(1) Positive Statement
What are you most proud of in your block presentation and/or your senior project? Why?
For my block presentation, the fact that it went better than I could have possibly imagined (to be fair, I could only think of the worst of scenarios) is something that I'm not only proud of, but it's something I will cherish. Last night, I had virtually no sleep, running only on naps and Vietnamese coffee (intense stuff), because I was so anxious about the presentation that I wrote a script. I felt I would not be able to pull off a natural, non-choppy presentation if I tried to "wing" it as they say, but I was having so much trouble rehearsing and time was running out. So I did the script, and I had laid it down in the center desk of Holt's classroom when I was setting everything up.
When the time came and the proverbial spotlight was on me, I totally blanked out -- on the script, that is. I had totally forgotten that I left it there, and by some miraculous force that is sleep deprivation and half a Xanax, I was able to speak more confidently, and I just went into the flow. I was not flawless, obviously, but I'm proud that I didn't have to look at the script and for the most part, I was able to just express myself without thinking about it. I'm also proud that I made time, but I didn't rush. I paced myself and tried not to roadrunner my speech.
Senior Project? Everything. I'm so proud of how I developed my independent component, and how much I improved in terms of presentation from the first one to this final one. I feel most proud of this presentation out of all of them.
(2) Questions to Consider
a. What assessment would you give yourself on your block presentation? Use the component contract to defend that assessment.
AE. I feel that, of the senior presentation/lessons we have had throughout this year, my final presentation was my best one. It's not just that I did it proficiently this time, but I'll admit that it was also a vast improvement from my previous two lessons. When I did receive feedback on what I could have done better, I really took them to heart and tried to avoid this this around.
That's just a personal take though. Objectively, I think I executed the presentation really well. Before, I had the issue of being 1) not engaging the audience enough and 2) having a very static posture. I actively avoided this today. First of all, I already planned out having a couple of slides where I would ask the audience a question (e.g. giving them a chance to guess what the Answers to my EQ were) and just addressing them in general. I also made sure to be very liberal with my hand gestures and tried pacing a little as well (not as much as I would have liked, but it was adequate). Speaking fast was another issue that I tried to amend by simply being more conscious about my words. The fact that I was running on 3 hours of sleep might have been another factor as to why I was just generally slower.
Content-wise, I definitely supplied my answers with a lot of research and mentorship experience. As a method of consistently keeping the audience's attention, I made sure to bring up examples that the audience could relate to. Post-presentation, there were several who approached me about how much they liked my presentation, and I have never felt so honored.
b. What assessment would you give yourself on your overall senior project? Use the component contract to defend that assessment.
AE. I had a blast with Senior Project. I absolutely loved working on both my independent components, and I'm proud as to how much I improved my presentation/lessons.
I will start of by admitting that my first two lessons were not the best. In fact, taking account of the grades, one of them wasn't even considered proficient. At the time I received the feedback, however, I was surprised even at myself as to how well I was taking it. I took much of Mr. Holt's advice in his evaluation to heart, and tried my best to integrate methods and cues to avoid repeating my mistakes in my next lesson. It did pay off in this most recent presentation, and I feel that in itself is the best thing.
I've been doing a lot of back-patting to myself in this blog, but I really, really just want to just embrace what I'm proud of without fear of being judged for it, especially since it's the end of the school year. Though they are not complete per se, I am very proud of the progress I have made in my independent components. Not only did I put a lot of heart into both of them, but the kind of medium they take on (a video game) lends a lot of opportunity to demonstrate the effort I put into them. Just to refresh: my IC #1 was designing an educational game that tackled mental illness, and my IC #2 was basically putting that design into motion by developing the game.
(3) What worked for you in your senior project?
Everything? There were struggles, I'll admit, especially in the presentation/lesson department. But I tried to push myself to do better, and I think that's what counts the most. The fact that I was able to improve is a victory in itself; even if I ultimately bomb the presentation, I'll be content as long as I know that I did BETTER. I'm proud of the effort I put into my independent components. Although I've dedicated more than 30 hours on it, the project I have listed as my 2nd IC is actually not completed, and I hope to finish it soon for my House to play.
(4) (What didn't work)
If you had a time machine, what would you have done differently to improve your senior project?
Arguably the worst parts of my senior project was every fumble I had in the presentations, for both my first and second lessons. In my first lesson, I had blanked out, and made it OBVIOUS. I didn't even try to hide it and it just made everything awkward. My 2nd lesson, on the other hand, didn't go that way, but I was speaking so fast that I feel like I seemed to be droning to the audience. Simply put, I would just spend more time practicing on my presentations and executing them. Moreover, even though I did fine in the presentation, I would have liked to make it aesthetically more pleasing. My EQs were displayed on pieces of paper that simply lay on the tables, instead of something more professional like placards or a giant poster.
(5) Finding Value
How has the senior project been helpful to you in your future endeavors? Be specific and use examples.
This project helped me explore a topic I considered but never really felt obligated to dive into. Game design has always been a wishful thinking type of goal for me. It encompassed many of the things I love to do (writing, art, programming) and I thought that it was amazing that there was a career like this that existed. As a result of this project, however, I was pushed to step out of my comfort zone, trying to connect with highly-esteemed strangers who would eventually help me in the best ways one can imagine. Specifically, I would like to bring up my mentors: Tracy Fullerton, Sean Bouchard, and Elizabeth Swensen. They are all part of USC, which boasts the highest-ranked game design program in the country, which in itself makes being accepted in the program hard to get into.
But, thanks to mentorship, Clerisse and I were not just faceless applicants when the time came to try for the program. Our mentors had not only seen what were capable of making (which, admittedly, weren't that great), but how passionate we were in doing it. To be honest, I think the fact that they were able to personally witness our passion that most applicants would normally be unable to demonstrate. Consequently, we made it into the program, and it's where we will be going this fall.
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