The structure of the course is great as it gives us a rundown on what is about to happen in the following weeks. Most instructors give dates in advance to let students know about tests, assignments and projects. What's different about IS101 is the phases make us ready for the challenge and gives students anticipation on to the next one. As part of the spring 2026 class, I am thankful that the research Prof. Wu has done with the phases is now streamlined for us as it makes it easier for him to know where we are struggling and where we are on our course. Tracking a student's progress is not an easy task as my mother is a college professor as well; maintaining that communication between student and teacher can easily be lost on how chaotic semesters go.
All that said, I think I did well on Phase 1 of IS101 as it gave me a rundown on how the semester would flow. It is not an easy task to finish given that I have other responsibilities, but it is organized enough to where I am not all lost when navigating through my LabSim. However, it is not always easy to remember what I am missing in discussion posts as I must go through all my modules to read the things that I have to do. I know I finish them in a timely manner, but trying to remember if I miss something and seeing my grade not getting full credit makes me anxious thinking I missed an assignment.
I think my approach wouldn't be the same for Phase 2 as I know Excel is something not to be trifled with. My familiarity with Microsoft Word helped me go through some questions easily, but I think Excel is a different beast to learn. I understand we are learning the fundamentals, but it is still a chore remembering everything that we need to know to operate or even pass the MO exam for Excel; nevertheless, I know it would be fun and challenging to learn something new.
Word has a lot of functionality and one of those that are underrated and underappreciated are macros. 4.12.2 Macro facts briefly talk about macros and how to use them since we would be working on something that would be repetitive in our lives. Automation and knowing what key to press when making a new document is one way to make our lives easier when it comes to repetitive tasks. It is cumbersome to do the same thing repeatedly but with macros, it is a life saver. Not all people know they can record changes in the document and save them for later use.
My preparations are cut and clean. I try to remember the things that pops into my head when given the sample exams and try to learn the topics that I missed and see what I did wrong. Focusing on what I am lacking for myself, is the most effective way of learning my blind spots when working on something. I think the MO-110 Word exam won't be breeze, but surely enough, I can satisfy the score needed for the exam.
The only thing that I can share with the World Wide Web is one question for now:
Why does pizza comes in a box, is a circle and cut in triangles?
And they say math can't be used in real life situations.
Hi JD, first of all congratulations on getting a perfect score. I think you’re one of the only two students in the class who managed to do that, which is honestly impressive. It shows that your approach in Phase 1 really worked well. I also liked how you explained the phase structure of the course because it does make the semester feel more organized and easier to track where we are.
ReplyDeleteAbout your pizza question, the honest answer is probably that people are cheap. Making a square box from cardboard is faster and cheaper because you just cut and fold straight lines. If you tried to make a round pizza box, you would have to cut curves and probably waste the corners of the cardboard, which means more time and more cost.
With pizza dough it’s different because when you toss the dough in the air it naturally becomes a circle, you can’t really toss it into a square shape. But cardboard doesn’t work like that, you have to cut it, and cutting curves wastes material. So the simplest answer is economics, square boxes are cheaper to make and easier to stack. Basically cheapness solves the mystery.
Also I'm lazy to cut my pizzas in Triangles, Equidistant Triangles are the most "Fair" if you cut them equally. I cut mine square even if its a circle because I am just that lazy. I do not care about my guest getting a fair portion of my pizza. If they complain then they could buy their own pizza.
Thank you for appreciating my streamlined phases-structure for IS101 :-) Your mother is a college professor too? Yes, meaningfully tracking students' progress and development take emotionally and intellectual investments beyond numbers.
ReplyDeleteYou performed well in Phase 1 with a perfect-score for MO-110 exam as the cherry on top of the ice cream after a circle pizza in a square box ^_^
Your recognition of Excel is not something not to be trifled with is the first step to learning Microsoft Excel and spreadsheet analysis properly and conquering the MO-210 Excel exam!
Excellent choice of macros, which are available in Microsoft Excel as well...
Hello JD. The assignments are very streamlined, this class is definitely very different from any other college class I've taken. Excel is definitely a different beast to learn, it hasn't been easy for me so far. There are so many different concepts that I am not familiar with or proficient in. It is fun at times, though. I personally struggle with spending too much time on things like essays, so learning any way to make it faster is always a plus.
ReplyDeletePizza definitely comes in a box because the shape is easier to produce and fold something into a box shape than most other shapes. I have seen pizza boxes shaped like half-moons, octagons, and triangles. I think it's pretty easy to infer why those boxes are shaped that way!
Hi Desmond. I can relate to the worry that you have about forgetting to do a specific task for an assignment. I used to experience that when working on math assignments in past classes. Whenever I lost track of how many math problems that I skipped, I would look over the assignment to make sure that I completed all of the questions. What helps me remember tasks for an assignment is making a checklist for them.
ReplyDeleteHi JD!! I agree about Excel too… Word feels manageable, but Excel definitely feels like a different level at first, but it also makes sense that it’ll get easier with practice like everything else in the course.
ReplyDeleteWow congrats on the perfect score! Yes, i initially heard from other peers excel was something completely different originally from word and takes a lot of preparation comparable to succeed. So I too plan to just do more and study to learn this material as it isn't just memorization but actually takes critical think and analyzing formulas.
ReplyDeleteHey JD, yeah the great advantage is that we can actually see and work on the next set of assignments or any upcoming tasks, something that wasn't really common a long time ago, trust me I'm old so I know lol. Also the pizza thing reminds me of the questions "why is a boxing ring a square and not a ring?" or even "why is a building called a building when it's already been built?" haha, have a great rest of the semester!
ReplyDeleteHi JD, I imagine having a parent who is a college professor can be very intimidating but also very helpful. I feel like Microsoft Word and Excel are very similar aside from the functions, I love all the shortcuts that we learned. Pizza just sounds delicious I feel like if it wasn't cut up some would be greedy and try to eat it all ( ie. my kids and husband I have all boys and they love to try and eat everything).
ReplyDeleteHello, JD. I agree with you, Excel is a different beast to learn so far. I'm a little confused about the formulas and functions, but I'm up there learning to take the MOS Excel Exam.
ReplyDeleteHello Desmond, Excel has truly been a whole different world, formulas have already been the most challenging part but truly understanding what you are doing is a huge reward.
ReplyDeleteHi JD, the Excel functions were really annoying to learn but at the same time, it gets easier when you see it from a logical standpoint. For the pizza box question, I think I've heard an explanation for it but I don't recall what it was, there's definitely a specific reason for it though.
ReplyDeleteHey JD! I work at Domino's and I cannot even answer your question haha! I'll have to speak with my boss about this lol!
ReplyDeleteGood job keeping up with IS101! Have a great rest of the semester!
I don't think macros are underappreciated; rather, very few people try to learn how to use them, since most people don't need them, and they only use Word for what's strictly necessary.
ReplyDeleteHi Desmos, I agree, Excel was definitely a fun but challenging chapter. I can already see myself using so much of what we learned in the future. Also, now I’m really hoping you reveal the answer to that pizza question in your next post.
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ReplyDeleteYour blog was really interesting to read, especially the part about macros and automation. I also agree that Excel feels way more challenging than Word at first. And honestly, now I’m thinking about the pizza question too.
ReplyDeleteYou killed it during this semester, and good job with the score. Overall this picture is really cool and dig the view!
ReplyDeleteHi Desmond, I enjoyed your reflection on how the structured phases help you stay oriented throughout the course. Your point about macros was especially interesting, and your analogy about learning blind spots showed a thoughtful approach to exam preparation.
ReplyDeleteHey JD! I agree that focusing on what one person lacks for themself is the most effective way of learning blind spots when working on something. Being able to know the right thing to do is really easy, but knowing what things to avoid in order to achieve the right thing is extremely hard. It is also admirable to see someone be able to admit that they lack something, as people would usually want to appear as the best, perfect, and polished! So, acknowledging your own shortcomings is a really great trait to have in my opinion, and would totally lead you to success in the future.
ReplyDeleteHello JD. Macros are pretty underrated! I barely knew about them prior to this course, but now I know how useful they can be!
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