Looking Back at the Journey

Looking back at the semester, my experience in IS101 - 3003/5 was unlike any other class I have taken. The course was both challenging and rewarding. It wasn't just about completing the MOS exams, but learning to carefully check my work, thoroughly reading directions and the importance of attention to detail. I enjoyed gaining practical skills that I can apply outside of the classroom and use throughout my future career. 

I've said it before, but I'll say it again. Professor Wu is one of the best professors I've had. He constantly pushes his students to do their best while always making himself available whenever anyone needed help. His instructions and feedback were always clear, and he organized the class in a way that gave everyone the tools they needed to succeed. His dedication to both the course and his students is admirable. I also loved seeing how the class progresses throughout the semester, everyone became more comfortable participating, making jokes, laughing, which created a more engaging and enjoyable classroom environment.

For Discussion 6 Part 2, I chose 6.9.1 Animations. I chose this topic because it can make presentations more engaging and help important information stand out.

Not Perfect, But Progressing

Honestly, in the beginning of Phase 2, I was breezing through the course and once I hit the section for the more advanced functions in Excel, that's where my progress slowed down since the material was harder to understand and memorize for me. It was also frustrating when I knew how to do a task, but LabSim wanted it done a certain way. But overall, I still enjoyed learning something new and improving my skills in Excel. URL Components and Social Engineering was entertaining to be able identify as well as be cautious of certain links and be able to break them down. For A6 Spreadsheet Analysis with Trailer assignment reminded me of math because if a single function or reference is not inputted correctly, the whole data could be wrong.

For Discussion 5 Part 2, I chose 5.3.1 Deleting and Clearing Cells. I chose this topic because it helps us correct our mistakes by removing data. You can eliminate cells completely, erase their contents, or clear formatting.

Outside of class, I can apply what I've learned in multiple things such as managing my personal expenses, track investments and savings, or even organize data for my IT job.

For Phase 3, I want to repeat the same pace I had in Phase 1. The reason for this is because I want to push myself to improve my skills and take advantage of every opportunity the class has to offer so I can hopefully start working on getting my expert certifications for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Continuing the Journey

During phase 1, I think I did amazing. I was flying through all my assignments and so far ahead that I completed my first MOS Exam-Microsoft Word in a week in a half of the semester starting. Working through the LabSim assignments I found it to be very engaging and helping me improve my practical skills and gain a clearer understanding of the material. I wouldn't do anything differently since I was at a good pace.

For Discussion 4 Part 2, I chose 4.5.2 Page and Column Breaks. I chose this topic because back when I used write essays, when I needed a paragraph to start on a new page I would repeatedly press the enter key, without realizing there was a page break option available.

I already took the MOS Exam-Microsoft Word. What I did to prepare was redo the live projects and the practice exams multiple times.

Starting My Blog

Hello everyone, my name is Viviana Borroel. I'm born and raised in Las Vegas, NV. I am currently a student at the College of Southern Nevada (CSN) pursing a Forensic Cybersecurity Degree.

My first impression of the IS101 course has been positive. I had never experienced a professor reach out to students prior to the classes starting, so at first it seemed strange to me, but in a good way. Despite the fact that the course is quite demanding, the professor has made it very organized and straightforward to ensure each and everyone of his students have all the tools they need to succeed.

For Discussion 2 Part 2, I chose 1.3.12 Outlook Facts. I chose this topic because it's something some of us use on a daily basis. Outlook does a lot more than just send/receive emails. It has features for creating contacts, auto response messages, tracking notes and tasks, etc.