perfectionist and always desire to have good grades, so to entrust my grade into the hands of other people that I barely know is a challenge for me.  However, as an educator for the last 18 years I truly understand the benefits of teamwork.  I have attended many workshops and taught my students how to collaborate.  Although it is not a natural way for me to work it is something that I am able to do.  I can be an introspective, shy person but have learned to "put myself out there"  I appreciated Dr. Ken Haycock's comments about the forming and storming stages of team development.  I think those building phases are often overlooked and rushed in order to get to an assignment but it is vital to the team to explore strengths and weaknesses, clarify goals, set rules, and set-up procedures. 

It struck me that the on-line surveys talked about the importance of being an independent learner and then there were 2 lectures on teamwork.  Balance is the key.  Being self-motivated and disciplined enough to keep up in an on-line world and yet being a team player when asked to be. 

Hoping for the first snow day of the year tomorrow :)

Why Maine Frogger?

Why Maine Frogger you might ask?  That is a really good question.  I have been blessed with a very common name.  In fact, according to howmanyofme.com there are 3,078 of us.  So using that as my name was out of the question.  My husband and I moved to Maine 10 years ago from Ohio.  We absolutely love it here.  We enjoy the ocean, the mountains, the lakes...it is a beautiful state.  Since living here we have taken up kayaking, gone to Acadia National park every year, and climbed Mt. Katahdin.  As far as the frogger goes...I love frogs.  I currently have 2 adult frogs, 1 froglet, and 4 tadpoles.  2 of the bathrooms in my house are decorated with frogs.  My favorite frog is the African Clawed Frog which lives totally in water.

I have created this blog for an assignment in my first course in a Masters of Library Science.  It is for the lesson on Social Networking and Platforms.  I have been a part of Facebook for about 2 years.  I have mixed feelings about social networking.  I have really enjoyed getting in touch with old friends and catching up.  I also enjoy playing some mindless games (not ones where I harass my friends) as a stress reliever.  My family lives in a small town about a 1/2 hour from most of our close friends so I really love being able to connect with them during the week on Facebook in chats and messages.  My biggest irritation with Facebook is the oversharing.  I have blocked and even "unfriended" several people because I am sick of hearing what they ate for breakfast, lunch, and dinner and how many push-ups they did last night. 

Well, there you have it.  My first blog.