Amber Randolph

Dr. Easter and Dr. Lipscomb

December 8, 2003

Course Reflection Essay

Problem Solving and the PORTfolio Experience: A Personal Reflection

Part of the PORTfolio Program’s goal is to prepare students who are educated through the liberal arts curriculum for a career in a multi-faceted and technical world. Each course is created to provide the student involved in the program with an aspect of preparation. This course fulfilled the PORTfolio vision because it taught us how to problem solve and critically think within a real world dilemma, how to work well with others, and it incorporated our technological skills through presentations and web-page design. This course has had the most impact on me, personally, through my involvement in group work.

As per the name of the course, the main emphasis of our class this semester was the development of our critical thinking and problem solving skills. One way that this was done was through textbook exercises and learning. The textbook provided background information such as common fallacies in arguments and research methodologies. This background information was helpful when approaching opinionated articles. We learned to critically analyze viewpoints by looking for assumptions, false statements, illogical arguments, vague words or phrases, and irrelevant or incorrect evidence. This training could be applied to listening to political speeches, choosing products based on commercials, or taking suggestions from friends. It is practical for the real world in situations ranging from shopping to voting.

The second method through which our critical thinking and problem solving skills were sharpened was through the group problem solving exercises. We were first introduced to the eleven step, guided problem solving design. This taught us to search for the true cause of current problems and to evaluate solutions. Our experience involved actual problems, actual constraints, and actual solutions. This exercise gave us a look into the future and the types of problems that we will be dealing with as employees and citizens. Overall, our critical thinking and problem solving exercises directly fulfilled the goal of the PORTfolio program. In the future, we will be able to properly evaluate arguments as well as solve viable problems.

The second way in which this course fit into the PORTfolio program was through our extensive involvement in group work and projects. Group work was used various times ranging from one day class discussions to several week problem solving exercises. Participants were forced to listen to other’s opinions, participate evenly in the workload, be flexible with their schedules, and cooperate with people they may not get along with very well in a social setting. These are tasks and feelings that will be dealt with in a career or public setting. Employers will expect personnel to work together to complete a task no matter what personal differences may be involved. One must learn to create two distinct relationships: social and work. The amount of group work assigned in this course was not only challenging, but also extremely preparatory to any field of work one plans to pursue. Therefore, the course fulfilled the goals of the PORTfolio Program in a second way by making us work with others in groups.

The third way in which this course incorporated the ideas of the PORTfolio Program was through the integration of technological skills in presentations and web-page design. Our problem solving exercises required us to incorporate two separate presentations. Our presentations included using the Power Point program. This is a very efficient way to present material in an interesting and concise way to an audience. Professionals in several fields use this method. Through the very requirement that we present our solutions through this method, we were being prepared for a career after college. The experience also sharpened our public speaking and presentational skills. The second way in which the course prepared us technically was through updating our web page. The web page will not only be a useful resource when applying for jobs in the future, but will also give us experience in web design which may be used in a future career.

This course not only succeeded in fulfilling the PORTfolio requirement, but it also had a personal impact on me as a future citizen and employee. The extensive use of group work prepared me to work with future colleagues and engage in the community around me on controversial issues. Many times in my groups, my peers looked to me to provide leadership and direction. I found this experience both rewarding and challenging. It was rewarding to me in that I could be a part of a successful product. It was challenging in that sometimes I just wanted to sit back and relax and let some else do the leading. I had an occasional off day in which I was not as participative as others. I found that in some cases our group got little done that day and other members were frustrated at my level of participation. While being frustrated with me, they were not frustrated with those who showed the same lack of participation as I did. Theo ne good thing that came from the experience was that when I lacked in leadership, others within the group eventually stepped up to the plate. While I have always tried to spread the responsibility of leadership within the group, sometimes I must not lead at all for others to come out of their shell. I have also had this experience through my role as manager at the restaurant that I work at. Through this course and through outside experience, I learned that while leadership is known as a glorifying position, in reality it is a tough spot and a lot of work. I am sure that this experience and others like it will be of much benefit to me in the future. Overall, the lessons of critical thinking, group work, technology, and leadership were very beneficial and great preparation for many aspects of my future.