Archive | June, 2010

Respect lost for University of Waterloo

June 23, 2010 by School

The University of Waterloo is ranked as a top university by the Macleans magazine. But over the past four semesters that I’ve really begin to doubt myself with my choice for university. (May be I should have gone to University of Toronto at the start.)

Granted hands down there are genius from this place from RIM to Open Text to MAPLE, granted that Microsoft do hire 50 or more students from Waterloo, and that there are insanely successful people on campus.

However some of the teaching staff are a joke. I’ve had some amazing professors that I would take any subsequent course with them. And there are also professors that I wish would never teach again, as it would do more damage to the students, and the university’s name than his personal gain.

The biggest complaint I have was the 2B term, I had the standard schedule of three computer science courses and two electives (as I have already taken one of the math course the previous term.)

CS246: The professor showed up twice for lectures in class, the first and the last lecture, and I’ve seen him for the midterm and final, he got sick at the beginning of the term, people do get sick, and it’s not his fault. But the course staff failed to realize the severity of his sickness and left the course to be taught by five different people, (tutor, 2 grad students and 2 professors) We all know in the end of the term the teacher evaluation is directed towards the professor and not the five other people, so then would they take the class too seriously? probably not, and would the course be consistent? probably not. The tutor wasn’t a big help as well, he was as lazy as a pig (that’s literally how I feel about him). Assignments being marked late, marks not being posted, never checks the news group, and just plain cocky. However the biggest failure in the course was the fact that there was one question from assignment 4 that showed up on the midterm, BUT, assignment 4 was due after the midterm, so how did they expect the student to study for it? and to learn from their mistakes?

Now this is university and the professor won’t hold your hands anymore, and I did study the material by myself from all the resources that I could find, (and there was a lot seeing it was a C++ class) but the quality of the class was just a joke and it is unacceptable.

On the other hand I still don’t understand why the university is using grad students to teach classes. Let’s use an analogy (in terms of age) grade 6 teaching grade 1.

PD2: Assignment 2, A response

June 23, 2010 by Coop

Warning: PD and CECS knows the existence of this blog. Thus if you copy from me, we will get into trouble, now, I personally don’t care about my outcome, but if you are smart, come up with your own (witty) answer to show them the stupidity of PD courses.

This post is regarding to: PD2: Assignment 2

So after submitting that PD2 assignment, the instructor emailed me regarding my submission, email attached.

At this point, I don’t know what is more funny, the fact that he actually think I would resubmit my assignment, simply because he doesn’t agree with my point of view, or the fact that he is in an utopia, in which he thinks PD classes are… lively, interesting, and full of useful information for students.

Dear Xin,

This letter is in regards to your PD2 assignment and exercise submissions.

You have a right to feel frustrated about PD2, your program, your university, your job or anything else you encounter.  However, PD2 staff members also have a right not to be subjected to insulting language.  I have instructed the PD2 graders not to grade your most recent assignment.  Please resubmit Assignment 2 using appropriate language throughout by July 1st, 2010.  If you choose not to write more professionally in future assignments, I will direct your case to senior PD2 administrators and then to the Associate Dean of your faculty.  I will also include descriptions of questionable material from previous assignments.

Please also ask yourself whether PD2 is really worth the level of frustration you seem to be feeling about it.  I suspect that you can succeed in this course without experiencing too much strain?and perhaps even learn something.  You can then get on with the rest of your studies.

When you rework the document, please follow the requirements laid out in the Assignment 2 Description, and keep in mind that human beings are at the other end of your submissions.

Tim Paci
PD2 Instructor

My reaction:

Here is the clip from YouTube:

Did I resubmit my assignment?

NOPE!

Did I lose the 10%?

YEPP!

Did I pass PD2?

YEPP! by 51%! Trolled that PD2 report as well!

PD2: (03b) Preliminary Thoughts

June 23, 2010 by Coop

Warning: PD and CECS knows the existence of this blog. Thus if you copy from me, we will get into trouble, now, I personally don’t care about my outcome, but if you are smart, come up with your own (witty) answer to show them the stupidity of PD courses.

Question:

Based on feedback and on your own perception, write a short paragraph in the box below (approximately 200 words) describing what you do well as a writer and what you find difficult or challenging. A good starting point might be to refer to the three writing stages this course is built upon (exploring, drafting, and revising) and to describe what you do well and not so well in any or all of them. In short, you can talk about anything from getting your ideas down on paper to proofreading for spelling and grammatical errors. If you are not certain what to write about, here are some questions to consider:

  • What have others, especially teachers, said about your writing abilities?
  • Are you generally confident about completing writing assignments?
  • Have you been able to improve your writing as a result of feedback? If so, what did you improve and how?
  • Of all the things that you have to say about your writing, what aspects do you perceive will be most relevant to communication in the workplace?
  • Are you satisfied with the time it takes to complete a writing assignment? Why or why not?

We won’t be marking this paragraph for grammar or style, but please write in full sentences (not point form). Also, note the time when you begin writing so that you will know how long it took you.

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PD3: (05e) Exercise 2: Group Introductions

June 23, 2010 by General

Warning: PD and CECS knows the existence of this blog. Thus if you copy from me, we will get into trouble, now, I personally don’t care about my outcome, but if you are smart, come up with your own (witty) answer to show them the stupidity of PD courses.

Question:

In module seven, you will work with a group of your PD 3 peers to create a brief presentation. The first thing you should do, then, is to go to the assignment description (located in module seven) to familiarize yourself with the project. Once you’ve done that, you’re ready to begin this exercise, which involves introducing yourself to the other members of your group and, in consultation with them, coming up with a tentative topic for the module seven presentation. In your Group Discussion Board, write a paragraph that:

  • identifies yourself (use only your first name)
  • describes your current work term (in a general way focusing on your duties)
  • discusses a past experience working in a group (positive or negative)
  • gives some insight into how you see yourself as a group member (Are you a leader? A soldier? etc.)
  • shares any bit of trivia or interesting fact about yourself that you do not mind revealing
  • conclude with a suggestion for your groups’ presentation

Note: This is an asynchronous chat, so unless you are the first person to post, please be sure to acknowledge other members of the group as appropriate.

Keep checking back on the discussion board until all group members have posted their own introductions and topic suggestions. Once everyone has checked in, begin a dialogue that comes to agreement about the topic. The last post on the discussion board should name the topic clearly so that course instructors can assess it. This way, all group members will be ready to complete the presentation roughly two weeks from now.

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PD3: Exercise: The Strange Case of the Filthy Bobcat

June 23, 2010 by General

Warning: PD and CECS knows the existence of this blog. Thus if you copy from me, we will get into trouble, now, I personally don’t care about my outcome, but if you are smart, come up with your own (witty) answer to show them the stupidity of PD courses.

Question:

Justin has mixed feelings after his encounter with Ross. In your opinion, was Justin effectively assertive? Overly aggressive? Do you think he took the right approach in dealing with Ross? Will his summer job “go a lot smoother” as a result? Write a fully-developed paragraph reflecting on these issues, and make sure you support your answer with evidence from the story.

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PD2: Assignment 2

June 23, 2010 by General

Warning: PD and CECS knows the existence of this blog. Thus if you copy from me, we will get into trouble, now, I personally don’t care about my outcome, but if you are smart, come up with your own (witty) answer to show them the stupidity of PD courses.

Description

This week’s assessment asks you to write a one-page memo (about 250 to 300 words) briefly describing your progress in the course. As mentioned in section 06h, progress reports proceed chronologically; they explain what you have done, what you are doing right now, and what you still need to do to complete a project. Be brief, but include meaningful details.

The opening paragraph of your memo should be short, summarizing in one or two sentences your current progress and assuring the reader that you will fulfill the course requirements. (In workplace progress reports, you may need to use your opening paragraph to alert readers to any unavoidable delays and to suggest a revised deadline.)

The first main paragraph of your report should describe the work you have done so far and the results. Consider talking about your time management strategies and explain why you’ve been able to follow the suggested weekly schedule, or explain why you have been unable to do more than you have. You should also consider the broader questions you need to address in your final report: Has your experience in the course so far confirmed what you already know about yourself as a writer, or have you learned anything unexpected?

The “what-you-are-doing-now” part of your progress report should tell the reader where you are in the project. For some progress reports, this part can be lengthy, but your situation is rather straightforward. Consider “now” to be the next seven to ten days.

The third section of your progress report looks forward to what you must still do to finish the course. Take a look at the Course Schedule and perhaps write about your agenda for the next few weeks including your plan for the completion of the course work and final report. Will you be able to complete the remaining exercises by the deadline? What information are you going to start analyzing while drafting your report in weeks 7 and 8? Have you made any other decisions about the organization, presentation, or editing of your report?

The memo should end with a brief, positive restatement of your main message.

Please follow the format guidelines listed in the Sample Memorandum of Submittal from the Faculty of Mathematics Work Report Guidelines. A memo has one-inch (2.5 cm) margins all around and should be directed to your course instructor.

Note: Don’t worry. This progress report is not a sneaky way to evaluate your study habits; rather, it is designed to prompt some reflecting and planning about the requirements of this course. It is also good for you know how to write and format a memo.

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PD courses

June 16, 2010 by General

Professional Development courses are probably the biggest joke in the history of University of Waterloo. Here are a few reasons why:

  1. No one will take it seriously, that is because it’s a “get 50% and we will give you a complete milestone” course.
  2. It does not teach you anything, applied knowledge sure as hell can’t be learned from books.

Personally I’m not even taking it seriously, and I’m just wiggling my way through PD2 and PD3 right now. Also from now on I’m going to post all my answers  on my blog. Just for a few laughs.