I want to take a moment to respectfully retract the pat on the back I awarded myself in my last Participation Template Update – the past fortnight has been a shocker in terms of meeting my participation template goals.

In my defence, I have had the added pressure of three separate assignments due in that time (all the while battling my way through the first flu of the season), but I acknowledge that improvement in reaching my goals is critical if I want to make the most out of this class.

So here we are again! My new list of quantitive goals for the week:
– THREE new blog posts by this time next week.
– Actively (verbally) contribute to class AT LEAST TWICE per class.
– Read ONE chapter of Alien Phenomenology
– Make ONE PAGE of notes per class.
– Maintain ONE DAY free of social or work commitments.

I reduced the number of blog posts I aim to complete this week because I hope that by making my goals more achievable, I will be able to accomplish and then build on them.

Here we go, Gen. You can do it.

What a week!

I almost reached my goal of five blog posts, I managed to finish chapters one and two of Bogost, I took notes galore AND allocated a whole day specifically to my studies. Not a bad start to a new Participation Template but I know there’s still plenty of room for improvement.

Quantitive goals for the week (in list form, for obvious reasons) :
– FIVE new blog posts by this time next week.
– Actively (verbally) contribute to class AT LEAST TWICE per class.
– Read ONE more chapter of Bogost AND read Shield OR Ingold.
– Make ONE PAGE of notes per class.
– Maintain ONE DAY free of social or work commitments.

And though it is not an item on my Participation Template, next week I vow not to be late to class…

Pat on the back Gen, you’re getting there.

So I think now would be a good time to reassess my Participation Template. It’s week three and I’m finally getting back to the student routine which has exposed the actual flaws in my approach to studying – as opposed to the flaws I predicted when initially creating my Participation Template. In order to get the most out of this class, I need to refocus my energy into a new list of weekly goals.

Blogging has been a problem for me. I’ve struggled to actually do anything and I could attribute it to any number of things but I think it is predominantly laziness. After four months off, reacquainting myself with the workload of university has been an arduous endeavour. My goal for this week: 5 blog posts.

After the success of completing my week one reading, I suffered an unfortunate relapse back into my old habits. I printed out the subsequent readings and intended to complete them however I never made the time to sit down and actually accomplish the task. My goal for this week is to have completed the Bogost reading.

Both of these things are primarily a result of laziness but I also think I need to acknowledge that their being neglected is collateral damage in my attempt to maintain the same lifestyle I lead over the four-month break. I need to re-order my priorities and allocate more time to my studies. My goal is to give myself one day a week where I do not make any social or work commitments.

One of my original Participation Template goals which I have successfully realised (thus far) has been my note-taking during class. Despite accomplishing this goal, it will maintain its position on my Participation Template as I think note taking remains an important study aid and, as proven by my struggle with completing the readings, initial success is not indicative of an ongoing habit. My specific measurable goal for the next week is to bring my notebook to class and take at least a page worth of notes in each class.

The final thing I would like to include on my new Participation Template is to become a more active contributor in class. I didn’t incorporate this goal to my original Participation Template as it has never been an issue for me in the past. I think one of the reasons for my lack of specific participation in this class could be attributed to the fact that I have been behind in the readings and thus felt out of my comfort zone with regards to voicing my opinion. However, I also think that there have been fewer opportunities to actively contribute to this class in comparison to other classes I have completed and would like to see more opportunity for class discussions and the input of my peers’ opinions on the topics we explore in class and in the readings. For the coming week, my objective to fulfil this new goal is to contribute at least two comments, opinions or questions per class.

I started class today feeling accomplished; despite being one of my biggest vices and the first item on my Participation Template, I managed to complete the set reading! Ordinarily I find completing readings to be particularly difficult and tedious as I cannot help but feel that reading is not the most productive thing I could be doing with my time. I know this outlook is ridiculous and I am aware that our readings contain a wealth of relevant, valuable knowledge and that they are specifically chosen for this purpose – but old habits die hard.

Although I didn’t make notes in the first class, I consider myself to be off to a positive start with regards to my note taking – for the second class of the semester I made a conscious effort to bring a notebook and pen with the intention to take notes. Baby steps, but baby steps in the right direction nonetheless.

I have yet to conduct any research outside of that which we were guided to complete but it is also early and I have not yet been captivated by anything to the extent that I want to complete further research on the matter. With that said, perhaps it is more important for me to seek out things to research rather than passively wait for something of interest to be dropped into my lap? File this one under “ideas for consideration”.

I feel it is too early to comment on the final two points on my Participation Template as we have yet to complete anything for which to seek feedback and have yet to indulge in any real class discussions.

In order to get the most out of Ecologies of Noticing, we have created our own personal “Participation Templates” which we believe will help up get the most out of this course based on our individual objectives.

I think the most important and difficult goal for me to focus on will be to keep up with the readings. My track record isn’t the greatest when it comes to getting the readings done, hence its place at the top of my Participation Template. I also think that the idea of actively receiving feedback will be a way I can improve my skills beyond simply refining those I already possess.