Final Reflection
Final Reflection
The end of this course is finally here and yet for me the end seems to be just the beginning. I have thoroughly enjoyed this class. I believe its been because of many reason: my current age and situation, the professor, the teaching style and various types of learning we were able to use and simply because I didn't realize how much I enjoy psychology.
When I began this class, I didn't know one thing about creating a blog. I have wanted to write one for a few years, and have been encouraged to do so by those who have heard me speak and have read the devotionals and other things I have written. So this class forced me out of my comfort zone and has given me the ability to blog. I learned how to create hyperlinks and to design the background for the blog. This will be very helpful for my future blogging which I plan to start soon.
There have been a variety of topics we have covered in this class. Beginning with the brain and its different parts and functions, we learned just how incredible the human brain is. Then moving into sensation and perception we learned about the five senses and how they acquire data and turn it into our perceptions. Developmental Psychology took us through a look at the human lifespan from birth to old age and how we develop within each respective age range. Next we explored personality and took tests to reveal more about our unique personalities God has given to each one of us. From there we tested our learning skills and learned how we learn. We also discussed what motivates us to learn. Then on down memory lane, we travelled down the paths information takes to retrieve what we learn and how diseases affect this process. That brought us to sharing our story through the lens of multiculturalism. Finally, we wrapped it up with a look at abnormal psychology and its disorders, rounding it out with a look into the power of positive psychology.
It is really hard for me to pick one or two favorite topics from what we learned. I enjoyed each one very much but I will share a couple of my favorites. Developmental Psychology stood out to me because I have just about every stage of development in my house right now!! With my 6 month old to my 3 teenage boys, myself and parents all living under one roof, I have a front seat into the real life world of developmental psychology.
One of the tasks and topics I enjoyed most was learning about the teen brain and sharing this information with my mother. I had to learn all about the teen brain and share what I learned with my mom and record our time together and her thoughts about what I learned. Here is a link to that video.It brought an incredible amount of understanding and changing the way I deal with my boys. It also helped her to understand and ease frustrations as they arise.
I also enjoyed the personality tests and seeing the results of my tests. I feel they were very accurate and went well with strength finder test I have taken before. It is a great reminder that we all have such different personalities and perceptions and we need to appreciate in each other.
I enjoyed the topic of motivation as well. With three teenagers, this topic and learning different strategies to help with motivation was interesting. It also hit home because of my past struggles with addiction and talking about what motivates people to change. The video about pigeons and how they were taught self control.
I also enjoyed doing the last task we did, task 7. I chose to do the self compassion letter. I have many regrets from my past due to my addiction but I am healing every day. Now that i have a baby again, it has brought up many things I am shameful and sad for because I wasn't always fully present for my other boys. I wrote the letter but those things I wrote are things I have been telling myself for a while when those guilty feelings come up. I believe Christ has forgiven me and died for sins long ago. I know He loves me and although I should feel conviction and want to change, I should not feel guilt and condemnation. His blood, love and mercy cover me and I am made whole in Him.
I had fun doing the blog post for sensation and perception. many of the videos we watched were very interesting. For example, the on about Synesthesia. This is a cross blending of the senses so that is i say red someone might get a certain taste in their mouth. The other that was very interesting was about the cochlear implant. The video follows a girl named Kelly who is going to hear for the first time. It amazing how they can connect something to the ear drum to register sound for someone. Another blog post that was interesting was the one on the brain and how it works. This was essential for us to start with because everything else was based off understanding the fundamentals of how our brain operates.
I did not have any blogger comments from any classmates. The only feedback I got was from Dr. Pris which complemented my thoroughness in the assignment. I do wish I had had more feedback from classmate especially since I worked hard to do the assignments.
Kevin's blog has been very interesting to read. I know him from school in Corpus so reading his stuff I can really imagine him talking to me. I also enjoyed Rowdy's blogs as they were always full of pictures and gifs that made you laugh. Both of these blogs were always very complete and touched on everything we were supposed to. it made commenting on them easy as they put forth a lot of work.
I highly enjoyed and appreciated that there were different learning formats. The lecture videos and TED talks were very pleasant breaks from tedious textbook readings and although we did have some readings the course wasn't fully based on just reading and that was great for me. With my busy life as a mom, I could listen to TED talks while cooking, folding laundry or nursing the baby. One of the TED talks I enjoyed most was by Pediatrician Nadine Burke Harris. She talked about ADD and ADHD and how she noticed in her work with many patients that these issues may be connected to childhood trauma. This hit home for me because my son struggles with ADD and has had much trauma in his life with his younger brother dying and with my addiction issues. Another video that was great to watch and very interesting was the one on Life's Greatest Miracle especially since I am a mother. Seeing all the stages from conception to birth just reminds you how amazing God has made the process of reproduction.
All in all, I have really enjoyed this class. I have been able to apply it to my life with myself and with my children. Being able to know about myself helps me to be a better mother, student, and friend. It helps me understand others so that I am not judgmental or have expectations of others that are not healthy. I see the world and people for the unique individuals God made them to be. It actually makes me a happier person to understand the basics psychology and all that it entails. I will be a better employee as well when I begin to work as it will help me to work with others. I believe God has made us for relationship with Him and relationship with others so being open to understanding psychology and the role it plays in our lives is of utmost importance. This class has had an influence on me that will positively affect me and the people around me for the rest of my life.
It is really hard for me to pick one or two favorite topics from what we learned. I enjoyed each one very much but I will share a couple of my favorites. Developmental Psychology stood out to me because I have just about every stage of development in my house right now!! With my 6 month old to my 3 teenage boys, myself and parents all living under one roof, I have a front seat into the real life world of developmental psychology. One of the tasks and topics I enjoyed most was learning about the teen brain and sharing this information with my mother. I had to learn all about the teen brain and share what I learned with my mom and record our time together and her thoughts about what I learned. Here is a link to that video.It brought an incredible amount of understanding and changing the way I deal with my boys. It also helped her to understand and ease frustrations as they arise. I also enjoyed the personality tests and seeing the results of my tests. I feel they were very accurate and went well with strength finder test I have taken before. It is a great reminder that we all have such different personalities and perceptions and we need to appreciate in each other. I enjoyed the topic of motivation as well. With three teenagers, this topic and learning different strategies to help with motivation was interesting. It also hit home because of my past struggles with addiction and talking about what motivates people to change. The video about pigeons and how they were taught self control.
I also enjoyed doing the last task we did, task 7. I chose to do the self compassion letter. I have many regrets from my past due to my addiction but I am healing every day. Now that i have a baby again, it has brought up many things I am shameful and sad for because I wasn't always fully present for my other boys. I wrote the letter but those things I wrote are things I have been telling myself for a while when those guilty feelings come up. I believe Christ has forgiven me and died for sins long ago. I know He loves me and although I should feel conviction and want to change, I should not feel guilt and condemnation. His blood, love and mercy cover me and I am made whole in Him.
I had fun doing the blog post for sensation and perception. many of the videos we watched were very interesting. For example, the on about Synesthesia. This is a cross blending of the senses so that is i say red someone might get a certain taste in their mouth. The other that was very interesting was about the cochlear implant. The video follows a girl named Kelly who is going to hear for the first time. It amazing how they can connect something to the ear drum to register sound for someone. Another blog post that was interesting was the one on the brain and how it works. This was essential for us to start with because everything else was based off understanding the fundamentals of how our brain operates.
I did not have any blogger comments from any classmates. The only feedback I got was from Dr. Pris which complemented my thoroughness in the assignment. I do wish I had had more feedback from classmate especially since I worked hard to do the assignments.
Kevin's blog has been very interesting to read. I know him from school in Corpus so reading his stuff I can really imagine him talking to me. I also enjoyed Rowdy's blogs as they were always full of pictures and gifs that made you laugh. Both of these blogs were always very complete and touched on everything we were supposed to. it made commenting on them easy as they put forth a lot of work.
I highly enjoyed and appreciated that there were different learning formats. The lecture videos and TED talks were very pleasant breaks from tedious textbook readings and although we did have some readings the course wasn't fully based on just reading and that was great for me. With my busy life as a mom, I could listen to TED talks while cooking, folding laundry or nursing the baby. One of the TED talks I enjoyed most was by Pediatrician Nadine Burke Harris. She talked about ADD and ADHD and how she noticed in her work with many patients that these issues may be connected to childhood trauma. This hit home for me because my son struggles with ADD and has had much trauma in his life with his younger brother dying and with my addiction issues. Another video that was great to watch and very interesting was the one on Life's Greatest Miracle especially since I am a mother. Seeing all the stages from conception to birth just reminds you how amazing God has made the process of reproduction.
All in all, I have really enjoyed this class. I have been able to apply it to my life with myself and with my children. Being able to know about myself helps me to be a better mother, student, and friend. It helps me understand others so that I am not judgmental or have expectations of others that are not healthy. I see the world and people for the unique individuals God made them to be. It actually makes me a happier person to understand the basics psychology and all that it entails. I will be a better employee as well when I begin to work as it will help me to work with others. I believe God has made us for relationship with Him and relationship with others so being open to understanding psychology and the role it plays in our lives is of utmost importance. This class has had an influence on me that will positively affect me and the people around me for the rest of my life.
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