Prof. Duddy ARCH1101.OLC5 | Prof. Rosen ENG1101.LC07

Kevin Giron Project 1 Potential Questions

  1. What is a moment, a person, or experience that led you to choose architecture as your major? or that has led you to any other choice you have made regarding your education?

A moment that led me to choose architecture as my major/ career path was when I saw a scaled model of an actual structure. This was at a young age. It fascinated me seeing a small model of something big that actually exists. I wanted to build those and I found out that Architects at times build miniature models to visually express their ideas. Later on I found out there was more to architecture like the design aspect, drawing and sketching, etc. I became fascinated by the career. Taking this path of trying to become an architect has definitely influenced some of my decisions in life. One example is the high school I chose to attend. There was one school that all my friends decided to attend but that school didn’t have an architecture program. I had two options, go to an easy school with my friends, or attend a school that is not as easy and has an architecture program. I chose the second option. I knew this would be the best decision and it was. Entering college I had a better understanding of architecture and so far everything we have learned hasn’t been super easy but knowing what I know has definitely helped in better understanding.

2. Describe a transformative experience you had as a learnerā€“either in school or in life.

A transformative experience I had as a learner was to not procrastinate. As application due dates approached in high school I was still pretty behind. I left a lot of things incomplete until they were almost due. This definitely affected me. I had a lot of stress weighing me down. There were certain things that looked to difficult to me and scared me. I wouldn’t tackle the problem and would leave it for later. I would always say, “Oh I can finish this tomorrow”, and would leave it till further dates. I procrastinated a lot. This wasn’t helpful at all. If anything it was kind of destructive towards my mental health. It felt like I was kind of figuring everything out on my own and like this whole process wouldn’t finish. Asking for help wasn’t my thing either. I didn’t like asking questions or risking my free time to go to the office to ask questions. I didn’t like feeling this way so I basically learned from my mistakes. I started asking more questions and decided to not leave things till the last minute. I started to feel way better. Everything was starting to fall into place and there was less stress on me. Now whenever I have questions about problems I may be facing I like to get it over with and ask questions and try and solve it the same day.

3. How did you know college in general or City Tech specifically was the right choice for you? was it always?

There was a point where I saw a lot of people I knew that weren’t going to college. I saw them working and starting to get money. I started to think maybe I should just start working and get money instead of going to college. But then I realized that I still had a dream of becoming an Architect and I knew I had to go to college. If I started working I knew I wouldn’t be happy. Working for long hours a day without a great pay wouldn’t be that wise. If I were to go to college I can start to practice the career I want to persue and at the same time find a part time job. Then I can start to earn money and still study. I knew city tech was the right choice for me since I knew I wanted to stay in the city until after I graduate. City tech is also affordable as my family nor I don’t really make enough income to pay for college. Finally City tech also has the major I want to study, architecture. So far I know I made the right choice coming to city tech.

8 Comments

  1. zafarjon abdukahorov

    how do yall make a blog like this ?

    • Kevin Giron

      So basically, go to week 4 agenda. Then go down to the subheading that says “Writing” in bold. Under that there’s going to be a bullet list. In the third bullet there is the word “POST” in the color red. That’s going to be a link so click on that. Then just write your post and when your done add it to the category of Project#1 posts. Hope that helped! Good luck bro.

      • zafarjon abdukahorov

        good looking bro but so basically we have to answer three questions ? like you did on yours.

        • Kevin Giron

          Yeah so basically under the same Week 4 agenda, under writing there is another link that says, “Project #1 instructions”. Click that and if you scroll there’s a whole bunch of questions and professor wants you to choose at least 3 questions to answer. If you don’t like those you can make your own questions and answer them. Or u can mix her questions with your questions. yeah that’s basically it. The instructions are under Writing with a ton of more links just in case you get stuck.

          • zafar abdukahorov

            okey i gotchu bro thanks

          • Jody R. Rosen

            So glad that you had this conversation! Please let me know if I can make the work you need to do easier to find, or if I can make the instructions clearer. There’s a lot for me to say, and by say I mean write, to guide us through each week, and I want to make sure everyone knows where to look and how to contribute.

            In general, whenever you want to add a new post, you can click on the + in the grey bar on the top of the screen. If you’re writing from your phone, it might look a little different, but there should still be a +. Or you can go to the Dashboard (either click on the name of the site in the top grey bar, or on the course profile choose Dashboard) and then Posts and then Add New.

            If you’re doing most of your work from your phone because you don’t have a computer or wifi, you can get a device (laptop, tablet, or wifi hotspot) loaned to you. Check out https://www.citytech.cuny.edu/loaner.

  2. zafar abdukahorov

    so basically when you said “i chose the second option” in question 1 it was pretty inspiring because you chose something you love to do over friends choosing the easy option. its tough making those decision where you have to choose between stuff so i get where you coming from because i have been through that situation as well . and for question 2 i can also agree that procrastinating can be bad and affect a person a lot i would also do that “leaving work for a later date” but now i understand that it wasn’t the wisest choice. For the final question you had made the right choice of going to college and not just dropping out even though it gets tough in the beginning but at the end you will be pursuing something you love to do instead of working long hours that you have no passion for it.

  3. Jody R. Rosen

    Kevin, you describe what sparked your interest in architecture: the model. For Project #1, it would be great to unpack that some more–that is, what about the model was so fascinating? Is that aspect of the architectural process still a touchstone for you, or have you broadened what you see as the materials or methods that keep you interested in the process? Another detail that could help you bring your answer to the first question into your essay (and it could even start your essay) would be to describe the model. What was it a model for? Was it for one building or a larger project? Whose model was it, and how did you have access to it? Did you try to build your own model? If yes, was it on your own, or not until you were an architecture student in high school? Feel free to choose from among these follow-up questions if they help you go into detail. Part of what we’re learning here in Project #1 is to write in greater detail, rather than just giving a general sense of our ideas. It’s how you’ll get near the 1000-word goal.

    Then you want to think about a path that your essay can take. You may keep parts of all three answers, or not. If you think about how the model sparked your interest, what other parts make sense to include? What narrative are you telling? Your architecture origins story? If yes, and the part about the model is the first part, what are the middle parts, and what is the end? Does it end with you here at City Tech? You might have other questions you want to answer as well–like Anne Lamott teaches us in “Shitty First Drafts,” sometimes we write a lot and throw parts away and write more and so on. This is part of the writing process!

    The part about procrastination is important, and you’ll need to decide if it fits into the story you’re telling. It might not–but that doesn’t mean it was a waste! Also, I firmly believe that procrastination is not about being lazy, but about processing the information and what you have to do. Sometimes we’re working in the background without even realizing how we’re developing our ideas. Sometimes we have fears and concerns and doubts that block us from what we need to do. Overcoming that, or finding how to work with it, is part of learning. I hope you can find an approach to time management that works for you, but also give yourself the time to do those important processing steps as well.

    I’m excited to read your narrative as it develops! Please sign up for a 1-on-1 conference with me to talk further about your work!

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