Reflections on Semester

When the semester started I was under the impression that this class would be super duper really easy. When it wasn't super duper easy, I was really surprised and somewhat terrified and intimidated by what I had unknowingly gotten myself into. Still, I resolved to carry on despite adversity, no matter what it took. At this point, I am still somewhat doubtful of my qualifications to be in the AP class, but at the same time I am enjoying my time and I am certainly learning a lot. In fact, this has probably been my most informative class this year, both teaching me a lot about computer programming as well as teaching me how to deal with subjects I find difficult to understand. Its also given me enormous respect for programmers and video game designers, considering my difficulty just getting jGRASP to remove letters from a word.

I think the class is taught well, and while I like the independence to work on my own, I sometimes think the level of freedom I am given isn't in my best interest. I'm really not as productive as I should be in this group setting, what with all the distractions and lack of hard deadlines and all. Still, that said, I think that's more of a personal failing on my part than anything wrong with the class. It fits into a nice capitalist perspective though, the people who work the hardest succeed and those that don't fall behind. Which is fair and good, so I shouldn't really complain. I understand the completion grade system for everything, and I don't see any good alternative to it (labs either run or they don't, there isn't middle ground), but the black and white grading is a little unfamiliar to me. I'm not saying its bad, I think it is good and effective (it certainly doesn't tolerate mediocrity or half-assery), but it takes getting used to.

At the beginning of the year we took the quizzes on paper which I think I liked better than taking them on the internet. I know its probably easier not to make all the copies (it also saves trees), but I just like the feeling of having the physical paper in my hand and being able to write on the paper and mark up the problems like I can on worksheets. That's just personal preference though and taking them on the internet isn't that much worse or anything.

Computer Science is an odd subject I think, mostly because it is very different from English, pretty different from Math, not much like Biology or Chemistry, and nothing like Latin or Spanish. Computer Science is more like problem solving than composing with words, executing a formula, memorizing molecules or conjugating verbs. Mr. Pace told me that Sci Tech would change my life because it would make me solve problems and think like an engineer. I told him he was wrong, and by the end of the semester, I turned out to be right. Sci Tech didn't enlighten me or make me better at solving problems at all. Computer Science on the other hand has definitely forced me to think outside what I have been taught and actually apply my knowledge and ingenuity to a problem I don't know how to solve.

I really hope to do a lot better next semester. Even though my mid B's in the class are fine grades, especially for a class that I am struggling with (even though I shouldn't be), I think its largely to your benevolence with making work up and leniency on free response. Because I know it will get harder next semester and I don't plan on being absent, I fear my grades will slip. Then again, I will have a better grip on the material having been in the class for a semester, so we will see how it works out.

I have definitely enjoyed the class though and I hope I will enjoy it as much next semester. I think you are a really chill teacher and I'm glad I'm learning from you. I am also glad I am learning, because even if the class was really easy and I made a 100, it wouldn't prepare me for the AP or really teach me anything. I have certainly learned a lot about a field I basically knew nothing about going in, which is something I am really happy about. Thanks.

2nd Six Week

I still need to make up some things from the second six weeks, namely the exam. I think I should probably do this next Tuesday or Wednesday or maybe even Monday because otherwise I don't know when I will get it done. I really don't want to do it during finals week so next week would probably be best. I'm almost done with my 12 and 13 labs, so I think I am going to come in next week to finish those and show labs. A somewhat major problem is my lack of organization for my labs and worksheets, so I am afraid that I might have lost some things that I never showed you. Right now I am scouring my room for any worksheets that might not have been checked off, as well as scouring my H: drive for unchecked labs.

Grid World

I really like GridWorld as a medium because it allows you to see what you are doing a lot better than when you are just writing code. Like, when I can see the bug turn too early in spiralbug I can understand what I need to fix better than if in a lab my results come out 1 too high. Its a lot easier to troubleshoot because of the graphical interface I think. Either way, GridWorld has been a nice reprieve from the other more bland labs we do.

What we are learning

The bases unit is really interesting I think, but at the same time, it requires a lot more work than I am used to in deciphering coding commands. Converting bases just seems really monotonous and tedious to me. But thats okay. Chopper seems really useful, I think there have been labs in the past where that would have been useful to have as an option when coding. As time has gone on, I think that comp sci has definitely gotten easier, but thats not to flat out say its easy. Im still not totally getting the work, but I feel like I do understand it a lot better than I did before, I am even able to get labs done in class now!

I am very sick

Wednesday morning I woke up with a really bad fever was very sick. This left me bedridden until the weekend, causing me to miss school and be incapable of starting my make up work. On Saturday I was able to start working on some school work, but on Sunday I got worse. Apparently the brief reprieve Saturday offered was the time it took my virus to leave my sinuses and move into my lungs. This I learned from the doctor today. I have gotten very behind in all my classes, particularly Comp Sci, and I know I am going to have to make up a lot of this work in the coming days and weeks. I am already working on it.

Tutoring Again

Going to tutoring this second time has really really helped a lot. I dont know why, but its always so much easier to work after school than it is in class. In any case, this help has produced far better results than the prior tutoring. For instance, this last week I was actually able to get some labs done on my own in class. One can only hope this trend will continue.

The Textbooks

There are two textbooks that are on sugarsync. I have looked at both of them and while they are not wholly enlightening, I do think they helped a bit. I like them mainly because it explains the concepts in a great many words as opposed to the few used on the slides. I definitely still need to go in for tutoring, but it is still nice to read the textbooks. One thing that I haven't yet found in the textbooks however, is information regarding having two separate classes, which I think is what I dont really understand...

Tutoring

I really need to go back to tutoring. While the stuff that I learned in tutoring and we did last 6 weeks now looks really easy, the stuff we are doing this 6 weeks is just as hard and new as the stuff as the first 6 weeks was back then. Well, thats not true. I understands ifs, whiles, and forloops, as in, I get what they do and how they work. I just dont understand how they all fit together into a program that runs well. I dont really know how to reconcile this, but I know I ought to go into tutoring more. Like at least once a week I think.

Tutoring

Going into tutoring really cleared a lot of stuff up. Though, I don't know if actually going to tutoring and reviewing was what helped or if it was actually being there doing the work alone without distractions. I hope it was the former, but I guess if it turns out to be the latter thats okay too. It was so much easier and made so much more sense in tutoring than at home or in class. Like magic.

AP CompSci More

To be honest, despite my attempts to finish up my labs at the last minute, I have found myself unable to complete the work. That said, a B isn't that bad of a grade, though it seems worse because I know I can do better, something which I hope to prove in the upcoming 6 weeks. Still, my missing classes due to my wisdom teeth probably didn't help this at all. My wisdom teeth are done though, so this next 6 weeks should be better.

Missing last friday

I had missed last Friday because my wisdom teeth were coming in. I didn't actually get them removed, but we got everything set up. Unfortunately, because we move pretty quick in Comp-Sci, I feel like I missed some really important stuff. Additionally, I think I may have saved over two of my previous labs because I didn't save them into a place where they wouldn't be overwritten when I copied the new APCS folder in. I am definitely going to go in for tutoring some times this coming week to finish the labs and get up to speed because I do feel rather behind. Other than that, I am doing pretty badass in school. Very happy about that.

More AP Comp Sci

One thing I ought to talk to Mr. Stephens about, is a problem Luigi and I have been having with the most recent lab. 02C I think, or something like that. In any case, the lab involves finding the perimeter of a rectangle and the surface area of a square. For some reason, after having done the lab ourselves individually, no matter what the width and height are, the perimeter is always displayed as zero. We even edited our code to look like Graham's and it still didn't work. Other than that though, I am not having any trouble with the class. The workload isn't excessive and the lectures are well presented. I still feel like I don't really know where the class is going, making every new day an adventure, which is nice because it isn't boring, but also worrying because I have very little prior knowledge for which to fall back on. It does keep me from slacking off though.

On a rather unrelated note, I have been watching the republican debates recently, and while I am rather indifferent to Perry and Romney, Cain, Paul and Huntsman all look like great candidates to me. Too bad they won't win... *sigh*

AP CompSci

After 2 weeks of Advanced Placement Computer Science, I feel rather comfortable with the class. Having taken a Programming in Java class in middle school, much of what we are doing feels somewhat familiar. Strangely, part of me feels like we are moving too fast and that I am struggling to keep up, despite the fact that I am not having trouble. This might be because of all the new concepts that I feel are being introduced very quickly, as opposed to my other classes which seem to be content to advance at the pace of sloths. I am definitely learning things in a short period of time, which is good, and I don't really feel lost in the instruction, though I do sometimes feel a little less informed than some of the people who have more experience in programming. This hasn't really been a problem yet as what we are learning isn't terribly hard to grasp. I ramble a lot.

Ron Paul

According to gallup polls, Ron Paul is, for the conservative nomination, in 3rd place, behind Romney and our own governor Perry. This is really interesting because last year, Ron Paul didn't do near this well in the race. Obviously, the race is nowhere near over with the general election still over a year away, but Paul's early success nonetheless promises good things for the future. As for why he is doing better this year than four years ago is probably a combination of factors, including his wider notoriety following the last election. That, along with the fact that mainstream conservative opinion has largely caught up with the ideas Dr. Paul has been spouting for years about limited spending, constitutional government, and laissez faire economics. Especially in the wake of the recession and the mounting debt, Paul's ideas seem to be more relevant than ever.

This poll in particular indicates that if Ron Paul were nominated, he would have a fair shot at beating Obama for the presidency with only 1% of adults preferring the president over Paul

http://www.gallup.com/poll/149114/Obama-Close-Race-Against-Romney-Perry-Bachmann-Paul.aspx

Awesome.