Clesha Staten

School got underway last week and I’ve upped the course anti this time around, going from two to three courses.  This semester I’m tackling Old Testament Pentateuch (first five books of the Bible aka the books of Moses), Spiritual Formation and Hebrew.  Yes, Hebrew.  More on that later.  This is year two for me leaving only two to go.  If time continues to move like this I’ll be one happy camper.  It seems to be fast enough to feel productive and slow enough to enjoy the journey.

This year I am trying out some new technology and gadgets to help make academic life easier.  First, up is the Apple iPod touch.  Last semester I thought it would be a good idea to record my lectures so I can listen to them later, checking for anything I may have missed.  The information and discussions in my classes are so rich that I found myself learning just as much from the sidebars as the main lectures.  So, after some research, I bought a mini microphone for my iPod Touch and started recording the lectures.  This was a genius move!  It would have been a super-genius move if I actually had time to listen to them all, but it did come in handy for those days I used the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art for work-outs (yes, the Rocky steps).  The playback was clear and I had the benefit of fast forward when needed.

Next, I’m using the Dragon Dictate 2.0 Mac, or Dragon Naturallyspeaking if you have a PC, software I bought last semester (or was it the beginning of the first school year?) to create typed notes.  I have to mention that I’ve had it for a minute because I have yet to put it to good use.  I know, I know.  So much technology, so little time.  Well, this semester I’m definitely changing that.  The plan is to listen to the recorded lectures and dictate the key points into a Word document.  This will make it easier when it comes time to study.  It will also help bring together all of those highlighted pages in my text/books.  With everything in one typed document, I should be better organized for tests.  That’s the prayer anyway.  I do know that the typed pages are way easier to read than my handwriting so, we’ll see how it goes.

Finally, I’m using my Kindle.  It was a birthday gift from mom over the summer and I really like the convenience of having so many books in one place (especially since I now know I have 1313 physical books…sheesh).  I can take it to class and read, or search, the Bible from it instead of carrying my physical Bible.  I can read the multiple titles I’m plugging through any where at any time.  The best part is I have the app on my phone, the iPod touch and my Mac at home, so I can synch all the devices and pick up where I left off on any of them.  To see if it would work for school I decided to buy the Kindle version for some of the required books I need for class and so far it seems to be working out.  The cool part about using the Kindle is being able to highlight, or make notes, as I read and then printing out the highlights and notes later.  It saves me the extra step, and time, of typing it up or using Dragon Dictate.  I don’t plan to use it for textbooks since I think that may require more highlighting than the other books.

That’s my beginning of the semester game plan.  I’ll check back mid-semester and let you know how well it works.  Do you have any strategies for staying organized in school?  Share them in the comments below.  I’d love to hear what other are doing to stay on task.

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