My name is Lisa. I am a native of the beautiful island of Nassau, which is located in the Bahamas. I am the eldest of three siblings. I attended private schools for my entire life; however, it was not during these learning experiences did I maximize my potential. My parents both professionals, worked very hard to guarantee that I had the best opportunities, to ensure that I had every chance of success. No expense was ever spared I did ballet, music etc… due to the fact that my parents worked very hard; that meant a lot of overtime, frequent business trips etc… to ensure that the financial requirements were met for the opportunities my parents wanted to provide.
Throughout my school years, I did what was required of me; however, I was not outstanding in any particular thing. I cannot consciously remember being passionately driven about anything while in grade school. My final years of high school my life was especially turbulent; I managed to graduate, however, based on not achieving the academic excellence and credentials that was expected of me, I felt embarrassed and did my best to “hide” from my fellow classmates. The years that followed were spent trying to find myself; it was frustrating and emotionally and mentally draining. I attempted a degree twice and tried out numerous jobs searching for the right “fit” After what seemed like eternity, after many years and much personal trauma I began to regain some semblance of order and direction in my life.
For the past twenty years I have been employed at a local community college serving in various capacities; this experience has been and continues to be source of positive challenge and invigoration for me simultaneously. What Do I See As My Ultimate Educational Goal? My ultimate goal is to be a certified life coach and transformational trainer. I agree with quote from Albert Einstein: Everybody is a Genius. But If You Judge a Fish by Its Ability to Climb a Tree, It Will Live Its Whole Life Believing that It is Stupid. I want to help persons to locate and express their latent potential.
How Will This Course Help Me Toward That Goal? This course will help me toward that goal in several ways; the e portfolio and the other course requirements will assist me in critically analyzing the connections between my past learning events and current and future learning. Prior Learning and Portfolio Development/Assessment (PLPD0100) will guide my process as I evaluate myself and my learning experiences. What Do I Bring To My Learning Experientially? Professor D.A. Kolb is the person most associated with experiential learning theory and said: “knowledge results from the combination of grasping experience and transforming it.” Against the background of this quote, I would say I bring the following to my learning experimentally: initiative, interpersonal skills, critical thinking, resourcefulness, professionalism and perhaps my greatest attributes; tenacity and determination. How Will I Integrate That Into My New Learning? I will utilize the skills mentioned above to navigate my way through this learning experience; I believe that each of them play a vital role in achieving success in the learning experience. I must take the initiative to maximize all the available resources that have been put in place to assist me in this process.
For example; regular communication with my tutor and peers I am certain will prove beneficial; they are invaluable resources. What incidents have contributed to where I am now? Over the course of my life, I have endured many challenges. However, those that have been pivotal and contributed to where I am today are; the tragic loss of my brother and my nephew (father and son), the loss of my children and series of health challenges of both myself and close relatives. I recognize that with the proper support systems in place; one can overcome any challenge; no matter how daunting.
As a learner, I am very self-aware; I understand how I learn and what is required for me to thrive and I am extremely grateful for the support systems that has been instrumental in helping me to learn from my successes and failures. Because of aforementioned and a renewed sense of purpose and empowerment; I view my experience differently especially the learning that I have received informally and experientially I have a greater sense of value and accomplishment. As a learner, What Strengths do I bring to My Learning? I have much strength as a learner: Creativity Perseverance Team Player Strong Work Ethic Critical Thinking Innovation However, I consider perseverance as my greatest learning attribute. How Will I show Those Strengths In This Course? The aforementioned strengths will become evident in this course through meeting the requirements: E Portfolio; I will have to demonstrate all of the above to successful complete this, creativity, critical thinking and perseverance I believe will be especially useful Team Player: while I must produce my required work, it is not independent of my learning team: tutor peers etc… Strong Work Ethic: which includes high productivity, determined to succeed, team work and cooperation and consistent high quality work.
Through the skills that I will acquire as a result of this course; I will be able to clearly identify the importance of all related learning occasions and will be able to adeptly describe the connections between my past learning events and currently and future learning. It is against this background that I will be trained how to identify all my learning experiences in the past twenty years in particular which covers my academic, social, psychological and professional growth s I evolved from an Activities Coordinator to all the posts that I successfully manage to date. As a result of what I have learned in PLA thus far I am able to identify key competencies that I possess such as managerial skills i.e.: team building, strategic organization and problem solving. The empowerment that has occurred and will continue to grow as a result of the reframed perspectives I have on my personal informal learning is invaluable ad invigorating I embrace this experience References: http://www.growthengineering.co.uk/what-is-experiential-learning/https://www.northwestern.edu/hr/compensation/Guidelines%20Competency%20based%20JD.pdfhttp://www.going-to-college.org/myplace/strengths.htmlhttps://smallbusiness.chron.com/5-factors-demonstrate-strong-work-ethic-15976.html
