Fin

We’re finally done! After nine months of reading, researching, writing, developing, editing, and preparing, we all made it through this difficult yet rewarding process (even if there were times in which we thought that we wouldn’t). The last two years in this AP Capstone program have truly been a transformative process which helped so much in developing my ability to critically think, analyze, and organize, as well as for more importantly proving to myself what I can accomplish.

When I first began in AP Seminar two years ago, I struggled with the workload and the expectations that were set for me. Although I had experience writing papers, I had never attempted to do anything remotely close to what a seminar paper was. I had difficulty managing my time when given large assignments in that class, and so I think the quality of my work suffered as a result. As the year progressed though, I think I adapted to the class and learned from my mistakes so that towards the end of the year, I did not have as much difficulty as before. I learned to really take advantage of the assignments we did early in the project process, such as the annotated bibs, and outlines, because I found out how much easier writing a paper was when I had that information. Also, as the year progressed, I think that I also developed the critical thinking and organizational skills that made assignments a lot easier as well. That being said, I struggled throughout the year with the amount of work that was required. Although part of it was my fault, I remember times feeling frustrated and overwhelmed with the class, considering everything else that is going on junior year.

Although I was hesitant about taking AP Research, after the difficulty I had in AP Seminar, I am ultimately glad that I chose to take the class, and am so proud of what I was able to accomplish as a result. While a lot of Seminar was spent in frustration as I tried to adapt to the class, I think that Research was a lot more enjoyable, even if it required more work. The class was certainly stressful at times, especially when big deadlines were approaching, but I think that the freedom I was given to choose my topic really made everything worthwhile. Being that BASIS has been a huge part of my life for the last 8 years, not only did I maintain my interest throughout the entire process, but I feel like this project was almost retribution to all of the positive things that BASIS has done for me. Even though BASIS has its flaws (which I made sure to point out in front of the CEO), I think that it created and molded the most capable, competent version of myself. There were many late nights, lots of caffeine, and maybe a couple tears along the way, but I feel as if my project was an appropriate conclusion to my time at this school. Even though I will have bittersweet memories (and maybe nightmares) about this place, there is no denying the BASIS effect, and how it turned a nerdy little kid with a bad haircut and glasses into a college-bound young adult capable of conducting meaningful, independent research.

As I reflect back on AP Capstone, and my time at BASIS as a whole, I acknowledge the opportunities I was given. Despite the negativity I may have felt, this is my ode to Seminar, Research, and BASIS as a whole. It has been a challenging, frustrating experience, but a worthwhile one nonetheless. I hope you all enjoyed my journey through AP Research. Signing off for the last time, this is Brian.

(621 Words)

Reorganize, Review, and Rehearse

Hey everybody! Its hard to believe that our presentations are less than a week away. This is pretty terrifying to know that we only have five days until we deliver our final presentations on everything we have done so far this year. I think that the time has gone by so fast, and it is hard to believe that we are here.

              Anyways, moving onto today’s topic. After presenting last Monday, and then again on Saturday, I can say that my presentation was by all accounts rough. On my presentation Monday, I did not have enough slides, and so there were gaps of time where I was talking, but I did not have a slide to accompany the claim I was making. Because of this, my script and slides were pretty disjointed. Over the course of the week, I dedicated my time adding more slides, and improving the quality of the ones I already had so that they better followed what I was talking about. In addition to that though, I also tried adding more evidence to strengthen the claims I was making regarding my themes.

              However, after presenting again yesterday, the teachers I presented for noted how significant work was still needed. As they pointed out, I still had problems with both my slides and script. In terms of my script, the literature review needed to be reorganized, I needed to better explain my methods, and I need to cut down on my explanations of the themes I found. For the slides, even though I had more, some of the slides were either very generic, or they looked good, but the background image was only vaguely related to my topic of charter schools.

              Since I met with them yesterday, I rewrote my literature review section of my script so that it follows the order that they suggested. I think that it makes a lot more sense now, and so I feel better about that section. Currently, I am working on finishing up editing the rest of my script so that it reflects the suggestions that the teachers made. I plan on finishing that tonight, and then editing my slides tomorrow, so that the rest of the week can be dedicated to practicing my presentation.

              For my practice presentations, I had problems with the content in my script, the visuals in slides, and the memorization of the script. On a positive note, though, I don’t think that I had any weird mannerisms, or spoke too quickly or quietly. Anyways, I know that I still have a lot of work to do, but I am confident that I will be able to get it all done and deliver a well-rehearsed presentation!

Until next week! (for my final post :/)

(458 words)

Presentation Preparation

Hey Everybody! It is hard to believe that we are less than two weeks away from our final presentations. After submitting my paper to Mrs. Haag, I must say that I am so proud of what I, and everybody else, was able to do over the course of this year. It’s so hard to believe that it is almost done, especially considering how hard we have all worked. However, that being said, we still have our presentations to rehearse and deliver.

              Over this past week, I made a lot of changes to my script and slides. Coming into this week, my script needed to be cut down some, and made more cohesive, and my slides needed to be beefed up quite a bit. As a result, I spent some time making my script flow and transition better, and added quite a bit to my slides. That being said, I still do not think that my presentation is perfect. In my head, I envision an ideal presentation being one that engagingly and effectively conveys your information to your audience. It should keep them interested, and make them want to learn more about what you are talking about. To do this, the main focus of a successful presentation should be on what is said, and not what is on the powerpoint. The powerpoint should be a supplement to what is being said, and should not be the backbone of the presentation.

              When I look at my presentation, I am still left not feeling very confident about my discussion of my themes. This is the central part of entire research project, and so I need to be able to convey what I found with these themes in a concise and effective manner. However, because there is so much to talk about with them, I feel like I go too far in depth, instead of talking about only what I need to. Also, I feel like my slides still might be a little bit too bland. I tried make them more interesting by animating my bullet points and including figures to illustrate what I am talking about; however, I still feel like it is a little lackluster.

              Anyways, moving onto my “memorization strategies.” Now that my paper is pretty much finished, perfecting my presentation is going to be my main priority. Truthfully, I don’t plan on using any specific strategies other than just practicing my presentation a lot. In the past, with my seminar presentations, I remember reciting my presentation in the mirror, and that worked then, so I foresee myself doing that as well.

              Until next week!

              (433 words)