Bio 121 Reflective Journal

Personal Reflective Learning Journal BIOL 121 Environmental Conservation Reflective journal writing has been recognized by educators for many years as an effective strategy to promote reflective thinking and learning. It is by making connections between ourselves and our experiences that we create meaning and internalize our learning. Human beings, by their nature, are “connection makers” and “meaning makers.” Our experience always consists of “what happens” and then “what we make of what happens.” There is “what is and is not” (what can be directly observed or experienced) and then there is what we change by adding, deleting, distorting and generalizing. Although we may seek to be “objective” and describe what we can actually “observe,” being “objective” is just one way we organize our “subjective” experience. Reflective learning journals enable us to create a record of the connections and meanings we are making as we engage in learning experiences. They are very personal and no two people will have exactly the same response to any one experience. If done conscientiously, your reflections in your Personal Reflective Learning Journal will be among the most important things you will have learned when the Course comes to closure. A Reflective Learning Journal is required in this course to facilitate your introspection (thought and feelings) and to enrich your critical thinking and learning. Each person's Journal is unique and there is no correct or incorrect response expected. You will be graded on the evidence of reflective thought given and the quality of your response, not the quantity. There is an expectation on my part that your Journal will demonstrate that you expanded upon your initial experience and observation of events to include more than simply recording an event. Remember that there is an event you participate in AND what you make of the event. The latter is what I expect to see in your Journal. Some Helpful Hints and Suggestions for Generating Journal Responses Begin asking yourself these questions: “what?” (past), “so what? (present)”, and “now what? (future)” value or meaning does this have for me? Focus on your internal dialog. Listen as your mind makes connections and yields meaning. Make a few notes during an activity by capturing a few thoughts that otherwise go fleeting across your mind as you witness or observe the event. This is very important! Note the name of the event, the date and the time of each entry to provide a sense of continuity and a reference point. The best time to reflect and write an entry in your Journal is as soon as possible after an event takes place. Be sure you have a sufficient number of notes to recall an event, especially if there will be a long time lapse before you make an entry. Try “flow writing” – writing rapidly following your intuition. Don't stop to judge or censor what you have written just write “whatever comes to your mind”. Periodically reread some of your Journal entries. They will provide even more to connect with in your reflections. Be creative, imaginative and descriptive. Write artistically if you want to. Use color if you wish. Examples and Comparison of a Log, a Diary and a Reflective Journal A LOG is: a simple record of what happened during an event. 10/22/08 Read Chapter 11 and answered two “Critical Thinking” questions at the end of the Chapter. Viewed a report on overestimates of oil reserves by Shell Oil Co. on PBS. A DIARY is: – a record of very personal thoughts not intended for others to see. 10/22/08 Dear diary, I began reading Chapter 11 and as I did so I couldn't keep my mind on what I was doing. You see I met a guy at work today by the name of Tom and I just can't stop thinking about him. Umm! We had a great conversation and he asked me out this Friday night. I have to confess that when he entered the room with a coworker my heart skipped a beat or two with excitement and I hoped he would take a liking to me. He has such striking blue eyes against his dark complexion and dark brown hair. I just melted when he looked at me. Tom works in the office just next to mine and I think he is not only new to the Company but also new to the town. It is going to be fun to show him around. He seems so intelligent. What a great combination! Good looks (great buns too!) and intelligent; just what I'm looking for in a man! Oh yes, Chapter 11. I don't care too much about all the data on taking risks and besides, I believe when it is your time to go, it is your time to go. I am also supposed to be looking for current events that relate to what I am reading in the Chapters too, but all I can think about is Tom and Friday night. Darn it, I am supposed to be reading Chapter 12 not Chapter 11. It doesn't make much difference though because I am not in the mood to study. I'll have to get my act together pretty soon though if I am going to get a good grade in the course. Can't wait for Friday! A REFLECTIVE LEARNING JOURNAL is: a record of the reflective thought and meanings we are making as we engage in learning experiences. 10/22/08 I read Chapter 12 and was really impressed by the data that indicates that we may be experiencing the disruption of the balance that maintains our climates in the various biomes of the world. Although this is often referred to as “global warming”, the text indicated that these climate disruptions can take the form of extreme weather events such as droughts, floods, hurricanes, and other “acts of god”, as well as heat waves. I have been noticing that there seem to be a lot of weather records being set in the past few years as I watch the weather being reported on the evening news. As a matter of fact we set a record all-time high temperature just yesterday for the 21st of November. I wonder why I don't hear the TV weather reporters talk about global warming or climate disruption. Haven't they ever read a book like the one we are using as a textbook for this class? When I was in Germany last summer the weather reporters frequently made reference to global warming and you could discuss the topic intelligently with anyone you met. My sense is that the United States is in denial or confused about whether or not this phenomenon is caused by humans or is just a natural cycle. According to what I read on the UCS website, the National Research Council and the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) have encouraged the Bush Administration to take actions that would recognize the problem and begin working toward a solution but President Bush has ignored this advice of the scientific community even after having asked for it. His administration didn't like some of the conclusions so they just rewrote them claiming they were “unsound” and “uncertain”. The textbook says that the United States has refused to sign the Kyoto Protocol to limit carbon dioxide emissions in the immediate future. Almost all of the other developed nations of the world have joined together and signed the Protocol to work toward slowing the processes involved with global warming and see the United States as isolationist on this issue. President Bush says our economy can't afford to make these kind of changes. I learned in the lecture today that the burning of fossil fuels appears to be responsible for the 35% increase in the carbon dioxide content of the troposphere over the past 100 years and we all depend on burning fossil fuels for just about everything, including driving our cars and trucks. I guess it is no wonder that we don't want to listen to the scientists who are warning us to change our ways before it is too late to stop global warming. The fossil fuel lobby (Professor Seilheimer calls them the “Energy Barons”) in Washington probably also has a lot to do with why we are not paying much attention to this issue. I guess I am just as much a part of this problem as every other American. The price of gas today was $3.09 per gallon for regular. At that price it cost me almost $10.00 to drive from home to the University and back. Dr. Seilheimer said in class yesterday that the cause of the rapid rise in the price of gas has little to do with the amount of oil being pumped from the ground. It is more related to the world's insufficient capacity to transport and refine enough oil to meet the demand for gas which stems mainly from the lack of conservation (efficiency standards and renewable energy) in the United States and from the rapidly increasing demand for gasoline by China and India as they seek to have the affluence enjoyed by the “over-developed” (Seilheimer's word for the U.S. and other similar materialistic cultures) nations of the world. The fact that Exxon-Mobile returned two of the greatest quarterly profits on record within the past 12 months (in the order of 10 billion dollars) in the midst of record prices at the gas pump makes me think something else is going on. My dad says Dr. Seilheimer is just another one of those liberal professors who are always trying to stir things up. I guess it is pretty easy to just ignore the facts, keep paying more for gas and pretending everything will be okay or that we'll find a way out of this. I do wonder, however: what about my future and what about my kids? Should I even think of having kids? What kind of world will we have if we don't begin to do things differently pretty soon? Dr. Seilheimer said “we have finally met the enemy and the enemy is us” and he attributed that to Pogo. Sure makes me think! Who is Pogo? What to Include In Your Journal Minimally, you are to include reflective personal responses to the following events in your Personal Reflective Learning Journal: - Any two ideas from each chapter in your textbook. - Personal experieces or thoughts about the topic - Thoughts on at least One Critical Thinking question at the end of each chapter. - A current event that relates to the content of each chapter Chapter 1: Environmental Problems, Their Causes, and Sustainability Chapter 2: Science, Matter, and Energy Chapter 3: Ecosystems, What They Are, and How They Work? Chapter 4: Biodiversity and Evolution Chapter 5: Biodiversity, Species Interactions, and Population Control Chapter 6: The Human Population and Urbanization Chapter 7: Climate and Biodiversity Chapter 8: Sustaining Biodiversity, The Species Approach Chapter 9: Sustaining Biodiversity, The Ecosystem Approach Chapter 10: Food, Soil, and Pest Management Chapter 11: Water Resources and Water Pollution Chapter 12: Geology and Nonrenewable Minerals Chapter 13: Energy Chapter 14: Environmental Hazards and Human Health Chapter 15: Air Pollution, Climate Disruption, and Ozone Depletion Chapter 16: Solid and Hazardous Waste Chapter 17: Environmental Economics, Politics, and Worldviews Please message if you need specific questions answered?