My name is Wyatt Alexander-White and I was born and raised in Ann Arbor. Some of my hobbies include spending time with friends/family, watching/playing sports, and just about anything that involves being outside. After graduating high school in 2018, I took a gap year and began working with Common Sail Investment Group(CSIG). CSIG is a holding company that owns and operates a large variety of businesses. I worked at CSIG as a Recruiter with the Talent Acquisition Group, which means I was responsible for getting new candidates to come work with us. As my gap year ended, I was offered a full-time position to work with the Recruiting team, but made the decision that school comes before work. I really enjoyed my position and working with my colleagues, but I felt that it was my last opportunity to gain the full college experience.
Looking through the course schedule, there are a few different topics that I am particularly excited for. One of the topics that I’m looking forward to is week 7, which is “Digital Art History, Visual and Material Culture”. The part of this week’s content that I’m most looking forward to is the blog post. For this blog post, I will take over the roll as an object labeler in a museum who is creating a label for a new exhibit that features the history of slavery in our country. I’m excited for this blog because it will not only give me the opportunity to role play a profession, but also the opportunity to deepen my knowledge and understanding of the history of slavery in the United States.
I’m somewhat nervous about this class as a whole, simply due to the fact that I am not very good at working with technology. Looking over the course schedule, it appears that we will have to use a variety of tools and websites throughout the course. In particular, week eight and and week five both seem like they are going to be extremely difficult. Week five is creating a podcast, which I’m sure I will struggle with immensely. Week eight also seems as though it will include sophisticated technology skills, which is why I’m very nervous about it.
The more online learning I partake in, the more I grow to dislike it. I have found it extremely difficult to remain engaged in my courses with them being strictly online. I have always found it helpful to be surrounded by other students and professors when taking a class, simply because there is so much more support. With everything being online, I feel very alone and overwhelmed. I can no longer turn to my right or left and ask a classmate a question, which has left me with many unanswered questions thus far into the semester. This course (HST) is my only class that actually meets for “class” on zoom, which I am thankful for. In my eyes, It’s ridiculous that MSU students are paying so much money for such a poor education.
It’s nice to meet you, Wyatt! Thank you for this thoughtful post. I think it is great that you took a gap year and gained some experience outside of the classroom. I’m also glad to hear you’re excited about the week on digital art history– it’s one of my favorite topics and I think the blog activity will be a lot of fun! Try not to worry about mastering the technology and tools in the course. Our goal is to attempt them and learn about their usefulness in learning history. I definitely feel nervous about teaching some of these tools in a Zoom setting; some things are just easier in a classroom. We will just take this course one day at a time, and I look forward to hearing more from you!