Right after I received the evaluation from my content expert and applied the changes in the module’s design and content from the feedback I received during the town hall presentation, the biggest challenge in my special project arrived. My laptop broke and all of the work and files I had saved in the device vanished.
I have been using the same laptop since I was in 11th grade in senior high school. It was with me when I first conducted campus research, my UPCAT application, my UPOU admission, and my BES journey. It has been running for five years now and I am not the most knowledgeable in laptop care. Although I am aware that the device is already not in its best condition as it is getting on in years, I did not expect that it would shut down in the middle of the crucial stages of my special project. The laptop suddenly refused to work and the diagnostics say that it is having hard drive issues.
This went on for weeks and I could not get it fixed at the moment as the prices for such services around our area are high. I resorted to handwriting my written assignments and ePortfolio and eJournal entries to keep myself productive. When my hands get tired, I turn to typing my work on my mobile phone’s notes application. However, I found that my mind works better when I write on pen and paper than on my phone. I felt like I was back in high school when I would participate in essay writing competitions and we were only allowed to hand-write everything.
This problem genuinely blindsided me. At the beginning of the project, I was expecting to face issues in design, finding a content expert, inviting an instructor, and more. I did not foresee a situation where I would have to pause my special project plans because my laptop broke and I did not back my drafts and screen recordings up online. As difficult as it was to experience it first-hand, this was a learning experience for me.
My dear friend lent me her laptop and I was able to continue my activities from other courses and my special project plans. I made sure to save every work I did on Google Drive because I vowed to never repeat what happened. This incident also made me realize that I was lacking in assessing the possible risks of the project. I should have considered the technical issues I might face considering the performance of my device.
I considered this shortcoming and I made sure that our Internet connection and my laptop were in good condition before the pilot testing of the module via Google Meet. I prepared two different mobile phones near me during the class in case the signal weakens or worse, the electricity goes out again like what happened to me during the first day of the town hall presentation.
It was an unfortunate situation but it made me more cautious now that the laptop is up and running again. Finally, I was able to proceed to the pilot testing and learner evaluation of the module. I lost so much time in completing my ePortfolio due to this setback as I cannot make edits on mobile. As I write this, my fingers are typing so quickly I almost feel bad about my keyboard. However, I am trying to make up for the time I lost while dealing with my laptop’s issue. The keyboard would just have to endure it for now.