Core Skills

Written Communication

"The learner will exchange ideas and information with others using written text in a manner effective and appropriate for the intended audience."

For the Written Communication Core Skill, I have presented my report essay from ENG-112, Writing and Research in the Disciplines, which I took in the Summer semester of 2023. This course was the second of two writing courses I took to satisfy the requirements of my degree path. What made ENG-112 noticeably different from its precursor ENG-111 was that it heavily emphasized understanding the writing styles and conventions of the students' desired career paths. Instead of simply teaching basic writing skills and citation formats, it was now required to support one's ideas with accredited sources and relevant documents specifically from one's discipline, which in my case was marine science. The purpose of this report essay was to analyze the societal, environmental, and economic impact marine oysters have on both local coastal regions as well as on a global scale. The report consisted of three main evaluations of how marine oysters contribute to society, firstly detailing their exact environmental impact, such as how oysters act as a filtration system, provide habitat to other creatures, and act as barriers against storms and tides, reducing coastline erosion. The second evaluation details oysters' impact on the food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries. Lastly, the impact oysters have on both local and international economies is evaluated, through both the aquaculture and jewelry industries, as oysters are the only organic producer of pearls on the planet.

I selected this particular artifact because the report makes extensive use of written text in a concise, but descriptive way. When writing this piece, my first goal was to determine its intended audience. A report on marine oysters is fascinating enough, but using too much or too little technical terminology or detail would mean losing the attention of the reader. While one of my skills is producing eloquent writing, it can often go over people's heads when it becomes too complex. So for this report, I wanted my audience to be more generalized, while still explaining topics in-depth. I wanted the average reader to be able to take away the thesis and specific evidence from the text to judge for themselves the importance of marine oysters, without needing any background in oceanography. And to further match this target audience, I felt it was necessary to include more definitions, explanations, and supporting evidence to convey the importance of oysters in both marine ecosystems and human society. The second goal I wanted to accomplish in this piece was to further grasp the more intricate rules of the American Psychological Association (APA) citation style, as it is customary in the marine science discipline for any written document. I already had a firm understanding of the APA style, the report was another chance to further practice the skills I already had, while retaining what to do in obscure situations when citing. I can now confidently say that I can format most sources, such as websites and journal articles without having to consult the APA guidelines, even in the case of a source not listing its author, publication date, correct DOI link, etc.

I also selected this particular artifact because it presents discipline-specific information and research that aligns with my future career goals. As one of my short-term academic goals is to become a marine biology major at the university level by the Fall of 2024, this report aided in diversifying my knowledge of both the writing conventions of a scientific discipline and my knowledge of the topic of marine oysters, which is always good prior knowledge relevant in future courses, fieldwork, and research. But as for this piece relating to my Associate of Arts degree, it has definitely broadened my competence in written English, to a level where I am confident in writing more complex and lengthy documents. Lastly, this piece represents my journey at South Piedmont Community College because it showcases just how much growth I've gone through while attending. Prior to my time here, I was not that great at writing essays with a thesis, supporting evidence, and concrete rationale. But as I near my time to depart from the institution, I can put my articulate writing skills that I previously had to better use, through writing more professional documents.

Oral Communication

"The learner will exchange ideas and information with others using the spoken word in a manner effective and appropriate for the intended audience."

For the Oral Communication Core Skill, I have presented my final project from SPA-112, Elementary Spanish II, which I took in the Spring semester of 2023. This course was the second of two foreign language courses required to satisfy the requirements of my degree path. As someone who had much prior knowledge and experience with the Spanish language from past high school courses, SPA-112 still proved to be quite the challenging course. As a continuation of SPA 111, focusing on the fundamental elements of the Spanish language, a much heavier emphasis was placed on the progressive development of listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills. Specifically, SPA-112 focused on complex topics such as the preterite and imperfect tense when conjugating verbs, reflexive verbs, singular and double object pronouns used in sentences, and additional vocabulary. For this final presentation, I was tasked with picking five major past events in my life and talking about them completely in Spanish. The events were also required to be in chronological order to create a miniature timeline.

I selected this particular artifact because the presentation makes a diverse use of oral communication conventions in the Spanish language. It required a minimum number of vocabulary words, verbs in the present participle tense, verbs in the preterite tense, verbs in the imperfect tense, irregular verbs of the previously mentioned tenses, direct and indirect object pronouns, verbs like "gustar", prepositions, adverbs, and other words relating to course material. All of those words have been underlined in the presentation itself. Because of such requirements, the presentation is more than just simple conversational use of spoken Spanish. Instead, I had to descriptively retell specific past events through multiple verb tenses, while also keeping in mind that the audience would need further explanation, as they are not active participants in my life events. The diverse vocabulary required for the presentation also was met with the need for my pronunciation of words to be correct for verbs to be annunciated according to accent marks or placement within a word. My first goal with this presentation was to be able to correctly pronounce complicated Spanish words without having to consult a dictionary. Prior to recording, something I struggled with was pronouncing words with many vowels or with vowels followed by the letter "r." I found that reading over the Spanish alphabet enough times aloud helped me grasp the flow of individual letter sounds in long words. My second goal I had with this presentation was to be able to speak at a fast and reasonable pace, so as to not bore my audience. Again, this was another game of practice. Reading aloud the entire presentation multiple times before recording minimized any errors and I was able to speak faster each time.

Overall, I can say that this artifact helped further expand my knowledge of and ability to speak the Spanish language. This aligns with my future career goals of pursuing marine biology because it can involve a large amount of traveling to specific oceans and reefs for further study or research. Having more than just basic conversational skills in the foreign language of Spanish will ensure my success in any Spanish-speaking country I find myself in. Many Spanish-speaking countries are located in tropical climates and oceanic areas, so it is definitely a language to continue to learn. As for this presentation and the SPA-112 course contributing to my journey at SPCC, it has made me more aware of how important it is to appreciate other languages, as they are a unique part of culture. It has also made it clear that learning multiple languages can be beneficial anywhere and in any context.

Intercultural Competence

"The learner will demonstrate cultural awareness and objectivity through critical reflection."

For the Intercultural Competence Core Skill, I have presented my cultural research paper from SPA-112, Elementary Spanish II, which I wrote during the Spring semester of 2023. While placing a heavy emphasis on the continuation of learning how to write, speak, and read in the Spanish language, SPA-112 differs from its predecessor, SPA-111, because it also makes an effort to stress the importance of cultural awareness and the differences between cultures, even if the same language is spoken in both. A large part of establishing such cultural awareness was through an extended research paper. The purpose of such an assignment was to compare and contrast one singular aspect of two different cultures, by creating a thesis statement and using supporting evidence to support the claim. Being of Puerto Rican descent, I have always been fascinated by the territory's origins as a Spanish colony. But while that is the reason the island's national language is Spanish, many differences in the dialect itself have changed to become uniquely its own. If it isn't already clear, the topic I chose to write my paper on was the dialect differences between that spoken in Spain and that spoken in Puerto Rico. I focused on three main areas in my paper, differences in location and history of origin, pronunciation, verbiage, and phonetics, and modern conversational conventions.

I selected this particular artifact because it demonstrates a high level of cultural awareness, in that a considerable amount of time and research was put into crafting a meaningful reflection free of bias and assumptions. The previously described thesis was reached after an in-depth evaluation of sources pertaining to the dialect conventions of both Puerto Rico and Spain. Such observations were made solely on the information of scholarly sources, removing any subjectivity in the paper itself. I made use of specific phonetic terminology to illustrate the differences between the dialects of Spanish spoken in each culture. For example, in contrast to Puerto Rico, European Spanish phonetics make use of the ceceo, in which the letters/letter combinations “s,” “ce,” “ci,” or “z” are all pronounced as the English “th” sound in a given word. Nevertheless, my first goal with this paper was to analyze just how dialects of the same language can both stem from each other, sharing certain aspects, while discarding others and forming entirely new conventions over time. No better example would be the country of Spain and its former colony of Puerto Rico, as the Spanish language has prevailed ever since the Age of Exploration. My second goal was to understand how such dialects can alter the culture of a specific country or region. This is why I included the last area of difference between Puerto Rico and Spain in the paper itself, comparing conversational conventions, to bridge the gap between phonetical terminology and practical applications. Culture isn't always about putting aspects into categories such as dialects. In my opinion, it is best to see culture and language firsthand through social interaction and daily conversation samples.

In short, this artifact relates heavily to my future goal of traveling in the summer of 2024 before I leave to study at my chosen university. As a result of writing this research essay, I have definitely become more aware of the beauty and uniqueness of different cultures, and to look at them from an objective and logical viewpoint. I will for sure bring this mindset to any travel destination in the upcoming months. But such a mindset has also taught me a considerable amount about how culture and language are heavily intertwined. Essentially, it is nearly impossible to find one without the other. But just as how the Spaniards colonized Puerto Rico, bringing their language and own culture to the island, individual cultures can form from existing ones given enough time and reasonable distance from which they come.

Critical Thinking

"The learner will identify, interpret, analyze, or synthesize problems before developing and implementing solutions in a manner effective and appropriate for the intended audience."

For the Critical Thinking Core Skill, I have presented a Lab Report from CHM-152, General Chemistry II, which I took in the Fall semester of 2023. This course was a continuation of General Chemistry I, and although not a specific requirement to complete my chosen degree path, I definitely wanted to finish the pair of courses and broaden my knowledge of chemistry to topics of kinetics, electrochemistry, thermodynamics, equilibrium, nuclear chemistry, and acid-base theory. I will say that CHM-152 was quite the challenge compared to its predecessor, primarily because the topics involved a rigorous amount of math, formulas, and scientific laws to memorize. Additionally, the topics introduced in CHM-152 were entirely new to me, going beyond what I had learned in high school chemistry class, which is why I found CHM-151 to be much more tame. CHM-152 also differed from its precursor because this course required me to draft and create a lab report that corresponded to a previously completed and graded lab assignment. For my lab report specifically, its purpose was to accurately implement the Ideal Gas Law to measure the amount of carbon dioxide gas released from Alka-Seltzer tablets. The Ideal Gas Law predicts how a gas will behave under one specific condition, not relying on one variable remaining constant. It is used to determine the pressure, volume, amount in moles, or temperature variable, given the other three.

I selected this particular artifact because it demonstrates the entire process of analyzing a given problem, using all available knowledge to develop a solution, and finally implementing that solution to solve such a problem, taking into account the appropriate audience. My first goal of the lab report was to break it down into multiple sections, including the purpose, introduction, procedure, results, discussion, and conclusion. In this sense, it is easy for one to see the previously described process. Firstly, the purpose and introduction sections introduce the main problem, any required background information the audience needs for the remainder of the report, and any rationale used to form the procedure. In short, the carbon dioxide released during the dissolving of Alka-Seltzer can be measured experimentally to calculate the molar mass of the gas. Carbon dioxide gas is collected over water and stored in a balloon while measurements are made. The ideal gas law can be used to calculate the molar mass of the gas collected and then to compare it to the actual molar mass of carbon dioxide from the periodic table. The idea gas law specifically calculates the number of moles of gas produced. Using mass difference, one can determine the mass lost by the process, and thus the mass of carbon dioxide actually produced to do this. Concepts of the types of gas laws and properties are also offered in the introduction section, as well as the more practical use, in combination with mass measurements, the ideal gas law can also be used to calculate the molar mass of an unknown gas. Next, the procedure and results sections are unique in that they explore the applications of such knowledge from the previous sections to collect real-world measurements and data values to solve the problem of determining the molar mass of the carbon dioxide released from the tablets. My second goal was to gather a series of equipment and instruments to contain and measure the volume of carbon dioxide generated in an experiment-like fashion. Various equations, formulas, and conversions were used then to find the temperature, pressure, and volume of the released carbon dioxide gas. Once the molar mass was found using the ideal gas law, the conclusion section deems the importance of such findings and reasons for experimental errors that may have negatively affected the results.

This was my first time ever writing out an entire lab report, and in doing so I learned a lot about scientific writing. It differed from the countless essays I've written for English or history courses because it relies on calculations mainly done by yourself specifically. It also differs because it requires the inclusion of tables, charts, grasp, and equations embedded into the text itself. Nevertheless, this artifact relates heavily to my career goals in marine science because it has exposed me to scientific writing that requires data that one obtains themself. Specifically, my goal of publishing at least three official reports by undergraduate graduation of my findings will require me to have a strong foundation of performing similar calculations and also use concise but descriptive language to explain experiments for recreation purposes. As for this artifact contributing to my journey at SPCC, I will definitely say it has made me a better writer. Writing about my specific findings versus using others' sources to support my claim was an entirely new experience.

Information Literacy

"The learner will locate, identify, evaluate, use, and disseminate information ethically and responsibly."

For the Information Literacy Core Skill, I have presented my research project on the Coronavirus Pandemic from MAT-152, Statistical Methods I, which I took in the Spring semester of 2023. I took this course immediately after MAT-171, Precalculus Algebra, to broaden my mathematics skills in an area I had little prior experience with, which was definitely the right choice. As someone who thoroughly enjoys learning math, this course was truly a joy and helped spark some passion for the subject after practicing only algebra and geometry for the duration of my high school math courses. However, what made MAT-152 considerably different than any other math course I had taken because it placed a heavy emphasis on real-world data and practical applications of course material. In fact, most questions on quizzes and tests provided hypothetical scenarios that were based on actual experiments and data. The purpose of this research project was to find, collect, analyze, and make conclusions concerning the number of COVID-19 cases in two separate countries during a single month. The two countries I chose were Puerto Rico and Australia during the month of August 2020.

I selected this particular artifact because it makes use of sampling types, relative frequencies, class boundaries, means, standard deviations, box and whisker plots, and confidence intervals to ethically and logically analyze both the severity and possible reasons for the number of COVID-19 cases recorded. My first goal was to gather data into groups, with some members from some of the groups being selected. Each set of data detailed the number of COVID-19 cases for each day of 2020 in their respective countries. One singular month, August, was selected out of the twelve months of the year. Once August was selected, every day of the month’s COVID-19 cases was evaluated. Then, using the COVID-19 cases for all 31 days of August, outliers, frequency tables, and histograms were constructed to visualize the severity of the pandemic. Using data from such frequency tables, confidence intervals were created to determine where the actual population mean of cases was for each country. There was 99% confidence that the interval from 223.2 cases to 381.3 cases contained the actual population mean number of daily COVID-19 cases in Australia during August 2020. There was 99% confidence that the interval from 400.7 cases to 649.4 cases contains the actual population mean number of daily COVID-19 cases in Puerto Rico during August 2020. Lastly, using such confidence intervals, my second goal was to determine that the virus exacerbated the existing social and economic issues, which in turn saw a higher number of new cases than in Australia, which had enacted efficient policies to reduce the case doubling time from 3.4 days to 112 days. However, when determining this data, it was important to maintain an objective mindset and word choice, because COVID-19 and the 2020 global pandemic are still sensitive topics to most individuals. Comparing information such as virus cases in two different countries can have a lot of morally gray areas, but doing so can tell us a lot about the effectiveness of policies, of course taking into account other socio-economic issues occurring in a country at the same time. Nevertheless, using real-world data should be done ethically, so I took the extra time to make sure my calculations were both correct and not used to make assumptions about the intelligence or capabilities of national governments.

This artifact relates to my specific goal of wanting to conduct student research at my future university of choice. Prior to completing this artifact, I had little experience with gathering real-world data from online databases to create entire sets of intervals, graphs, and tables, which is definitely a skill needed to make logical conclusions and to publish thorough research. Working with the number of COVID-19 cases in specific countries was also quite interesting, making the process much more focused instead of being so generalized. I can guarantee that any future student research I conduct will entail even narrower topics, so it's nice to start somewhere. As for this artifact contributing to my journey at SPCC, I can definitely say that I have become better at applying mathematics concepts to real-world situations, something that I was fairly unfamiliar with beforehand.