Always Running

This blog is to update on my progress about how I am currently doing on my book right now. I'm a little bit over half way done with the book and I really enjoy reading it. Once I start reading, I can't even take my eyes off of it. This book is by Luis Rodriguez who grew up living in East L.A. in the 60's and 70's. It's about Luis growing up in the primarily Latino area in L.A. getting involved in gang life and just trying to make it through the times. He doesn't always make the right decisions which hurts himself and unintentionally the others around him. I chose this book to see what it was really like to be apart of the crazy life as they called it in East L.A. known as the Barrios.

MBTI

This week we went through the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator in recitation and in large lecture. I learned quite a bit more about myself while going through this report. It helped me become more aware of my personality preferences along with my different learning styles.

My first letter E was a preference for extraversion which is known as directing energy toward the outer world of people and objects. I am more outgoing in particular social situations and tend to seem a little bit energetic. Most people don't usually see this in me in class or around campus because it usually depends on the context of the certain situation. I just don't seem to get very enthusiastic about school work. I feel like I need a sense of belonging, always needing to be around somebody or part of a group. Being an extravert showed me that I learn better by doing, hearing, and asking questions than by reading and writing.

My second letter S is for sensing. The report wasn't really clear on whether or not I had more of a preference for sensing or intuition. I believe though that my preference leans toward sensing partly for the reason that I am more of an experiential learner. I more of a hands-on kind of guy who trusts experience rather than reading or writing as I said above. I realized also that I like to figure out new ideas of doing things. This is pretty true for me because whether I'm at work or school I seem to find a different way of going about my day to change things up. The one thing I cannot stand is repetition.

My third letter F is for feeling. I base most of my decisions or just my life on my own personal values. I learned that I am more empathetic. I make my decisions based on the effect it will have on others around me. I am also more of an optimistic kind of person. The glass is never half empty, to me it's usually half full. I try to focus on the good in situations.

My final letter P is for perceiving. I prefer flexibility and spontaneity. As I said above I hate repetition. I like to be surprised by things and take them as they come. I would just rather have things unfold instead of trying to take control of the situation. I am a really pressure prompted type of person. I seem to do better in particular situations when time is restricted for example studying for a test the night before not the week before.

Doing this MBTI really made me aware of my personality and the different ways I display it. No one person is the same, we are all different in our own way and this report made me aware of not just myself but the others around me that have different preferences or different ways of doing things. This is important for me so that I take time to figure out how each of us learn, think, and say in situations in everyday life.

Goal Setting

I'd like to thank Karen and Zach, they did an exceptional job running the class this week. I thought the activity they used was great. The goal that I set for next year as a peer mentor was basically like Zach and Karen's. I want to get to know all of my students very well by name, county, major, and just some other facts such as what kind of background they've come from by at least halfway through the semester. I feel if I can accomplish this goal I can develop a relationship with my students so that they feel I really care that they succeed in their first year here at Iowa State. I feel this goal is fairly specific because it seems quite clear for me. Being able to remember my student's names seems very precise to me. This goal also seems very measurable. I can track my progress very easily throughout the semester to see how I am doing remembering names, counties, and majors by asking in class. This goal also seems very attainable because I feel that I am actually pretty good with remembering facts about certain people that are a part of my life. This goal is very relevant to what I am doing. Being able to remember my students will be very important to being a mentor. If a can't even remember their names, how can I help my students to succeed in their first year. This goal is also very time-limited. I put a realistic time limit to where I think I should be able to remember my students name, county, and major. Another goal that I set for myself was to be on Dean's list for my remaining semesters. For this goal I used the four M's method to help set specific and effective steps so that accomplish this for the remainder of my college education. For motivation, I said this would make me a better person altogether along with helping me with my career. Their are many commitments that I would need to make to obtain this goal. Going to class, studying hard, and completing my homework to the best of my ability seems like some very good commitments to make. For modifying my environment I could make sure I limit my time from my social life and find a place suitable where I can study without to many distractions. I can easily monitor my actions by checking my grades regularly during the semesters to make sure I can actually achieve this goal. I realized when using the SMART and Four M's methods in class that they are great ways to help you achieve your goals. Using these methods help to remember specific steps to follow when accomplishing your goals. Even using each type of method, you could develop different strategies for particular long or short term goals.

Facilitating Learning/Debunking Myths on Immigration

So this week in class we talked about facilitating learning and what facilitation meant to us. I thought of facilitation as helping others to achieve learning in new or necessarily different environments. We also went over how each of us had different ways of learning and understanding different aspects of knowledge. My strong point was the visual/spatial method that included the ability to create mental pictures and comprehend different images. When considering this, I realized I had a very active imagination and I have been applying that to everyday situations. I like to visualize what I am really learning and paint a picture in my head to really get a handle on things. I am more of a hands on person so experiencing things first hand
is the most crucial way for me to learn an attain ideas.

For most of this blog I wanted to talk about the diversity even I attended on March 22 about debunking some of the myths about immigration. Before attending this event, I realized how very stereotypical I am about immigration believing the myths that are out there. One myth was based around how illegal immigrants really don't want to be citizens of this country and are just here for the jobs. In actuality they would love to become legal citizens of our country but the process that they must go through is an incredibly long, hard, and painstaking process. It is nearly impossible for them to become legal immigrants. Geof Fischer, who was leading this discussion gave an example of one man which took him nine years to finely legalize his papers along with thousands of dollars. Our culture is very opposed to immigration, people believe that immigrants take our jobs but in reality they are usually taking the jobs that pay very small amounts that no one else is willing to do. They are essentially stimulating the economy in some ways. Another myth that came about was that these immigrants bring more crime into our country. Once again in actuality, illegal immigrants have lower crime rates than that of native born citizens. The last thing illegal immigrants want around is police, they are more likely to stay in the shadows than gain attention toward themselves. You may watch on the news how near the border their are more decapitations and murder than ever but crime rates have actually dropped at the border. It's just the difference between more coverage now than their has been in the past.

Geof also gave us a number of students here in Iowa high schools that are illegal aliens. Could you guess that that number is somewhere between five thousand and eight thousand students attending school in the shadows. Some people see these children as assets for our country in the future. These children end up hitting a barrier once they grow up and are unable to expand their education beyond high school. Believe it or not their are some programs out their helping these students get into universities on visas to keep them in the country. These students can be an asset to the future of our country just as we are. These are just a few myths and facts about immigration today in our country. I could go on for a much longer time but it would never end.

To conclude my blog their are around twelve million illegal or undocumented immigrants living in this country to date. These people live in the shadows of our everyday lives trying to make a living for their family and themselves. It's interesting how one single document can define the life you live.

Communicating Effectively

This week in class we discussed communicating effectively. I think Brandon and Chelsee did a great job leading the class. I thought the activity that they had chosen was very good. It was interesting to see how components changed as each person had their own perspective at looking at things. We each perceive some things a little bit more different than others. We all have our own point of view so it is important to understand the way one person communicates with others.
My favorite way to communicate is usually with smaller groups. When I'm interacting with large groups, it seems a little bit harder for me to focus and listen well. I become a lot more engaged in a discussion if it is with a smaller group because I feel as if people will listen more to what I have to say. I just feel like I am more of an active listener when in a smaller class per say than in a lecture hall. Since being a freshman here at Iowa State, I know I have increased my communication skills. From meeting new people and friends to discussing some topics in class, I have been able to become a better speaker and listener than I was in high school. Being a student at college basically requires one to become a more effective communicator.
I communicate with different people in many different ways. When I'm around my friends or family I feel very relaxed and calm. I can talk about anything and seem to listen very well and pay attention usually because it seems more important to me. When I'm in class or with a professor, it usually depends on the professor. In some of my classes, I feel like the professor is trying hard to get our attention and keep us focused by keeping us engaged in the class, but for other professors it seems like they don't even try. The most effective way for communication with me and with other people is usually face to face. Depending on the person, I can be very good at communicating. If I feel that person doesn't seem interested, I honestly probably won't even try to actively pursue a conversation if that person isn't even remotely interested.
I was pretty apprehensive about using Twitter. I thought it might be a waste of time for me but after a while I now realize that it can be a very important way of staying in touch with others and communicating with other students and friends. I think it's a very friendly way of saying whats on our minds. We could use Twitter with our students as a way of becoming closer as a mentor and student. It is a useful way to get used to some of this new technology in our society. One way I think we could get them excited about Twitter is just to let them see how much we use Twitter and how much we enjoy it. If they see how much we enjoy it, it might rub off on them. To keep tabs on my students and communication between us, I plan to use email, texts, and facebook. If that doesn't work, I might have to use some drastic measures. Have an awesome spring break everybody.

Developing Cultural Sensitivity

This week in class we discussed the topic of cultural sensitivity. It was Jenna and Cory's turn to lead the class this week and I think they both did an exceptional job. The question at the beginning of the class asked about what strategies we use to show sensitivity toward culturally diverse people. One main strategy of mine was to show respect. Showing respect can have a great influence on someone the first instant you meet that person. Treat someone the way you would like to be treated. As a person I always try to put myself in that person's footsteps and try to see where they have come from and who they really are. I make sure not to judge someone without really knowing who they are first. As my mom once told me as a little kid, never judge a book by it's cover. Being judgmental can prevent you from learning more about someone without giving that person a chance. I always have an open mind and are always ready to learn more about someone. The activity that we participated in during class was very interactive. It really had me thinking about my personal perspective towards some differences along with some of the other student's perspectives about a particular difference.
That activity that we partook in after Cory and Jenna were finished involved our personal dimensions. Their was more than one dimension that I thought was very important to me. The first dimension involved being a student. In my family, my brother and I were the first to attend an actual college. I was not only proud of that but in my time here I have recieved numerous scholarships through academics that I am also extremely proud of. One other dimension that I am really proud of was being a country boy. Living on a farm my whole life has really given me not only a hard work ethic but to have fun at the same time. Working on a farm with all my three brothers and parents is really fun. We joke around and still get the job done. The relationship we develop as a family only gets better.
I shared many of the same dimensions in the class with other students including that fact that some of us have come from a more rural background that were very proud of. Everyone in the class had their own answers that somewhat centered around the fact that we really respect where we have come from and what it has done to us as a person. In the future, I plan to think about other cultures and the amount of diversity that is out there in the world today. Coming from a small town in northeast Iowa I didn't see much diversity as Cory said in class. When you move to a larger school it really hits you to see how different things really are. I realize now in the past years here at school that their are many differnces in the world and not everyone is the same. I have respected these differences more than ever and will continue to do so.

Becoming a Role Model

So this week in class we looked at becoming a role model. I'd like to thank Rachel and Amy for doing such a great job. The question at the beginning of class got us to think about who was one of our role models and what common values do they have that make us feel that way. I believe that my parents were my role models as I was growing up. They were always very responsible accepting the situations that life threw at them. They never tried to blame something else for something or came up with excuses not to do something, they always took responsibility. My dad was also a man of positive thinking. He could somehow take the worst of a situation and turn it into something positive along the way by using his humor.
The activity that Amy and Rachel came up with was a very good one. They put three of the values on the board in the chapter and first we chose which one was our strength and then later which was our weakness. My strengths that I could remember were adaptability, creativity, and gratitude. When discussing adaptability with the others, we all sort of centered around how we could adapt to different situations during the day. If something came up during the day, we could easily adjust and bounce back. I myself, thought that I can adapt to newer environments along with newer ideas when given time. I think that being creative is also one of my strong points. I feel like I am someone who is trying to discover new ways or ideas of doing something. I try to never do something repetitive time after time. Doing the same thing day after day really bothers me for some reason so trying to come up with new and exiting alternatives is a good way to deal with it. My other strength was also gratitude. I try to take nothing for granite in my life. I'm always given new opportunities that others may not be as fortunate to be given. If you start taking things for granite in your life, you may lose something important to you in the blink of an eye without knowing.
We also discussed some of the values that we see weakness in. The two that I remember were focus and responsibility. I seem to have trouble focusing on one thing at one time. I usually am so focused on many different things at one time it makes it hard for me to pay most of my attention to some of the more important issues. I think I can make this a strong point of mine if I just slow down and really think about one issue instead of my mind racing from point to point. My other weakness was responsibility. I'm not totally irresponsible, it just seems like I make excuses for the small things that are going on. I try to make little excuses for not doing something that I probably should have. I like to thank Amy and Rachel for doing such a great job again, they lead the class very well with their activity. It really had me thinking about all the different values that attribute to a being a good peer mentor.

Self-Awareness

This week in class we went through the chapter Understanding Self Awareness. I thought Anthony and Beth did and awesome job leading the class. I liked the way everyone responded to the question asked at the beginning of the class. They asked us what level of self-awareness we thought was the most important and why. It was very interesting to listen to everyone as they went around the room describing which level of awareness they thought was most important. I, myself chose social awareness. When I first arrived at Iowa State my freshmen year their were many new experiences that I had to get used to. On the first day of classes their were many expectations for us that I didn't realize would be so important. I eventually became comfortable with these expectations and understood that they would help me to become a better person. Being comfortable around new people was also a very new for me after coming from a small high school. I ultimately adjusted to these new situations and developed long lasting relationships with these new people in that new environment. After we finished answering, we moved onto a new question involving our past experiences and how they helped us to become more self-aware. Ever since I was a young lad and old enough to help out on the farm, I was constantly working. It never seemed like we had a break, it was always work, work, and more work. In the end I realized it has made me not only to become an independent, hardworking kid but that once I put my mind to something I stay focused. Also, while growing up in a small knit farming community, I noticed how we all watched out for each other. When a few of our neighbors become critically ill, we didn't ask if they needed help, it was just something you did because you cared about them. Situations like that have made me realize that there are people their for you when you need help. It has helped me appreciate the heartfelt things people do for each other. It has had a huge impact on my life after leaving home.
My role in helping students to become self-aware is to influence them in some way to take a look at themselves and help them understand their thoughts, feelings, and actions. I want to help them realize who they really are as a person and to help find their own identity. Becoming a new student at a large university is a very critical issue. They can decide what kind of identity they want to develop or ask if they should just be themselves. I think I can accomplish this by getting to really know these students and being their for them as someone they can trust, being someone who they can come to in times of trouble.
Improving self-awareness is something I never really have thought of as being a issue of discussion for me. After Beth and Anthony were finished leading the class, I looked back and thought to myself that this is a really deep subject. I look back at my life and think about the past and appreciate all the things people have done for me that I really haven't given back enough. It makes me think about what I can do for other people and for myself. Just becoming aware of the other people around me more often can help to understand their background and who they really are as a person. I want to improve my emotional awareness as well. Am I really content with myself and even others around me? Realizing the circumstances of some situations will help me to improve my awareness.

Establishing and Maintaining Relationships

So this week we went over two sections in class, defining roles and establishing and maintaining relationships. Primarily establishing and maintaining relationships. I really liked the way Kelly and Nick decided to lead the class starting off with the question about what kind of oppurtunities we have enjoyed since being here at Iowa State and how we would pass them on to new students. Their are so many oppurtunities that I don't think that I could list them all but I would have to say that in the last year or so being involved in the learning communities and being in differnet clubs and organizations were a few of my favorites. I really liked the way they implemented a work sheet into class where we decided to come up with our own definitions of the five roles of the peer mentor. In my group we defined a trusted friend as someone who you could rely on, somebody you could talk to about certain information. Also somebody that could be their for you.
Deb and I began the class with a question involving the establishment of the relationship with our first peer mentors and what we remembered about them. During the class we implemented some scenarios that were acted out. After the skits were completed we asked what was done right and what could have been better. The first scenario involved commitment. When you commit or promise to do something, you follow through on it. You accepted that challenge and if you fail to commit, you could damge your credibility.
The seconed skit involved confidentiality. Basically, what I learned from this is that if someone needs assistance and comes to you and the issue is said in confidence, you need to protect that person by not sharing that information with other people. If the situation happens to be desperate and your not sure what to do you can ask for guidance from someone higher in the program such as Allie, Silas, or Deborah. We were told that in the past that their have been situations that need the help of others and not just ourselves.
The final skit we went through involved that of boundaries. We are in a position that represents this program. One important thing to establish early on is the idea of boundaries. We want the students to open up to us and share their problems but we do not want to become too involved with their personal issues. Your in a position where you can set the boundaries and the lines not to be crossed.
Finally, we asked the question "Why are we here?" When becoming a peer mentor we have to clarify our roles. Students may not believe what your trying to do is helpful unless they understand your personal motive. In the book it mentions that they need to know that we have a real concern for their well-being and success as a student. Without this knowledge, why should they trust us in helping them.

Week 3: Defining Roles, LC Institute, and ISLE

This week for out blogs we were required to analyze the reading to see how it pertains to our work as peer mentors. Their are many important roles a peer mentor has when impacting the lives of students. One of the more important roles to me is being a trusted friend. Not being trustworthy can have a huge impression on the way somebody perceives you. When I was a new student here at Iowa State, being trustworthy was one of the most important things I based a person on. If I felt like a could trust someone, I could establish a larger relationship with that person. I also thought the connecting link was very important. In our first semester I felt like there was places that I just naturally belonged, whether it was with a group of friends or an experience I enjoyed. Being a learning coach was very important for the peer mentors that mentored me as a first year student. I was taught fundamentals, learning strategies, and time management skills that really helped me to succeed in my first year. Being a leader was also very important for my peer mentor when I was a freshmen. They stepped up and took the challenge to help new students get through their first semester. I acknowledged that they were someone that has been through these first year experiences and they are somebody I could trust to lead me to success.

Last Friday, I attended the Learning Institute. I went to the session, "Underprepared vs Underperforming." In this session we defined what really was being underprepared which referred to as students who's academic skills fall below those needed to be successful in college. We defined underperforming as a student who appears to have an academic background to be successful in college courses, but in actuality, that person is not seeing positive results. During the session we went through a few assumptions, one being that the problem lies within the high schools ineffectively preparing students for college education. We split into different sections of the group to figure out if we agreed or disagreed. It was very interesting to listen to the reasoning from both faculty and students from their point of view on this particular assumption.

On Saturday I attended ISLE. I enjoyed listening to the keynote speaker talking to us about relationships and just general things pertaining to life. It was very engaging and informative. After that I went to the session on interviewing. It's not that I'm terrible at interviewing, it's just that I could do much better to prepare myself for future reference. I learned new ways to dress, begin, and end an interview that I would have never known without attending. It was very helpful in not only preparing myself for an interview but for events in the future.

Week 3: MBTI

This week in class we went over the Myers Briggs Type Indicator. MBTI is basically a personality assessment with a personalized description of your personality preferences. I really enjoyed this particular class because it really got me thinking about what kind of personality I really have. I showed up as type ESFP (extraversion, sensing, feeling, and perceiving). I guess I was suprised on how much of an extraversion type I was. I am very expressive but when it comes to topics that I'm not very interested about I'll kind of lean back and let the others do the talking. When it comes to a topic that I enjoy, I will definitely get involved and throw in my two cents. When we were in groups discussing introductions involving initiating or recieving, I found that I was a very sociable person depending on the situation whether it happened to be in a professional or social environment.
As we continued on through this report, I thought that I would be more intuitive than sensing. As I looked at the components of this part, I noticed that I was a very hands on kind of person who has learned best from personal experiences. I also like to concentrate on what is happening now rather than thinking about the past or future. With that in mind I understood why I was more sensing than intuitive.
When coming across the questioning or accommodating facet, I began to comprehend why I was more of a questioner rather than an accommodator. I am the kind of type to question my own abilities in some cases rather than others. Although, I will question others if there is good reason to in a mild agreeable approach of course. I am also known as intellectually curious and independent, just always asking questions to figure things out.
Near the end of class we talked about dealing with deadlines: the early starting or pressure prompted facet. I thought I would be more of an early starter instead of being pressure prompted, but I noticed that I was a little bit of both in some cases. When it comes to finishing projects or assignments, I'm more likely to start earlier. For some reason when it comes to studying for tests, I am more pressure-prompted. I guess I seem to do better under pressure in more important situations. Have a great week.

Week 2 Helping Students Make the Transition to College

Once again the school work starts to get thrown down and you actually have to do something. This week in University Studies 311, we went through the chapter Helping Students Make the Transition to College.
When reading through Schlossberg's Transition Theory, many things came back to me from when I was once a freshmen here for the first few months. First S, Situation. I remember many situations that I couldn't control. Just in the first week of school, my dorm room didn't even have the internet because the ethernet ports were all broken. I had to go find some place in our building with a working ethernet port when I wanted to get any school work done. Second S, Self. When I first got here, I didn't know what kind of person I wanted to really be. So just being myself got me where I am today. If someone didnt like my values, outlook, or social status then that was their problem, but I managed to meet many new friends. Third S, Support. In the first month I thought I got myself into a real big mess where I didn't want to be. I didn't think I really wanted to go to school but I recieved plenty of support from my parents and just being in the Hixson Program really helped. Final S, Strategies. I recieved plenty of help for developing strategies to get through stress and different situations where I wasn't comfortable. Some strategies such as time management really helped me to get a hold of myself and plan things out.
When I read on through the chapter, I came across the section How is College Different from High School. Many things popped into my head. Before coming to this university, I thought just a few minor things were about to really change. Now I have a whole different perspective on the whole high school to college transition. Time management was a real big thing for me. In high school, I would usually have sports after school and then I would go to work on the farm right after. Even when I didn't have sports, I would get out of school early with a work pass and still work till late. I now have to fill in that time with homework and studying which is kind of hard for me. Despite all the challenges I faced in my first semester, I have enjoyed every bit of this new oppurtunity to further my education. With the experiences I have learned, I can now help new students get through their first semester here at Iowa State.
Being in the Hixson Program along with a first-year program in the agronomy department during my freshmen year, I made a successful transition into college. I developed relationships with many new friends and professors that can now help me through my years here.
The effect of a peer mentor can be very beneficial on student development. When I look back on the past, I was introduced to many new oppurtunities that I wouldn't have first got involved in without increasing my self-confidence to a new level through a peer mentor.

Becoming a Peer Mentor- Week 1

Once I began to read this first chapter, I immediatley noticed the example given of a girl persuing to be a peer mentor. In this example, I saw that one person cannot keep piling things on without eventually overwhelming themselves. As I read on through the first chapter of this book I realized there was much more to mentoring than I first initiallly thought. I learned that their are different types of mentoring: formal and informal. Formal mentoring takes place in a work or educational setting which was the role I planned to take on.
Before reading this first chapter, I thought I knew what being a mentor was all about, but their was much more that I needed to learn. I learned their were many different aspects and things that I need to be aware of before becoming a peer mentor. The main idea that I had grasped was to focus on building a relationship and helping to understand my role while also making the most of the time I have. I knew before reading this chapter that tutoring was different from mentoring but I didn't realize by how much. Mentors and tutors are both their to help, but a peer mentor is more focused on encouragement and establishment of a more personal relationship with a student. As I was reading along through this chapter I came across the question, "How confident are you in your mentoring knowledge and skills?" and I then realized that I haven't really had much experience if any, in the peer mentoring set. With this in mind, I came to the conclusion that I was glad to be learning more and more about peer mentoring and what it is all about.
Coming to the end of this chapter, I came to a heading about balancing my needs and responsibilities as a peer mentor. I learned a few more things about ways to increase my success even more in the future while helping new students. I know now that I am pretty excited to be a peer mentor this coming fall to aid new students to a path of achievement.