This is the last entry for this comm theory blog and also marks the end of the semester. This semester is filled with every Tuesday and Thursday mornings trying our very best to not be late for class, and also looking forward to the entertaining videos shown every class. I can say that it was a very enjoyable class overall.
In the last part of comm theory class, though we had a tad more assignments to complete in a shorter amount of time, it was equally as pleasant. I actually enjoyed doing class assignments the most because they implore us to apply what we had learnt into them. Probably the one that the most time was spent on and that needed the most planning was the one in which we had to observe another culture and present our findings on it. It was the one which I liked best too. I was part of the culture that we had chosen (Yamaha Music School), and I realize that it was not easy for me to look at them as an outsider. I constantly have to remind myself that I have to view this objectively and make sure my evaluations are not clouded with what I had already know from working there. Listening to the other groups presenting on the different cultures further provide an insight to how culture can differ even when we are all living within the same country. It was a noval experience because I had not expected that we will get a chance to be ethnographers.
I noticed that all our written assignments require us to make use of what we have learned in each chapter. Rather then coughing up all those terms or explanations that had been taught in class, I find that most of time they got me thinking about the topics and how much we understand it, and they somehow seem to relate to our everyday lives. They also prompted me to do a little more research so that I am sure of what I am doing. These assignments did help me a lot in gaining a better understanding of the respective chapters. Compared to other classes that I took for this semester, comm theory class is the one with one of the mist assignments, and I am aware of the rationale behind it. Indeed these assignments and movie reviews proved to be helpful. It was great that the assignments were distributed equally throughout the semester. It beats having to rush all assignments at once at the end.
The blog entries that we had to do did allow us to reflect on what we had learned thus far as well. This blog though only include what we write only about class and comm theory related posts but it is something different for us to do. Actually, blogging is actually something which I won't mind doing for a class. To me, less informal. Being able to add pictures, or links to other related issues make it more interesting.
Initially, my first impression of this class was one that requires a lot of studying. Just by the mere word “theory” reminds me of different kinds of never-heard-before terms and a bunch of explanations to remember. Yes indeed, now I know that I was only half right. Of course, there is no escape from studying. But what is different is that we need to actually understand what the chapter is talking about to be able to apply in any situation. And I believe this is how Professor Armstrong would want us to learn. Personally, I think that learning is not learning when all you do is memorize, regurgitate and return what you remember in the exams.
All in all, we had come across lots of different theories in this class, whether is it theories about feminism, culture, or people dynamics. I believe this will be a stepping-stone and preparatory stage for us to take on more “adverse” modules in the future. I really had a great time taking your class Professor Armstrong! Thanks for everything! :)
