So I found out on Tuesday that the outline and bibliography for my Computer Database paper is due next Thursday. Since I know next to nothing about databases, choosing a topic and finding sources is proving difficult. I asked my prof for advice on topics today in class and she gave me some really vague examples that I am trying to track down but am really not sure where to go with them. I am thinking about either researching database security or contrasting two database-creating environments. I got three books out of the library on databases in general so maybe they'll give me more ideas. At least half my sources and the majority of information have to come from sources published in the last two years so in that respect the library was not very helpful. Most books are from 2004 or older. I'll have to search the online databases in hopes of finding something more recent.

EDUC 211 (Psyc. of Educ.) is turning out to be quite interesting. Dr. Pudlas has some interesting examples from his teaching career and we end up learning quite a lot from doing and discussion rather than just listening to him drone on. For example, on the first day he set us to do an article review and gave us no direction and no criteria. Then when we got to class we had to switch papers with our neighbor and give it a mark, again with no criteria. Then we discussed how frustrating the experience had been and how different people had very different ideas of how to do the assignment. It was an object lesson in how as teachers we need to give clear instructions. He didn't take the assignment in for marks, which was a bit of a relief. However, the class has a lot of reading to do and I have an article review due next Tuesday.

My database class is kind of confusing. I have read the first two chapters in the textbook but it is frustrating because they use terms, which those who are familiar with databases know but which anyone else doesn't understand, to define other terms. The class itself is a little better but most of the concepts are very abstract and hard to get a grip. I think I understand what we're talking about and then the prof throw out an example vastly different from what I understood. I hoping it will become more concrete as I go along.

We finally were assigned calculus homework yesterday, which I thought was a good thing because I have a hard time remembering concepts if I don't practice them. As it was I spent a good deal of time flipping through my notes and my textbook trying to figure out the problems.

I am starting to feel a little overloaded as far as homework. I have been able to get everything done on time but it feels like there is always a lot more to do.