Thursday, May 22, 2025

Students, Signatures, Future

IS101-3205, Spring 2025 has come to an end and it has been a glorious journey!

My final and longer than usual blog post consists of three sections:

 1: Student Recognitions
 2: Course and Professor
 3: Past, Present, and Future

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Section 1 of 3: Student Recognitions
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+++++First: Statistics

Out of the sixteen (16) successful students:

Half are pursuing business degrees, two pursuing construction management, two pursuing computing and information technology, one of each pursuing real estate, engine technology, project management, and physical sciences.

Majority have sophomore or higher standing. All but one earned the highest letter graded. The nine men and seven women's range from 19 to 41. The oldest and youngest are both pursuing the same degree. The average age is 26.375, median age is 27, and the mode is 19.

+++++Second: Awards

IS101 has a standard course curriculum but each professor still puts his or her own stamps on the course. My signatures are (a) presenting topics and walking through demonstrations that the standard curriculum don't cover or don't cover to my satisfaction, (b) bonus quizzes & impromptu bonusses  activities based my own experiences and requiring students to not only apply what they learned but to articulate their answers in a succinct and educational manner, (c) bonus assignments that give students the opportunity to transition their mindset and actions from a student answering a professor to a worker fulfilling business needs to his/her higher up who may not have the same knowledge or experience.

Christian had the best overall performance in the bonus quizzes. Up until the previous blog post, one week before the semester's end, Christian, Dilanga, and Jorge always clustered together within half a point of each other in their bonus quizzes journey. Christian alone earned the highest score BQ14 OLE, Average, URL, IPOS Perspective, Bloom’s Taxonomy and it is his performance on this capstone bonus quiz that separated himself from the trio.

The trio of Dilanga, Christian, and Jorge, consistently go above and beyond, most notably showing up to the classroom early to take the bonus quizzes. Of the fifteen bonus quizzes and two impromptu bonusses, each of the trio missed no more than two or three. It is no surprise that they also lead in other areas and ranked as the top three students this semester.

Jorge touched an audience's heart during the Q&A session for his A3 Slideshow Presentation as an audience spontaneously uttered: "I wish my father would take me fishing." The goal of any presentation is to persuade or educate. Forming an emotional connection or invoking a strong feeling from the audience definitely helps achieving one's goal.

Paulina was the first student to present her A3. When A8 Improved Slideshow Presentation came around, she who loves to travel occupied the pole position again. Once may be a fluke, twice is the beginning of a pattern. If there were more opportunities for Paulina to share her passion, I know she would make it a three-peat.

My two capstone assignments, A6 Spreadsheet Analysis with Trailer and A7 Mail Merge, are crafted to allow a student to demonstrate his/her attention to details, clear thinking & communication, and independence. Katelyn & Bezhan shined as the top two for A6 while Chandler & Skyla as top two for A7.

Performance and courage are not the only routes to receiving an award. Throughout the many interactions (in-person, virtual meeting, or text/phone call) throughout semester, Paulina and Geraldine always left a happy mood or uplifted feeling for me with their sunshine personality.


+++++Third: Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) certification exam scores

Nineteen students took MO-110 Word with Isabel and Conner earning a perfect score: 1,000 out of 1,000. Not counting the perfect score earners, Chandler and Arthur earned the highest score.

Sixteen students took MO-210 Excel with Conner again earning a perfect score: 1,000 out of 1,000. Not counting the perfect score earner, Katelyn and Chandler earned the highest score.

Fourteen students took MO-310 PowerPoint with Dilanga, Chandler, and Katelyn all earning the highest score.

When adding the scores from the three MOS Associate level exams, Chandler has the highest cumulative score.






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+++++Fourth: Individual Student Distinctions

~~~~~Jorge: 1 of 16~~~~~

Quiet, hardworking, always go above-and-beyond are how I would describe SeΓ±or Lima :-) Three instances etched a strong impression on me. After one classroom session, the first amigo told me that his employer asked him to work overtime on an early Saturday morning but he prioritized attending class first then putting in overtime after class ends. Another instance from Jorge is aforementioned award above. I will remember this one for a long time!

The third is when I graded Bonus Quiz 11, the capstone to long arc of weekly bonus quizzes and realized that Jorge earned a perfect score, a rare feat for any bonus quiz, especially the capstone of the weekly arc. I can see the hardworking father shine with his quiet resolve beyond IS101-3205, whether in pursuing his Associate of Applied Science in Construction Management or in his workplace ^_^


~~~~~Christian: 2 of 16~~~~~

Misspent youth is what Christian jokingly shared with me as his fuel to achieve and improve the lives of his family. His attitude and achievements are no joke. The Computing and Information Technology (CIT) major was part of the pioneer group for A3 Slideshow Presentation. One ecstatic moment for me during the semester was when the second amigo replied "I want to..." and "why not..." to my solicitation for students to pursue MOS certifications beyond the Associate level. At the time of this blog post, the man with a misspent youth is leading the charge toward MOS Expert :-)

The transition from "I need to..." to "I want to..." is something many students never make in IS101. Given his ambitions demonstrated in the weekly bonus quizzes arc, I was not surprised he was the first to hunger for MOS Expert. When he becomes a MOS Expert, I know he will want to hit a MOS Homerun! Christian closed out the semester with a strong performance that earned him the aforementioned award above, separating himself from the other two amigos in the bonus quizzes arena. I know I will see the man with a misspent youth again ^_^


~~~~~Dilanga: 3 of 16~~~~~

With him having just earned an Associate degree, I was surprised at the limited above-and-beyond ambition Dilanga demonstrated in the first half of the semester. When he informed me that his 8-week course had ended, I knew why and his above-and-beyond performance exploded in the second half of our 16-week semester for IS101, joining the other two amigos :-) If one were to ignore the bonus credits, the quiet and respectable young man would actually rank one place higher in overall course performance!

Along with two classmates, Dilanga earned the highest score on MO-310 PowerPoint certification exam. Having to miss the final two classroom sessions to fly home, the Sri Lanka native worked hard to wrap up his IS101 coursework and hurriedly challenged MO-111 Word Expert and MO-211 Excel Expert. I look forward to seeing the Sinhala-speaker vindicating himself when he returns to Las Vegas ^_^

The three amigos: Jorge, Christian, and Dilanga separated themselves from their classmates with their full-range and excellent performance on the bonus quizzes and impromptu bonusses. The bonus credits elevated the trio to the top of the course performance, breaking the triple-digit barrier. The three digits to the left of the decimal point are identical for the three amigos with the two digits to the right of the decimal point as follows: 97, 46, 21.


~~~~~Isabel: 4 of 16~~~~~

A perfect 1,000 out of 1,000 is what the Accounting major scored on MO-110 Word certification exam. Though another student achieved the same, Isabel was the first to hit the bullseye! Her solid performance was not limited to the certification exam but the practice exams too. If one were to ignore the bonus credits, Isabel, would rank first in term of overall course performance :-)

Excelling in something one *has* to do is expected. Excelling in something one *chooses* to do gives one a chance to standout. May the future accountant choose to standout ^_^


~~~~~Chandler Donovan: 5 of 16~~~~~

Chandler Donovan -- he has two first names and uses either or both -- distinguished himself early on as he played leap frog with a classmate in occupying the pole position in the first few bonus quizzes. A7 Mail Merge is one of the two capstone assignments in my IS101 arsenal. The Computing and Information Technology (CIT) degree seeker produced a perfect A7!

Along with a classmate, Chandler scored a near-perfect on MO-110 Word certification exam. Donovan scored the same near-perfect score on MO-210 Excel certification exam with a different classmate. Along with two classmates, Chandler Donovan earned the highest score on MO-310 certification exam. Unsurprisingly, the student with two first names ranked the highest in cumulative score in the MOS Associate level certification exams :-)

Focusing on his Network Essentials course took him away from the later bonus quizzes and bonus assignments, I am glad to see Chandler Donovan pursuing MOS Expert at the end of the semester. I hope to see him again to as he finishes what he started ^_^


~~~~~Paulina: 6 of 16~~~~~

An uplifted feeling is what I often have after conversing with Paulina :-) Always smiling and positive, she who wants to visit Pompeii was the first to present her A3 Slideshow Presentation to the class. When the optional A8 Improved Slideshow Presentation came up, the fluently bilingual seΓ±ora showcased her past visits to Mexico City. She has her trip planned to Pompeii at the end of this month. I hope Paulina will update her blog or share her adventures at the city frozen in time with the class ^_^


~~~~~Noel: 7 of 16~~~~~

"We fight first!" is what I learned from Noel :-) In the past, I have heard this from other United States Marine Corp personnel: "First In, Last Out." The Dallas Cowboys fan was the first student I met via WebEx before the semester began. The radiologist dashed out of the gate and always lead in doing the coursework ahead of schedule throughout three quarters of the semester. I wish Noel success in breaking into the real estate field ^_^


~~~~~Katelyn: 8 of 16~~~~~

Ambitious, professional, detail-oriented are what Katelyn impressed upon me. For her A3 Slideshow Presentation, she suited up to share her passion for The Monarch Butterflies as if she were presenting to business executives. For A6 Spreadsheet Analysis with Trailer, the case manager for a law firm produced a near-perfect result! Before the semester ended, the call of MOS Expert hooked Katelyn. Like two classmates, she found joy with MO-111 but not MO-211.

I know I will see Katelyn again on her journey to become a MOS Expert and whatever else she chooses to focus her time and energy on, she will succeed ^_^


~~~~~Bezhan: 9 of 16~~~~~

Quiet, studious, and passionate are adjectives befitting of Bezhan, who earned the second highest score on A6 Spreadsheet Analysis with Trailer. The reserved and polite young man lit up when he educated the class on how microprocessors are manufactured as his A3 Slideshow Presentation and his passion went to overdrive during the Q & A session of his A8 Improved Slideshow Presentation on Formula 1. I know Bezhan will earn his Bachelor of Applied Science in Project Management degree ^_^


~~~~~Skyla (Sky): 10 of 16~~~~~

Tall, artistic, and sharp are what come to mind when I think of Skyla who goes by Sky. The gamer and commission artist first caught my attention when at the beginning of her presentation, she purposely stood to the side of the large display screen instead of in front like most of us. For the second capstone assignment, A7 Mail Merge, the Texas transplant commanded my delight with the organic and near-flawless result she produced. Sky is the limit for this brilliant artist ^_^


~~~~~Ashley: 11 of 16~~~~~

A storyteller is how I will remember Ashley. Sharing her favorite TV show "Severance" as A3 Slideshow Presentation, the hilarious young lady capped off her presentation with a photo of herself shocked. The vibrant barista was the one of the first student to volunteer for the optional A8 Improved Slideshow Presentation where she enticed us with "Let's Assemble a Mocha Cookie Crumble Frappuccino". Her improved slideshow is one of the best I have encountered in the history of A8! I see a bright future for the Las Vegas native as she approaches things with her happy personality and thoughtfulness ^_^


~~~~~Yahir: 12 of 16~~~~~

The youngest student this semester caught my attention early on as he was part of the pioneer group for A3 Slideshow Presentation and he worked in Granny Moses from my bonus quizzes during his Q & A session :-) Internship, full-time college student, volunteering kept Yahir busy and pulled him away from IS101 toward the end. I am proud of the avid dirt bike rider for re-focusing and finishing the course with the highest letter grade -- and the only acceptable -- letter grade! I hope Yahir not only remembers this but will always strive to meet this in his future endeavors ^_^


~~~~~Noam: 13 of 16~~~~~

"It's not how you start but how you finish" was the motto that I impressed upon the young phlebotomist. Various family and life issues swallowed Noam for much of the semester but the strong-willed young lady regrouped, focused, and powered through toward the end of the semester to join her classmates in the highest letter grade club :-) I wish the avid perfume collector success in breaking into the real estate field ^_^


~~~~~Geraldine (Getty): 14 of 16~~~~~

The chipper coca cola lover shared much of her life with me during A1 Accounts Setup and Professional Communication. Throughout the semester, Geraldine, who goes by Getty, shared with me her professional journey in Amazon. Whenever I conversed with the Los Angeles native, a sense of cheeriness and playfulness is often signed off with "okie dokie" :-) Toward the end of the semester, Getty got what she worked so hard for: a new and higher role at Amazon! I am so proud of Geraldine and wish her more successes in her future ^_^


~~~~~Conner: 15 of 16~~~~~

Conner definitely made his mark by earning a perfect 1,000 out of 1,000 score not only once, but twice! The avid snowboarder never set foot in the classroom after the two certification exams. I will remember this full-time worker and full-time student for his active participation during my Straight Average vs. Weighted Average walkthrough.


~~~~~Arthur: 16 of 16~~~~~

Polite, quiet, and hardworking are what I remember of Arthur. The Philippine native never set foot in the classroom after the two certification exams. I know more important priorities occupied the full-time worker and full-time student's time and focus. I wish Arthur the best in his future endeavors.


~~~~~Angela~~~~~

Angela made a deep impression on me at the beginning of the semester when she shared her life story with me in A1 Accounts Setup and Profession Communication. For the first half of the semester, she who rides a Fat Tire Beach Cruiser played leapfrog with a classmate in occupying the pole position on bonus quizzes. Before she disappeared, she shared good news that only a woman can share. Had she been able to remain in IS101, I know she would have joined the three amigos! I hope Angela is able to resume her higher education pursuit as/after she enjoys bringing a new life into this world ^_^


~~~~~Xavier~~~~~

Xavier disappeared early on after taking the first certification exam. During his final in-person appearance in the classroom, the respectful and intelligent young man shared with me that he wants to follow the footsteps of his uncle or father. I hope Xavier success in that, and any, endeavors he puts his time and energy to :-)


~~~~~Others~~~~~

Six other names on the class roster either officially withdrew, had insufficient focus, or disappeared long before the first certification exam.


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Section 2 of 3: Course and Professor
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+++++First: Course Breakdown

60% of the IS101 Introduction to Information Systems course is based on the digital platform LabSim from TestOut (now part of CompTIA) where students learn by reading text, watching videos, and practice in hands-on laboratory simulations.

20% of the course grade is based on the Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) certification exams.

10% is from macro-enabled Excel workbooks that our digital literacy program director, Mark Taormino, created before we started using LabSim four years ago.

10% is from me with my own topics driving discussions in our learning management system, Canvas, and giving students a forum to leave a professional digital footprint on the World Wide Web via Blogger.com.

Outside of the required 100% above, I also give my own bonus quizzes, impromptu bonus activities, and bonus assignments, totaling 39%.


+++++Second: My 3 Signature Thoughts

I began teaching part-time in higher education in Fall 1998 in a non-academic setting after earning my Master in Business Administration (MBA) degree then in an academic setting since Fall 1999. Building on my experiences from both academia and the business world, I constantly evolve my lecture presentations, demonstrations, bonus quizzes, activities and assignments. This semester, Spring 2025, I shared these three thoughts on our final classroom session this past Saturday:

Signature thought 1 of 3: Just because it's convenient or what you are used to, doesn't mean it's the best or even appropriate.

Multiple students -- most people, I would say -- never or don't bother to form a habit of memorizing an important website's address and simply use Google to search for that website using a general search criteria when they need to visit the website. Then students/people simply click on the first search result without reading through the search results, often taking them to not the website they intended.

When the question is "How many patients did we treat last year?", one cannot simply add the number of patients treated in each month of that year just because monthly reports are readily available. So when a patient was treated in January and then was treated again in June and then again in November...

Signature thought 2 of 3: Remember the WHY, not just the SENSATIONAL.

Years after graduating college, a former classmate and I reminisced and a question came up: "Remember professor XYZ directed us to look at p*rn websites?" After walking down memory lane, I recalled that professor XYZ directed us to look at p*rn websites not for the photos or videos but to examine how they optimize their hypertext markup language (HTML) and javascripts in their webpages because those websites have the heaviest traffic while dealing with large file sizes from numerous images and videos.

To my students: to hone your senses in discerning deepfakes, find deepfake p*rn videos of a celebrity and scrutinize them against what you know to be real videos of that celebrity. Why p*rn? Same reason for the heaviest/heavy traffic as above. Years after Spring 2025, will you remember why I suggested you to find and scrutinize deepfake videos of your celebrity?

Signature 3 of 3: Artificial intelligence (AI)-generated content: learn to TAILOR it and learn to SPOT it.

Do you just blindly accept a suggestion from the spell/grammar checker? Do you use an AI tool such as ChapGPT to generate writing/artwork for you and present it in as your own original work? To people who know your capability/style, would they be able to tell the difference between what you produced vs. what an AI tool produced?

Deepfakes aside, can you tell if a photo is generated by a human or algorithm? If someone thought a piece of work was produced by you but it really was by an AI tool, would you tell them? Here is one possibility: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pv1HUd8rsG4





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+++++Third: What is Around and Ahead of IS101?

During our semester together, I picked up information from attending Computing and Information Technology (CIT) department meetings:

(i) MOS certification(s) is/are a standard in some high schools.

(ii) Some higher education institutions in the Southeast made MOS certification(s) as a graduation requirement.

(iii) Some higher education institutions have their IS101/digital literacy course as four credits instead of three credits as it is in Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE).

(iv) I learned that we do have this course: CIT105 - Introduction to Artificial Intelligence. It was first offered in Fall 2023, one semester after ChatGPT was released to the general public at the end of 2022. One hot topic in digital literacy discussion is teaching students how to use AI tools properly. I'm not sure how things will play out, especially considering the next piece of information.

(v) Most earth-shattering: IS101 will be rolled into CIT Department's Software program as the Digital Literacy program will be no more after this semester.

The first two pieces of information also reminded me of something I heard in the past: at University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), IS101 is offered only in online-only modality with a capacity of 150 to 200 students. I did a quick search and see that Great Basin College (GBC) is also online-only with no capacity mentioned. GBC only offers IS101 in 8-week sessions instead of 16-week semesters. I was not able to access comparable enrollment information for Nevada State University (NSU) or University of Nevada, Reno (UNR).

Focusing within our own NSHE institution, College of Southern Nevada (CSN), the Spring 2025 semester offered 45 sections of IS101 with 22 student capacity for each section except mine as I agreed to take on two additional students before this semester began. I can easily point out three different experiences for my 24 students vs. the other 900+ students taking IS101 this semester:

(a) I am one of the few professors that promote and assist my students in pursing the MOS Expert distinction (MO-111 and MO-211) and beyond -- I term it "MOS Homerun" (MO-400 and MO-500).

(b) Instead of holding all the MOS certification exams at the end of the semester, I hold each exam as soon as LabSim work for the that exam is completed. I appreciate the logistic savings for the online-only section professors and students of only having to come to a CSN campus at the end of the semester but I see no reason to have my students wait until the end of the semester, especially when the exams are independent of each other.

(c) I believe I am the only professor to have my students leave their professional digital footprint on the World Wide Web (via Blogger.com) in addition to discussion threads in our learning management system, Canvas, which is visible only to the class and designated CSN personnel.

Reading through my students' final blog post and comments, I see they also appreciate my proactive reaching out to them before the semester began and holding a phone call or WebEx meeting with them :-)

Narrowing the focus to just IS101 from me: how do my students' experience this semester differ from my students from past semesters? This semester, I heavily trimmed the videos and the frequency of blog posting and commenting in A2 Blog Posts, Videos, Articles, Comments. If my students were to find blogs from my past students, they will see far more videos and blogging activities.


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Section 3 of 3: Past, Present, and Future
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This semester, I came across this compilation video: Dark Sides of Artificial Intelligence by 60 Minutes, containing four episodes, each a little over 13 minutes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgUjLcxJxVg

Who is Minding the Chatbots | Lesley Stahl (March 5, 2023)
  • Authoritative bullsh*t
  • Intelligence <> sentience
  • Race to the bottom
Humans in the Loop | Lesley Stahl (Nov. 24, 2024)
  • Labeling ‘right’ from ‘wrong’
  • Overworked, underpaid and exploited
Unveiling | Anderson Cooper (December 15, 2024)
  • Nudify websites
  • CEO: real or AI-generated photo of a person?
  • Fooling payment websites
Deepfakes | Bill Whitaker (October 10, 2021)
  • Training the AI model
  • Can you tell the difference between real vs. fake?

If my Spring 2025 students were to search for my past blogs or encounter blogs from my past students, they would see more videos and posts in those blogs. Here are some of the videos from my library that I have shared with my past students:

(1) The Story of Electronics with Annie Leonard, Why "Designed for the Dump" is Toxic for People and the Planet
By The Story of Stuff Project
Nov. 4, 2010

(2) Ransomware
By Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)
Aug. 15, 2021

(3A) Cryptocurrencies II
By Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)
Apr. 23, 2023

(3B) Cryptocurrencies I
By Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)
Mar. 11, 2018

(4A) AlphaGo (Official Trailer)
By DeepMind, a subsidiary of Google
Sep. 19, 2017

(4B) AlphaGo (Full Movie)
By DeepMind, a subsidiary of Google
Sep. 9, 2017





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Since my previous blog post, the final week of the semester yielded these highlights:

The three amigos (Jorge, Christian, Dilanga) took the final two bonus quizzes with

Christian alone earned the highest score on BQ14 Object Linking & Embedding (OLE), Average, Uniformed Resource Locator (URL), Input-Process-Output-Storage (IPOS) Perspective, Bloom’s Taxonomy.

Christian, Chandler Donovan, and Katelyn followed Dilanga's footstep in pursing the MOS Expert distinction. This trio found joy with MO-111 Word Expert certification exam but not MO-211 Excel Expert exam. After the last student left the classroom for the final time, I took the MO-211 (Office 365) out of curiosity to see the difference from when I took and passed the MO-210 (Office 2019) on Jan. 23, 2021. I did not expect to pass this time but did not expect to be close to passing either.

Dilanga will return to Las Vegas from Sri Lanka in August. The fire in Christian and Katelyn still burn bright. I don't like not passing. So I will prepare for a re-match with MO-211.

Before the semester officially ended, I reviewed A9 Query Options and IF Statement with Jorge. As BQ14 elevated Christian to the top of bonus quizzes performance, this optional assignment propelled Jorge to the top of the overall course performance.

The IF statement part of A9 intrigues Christian. The way to satisfy A9 via a single document vis-Γ -vis three haunts Katelyn. A9 will help with an exam objective in MO-111 for Dilanga. Several exam objectives in MO-211 are used in A10 Workbook Investigation.

Two days after, during my WebEx with Jorge, he indicated that he wants to continue practicing in LabSim even after IS101-3205, Spring 2025 ends. I pointed him toward Chapter 7 Microsoft Access and Chapter 8 Microsoft Outlook. I hope he will aim for MO-400 Outlook and MO-500 Access.

JorgeChristian, and Dilanga, all earned the highest score on BQ15 CountIFBQ15 is based on the students' answers to the 13 job hunting & interviewing tips/reminders from an article I assigned for reading. With this, the three amigos not only stayed together from BQ1 to BQ15 but broke the triple-digit barrier.

The Spring 2025 semester has ended but my willingness to help my students has not. I look forward to helping my students in their future pursuits ^_^

Sunday, May 11, 2025

Approaching the Finish Line, Enduring Ambitions, Reaching for the Stars

The last three weeks consisted of Phase 3: Performing (Creative) and the beginning of Outperforming/Actualizing. Picking off where the previous blog post off:

Bonus Quiz 11
 Part A – The Internet, Granny, Bob, Vint, and Tim
BQ11 not only concluded the almost-semester-long arc that began with BQ2 but produced the only perfect score in the arc. This feat was accomplished by Jorge, well done SeΓ±or Lima!

A7 Mail Merge/Object Linking & Embedding (OLE) is the second of two capstone assignments from the set of signature assignments I have created and evolved in my past twenty-seven years of teaching in higher education and business world. This capstone assignment is about students developing independence by fulfilling a business need without having step-by-step instructions.

Chandler Donovan turned in a flawless A7. Upon my inquiry, the student with two first names shared with me that he has used mail merge before. Skyla, who has not been exposed to mail merge before, produced the same result with one simple but critical oversight. I hope these two top performers of A7 will do A9 Query Options and IF Statement, which is a direct continuation of A7.

Noam may have had a rough start at the beginning of the semester but she has been catching up, beginning with her A3 Slideshow Presentation. Buffering A3 and A8 Improved Slideshow Presentation is the recognition of the thirteen students who have participated at least once in the ten in-person bonus quizzes and two impromptu bonus opportunities thus far in the semester.

Paulina, Bezhan, and Ashley bedazzled the class with their optional A8 Improved Slideshow Presentation, employing what they learned from Chapter 6 Microsoft PowerPoint. Hmm... Paulina led in A3, now again in A8... Bezhan's passion for this topic brighten the classroom during the Q&A session after his presentation. Ashley impressed me with her witty and polished improved slideshow which required a few minute cosmetic fixings from me. Well done Ashley!

The top three performers of BQ2~BQ11 & IB1~IB2 are only separated by half a point in each of their total points ranking. BQ12 & BQ13 are always given as a pair and gave second & third place finishers the opportunity to join Jorge. I am proud of all students who showed up early to classroom on Saturday mornings to take bonus quizzes, especially the top three finishers for their enduring ambitions.

Bonus Quiz 12 – Microsoft Excel 365 and Spreadsheet Analysis
Bonus Quiz 13 – Apex of Excel

Christian alone earned the highest score on BQ12 while Dilanga alone earned the highest score on BQ13. When the two bonus quizzes are combined as a pair, both gentlemen tied.

Having to miss the final two class sessions due to returning to his home country of Sri Lanka, Dilanga completed tasks ahead of schedule. He was the first student from IS101-3205, Spring 2025 to qualify for, took, and pass the MO-310 PowerPoint certification exam becoming the first Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) Associate.

Few days later, Chandler Donovan, Noel, and Christian followed suit, also ahead of schedule. In yesterday's penultimate class session, Katelyn, Ashley, Paulina, and Skyla joined the first quartet.

Dilanga, Chandler Donovan, and Christian began their pursuit of MOS Expert -- beyond the scope of IS101 -- with two receiving joy. Katelyn also expressed interest. I wish everyone success in their attempts and re-attempts in their pursuits.

Last night, I received A9 from Jorge.

As we approach the final class session this coming Saturday, I look forward to more students (a) earning their MOS Associates and/or more joy from MOS Expert, (b) using BQ14 & BQ15 to boost one's course grade, and (c) reaching for the stars with A9 and A10 Workbook Investigation even after our final class session :-)

i. Fathers of the Internet (TCP/IP) and the World Wide Web (HTTP/HTML)

ii. My visualization for Object Linking and Embedding (OLE)

iii. Mat Honan's Epic Hack

iv. NoamParanormal Investigations

v. Accolades for BQ2~BQ11 & IB1~IB2

vi. Paulina (Improved)Mexico City

vii. Bezhan (Improved)F1

viii. Ashley (Improved)Let's Assemble a Mocha Cookie Crumble Frappuccino

ix. Reaching for the stars

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My first capstone assignment, A6 Spreadsheet Analysis with Trailer, utilizes a brilliant article authored by then Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) Chancellor James E. Rogers in justifying Do Faculty Work? during a time of budget vetting/cutting after the 2008 economic recession. I would like to share that article and his brilliance with the world:


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Students,

Before commenting on this blog post, please first read the Mat Honan's Epic Hack article. Instead of using the link above and dealing with ads from the website, I have extracted the content into a PDF attached to Discussion 5 in Canvas for your ease of reading. Before you read that PDF, be sure to see Topics for Bonus Quiz 11 in [Week 11: 4/12/2025] to see which article in the PDF is required reading and which article is optional.

(1) After reading the Mat Honan's Epic Hack article, would you manage your accounts or passwords differently?

(2) How will you finish IS101-3205, Spring 2025 strong during our final week?

Please save your final thoughts, feedback, and well wishes for my next and final blog post ^_^

Sunday, April 20, 2025

100% MOS Pass Rate Continues :-) Have To? Choose To!

The past month was the most challenging portion of IS101 Introduction of Information Systems. Microsoft Excel is often the least familiar or most superficially used Microsoft Office application. Students worked hard in learning syntax, cell references, functions, generating charts but I hope the traits that the students will retain and continue to hone are paying attention to details, critical thinking, and perseverance!

In addition to the lesson, labs, domain practices, and exam practice forms in LabSim, students also had A4 Fun with Functions Workbook, A5 More Fun with Functions Workbook, and A6 Spreadsheet Analysis with Trailer also help students practice and bolster their Excel skills. This weekend, their hard work culminated in MO-210 Excel certification exam. Twelve students took and passed their second Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) certification exam and all passed. The prior weekend, Conner qualified for -- ahead of schedule --, took the MO-210, and repeated his perfect-score performance from MO-110 Word certification exam a month earlier. I hope he will repeat this next month on MO-310 PowerPoint certification exam ^_^

In the past month, two trailing students qualified for, took, and passed MO-110, joining their seventeen classmates. One more trailing student may join the duo soon. Focusing back on this past month, these are the accolades:

Dilanga, Jorge, Christian all earned the highest score on Bonus Quiz 8 - DNS Registration, ccTLD Hack, and URL Parts.

Christian alone earned the highest score on Bonus Quiz 9 - SEO Hats, Techniques, Consequences and ccTLD and URL Parts Re-visited.

Jorge and Dilanga earned bonus credit on Impromptu Bonus 1 - URL Parts On-The-Spot.

Dilanga alone earned bonus credit on Impromptu Bonus 2 - Excel Charts.

Skyla and Bezhan both earned the highest score on Bonus Quiz 10 - Internet Search Engine and $21.5 Million Business Email Scam.

Conner became the first student of mine to earn a perfect score on MOS certification exams twice.

Katelyn earned the highest score for A6 Spreadsheet Analysis with Trailer.

Jorge earned bonus credit for A3 Slideshow Presentation not for his slideshow or his presentation but for unintentionally eliciting an emotional response from an audience member during his Q&A session.

Since my previous blog post and returning from Spring Recess, five students gave their A3 Slideshow Presentation while I gave two in-class demonstrations and two lecture/presentations.

i. My Second DemonstrationStraight vs. Weighted Average

ii. AshleyApple TV Show: Severance

iii. DilangaMy Home Country Sri Lanka

iv. My Third LectureL3: Charts 

v. ArthurVisit The Philippines

vi. ConnerThe Global Love for Skiing/Snowboarding

vii. My Fourth LectureL4: More Charts

viii. My Third DemonstrationA6 Spreadsheet Analysis with Trailer

ix. Geradline (Getty)Coca Cola


Click on the image for a larger/clearer view





Click on an image for a larger/clearer view


Click on the image for a larger/clearer view

With A4, A5, A6, and MO-210 behind us, we are crossing into Phase 3. Only three things/tracks are required to finish IS101-3025, Spring 2025 strong: (1) A7 Mail Merge, (2) Chapter 6 PowerPoint & MO-310, and (3) finishing the few remaining discussions & blogging. These tasks are either pressure-free (a properly submitted A7 will be 100% as long as a student reached 100% on A5), easier (when compared to Word or Excel), or familiar (something they have done since the beginning of the semester).

Phase 3 is about (a) showcasing one's individuality & creativity, (b) polishing one's digital footprint from IS101 to the professional world, and (c) go above-and-beyond what are required to actualize one's potential. Based on past experiences, most students will reach a "B+" or an "A-". Ambitious students do at least one track, many two, some all three to boost themselves to an "A":

--Track 1--: Bonus Quizzes 12 & 13 (heavily based on A6 and can boost course grade by 5%), BQ14 (partially based on A7 and can also boost by 5%), and BQ15 (as part of my final blog post and can boost by 2%).

--Track 2--: MOS Expert certifications MO-111 Word Expert and MO-211 Excel Expert. These certification exams/certificates will NOT boost one's IS101 grade but will definitely elevate one's resume and help one standout from other IS101 students and job candidates.

--Track 3--: Bonus Assignments A8 Improved Slideshow Presentation (can boost by 2%), A9 Query Options and IF Statement (a direct continuation of A7 and can boost by 5%), and A10 Workbook Investigation (can boost by 5%).

As I draft this blog post, Christian has already sent in his Bonus Quiz 11B and A7. Along with another student, Christian declared that he downloaded the exam objectives for MO-111 and MO-211 and will earn his MOS Expert distinction.

Students,

How do you think you did in Phase 2?

How will you approach Phase 3?

Saturday, March 22, 2025

Semester Midpoint, 17 MOS Certificate Holders, Phase 2 = Thinking + Doing

Saturday morning, feels funny not being in the classroom as I polish this blog post. This week is Spring Recess where all CSN campuses including classrooms, computer labs, libraries are closed. Some students are diligently using this time to catch-up or jump ahead of the IS101-3205 coursework. Spring Recess also cleanly bisects our semester together.

Of the twenty-four (24) students on the course roster, one disappeared after submitting Bonus Quiz 1 once at the beginning of the semester, another officially withdrew from the course last week. Almost all started strong. As the semester progressed, majority kept up, some jumped ahead, while a few never launched.

The most significant milestone in the past month was the MO-110 Word certification exam. The first of the Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) certification exams in IS101-3205, Spring 2025 yielded three honorable distinctions:

+1+ 100% pass rate on the first attempt: seventeen (17) students took the exam and all seventeen (17) passed. From past experience, one or two would not pass on their first attempt.

+2+ Higher than average scores: Fifteen (15) of the seventeen (17) scored 900 or higher out of 1,000 points. Typically, the passing scores spread throughout 700 to 900s.

+3+ Two perfect scores: Once in a blue moon, a student would earn a perfect score on a MOS certification exam. This semester, on the first exam, Isabel and Connor hit that mark :-)

Other honorable distinctions in the past month are:

Angela alone earned the highest score on Bonus Quiz 5 – Social Engineering & Purchasing Rationale.

Christian alone earned the highest score on Bonus Quiz 6 – Shortcut, Recycle Bin, and File Types.

Christian and Dilanga both earned the highest score on Bonus Quiz 7 – TCP/IP & One Big Thing and Generic Top-Level Domains.

Since my previous blog post and before Spring Recess, seven students gave their A3 Slideshow Presentation while I gave my second lecture: L2 The Internet and first demonstration: D1 Key Excel Concepts and Skills.

i. Jorge – Why Alaska as a Fishing Destination

ii. Chandler Donovan – Japan: My First Trip Plan

iii. Bezhan – How Microchips Are Made

iv. Skyla – Being a Commissioned Artist

v. Katelyn – Monarch Butterfly

vi. My Second Lecture – L2 The Internet

vii. My First Demonstration – D1 Key Excel Concepts and Skills

viii. Noel – Dallas Cowboys

ix. Isabel – My Three Dogs


Click on the image for a larger/clearer view






Click on an image for a larger/clearer view



Click on the image for a larger/clearer view


On the second day of Spring Recess, constant as the North Star, Noel, not only started Chapter 5  Excel early but sent in A4 Fun with Functions Workbook a week ahead of schedule. I know several others will not be far behind.

Whereas Phase 1 was about bolstering one's digital literacy essentials and building good habits and momentum, Phase 2 requires more of an analytical mindset and perseverance. I am excited to see my students test their metal and triumph!

Students,

Please share your thoughts on these four topics in your comment:

Now that you are doing Chapter 5, how do your feel about Microsoft Excel? Did you have any experience using Excel before Chapter 5 of LabSim? Has doing Chapter 5 changed your perception or comfort level with using a spreadsheet?

What impact, if any, has watching 18 min 55 sec the Excel Primer video (https://youtu.be/l3RP-4thnkc?si=lOiXe8m_T6ap2OpN) from the Digital Literacy Program Director had on you before you began Chapter 5?

One signature topic I teach in IS101 is the anatomy of a Uniformed Resource Locator (URL) and how to dissect a URL properly. Using the logic I outlined in the study guide for Bonus Quiz 8, what would the six parts/components (as outlined in slide #5 of my L2 The Internet) be for this URL: ftp://aaa.bbb.ccc.ddd.eee.us/fff/ggg.htm? First student to provide the correct answer in his/her comment to this blog post will receive bonus credit ^_^

How was your experience in doing A4 Fun with Functions Workbook from Digital Literacy Program Director? Did you get stuck? How did you get unstuck?

Friday, February 21, 2025

Crawl, Walk, Run; First Lecture; First Trio of Student Presentations

Since my inaugural blog post for IS101-3205, Spring 2025, we have completed the first portion of Phase 1 (Online & Computing Essentials) where students (a) set up the foundations for their success, (b) acclimated to LabSim and discussions in Canvas, and (c) demonstrated their work ethics.

A2 Blog Posts, Articles, Videos, Comments was launched to give students a forum to demonstrate their professionalism, build rapport with their classmates, and leave a digital footprint of their IS101 journey on the World Wide Web.

I kicked off the second portion of Phase 1 (Microsoft Word) with my first lecture: L1 Hardware, Troubleshooting, End-User Cyber Security. The following week, a trio of students lead their classmates in A3 Slideshow Presentation.

Paulina showcased her desire to be a future tourist to Pompeii: A City Frozen In Time. What painted a smile to my face was her initiative to use the artificial intelligence ChatGPT to generate a clip art of herself as an upcoming tourist in Pompeii after I polished her draft slideshow. Though all three from the first group of student presenters will receive bonus credit, the very first one always stands out for me.

Yahir educated us on his passion for riding off-road in Off-Highway Vehicles. The young man brought a sense of professionalism with an OHV Injuries & Deaths 2021 Report from Consumer Product Safety Commission. Despite arriving late and missing Bonus Quiz 3, the quick-witted OHV rider worked Granny Daisy Moses, who made an appearance in BQ3, into his Q & A session after the presentation.

Christian shared the significance which (movie) The Butterfly Effect had on him. I found polishing his draft slideshow the easiest because of his clear and logical organization of his slideshow. I love his closing: "If given this ability and knowing the cause and effects, would you still go back to change your future?"







Click on the image for a larger/clearer view



Click on an image for a larger/clearer view


Looking back in the first month IS101-3025, Spring 2025, these are the student distinctions:

Paulina was the first reached 100% on Bonus Quiz 1 - Syllabus before the semester officially began. Fifteen classmates joined Paulina in reaching 100%: Noel, Katelyn, Yahir, Geraldine (Getty), Jorge, Skyla (Sky), Angela, Chandler Donovan, Dilanga, Isabel, Christian, Arthur, Jericho, Bezhan, and Ashlyn.

Angela alone earned the highest score on Bonus Quiz 2 - Self-Reliance and Self-Responsibility.

Chandler Donovan alone earned the highest score on Bonus Quiz 3 - File E. & A. and Special Characters in File Name.

Chandler Donovan repeated the same feat on Bonus Quiz 4 - Display, Shift/Ctrl, Boot-up, Binary, IPOS Life Cycle.

Several students have not only kept up with the semester timetable in Canvas, but worked ahead in their coursework in LabSim. Two students stood out from this elite group. Noel slowly and consistently worked ahead since the semester began. At the time of this blog post, Isabel overtook Noel by a hair.


Looking ahead to the second portion of Phase 1, students will focus on Chapter 4 Microsoft Word, which is longer than the first three chapters. Typical expressions from past students are "I didn't know Microsoft Word can do this" and "I didn't know this is how to do this feature properly".

Often, some students realized this long before Chapter 4. One student learned to use the Alt-Tab shortcut keys to quickly toggle between different windows instead of always minimizing and restoring/maximizing windows. Another mentioned learning to use right-alignment instead of simply adding spaces or tabs to move the text to the right side. I hope students will not only take note but practice and adopt the proper/better way of doing things.

Reflecting a bell curve, majority of the students are keeping up with their coursework. Some have fallen behind while some are working ahead. I hope those who are behind will be able to graduate from crawling to walking then run with Isabel and Noel toward the upcoming MO-110 Word certification exam that will mark the end of Phase 1.


Students,

Please share your thoughts on these four questions in your comment:

 (1) How well or not well do you think you have done in IS101-3205, Spring 2025?

 (2) What would you do differently going forward?

 (3) How are you preparing for the upcoming MO-110 Word certification exam?

 (4) Anything else you would like to share with the world?