Program Education Outcomes
Communication Competence
Learners will become effective communicators in their discipline.
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Effective communicators are able to convey meaning and do so concisely, so that the listener can easily understand.
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To prove my capability to write in my discipline, I have chosen to display my report, “Why Humans are the Greatest Computer Vulnerability.” I wrote this essay in the spring of 2020, while taking ENG-112. It was around this time that I had begun to consider cybersecurity as a career, and this report was the first writing I had ever done in that discipline. I remember that I enjoyed working on this assignment somewhat, but was frustrated by the openness of the report format. I had gotten used to (and rather good at, I think) writing persuasive essays with the standard intro, 3 points, conclusion structure. Lacking a structure like this made it very challenging for me to put together a logically continuous essay.
This challenge created the primary problem with this essay: it was disorganized and didn’t logically flow. My English professor told me this at the time, but because I was so thoroughly immersed in the writing and research, I wasn’t able to see it (and so his saying that it was disorganized angered me greatly). Looking back over a year later, I can tell that this essay could have used major reorganization and for me to have tied everything to a central idea. The room for improvement begins in the introduction, where I don’t outline what I will cover in the essay at all. My attention-getter and laying out the context for the report are acceptable, but the new format led me to forget the basics of overviewing content. The rest of the essay is equally as messy. My paragraphs are too broken up, and my transitions clearly show that I was writing off-the-cuff, without outlining or planning.
Despite this disorganization, I believe that I accomplished my two goals for the Communication Competence program outcome. My first goal was to use writing techniques that were specific to my field. I accomplished this goal by using APA formatting, which is similar to CMS format (which was suggested for technology and science writing in the materials provided by my professor). Although they aren’t identical, they share a few features including a cover page. In addition to formatting, I also completed this goal with other writing conventions including using quantitative data “…phishing emails are linked to over 90% of data breaches,” and using 3rd person “Sometimes people will find something like a phishing email, and in case it is real, do not want to be a roadblock,” which were also suggested in the materials provided.
My second goal was to use language appropriate for my audience, meaning using technical terms while writing for my field but not overwhelming an outsider with jargon. I believe that I accomplished this goal with this essay, because I struck a balance between technical writing but approachable writing. I used technical terms such as “phishing,” “social engineering attack,” and “brute forcing,” but defined these terms so that an uninformed reader could understand their meaning. Although I believe that this essay was intended for an audience in my field, defining these technical terms made the essay approachable for the layman while not detracting from the value for those in my field.
Although “Why Humans are the Greatest Computer Vulnerability” wasn’t my greatest essay, it was one that taught me a lot. I learned that stepping away from my work for awhile in order to gain a new perspective is important, and that I should always stick to the fundamentals. Despite my having better essays, I’m proud of this one not for the quality of the writing, but for how much I learned while working and reflecting on it.
Creative Problem Solving
Learners will apply appropriate techniques to solving problems within their discipline.
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Problem solving skills give people the ability to deal with unknown and adverse situations. Learning and practicing these skills are important to prepare for the future.
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To demonstrate my creative problem-solving skills, I decided to display my proposal essay from ENG-112, which I took in the spring of 2020. For this essay, I was assigned to pick a problem in my chosen field of work, examine two solutions to find the better one, and make a detailed plan for how this superior solution would be implemented. At the time I took this class I was competing in CyberPatriot, a national cybersecurity competition for middle and high school, and had decided I wanted to have a career in cybersecurity. I chose to tackle the problem of computers with outdated software in my proposal essay, because it is an important issue that has led to many data breaches. I remember that I was pretty excited to write this essay because it was about something I cared about, but was also dreading it because of its scale. While researching my essay, I chose to use one of my coaches from CyberPatriot as one of my sources. I had never used an interview I had done in an assignment before, and I remember enjoying the discussions I had with my coach. It was a new challenge to take notes of a live conversation to use as a source, and I had to keep in mind if I wanted to use any direct quotes as well.
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I had two major goals while working on my proposal essay, and the first one was to find a significant problem in my field and create a practical solution. I am certain that I accomplished this goal with this essay. I chose to solve the issue of computers with outdated software, which was (and still is) a very major issue that costs companies a lot of money each year. In the beginning of my essay, I show the true scale of the problem using many different sources. I first explain that there are thousands of companies with outdated software on their computers and how that can make them 2-3 times more likely to have a data breach, then overview the reasons for this problem, and finally talk about the immense consequences of a data breach. After showing the severity of the problem, I explain my proposal for how to fix it. My solution involved using two pieces of software to help IT staff manage updates, one which scanned computers to ensure they were secure, and the other which let staff install needed updates remotely. By using scanning software, IT staff could easily find which updates were needed to keep the various computers secure. The solution was very feasible, and only required the company (in my hypothetical case Wells Fargo) to install two new pieces of software and slightly reconfigure the hardware that they already owned and had installed.
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The second of my major goals for my proposal essay was to compare the advantages and disadvantages of different solutions in order to find the most effective solution. I accomplished this goal in this essay with my comparison of my primary and secondary solutions. (Note that primary vs secondary naming is customary to the proposal writing format; it doesn’t imply which is presented first in the paper nor a primary/backup relationship.) The secondary solution that I present first is to have automatic updates turned on for all computers. The primary solution I present is to use two programs to assist IT staff in managing updates, one for scanning computers to ensure they are up-to-date and secured, and one for mass-installing updates to many computers at once. I then compare the advantages and disadvantages of both. The automatic updates solution seems to be simpler and more effective, however in reality it is potentially more labor intensive and requires significantly more downtime for each computer. The primary solution, which is the one that I argue for, is more labor intensive initially but can handle problems significantly easier (error fixing being very tedious with the secondary solution), and has significantly reduced downtime for each computer.
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Overall, I was and remain very happy with my proposal essay. I believe that I explain the problem and solutions well, and that my solution is practical and would be effective. I could have gone into greater detail for my implementation instructions; however I think that the level of detail I used was appropriate for a proposal that was going to be presented to someone outside of the IT staff of the company. There are a few other minor changes I’d make as well, including changing the first sentence (it gives a very amateurish first impression) and overviewing the content of the essay more thoroughly in the beginning. Despite these few shortcomings, I feel that this essay is an excellent example of my work and demonstrates my ability to think critically to solve problems.
Scientific Literacy
Learners will demonstrate scientific literacy by explaining the process of scientific reasoning and applying scientific principles inside and outside of the laboratory or field setting.
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Scientific Literacy has to do with the knowledge and ability to use logic and the scientific method. It also includes the application of scientific knowledge gained in class.
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To demonstrate my scientific literacy, I have chosen to display a lab worksheet from one of my chemistry classes at SPCC. I took these classes in my first year at the school, so was somewhat new to the college workload. I remember that I chose to take chemistry because I strongly disliked my chemistry course in high school and wanted to have a better chemistry experience under my belt. I certainly was not disappointed. For both CHM 151 and 152 my professor was Korey Risley, and he still is one of the best teachers I’ve ever had. It was quite apparent when you worked with him that he cared deeply about his students and loved to teach. These two chemistry classes, despite being challenging (primarily because of the sheer quantity of math) are the best classes I’ve ever taken, and my success was largely thanks to the work of Professor Risley. The lab worksheet that I chose to display was for our experiments with freezing point depression. This particular lab is a good example of my ability to conduct experiments as it was somewhat technically challenging. The lab required manual temperature measurements at specific points in time, and the accuracy of our measurements would greatly affect our calculated results.
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While working on this lab, I had two goals. The first of these goals was to complete a lab experiment with a small percent error to demonstrate my ability to accurately take measurements and complete calculations correctly. I believe that I accomplished this goal during this lab, even though we had some inaccuracies. For the lab, we were measuring the freezing point of two solutions that had different concentrations of antifreeze. We then used these measurements to calculate the molar mass of antifreeze, then compared our calculated molar mass to the actual molar mass (which we knew from other calculation methods). For the first solution of the two (we can call it solution A), my lab partner and I measured the freezing point was -4.1°C. Our calculations based on this measurement showed that antifreeze had a molar mass of 45.5 g/mol. Because the actual molar mass was 62 g/mol, our percent error for solution A was 27%, showing that our measurements were inaccurate. For the second solution (solution B) we measured a freezing point of -6.1°C. This measurement was much more accurate. We calculated with this measurement that the molar mass of the antifreeze was 61.0 g/mol, with a tiny percent error of 1.6% thanks to the mere 1g difference between calculated and actual values. Even though we made an error in our first measurement, we were able to fix our mistakes and make a very accurate second measurement. This second measurement had a very small percent error, which is why I feel I accomplished my goal.
My second goal while working on this lab was to complete a lab that relates to real-life applications. I accomplished this goal with this lab because use of freezing point depression is very common in cold places. In cars for example, antifreeze is added to the coolant to prevent it from freezing when the car is not running. We even used automobile antifreeze in this experiment. Another application of freezing point depression is road maintenance during freezing weather. In places where freezing temperatures are common, cities will often salt the roads to prevent them from freezing. The salt added to the roads and the antifreeze added to the coolant serve the same purpose: when they dissolve, they make it so the water on the roads and the coolant in the car freeze at a temperature colder than their environment. Because freezing point depression is used so commonly in the real world, I think this lab completes the goal of a lab related to real-life applications.
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This lab, overall, is an excellent example of my ability to conduct scientific experiments. It demonstrates that I was able to learn from mistakes on the fly, and make accurate calculations and measurements. If I were to go back and change anything, I would re-write my calculations to make the formulas and processes that I used more apparent. Despite the few shortcomings, I am proud of my work and will remember it and my chemistry classes fondly for years to come.
Mathematical Literacy
Learners will demonstrate mathematical literacy through solving problems, communicating concepts, reasoning mathematically, and applying mathematical or statistical methods, using multiple representations where applicable.
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Mathematical literacy has to do with the ability to complete math problems and apply mathematics knowledge and concepts to real life scenarios like finances and building.
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To demonstrate my skills in the realm of mathematical literacy, I chose to display my regression project from MAT-171, pre-calculus algebra. I was assigned a data set from our text (in my case college costs), and told to find the graph that fit it best, make a prediction about those costs in the future, and explain my prediction. I remember that at this point in the class I was worried, because the fully online, asynchronous nature of the class had been challenging me. (It is worth noting that my concern was that I was going to get a B rather than an A; this being said, my straight As still meant a lot to me.) Despite being worried however, I remember enjoying this project and finding it interesting to find graphs that fit data and making predictions based on those graphs.
While working on this project, I had two goals I wanted to achieve. The first goal was to apply mathematical and statistical methods to make an evidence-backed prediction. I completed this goal with this assignment with my prediction of college prices rising. I first took the set of college cost data that I was given and graphed it, then used the regression function on my calculator in order to find a polynomial equation with a graph that fit the data. Then, using this graph that I found, I calculated what the cost of college would be two years and four years after the last given data point. I subsequently did a sanity check on this prediction, to ensure it was reasonable. I found that, given the 10-year change between the given data points, my estimates for two and four-year changes were reasonable (the 10-year change was between a $5k and $8k increase, while my predicted two-year change was around $1-1.5k). By going through this process to find a graph to use to make my prediction, then sanity checking that prediction, I completed my goal of making a substantiated prediction.
My second goal while working on this project was to demonstrate my understanding of mathematical and statistical methods by explaining the process of making my prediction. I accomplished this goal with this assignment with my explanation of regression and the values r and r2, and my explanation of my sanity check. I first explain my data set, and how the y value is college costs with the x value being time. I then explain the limits of r and r2, their significance, and the r2 value that I got: “The value r that is calculated when figuring regressions shows the correlation between the dependent and independent variables. r cannot be larger than 1, or smaller than -1. If 0 < r < 1, then the dependent variable (y) increases with the independent variable (x)(upward slope). If -1 < r < 0, then the dependent variable decreases as the independent variable increases (downward slope).” “r2 can only be greater than zero and less than 1, and shows how closely the data fit the regression model. With a value of 1, all of the data are explained by and fit the model. The closer the value gets to zero, the less the model explains (and can predict) the data.” “The cubic function’s better fit was indicated visually and in the r2 value; the linear function had a value of ~0.9968, whereas the cubic function had a value of 1 out to 10 decimal places.” I then give a brief explanation of my sanity check: “…the average cost of private colleges can be predicted to increase by about $2,000 from 2014 to 2018,” “Given that the previous increases in college cost were between $5k and $8k over 10 years, a $1-1.5k increase over 2 years seems reasonable.” Given these examples of my explanation, I believe I accomplished my goal of explaining the process of making my prediction.
Overall, I am happy with my regression project. Having the opportunity to use the math I had been learning the way it would be used in real life was fun and reminded me of why we learn math. If I were to improve this project, I would more thoroughly explain what regression is and not just what the values mean. I might also re-arrange some of the content so that everything is ordered logically. Other than these minor problems, I believe this assignment is a good example of my work and will remember it well because it gave me a taste of the power of mathematics.