WEEK 2: MODULE 2

This is the second week of the CSUMB computer science program.

The first thing we went over this week was the "Review and Reflect Learning Strategy". This particular lesson went over how one would improve upon study skills, learning habits and the best ways that everyone can learn or retain the information they are seeking. We had to pick three things we were good at and the three we were not; thus, they are as listed below.

Three things that I am good at within the "Review and Reflect Learning Strategy":

• Reading: essentially is one of my strong suits, as I actively read everything, I need to know from day one to the final day specific requirements and assignments. Therefore, I read thoroughly and reconfirm it through reading.
• Surveying: I'm good at surveying information whether it is through my email, canvas or discussion board about certain questions or certain requirements that need to be met for the questions.
• Taking Notes: I'm good at taking notes over important information, key points and resources that I can use for anything required for the questions or assignments.

Three things that I am weak at within the "Review and Reflect learning Strategy":

• How to use your time: I sometimes struggle managing time, I may be able to get the assignments or questions answered on time, but they don't always follow the set number of hours I have for myself.
• Where to study: I don't have a particular place to study, as I constantly work whenever I can wherever I am at, thus I need to set a workspace for myself as to become more efficient when studying.
• A schedule saves time: I don't have a particular schedule other than the ones created by my team for meetings, thus I rely on my own memory or free time to turn in assignments. Therefore, I need to work on my schedule more often.

The second thing we went over this week was the "Preview Time Management Skills". This went over how to create an activity log that can otherwise showcase the amount of time we spend on our coursework. Therefore, we needed go over "9 key Time Management Skills and How To Improve Them" to understand how to create our activity log, which is down below.

The third thing we went over was the "Project Management Basics". This was over three different presentations on project management, which were the Introduction to Project Management, How to Create a Work Breakdown Structure: A WBS Masterclass and Project Management in Under 5: What is a Gantt Chart.

The Introduction to Project Management goes over how to complete a project. It exemplifies projects in three different constraints, which are time, scope and cost. This was further explained through how the presentation illustrated a business strategy, key triggers to start a project, prioritization, project selection, project portfolio, accountability, and methodologies on not only executing a project but also knowing how to successfully see it through. This presentation goes over the necessary steps in understanding what a project is, how to execute a project, how to manage the project, how to be accountable for the project and how to use certain skills and methods to achieve the project.

The How to Create a Work Breakdown Structure: A WBS Masterclass goes over how to best structure and complete a project through a work breakdown structure. This presentation goes over what WBS is, deliverables, how to present the project, practices and hybrid projects. This discussed ways to illustrate tasks, benchmarks and a proper workflow through deliverables, which were created into a treelike structure starting from level 0 to level 4. This is further shown by how one can present a project through a dictionary or excel sheet, while using a methodology called MECE (Mutually Exclusive Collectively Exhaustive) approach. The end of this was about hybrid projects through work packages called activates, sequences, estimates and schedule. Therefore, illustrating an entire breakdown of how to create a work structure.

The final presentation was about a Project Management in under 5: What is a Gantt Chart that goes over a 2D graph illustrating how to schedule a project effectively, while undergoing scheduled checks to see if the project is progressing smoothly or on schedule. Essentially, a Gantt Chart is used to display tasks in a descending order over multiple projects happening in conjecture, thus keeping track of all projects that are happening in parallel.

The fourth thing we went over was the "Check Out Previous Capstones". This was over three presentations and reflecting on US Naval Research Laboratory, National AI - Campus and Town - hub.

The US Naval Research Laboratory was over a security scan summary project that went over code vulnerabilities and real time updates on coding. The project was certainly informative, and I honestly like the idea of a code tester for those that don't understand it. However, it lacked a solid way in presenting their information to a large audience, thus it would've been better if they had a more appealing slideshow. Furthermore, the project could become a standalone application or extension to various application.

The National AI - Campus was over a project that identified brain tumors through computer vision. The project was very informative and had visuals for those listening. I liked how she went over numerous details encompassing the diagnostics, challenges and benefits of this. In the end, the only thing I would have to say is that I wished she showed herself through a camera when presenting the information. As far as the project, I would like to see a way to display it on a custom device or application that is tethered to the required equipment.

The Town - hub was a project going over a website/application that notified individuals within a general vicinity to garage sales and block parties. I liked the idea of an application that notified you of certain events taking place around you. The presentation could have been improved with more visuals and better audio for presenting. On the other hand, the project could've been used for special events happening within the area or town, for example, a basketball game, competition, etc.

The fifth thing we went over was the course modules, which consisted of reading, writing and quiz taking. To start off the assignments, I completely read through the intro, lecture and writing lab going over the modules requirements and learning outcomes. I then proceeded to take two quizzes going over the modules academic writing and peer review, which I managed to get an A on both. After going over the quizzes, I went over a discussion on effective study strategies. I listed off memorization, repetition and implementation, which was about constantly reading, taking notes, writing, talking and putting it into real world situations. I then completed a weekly survey going over what we thought of the course and another Collaboration (by OLI) assignment over module 2 that went over videos on teamwork. The last thing I did was an industry analysis essay draft and peer review, which took me a bit longer than I had hoped to accomplish, as I allocated a large amount of time into the essay itself (Shown above). 

In the end, I completed another week without too many issues or concerns, thus I hope to keep this going and accomplish everything within a timely manner.