reflection

When I first saw the project, we hadn't worked with circuits yet, so I was pretty clueless as to how we would create the flower pot. I assumed there was some kind of sensor between the pot and flower, but wasn't sure what kind. I also wondered if there would be any simple coding involved. Despite not knowing how the glowing flower pot would be constructed, I felt comfortable with the idea of learning how it works. Completing the simple circuit exercise strengthened my sense of self-efficacy, as I began to think about how I would translate what I learned from the activity to the project.

When I first built the circuit and the LED did not glow,  I noticed my self-efficacy being challenged. I am confident in my computer science abilities, and I think I subconsciously expected my skills to carry over and to complete this project without problems. After testing my materials and discovering that the problem was not with them but my circuit, I felt slightly nervous. With help from the guide I fixed my error. It was a nice reminder that it's okay to get help, even with projects I expect will be easy, and that setbacks don't have to affect my sense of self-efficacy or growth mindset.

While watching the video demonstration of the interactive dandelion painting, I noticed fairly high self-efficacy in myself, but I believe this might be a result of a fixed mindset. Visual art and coding are two of the things I feel most confident in. Therefore, although the circuitry behind the painting seemed quite intricate, I believe I could understand how it works with time. However, I noticed my opinions were based on beliefs like "I'm good at problem solving related to coding" and "I'm good at art," perspectives indicative of a fixed mindset. It's important to remember that my confidence in my ability to learn something doesn't have to be based on preconceived ideas about what I'm "good" at. Side note: Did this project inspire the Break Points dandelion demo?

This semester, I'm taking a seminar at Smith that is pretty far out of my comfort zone. The class is reading, writing, and speaking intensive, three things I've struggled with in the past. I typically seek out courses (like those in computer science) that are oriented around projects or tests. The course is called Platform Activism and covers social topics related to CS that I'm really passionate about, which is why I chose to step out of my comfort zone and enroll in the course. However, I'm finding my passion for the topics, which should motivate me to share and actively engage with the professor and other students, often overshadowed by my fear of articulating my thoughts messily or bringing up ideas that others consider not worthwhile.

Both self-efficacy and mindset are working against me here. My experience struggling with writing and speaking in the past is affecting my outlook going forward. It's slightly ironic, because the seminar is intended for computer science majors - meaning that many others in the course are likely in the same boat as I am. I am trying to keep this in mind; we are all there to develop our analysis and critique skills together, regardless of past experience. I am proud of myself for sticking with my decision to enroll in a course outside of my comfort zone. If I could revisit course selection in the past, I only would have pursued such courses sooner.