Student Resources – Page 12

In the Spotlight: Words Have Lives

Words Have Lives is a companion to the course Developmental Writing. While it focuses on material being discussed in class, it can nonetheless be helpful to any students who may have questions about the writing process. The site offers many resources, from help with essay grammar, structure, and strategy, to specific resources offered at City Tech, such as the Learning Center where students can go for help with their writing. It is also well-structured and designed, and makes great use of image and video!

In the Spotlight: Irene Iarochevitch’s ePortfolio

Irene’s Iarochevitch’s excellent portfolio is well-designed and structured, highlighting her work in a number of courses through video, photographs, and writing. The portfolio focuses on her ambitious senior thesis project, or “culmination project,” for which she is building a laser harp, an electronic musical instrument. Her portfolio was also discovered by another harp-maker, who left a comment with some suggestions for the harp. It’s always great to see these kinds of interactions on the OpenLab, where student work can indeed attract an audience that reaches beyond the classroom!

In the Spotlight: Gothic NYC

This project was created by students in Prof. Laura Westengard’s course, ENG 3407: Gothic Literature and Visual Culture. Students have posted photographs, video, and written about numerous Gothic sites in New York City, analyzing them through the theories and concepts they’ve been learning in class. For those interested in taking their own spooky tour, the students created a Google Map that includes all the locations on the site. Check it out, but as they warn, enter at your own risk!

In the Spotlight: Computer Systems Technology Colloquium

The CST Colloquium site is well-organized and has many great features. Their events calendar page and events widget in the site footer make it easy to find out about upcoming colloquium talks. They link to the slides for past talks so visitors can catch up on anything they missed. There’s also an easy way to subscribe to the group’s email list, and a submissions page for talk proposals. Take a look!

In the Spotlight: Biological Sciences Department

The Biological Sciences Department has created an excellent site on the OpenLab, which is full of resources, news, and helpful information. It’s well-structured so that everything is easy to find, both on the home page, and in the top menu. They also have a helpful feed of upcoming departmental events and deadlines in the sidebar. Take a look!

In the Spotlight: ENG 2420: Science Fiction

Prof. Jill Belli’s Science Fiction course site has a lot happening, and is well-structured so it’s easy to explore and access specific information and resources. The site is very active, with frequent student posts and interaction in the comments sections. There are also some great discussions generated in the Class Discussion Posts, where conversation is extended beyond class time. You can tell from reading through any of these comment threads that students are very engaged with the material they’re studying, as well as their classmates’ ideas. Each week the class votes on which student post they think should be featured on the site, and the winner is chosen as the People’s Choice Post of the week. We also love that the course avatar (pictured above) was created by a student in the class, Andrew Dutt.

In the Spotlight: Culinary Improvisation

Students in Prof. Claire Stewart’s Culinary Improvisation course are reflecting on their cooking techniques and the foods they use for weekly improvisational challenges in the kitchen. We were impressed with the detailed descriptions of their process, accompanied by photographs they took themselves. By reading through their posts and comments they’ve made on each other’s work, you get a sense of the community they’re building in the class. Take a look at what they’re up to, but with a warning that it might make you hungry!

In the Spotlight: Bridges to the Baccalaureate

We’re excited to see both Bridges to the Baccalaureate, and the program it’s part of, Strengthening Research Interactions through Digital Expressions (STRIDE), on the OpenLab! STRIDE provides a digital space for student and faculty research resources, and the Bridges to the Baccalaureate Program provides academic support and research mentoring to associates degree students in Biology, Chemistry, or Psychology, who will transfer to Brooklyn College to finish their degrees. Their well-designed site includes plenty of information on the program, and visitors can download the Bridges brochure and application forms. Students who are interested in applying should do so by their February 28 deadline!

In the Spotlight: The Buzz

The Buzz is the blog for our excellent group of student bloggers, who are writing on a wide variety of topics, from fashion to food, and more. This semester the group also includes a few photobloggers who will be posting and writing about their photographs. There are already three new posts this week, as well as an active comments section. Check it out, and leave a comment!

In the Spotlight: Introduction to Film

The OpenLab site for Professor Sandra Cheng’s Introduction to Film course is well-organized, informative, and visually appealing. It’s easy to find course information and student work, and she has included plenty of helpful and relevant resources, such as links to City Tech and NYC film-related resources and an RSS feed from the New York Times Movies section. Course activity has just begun with students introducing themselves, but they’ll be engaging with interesting topics throughout the semester, so be sure to keep checking back to see what they’re writing about!

Category: Student Resources