Discussion Essay

Part 1

Congratulations on completing your first week of class! You have taken an important step toward realizing your big picture. As you learned in Unit 1, success in college will require you to create a successful routine. Now that you have been through your first week, you have already started to develop some of the habits that will help you succeed. You have probably also started to identify some changes that you can make to improve your routine. These are the first steps of successful time management!

Now, let’s reflect on how you can apply this to creating positive time management habits. In this Discussion Board, you will reflect on your first week. What went well, and what will you change going forward?

To help you get started, let’s review an example of a Discussion Board:

  • Jasmine is working to balance work and school. In her Discussion Board post, she might write:

Hi classmates! In my first week of class I learned a lot about how I can use my time when I have it. At first, I thought I would do all of my coursework at night. Last week I realized that I have more time during the day than I knew! I downloaded the CTU Mobile app so I can work on my intellipath lessons anytime. In the morning when I have my coffee, instead of scrolling social media, I complete an intellipath lesson. During my lunch break at work, I completed two lessons while I ate. I was even able to complete lessons while I waited for my daughter to finish soccer practice. My plan is to continue to find more opportunities during the day to complete schoolwork!

Now it is your turn! In your Discussion Board post, think about your first week and discuss the following:

  • What actions did you take to successfully complete your assignments?
  • What changes could you make to build a more successful routine?

Part 2

Jasmine, Jamal, and Janet all decided to return to school for different reasons and to accomplish different goals; as such, they each have different motivations, and the same is true for all of us. Motivation is a funny thing; we need it to succeed in just about everything we do, but we can lose it all too easily. Think back to when you first considered the idea of pursuing your college degree and what motivated you to begin this exciting journey. Where do you see yourself after graduation? What is YOUR “big picture”?

Let’s spend some time talking together about what your big picture is. When you have a tough day balancing school with life, it helps to think about your big picture and what brought you to CTU in the first place.

For example:

Mary is a nursing assistant who has worked at a hospital for 5 years. She has watched leaders come and go and believes she has what it takes to lead change at her hospital. Her big picture involves getting a degree in health care management so she can be involved in decisions. Although Mary doesn’t share her big picture with coworkers, she really sees herself running the hospital someday. When Mary is tired and unmotivated to do her coursework, she looks around at work and remembers why she went back to school. She knows she will make a great leader!

Dwayne is a server at a local diner. It helps him pay the bills but nothing more. He has always been a whiz at computers. He loves fixing computers for his friends and family but wants to learn about programming. Dwayne’s brother does computer programming for a government organization in Washington, D.C. Dwayne sees how successful his brother is with computer programming, and he wants to get a similar job. His big picture also includes him opening up a computer fix-it store so he can get paid for doing something he loves.

Olivia’s big picture involves law enforcement. Her father was a police officer, and Olivia has wanted to be an officer since she was a little girl. Olivia decided to get a degree in Criminal Justice to help advance her career. She knows that she will be better equipped to provide for her family if she gets her degree. She sees herself as the Chief of Police, just like her father. She has been focused on her big picture since she was 8 years old.

Post a Primary Discussion Response by Thursday addressing the following questions:

Part 3

Congratulations on making it to Week 5! Let’s think about all that we have discussed in this course. You may have been surprised to find out that your mindset plays such an important role in your success! As we discussed in this course, self-refection is also a large part of learning. For our last Discussion Board, please reflect on what you have learned, and identify 2 areas that you aren’t clear on (no worries—we all have them!) or 2 areas that might be challenging for you. Maybe you’re worried about fitting school in with work, or maybe you aren’t clear on how to access your books. Remember, we are ALL learning!

Oh, and don’t worry about your Individual Projects (IPs)! We will revisit IPs and how to upload them again at the beginning of your next class.

Post a Primary Discussion Response by Thursday addressing the following questions:

  • Identify 2 areas related to school that you aren’t clear on or that you find challenging.
  • Identify 2 areas that you will rock (code word for “I GOT THIS!”). Examples could be time management or computer skills.