Review of Capstone Class

Here are some important skills that students must have in order to be successful in this capstone course.
1. Use your time well.
2. Stay focused.
3. Pick a topic that truly interests you.
4. Find more sources for your paper than needed.
5. Revise over and over again.
6. Be a strong speaker.
7. Take control of your own work.
8. Be organized.
9. Use all the personal connections you have, you never know where it will take you.
10. Use different aspects of your life and see how it can help you in your research or project itself.

Some highlights of this class was that I got to research a topic I loved.  I really enjoyed learning about the psychology of recovery and learning more about PT.  I liked that I got to work on my own and it was a slightly more independent class than previous classes I have had.  Also, during capstone night, it was very intriguing to listen to other people's topics.  Oh, and I thought this blog was kinda fun to keep up throughout the semester.

Some negatives about this class was that personally for me, the class was a little slow.  I used to take Accelerated English since seventh grade, and this year I dropped down to 21st Century Texts and Capstone.  This was quite a jump from accelerated to a standards class.  I think it was still a valuable course to take, but I felt a little restricted with the pace I had to follow.  Also, I did not like the little assignments we had every other day that had very little to do with what our project was and kept us from immersing ourselves in our topic.  Finally, I was not a big fan of this being considered an independent class, when I believe it is not.  We had check points on each of our sections; if it was truly independent, we would be told when the final due and be expected to have it done.  But hey, I'm done with this class now, and I am happy with my final product.

Capstone Debriefing

I thought my capstone presentation went very well last night.  It was interesting to listen to the other topics.  I was in a room with other people with a topic related to psychology.  It was cool to hear new information about birth order and psychology, and the effects of loneliness.  Overall, it was a cool night of listening.  

One critique about the night was the timing of the program.  I thought that we were required to be at school much longer than needed.  My group took about 30-45 minutes to present, but we were at the high school for about an hour and a half. 

I thought presenting to strangers was no different than presenting in class.  Though, I don't know many people well in my capstone class.  My community reviewer was very enthusiastic and made it easy to present as well.  I thought my in class presentation was slightly better because I used a smart board to show my PowerPoint.  It was alright on a smaller screen (my laptop) and was just a little weird clicking the slides.  Also, it was less awkward because I was in front of an audience during class verses of in front of two of my peers and an adult.  I find this more awkward because I would rather speak in front of a large group than a smaller one, where I am talking more to a collective group than a few specific people.  My parents used to make me do all the presentations for school in front of them the night before, and that was always more nerve racking than the real thing.   But overall it was a nice night, and I learned a lot. 

Capstone Presentation

How do you show to a class the affect the mind has on the recovery process?  That is the biggest hurdle I am trying to overcome right now.  I know there are some aspects that I could find images of, but there is nothing that will be able to encompass all that I have learned.  I think the best way I can engage the audience is through a PowerPoint presentation and include anecdotes.  Personally, I find anecdotes most interesting and those work well with my topic.  Last semester I took public speaking.  I have found a good way to practice my speech as well as how to make a good outline for myself so I remember what I want to say.  Both with public speaking and capstone, the class is not the most responsive class, so I will work around that and still engage the class.  I will be able to do this by showing examples from videos, tell anecdotes, and only asking rhetorical questions.  Maybe I am being a little harsh on my class, but if my paid teacher who is really good at being engaging and has had lots of experience can't get us to respond in the morning, how am i?

Reflection on My Capstone

With my capstone paper complete I would like to say that I can stop now.  But really I cannot.  I am not going to get off of this topic for a while because I like it and I want to continue doing this the rest of my life.  I will still be going to volunteer at Children's even though my official research is done.  I will still be learning about all of the ins and outs of physical therapy and psychology.  I will still attend my psychology class and continue to learn and apply what I learn.  I will still be interested in this topic because I truly enjoy it.  I hope to be a physical therapist someday and this project has just been my launch pad not my entire flight.

Though this is still a process, it was also the beginning of the end.  This is the big paper that says "I am a senior and I am done!"  We still have a few more weeks, but it is all wrapping up.  I still have AP exams and lots of tests and other work.  But I also have about 20 days left!  It is exciting to have this chapter close and have another open.  Even though I still don't know where my next chapter is (which is really annoying- I want to know where I am going to college) it is still exciting to move on from high school and become more independent.

When looking back on this project, I realize how this project is not like a college paper.  There was very little independence in the writing process.  We had to have mandatory checks and blog posts and meetings with our teacher.  We could not just use our time for our project, we had to do class assignments and has to pause way more than I needed to "reflect" on what we did.  Though the stuff we had to "reflect" on was nothing because we did not have time in class to be able to be immersed in our research.  To me there were more road blocks than helpful avenues.  I think that this paper should be more independent and treat us like the 18-year-olds we are, not the little children we are treated like.

Useful Websites

TED Blog has updated their list of "100 Websites You Should Know and Use."  They originally made a list in 2007, but decided it was time to update the list six years later.  Though many of the websites from the first  list are still used.  There are 100 websites and it is a little overwhelming.  But they have the websites listed by category:

• Business & E-commerce
• Audio & Visual
• Literature, Media, & Culture
• Politics, News & Global Issues
• Education
• Science & Technology

I have browsed a few of the websites and I have found two that were very interesting to me.

1. The Billfold- This is a blog about different money topics.  I thought these blogs were well written and relevant to a variety of people.  You can easily browse what blog you want to read and they have subtitles by category to easily look at one specific topic.  I do not really enjoy business things, I have a friend that enjoys it, so I hear about it a lot, but I have never had an interest.  Though, I thought this blog was still interesting, and I think everyone will be able to find something interesting to them.  
2. Khan Academy- This is a helpful website that has videos and animations about math, science and economics, computer science, humanities and test prep.  They have a wide range of subjects under each category and are geared toward high school and first year college students.  I have looked at some of these animations and they would be very helpful for the classes I am taking now and for some of the classes I know I'll need to take next year.  This also provides SAT math help.  This is very useful to have another resource to reference if a student does not understand a concept or wants more help with something.  

Family Connections

Last week I got my wisdom teeth and a few other out, and I was in pain pretty much the whole week.  What a great senior year spring break!  So beginning this week was a rough transisition, trying to deal with the pain that I still feel and get back into the swing of school.  But this week I received an email from my second aunt (I think that is the relation- she's my mom's cousin) about some of the PT questions I had.  She is a PT in Tennessee and has really enjoys her work.  On our family reunions in the summer, I have been able to talk with her about her work, but I didn't have a focus of any of my questions, I was just able to hear general information really.  I knew she would be a great resource for my paper, because she said she would love to help me anytime and that I could come observe in her clinic anytime.  She was able to answer some of the more practical questions I wanted to know because she works with people and knows more than just observers who try to research it.  She was able to specifically answer my questions about how family and friends help in the recovery process and how the outlook of the patient affects how a patient gets better.  All very interesting information and some great insight that I have not been able to find in other forms of research I've done.  Because of the great feedback from her, I am going to also ask my supervisor PT at Children's.  I think getting information from actual PT's is most valuable because it is most practical.   Beginning this project, I never thought it would lead to my second aunt, but hey, it works and is one of my best sources.

This is a picture from my family reunion a few years back.
It is my mom's side of the family and this particular year
we all made tie dye :)

With my capstone paper, I feel like I am on the downhill ride now.  I have 11 pages written and I feel like they are well developed ideas that just need polishing.  I have all the research I think I need done, but I will keep my eyes open to what I still need and any wholes I need to fill.  My main goal now is to wrap it up and polish my writing.  I am happy with what I have done and all the information I have learned.  I hope others who read my paper will find this information as interesting as I.    

Let's Get Down To Business

...to defeat the Huns!

This Mulan quote explains exactly what I must do now.  Well, besides defeating the Huns part.  I am now feeling pretty confident with where I am with my researching and organizing the 4th section of my capstone paper.  I have not begun actually writing but I have a clear plan the research to accompany it.  It is time for me to get down to business and actually write this thing.  This weekend I plan to get a large chunk of my paper written.  This topic is very interesting to me so I will enjoy writing this paper.  I have talked with my supervisor at Children's and I have contacted my aunt and friend who are both physical therapists.  I am excited to get the opinions of the people actually in the field because I think that will be some of the best information I can get, because it will be very practical.  I have about 5 books from the library that I am referencing for this paper.  They are about an array of topics and I will choose some of the more pertinent sections of each book to read in depth.

This research is a lot of fun and very interesting still and I am learning so much.  Though because it is psychology and physical therapy, there are some claims from people that to me are hard to believe.  Here is a quote from a woman who did a Psycho-Physical Therapy workshop.

"This workshop I took on Saturday February 18th changed my life!! I became embodied in a different way during an exercise there and it has affected my body in how I walk! The physical therapist can’t explain the range of motion I now have in my injured hip since I have started relaxing my spine!! He doesn't think I need to see the orthopedist now!! Thanks Bill!!"

This sounds cool and everything, but I find it hard to believe completely.  This woman is saying one day of therapy has completely changed her life.  Maybe it is true and I am being too skeptical, but I want to find real practical solutions for everyone.  This the type of thing I am trying to sift through, to find the realistic options for psychology and physical therapy.   So I will now go get immersed in my paper and more research.  This should be fun!