Greetings ISAT 252 Colleagues

ISAT 252 is a course where an individual can enter with no knowledge of programming and leave with a strong understanding of the material.  The way this class was taught really set itself apart from other courses simply due to the fact that learning wasn’t based off of grades, but more so based off of how one is interested in applying themselves to learn the material.  I particularly like this method more than the universal approach of handing out grades to judge someone’s progress because the progress is judged off of how much one puts the effort in learning the material and how they can apply it to the real world.  That’s the goal of college; learning to apply oneself in the real world and I think ISAT 252 appropriately demonstrates that goal.  ISAT 252 gave me a different understanding of progress and ultimately has made me exceed my expectations in the programming world.  It is safe to say that science and technology has been a big part of my life and it intrigues me in every aspect.  For the generations to come, especially mine, the knowledge and understanding of computer software and hardware is important when it comes to progressing in life.  ISAT 252 was the first programming class I’ve ever taken and I can honestly say, I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.  I’ve developed skills that I never knew that I had.  With the assistance of Dr. Benton, my team and I were able to make a web-based application that would allow students to keep track of their dining services.  This class made me more interested to learn the material because of its difficulty and the life lessons such as how to cope with the hardships that come with working with group members that don’t do their part.  But the feeling of satisfaction for getting a certain code correct can be comparable to solving a lengthy, in depth nuclear math problem.  Prior to taking this class I was set on concentrating in Engineering and Manufacturing, but ISAT 211 didn’t really grab my attention like ISAT 252 did.  Therefore I decided to concentrate in IKM and minor in Computer Science because I’ve picked up a strong interest in computer programming.  This interest was sparked by the ISAT 252 course as well as the importance of understanding and knowing how technology and science work and by doing that will make you successful in life.   Throughout the semester we were put in groups and were given labs to complete, such as the Hello World App and the Logic Gates Lab in order to get our “feet wet” in the world of programming.  After the first few labs Dr. Benton gave us the green light to go our direction and tackle a semester long project on our own with the guidance of him and the teacher assistant.  Dr. Benton then brought all of us back together to give a lecture on Knowledge Based Systems and how they work.  The journey had its ups and downs, but we (sometimes one of the members didn’t participate at all) as a team were able to overcome the obstacles and turned a down situation into a learning experience.  That’s what I liked about most about this course.  We were put in a situation where we had to figure out a way to overcome our problems on our own and I feel like this is a necessary skill to possess when it comes to being successful after graduation.  ISAT 252 gave me the ability to establish a strong foundation that will allow me to accomplish goals regarding after college, which is to work with the Federal Government or Military in the cyber security and information technology industry.  Overall, I am more than happy with how I’ve progressed throughout the semester in terms of the programming world.