SLIS Assignment

The online environment has been evolving rapidly ever since it came into existence. I was first introduced to Google Calendar in 2007, and was hesitant - I used Yahoo email and a paper calendar, and was content with that. But then I discovered the world of Google collaboration, and the world seemed to open. Google Docs has been an invaluable tool in educational, professional and social collaboration for the past three years of my life. Google Calendar and sharing settings help enable live collaboration. Skype, Elluninate, Wikis, and countless other internet services are amazing tools in collaboration, especially in an online-only environment.


The personal skills needed to succeed as an online student are really quite similar as those needed to succeed as a self-motivated student in a traditional school setting. Since eighth grade, I've done a number of academic independent studies, and found it crucial to set personal deadlines that aligned with the professor's assignment deadlines. If working in a group, deadlines should be clear to all participants for each phase of the project, so everything gets completed on time and nothing is left out.


One of the reasons I was particularly attracted to the idea of an online MLIS is that I am a visual learner. I have often found myself in the position where I was the only one in the class that read the assigned textbook reading, and found the lecture to be a complete regurgitation of the text material. An online program, being primarily textual/visual, is very appealing. I can also hold a job in my area of interest, while doing my coursework after dinner.


I see myself as generally good at time management, organization, self-motivation, working independently, and I love working with technology, and am always up for a challenge. Let the semester begin!