Connecting the dots of previous posts
I was reading through my posts, and the different concepts that stuck out to me were transaction costs, team work, opportunism. I can see the pattern of working together with a team in most of them, and how organizational structure influences it. For example, the prompt about organization structure, and what makes a team successful is similar because they both helped me analyze my past experiences working with others. Although I did not give the same examples while writing the blog posts, it definitely helped me reflect on how organizational structure impacts the outcome of a successful team. In fact, reading chapter 5 of B&D has helped me easily identify that one of the factor that determines the success of a team structure is the number of people in the team, and how information is being passed and processed.
Specifically, looking back at my post about organizational structure, I can spot some things I did not consider at first while writing the post. The organizational structure of Harold Washington college, and the leaders that is the president, vice-present, deans and department heads construct how decisions are made compared to the other city colleges of Chicago. All the seven city colleges have the same goals, but the way the other schools operate is entirely different. For example, the registration process is different for all of the seven schools even though they all have the same goals of helping students easily register for classes. Hence, two organizations might be trying to sell the same products, but their approach to selling it might be different considering how the administrative team processes it.
There have also been different ways to connect my blog posts to the course itself. So far in the course, we have talked a lot about transaction costs and how it ties into being an opportunist or being a better citizen. This blog posts has been helpful because I have had the chance to reflect on real life scenarios that have happened in my life. Also, comparing other people's stories have allowed me to understand the concepts beyond just the economics meaning. The prisoner dilemma from both class discussions and excel, and also the trading experiment ties into the hypothetical post about IlliniBucks. I really enjoyed forming hypothetical scenarios about IlliniBucks because it helped me consider the issue of pricing and demand. I was able to look at the bigger picture and consider how the U of I administration make decisions. Most importantly, these connections are more obvious to me now as I have had the opportunity to read my posts again and reflect on them. I have been able to step back from just trying to answer all the questions posed from the prompt, but instead connect class discussions, prof. Arvan's reply and my group members comments.
Within the last couple weeks, I have found myself brainstorming prior to writing my blog post. Most times I check the prompt on Wednesday, and start thinking about what particular experience I would like to share. I have also started writing from the bottom (last question) and making my way to the top because I realized that makes it faster for me to write a more detailed stories. A particular post I found rather difficult to write was the opportunism post. I kept wondering about a situation when someone I knew made an opportunist move, but I found it difficult to come up with an example. One thing for sure about writing this blog post is that it helps me think deep about things I never used to pay attention to mainly because I am too busy trying to complete my assignments or prepare for an exam.
Indeed, I have enjoyed writing these blog posts because it has given me the opportunity to think critically about topics we are focusing on in class. I really liked the prompt on IlliniBucks where we had to think hypothetically. I would recommend us having more of that because it helps me particularly think outside the box, and apply some of the concepts from other Economics classes like Micro in terms of pricing. Also, as an undergraduate student, I do not have a lot of experience so this might be challenging if I always have to refer some organizational experience to the blog post. I also like the freedom of being able to write something we want to talk about as long as we tie it back to the topics discussed in class. That's definitely something we should keep throughout the semester.
Specifically, looking back at my post about organizational structure, I can spot some things I did not consider at first while writing the post. The organizational structure of Harold Washington college, and the leaders that is the president, vice-present, deans and department heads construct how decisions are made compared to the other city colleges of Chicago. All the seven city colleges have the same goals, but the way the other schools operate is entirely different. For example, the registration process is different for all of the seven schools even though they all have the same goals of helping students easily register for classes. Hence, two organizations might be trying to sell the same products, but their approach to selling it might be different considering how the administrative team processes it.
There have also been different ways to connect my blog posts to the course itself. So far in the course, we have talked a lot about transaction costs and how it ties into being an opportunist or being a better citizen. This blog posts has been helpful because I have had the chance to reflect on real life scenarios that have happened in my life. Also, comparing other people's stories have allowed me to understand the concepts beyond just the economics meaning. The prisoner dilemma from both class discussions and excel, and also the trading experiment ties into the hypothetical post about IlliniBucks. I really enjoyed forming hypothetical scenarios about IlliniBucks because it helped me consider the issue of pricing and demand. I was able to look at the bigger picture and consider how the U of I administration make decisions. Most importantly, these connections are more obvious to me now as I have had the opportunity to read my posts again and reflect on them. I have been able to step back from just trying to answer all the questions posed from the prompt, but instead connect class discussions, prof. Arvan's reply and my group members comments.
Within the last couple weeks, I have found myself brainstorming prior to writing my blog post. Most times I check the prompt on Wednesday, and start thinking about what particular experience I would like to share. I have also started writing from the bottom (last question) and making my way to the top because I realized that makes it faster for me to write a more detailed stories. A particular post I found rather difficult to write was the opportunism post. I kept wondering about a situation when someone I knew made an opportunist move, but I found it difficult to come up with an example. One thing for sure about writing this blog post is that it helps me think deep about things I never used to pay attention to mainly because I am too busy trying to complete my assignments or prepare for an exam.
Indeed, I have enjoyed writing these blog posts because it has given me the opportunity to think critically about topics we are focusing on in class. I really liked the prompt on IlliniBucks where we had to think hypothetically. I would recommend us having more of that because it helps me particularly think outside the box, and apply some of the concepts from other Economics classes like Micro in terms of pricing. Also, as an undergraduate student, I do not have a lot of experience so this might be challenging if I always have to refer some organizational experience to the blog post. I also like the freedom of being able to write something we want to talk about as long as we tie it back to the topics discussed in class. That's definitely something we should keep throughout the semester.
This was a nice summary of your performance in writing the blog. I didn't quite understand the point about each school in the City Colleges of Chicago having a different registration process and whether they are all equally good. But I will say that on our campus, the registration process is heavily influenced by the software used - Banner and there are capacity constraints for its use so all students can't be in it at the same time. The priority system we have on campus is reflective of that reality. If we were a much smaller campus, that constraint wouldn't be an issue. I'm quite sure our registration process would be different in that case.
ReplyDeleteWhere you talked about brainstorming, I wonder if you are thinking about your blog post with some of your other teammates doing likewise, or if you are doing this by yourself. Brainstorming is normally considered a group activity. The early thinking you do on your own before composing your piece we have termed pre-writing. If you enjoy doing that, you may find a career for yourself as a writer.
I am glad that you are seeing connections between the various class activities. You wrote about more of those than were in the prompts for the blog posts, such as considering how the Excel homework ties in. It is not possible for me to write a prompt for everything we talk about, so to the extent that you can make connections with the other ideas we consider that is all the better.
For the registration, some of the schools have high enrollment compared to others. For example, Harold Washington usually have more people registered for the evening classes. Also during peak registrations, the admission office, advising and financial aid office opens till about 7pm to accommodate those getting off work at 5pm. This is not a general procedure for all the City Colleges. I have heard that some other city colleges have registration on Saturdays to help facilitate faster registration. They recently implemented a rule where the deadline to register for classes is a week before classes start. Their aim is to help students prepare for their classes by buying books and getting acquainted with the syllabus. I doubt that is working well because often times they have extended registration till a day before classes. It would have been nice if it was similiar to the U of I system where students can add classes up to two weeks into a semester.
ReplyDeleteI have mostly been brainstorming by myself. I definitely think it would be a good idea to discuss the prompt with my group members to get their perspectives. I did this for the opportunism post because I was having a hard time coming up with an example. I am actually really glad that I get to write these blog posts because somehow it is helping me improve my writing skills. It is very different from writing a typical 5 or 10 page paper where I have to focus on explaining other people's views.
Having these blog posts was a good idea for having us relate to the concepts taught in class to real life situations. I would also struggle with coming up with what to write, which is why I would often make my posts towards the end of the weekend. I don't usually brainstorm in advance like you do though. I just start by writing a little bit and soon after is when everything starts to pour out.
ReplyDeleteI have also enjoyed how having these blog posts allows us to informally express our ideas on the topic, rather than a formal writing or review like other classes have. Being able to read other student's posts also help with formulating ideas because that helps to expand our perspective on some concepts.