Digital Portfolio Site Reflection

After completing my first semester of AP Biology, I am very proud of my work and all the knowledge that I have acquired in what feels like just a few short months. In addition, we have documented our entire semester on this digital portfolio site, allowing me to review my work in preparation for the next semester.

 

Creating this digital portfolio site was a unique experience that was very new to me. In the past, I have worked on many projects, but I have never published them on the internet for the world to see. We covered many topics such as genetics, ecology, water, and biological processes such as meiosis. We created original creative content that both shows our knowledge on the topics but also teaches viewers about the content. This aspect of our projects helped me retain the information the best because research shows that teaching learned content is the best way to understand the subject yourself.

In addition to allowing me to learn the content in class, I also learned technical skills such as making and editing videos and finding new ways to use tools I thought I was already familiar with. The Meiosis in Motion video and my Breakthrough Challenge video both had stop-motion animation, which was quite arduous to put together. However, I did research on which tools to use to make this process easier and create a better product. I watched countless videos on how to make a stop-motion animation. This process taught me to think on my feet when I had only a limited time to complete a project and numerous methods to make the product; I had to pick a tool but know when to switch tools if the current one wasn’t fitting for this particular project.

One challenge I faced, particularly in writing the blogs, was to put my personal voice into the blog. I tend to write in a monotone and factual tone since I’m used to writing history essays or lab write-ups that require the writer to be objective. But to be interesting, a blog needs a strong voice behind the content. To overcome this challenge, I found ways to insert my personal opinion more into each post to make my blogs more interesting and to establish a voice in my writing.

At first, I wasn’t excited about the idea of posting my projects on the internet and especially posting my reflection in blog posts for the world to see. However, I have come to learn that this is a way to connect with the community of students, teachers, and intellectuals out in the world, and this is how scientists function. They thrive on communicating with each other about their discoveries and often debate about topics. This makes them better scientists because they review each other’s work for accuracy. By sharing my work, I am held accountable for the accuracy and value of my work, and this makes me work harder when doing my projects. Posting my work also makes me have more pride in my finished products.

Overall, this semester has been a successful and educational experience, and I’m glad that I was able to capture each step on this site. From doing labs inside the classroom to visiting the Body Worlds Decoded exhibition in San Jose, the wide range of activities we did this semester can all be remembered by viewing this site. This site is a great way to have all my work from this semester in one place and to share our adventures in AP Biology with the world!