It’s always a little nerve-wracking when I notice my deadlines creeping up on me. I work hard to stay on top of my work, but life has a funny way of disrupting my plans. Consequently, I typically end up a bit stressed during midterm week.
This quarter has been different. Most of my classes replaced traditional exams with projects, and I’ve found that to be a refreshing change of pace, especially with such a dense course load. My IT-320 reflection feels especially meaningful because it pushed me to apply what I’ve learned in a real, hands-on way rather than just memorizing material.
Working through projects like this WordPress CMS site for IT-320 has reminded me how much I enjoy applying technical concepts to practical challenges. I’ve realized this idea connects a lot of my hobbies to my work too. I’ve gained a deeper understanding of how plugins, design, and content management systems fit together in a real environment. Seeing it all come to life has been substantially more rewarding than any written test.
It’s also been incredibly practical. Many of my classes overlap in concepts, allowing me to strengthen and refine my technical skill set as I go. This IT-320 reflection reminds me how far I’ve come since starting the program, each time I progress in my project it builds confidence for the next step!
I’m still getting used to this hands-on assessment style, but I’m proud of the progress I’ve made. If all goes well, I’ll be graduating this quarter, and hopefully, these will be the last “midterms” I take for a long time!
If you’d like to learn more about my background, check out my About Daniel Costello page, or browse my Projects to see more of what I’ve been working on this year, though admittedly I’ve been so busy that this project might be all I have up right now :’)