First Highest Score Holder and Artificial Intelligence

Today is the final day to withdraw from a course and still receive a 50% refund on the tuition. After today, a student can still withdraw but will receive no refund. Of the fourteen students on the class roster, five are working ahead of the semester timetable, four of which have even finished their LabSim work for this week!

Fast progress aside, Linette leads the pack as the first holder of a highest score in IS101-3003, Spring 2023 as she planted her flag on the hilltop of Bonus Quiz 2 – Self-Reliance and Self-Responsibility :-) I hope her classmates are inspired and can't wait to see how Bonus Quiz 3 – Jump Ahead & Special Characters in File Name plays out.

The "jump ahead" portion is based on the final page of the instructions for A3 Tailored Cover Letter and Resume. On the first page, is

Artificial Intelligence: The Robots Are Now Hiring (a 10-minute video and a half-page article)

https://www.wsj.com/articles/artificial-intelligence-the-robots-are-now-hiring-moving-upstream-1537435820

After clicking on the video, choose the [Full Screen] icon in the lower righter corner

Students:

Using algorithms in software to simulate intelligence is nothing new and quite common.

A few years ago, I emailed a company's customer support with some questions. The email responses I received made little sense. I deduced that they were (maybe still are) using software to respond to questions based on keywords/phrases in my email. But when the question is not simple or straightforward, the software make a best guess and respond accordingly. After a few rounds of exchange, a human finally responded and interpreted and answered my questions correctly.

I wonder what other examples of artificial intelligence (AI) have you come across.

Please elaborate in your comment to this blog post ^_^

Your example of AI in use must be unique, meaning if another student or I have used it, you will need to find a different example to use.

Students' Goals and MOS Ambitions

This past week has seen the IS101-3003, Spring 2023 class roster expand to full-size of twenty and retract to seventy five percent capacity. Today is the final day to withdraw from a course and receive a full refund or enroll in a course. The class roster can only decrease and not increase after today. Of the fifteen students on the class roster:

Four (4) are pursuing 

 [01] Associate of Business

 [02] Associate of Business

 [03] Associate of Business

 [04] Associate of Business

Four (4) are pursuing information technology related degrees:

 [05] Associate of Applied Science in Computing and Information Technology - Cybersecurity - Network Security

 [06] Associate of Applied Science in Computing and Information Technology - Software Programming

 [07] Associate of General Studies with emphasis in Computing and Engineering

 [08] Associate of Arts in Computer Science

Three (3) are pursuing

 [09] Associate of Applied Science in Paralegal Studies

 [10] Associate of Applied Science in Paralegal Studies

 [11] Associate of Applied Science in Paralegal Studies

One (1) is pursuing

 [12] Certificate of Achievement in Bookkeeping

One (1) is pursuing

 [13] Associate of Applied Science in Real Estate

One (1) is pursuing

 [14] Associate of Science

One (1) is pursuing

 [15] Bachelor of Applied Science in Environmental Management

Degree or certificate pursuit aside, Shane and Tsz have eyes beyond the required Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) Associate for IS101 as shared in each young man's inaugural post of their A2 Blog :-)

MOS Homerun = All Seven Certifications

Elijah has aspiration out of this world!

From their Task 9 introduction email of A1 Accounts Setup and Professional Communication, Tsz and Chandani (who goes by Lama) both want start their own business.

I hope more students will share their goals and realize those goals ^_^

Approaching Quarter of a Century and What's In Your Portfolio?

I was going to take a break from teaching this semester but when the digital literacy program director opened the Saturday section right before the new year and asked me to helm it, I agreed to come off the bench. Twenty four and half years of teaching part-time, mostly for College of Southern Nevada and a several semesters for my alma mater, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, might as well make it twenty five :-)

As with previous semesters, I individually reached out to each student on the class roster before the semester officially began. Ten of the thirteen students responded and I gained insights to the academic, professional, personal backgrounds, aspirations, and passions of Fraol, Rosalie, Khylie, Elijah, Andre, Tsz, Diego, Jan, Linette, and Heather. Fraol has already sent in his A1 Accounts Setup and Professional Communication and Tsz sent in his Bonus Quiz 1 – Syllabus. I look forward to connect with the remaining three students and anymore that will enroll in IS101-3003, Spring 2023 before Saturday's in-person class session ^_^

One common theme I hear from students is their desire to increase their digital literacy acumen and skills. That is definitely an obtainable goal and expected result of IS101 Introduction to Information Systems. But beyond "how to do this" or even be able to explain "how does that work", I hope students will demonstrate and bolster their traits highlighted in this 11 min 14 sec video:

Click to view the video and try to view it in full screen mode

How apropos that Neil deGrasse Tyson references a quote from the late Martin Luther King Jr. and the video is in a blog post published on this MLK Day.

From a brief phone call or WebEx meeting with each of the ten students, I see some already have created their meaning. I hope the others will too!

I wonder which other students will join Fraol and Tsz in making a positive first impression before Saturday?