My Oral Presentation Report on Braden Kato's (G2) Web Page

Learning something new and facing new experiences isn't always easy. Self-doubt and fear of failure can make it difficult to meet new challenges. However, many of us know the wonderful feeling of self satisfaction that comes with overcoming obstacles and meeting goals. This report covers one student's struggle to become literate. Through this report, you'll learn the hardships he faced and the transformation he went through that ultimately allowed him to reach his goals.

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When the semester began, Braden Kato claimed to be computer illiterate and unfamiliar with anything internet related.  Understandably, he felt scared and intimidated during his first experience using Netscape.  The first thing Braden decided to explore was the University of Hawaii Home Page.  After clicking on the "fun stuff" link, he was shocked to see that personal photos could be published on the net for everyone to see.  Braden also explored student home pages and became more impressed with the internet's various capabilities.

The more time Braden spent exploring, the less intimidated he reported feeling.  He found himself becoming familiar with various commands like "stop" and "back." Feeling more adventurous, Braden then decided to explore the Netscape Home Page.  He was shocked to discover that he could check out things like weather and surf conditions while sitting at a computer in the school library. "I didn't realize what I had been missing out on."  By the time Braden's first experience with Netscape was over, he felt less computer illiterate, more confident, and excited about everything he had learned.

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Like with any new experience, surfing the net for the first time can be quite scary and overwhelming.  The thing to remember is to take your time and allow yourself to move at your own pace.  Your confidence will increase as you become more comfortable with the commands/options and more familiar with concepts. 

I'm glad that Braden was so honest about his feelings.  He admitted feeling scared and unsure of himself and many people will be able to relate to that. (I went through the same thing).  I just have some advice for those who are just starting out or are too afraid to even begin.     It has been emphasized in this class that the whole point of educating yourself about the internet and becoming computer literate, is so that you can take advantage of everything the technology  has to offer. It's something that can greatly enhance your quality of life and make it more enjoyable.  Everyone can benefit from these resources.

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Feeling much more confident and comfortable, Braden found his second attempt at using Netscape much easier.  He even decided to practice using various search engines such as Lycos, WebCrawler and Yahoo. He also learned how to save images to his hard drive. Although his second session was less traumatic, Braden reported that he was still a bit unsure of himself.  He found it frustrating when things didn't go the way he wanted.

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Many of us know that setbacks and frustrations are part of the learning process.  Don't be afraid to make mistakes and don't give up.  Nobody said it was going to be easy; things that are worthwhile rarely are.  If you keep at it, the payoffs will be well worth the time and energy you invest.

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During this exercise, Braden learned how to send documents to his email server.  He also had to practice using FTP to transfer files, which he found quite difficult. He discovered that the "help" option didn't really help; he kept getting error messages and couldn't figure out what he was doing wrong.

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If there's one thing that I've learned from this class, it's that computer literacy is a complex concept.  It involves more than knowledge and skills related to computer technology.  Computer literacy also involves self-awareness.  Monitoring your thoughts (cognitive), and emotional (affective) reactions and realizing how they affect your behavior (motor) are all essential skills needed to become more computer literate. 

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For Braden, this exercise was extremely frustrating.  He considered his attempts at learning FTP unsuccessful and as a result, his confidence level dropped.  Braden felt like he was regressing rather than progressing.  Everything that he had accomplished up until this point, no longer seemed to matter. 

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2 steps forward, 1 step back.  That's usually what happens when you're trying to learn something new and unfamiliar.  However, as I said earlier, giving up is not the answer.  Some things are harder to learn than others, but few things are impossible, so don't let obstacles get you down for too long.  Although, Braden felt like he wasn't getting anything accomplished during this exercise, the fact that he was able to monitor and voice his frustrations counts for something. Dr. James has taught us that the lessons we learn about ourselves during the process of learning is just as important as learning the tasks themselves.

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After the letdown of the previous week, Braden went into the next exercise afraid and unsure of himself.  However, he was able to finish everything without much trouble this time. He was proud of the fact that he was able to complete the exercise without much help; all it took was some exploring, experimenting, and patience.

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Yay Braden! Despite his prior troubles and slight doubts about his abilities, Braden didn't give up.  The time and effort he had been investing for so long were finally beginning to pay off.  Braden began to realize that while the learning process can be long and arduous, when you refuse to quit, obstacles can be overcome.

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Although he faced some problems during the process of this exercise, this time Braden tried not to get too upset.  He had fun learning how to post graphics on his web page even though he had trouble figuring out how to copy a background from someone else's page.  He felt like he had come a long way since the beginning of the semester and began to appreciate all the new skills that he had acquired.

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The thing that impressed me the most was the fact that this time, Braden was able to remain calm in a situation that would've frustrated him before.  He began to understand that when things go wrong, getting upset rarely improves the situation.  He made it through this exercise with his confidence in tact.

I've learned in this class, (and most other Psychology classes), that you can't change or modify behaviors that you aren't aware of or don't feel the need to change.  Once Braden realized how he was reacting whenever faced with an obstacle and understood how they were affecting his perception and behavior, he made a conscious decision to change.  He wasn't so quick to react in a negative manner and as a result, he perceived the situation differently.  An error message wasn't such a big deal now.  This is a lesson that can and should be applied to all aspects of our life.

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This exercise required Braden to browse through reports written by students who had taken the class the previous semester.  He enjoyed reading their reports and learned that many people had gone through the same stress and frustrations that he had.  He especially liked the words of advice and encouragement that people had offered on their web pages.  (Keep at it, never give up, don't be afraid to ask for help when you need it, don't stress too much over things you can't do right away, and don't be afraid to explore).

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When things get difficult, remember that you probably aren't the only one who's having trouble.  The whole point behind the structure of this class is so that we can learn from each other. We can find comfort in knowing that we share common experiences and feelings about things.

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This exercise was a continuation of what Braden had done the previous week.  He took a more in depth look at the Generation 1 reports and learned more about what his peers had gone through.  Braden also saw the web pages of some people who were taking both Psychology 409 and 459, like he was.  He found comfort in knowing that others had accomplished what he once thought was too much to handle.  If they could do it, so then so could he.

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Braden didn't give up even when things got hard, and it paid off in the end.  He learned a lot of things and acquired many new skills that he could use for the rest of his life.  I'm glad that I was able to read his report.  Now, whenever I find myself getting frustrated and tempted to quit, I'll remember how much he was able to accomplish, and find strength in that.

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