Hi Cornerstone Students! Welcome to week two. In the first week we got to know a little bit about each other and you shared some great links that showed how some of the activities you are involved in have shaped who you are. Answer the following questions in 150 – 200 words and give as many examples as you like.
This week we will discuss integration.
1) What is integration? List some examples of integration and then explain how you have or have not integrated your areas of concentration and your minor.
I will start. My definition of integration is a blending or combining of parts or objects that work together. My two areas of concentration are Anthropology and Public Administration and my minor is Writing. I have integrated my minor with my areas to enhance effective communication in interactions with the public and the diverse groups of people that make up the community.
2) In your own words explain why integration of areas and minor is important in terms of professional, academia, and/or personal developing. How can your areas and minor be better integrated?
3) Click on the following link and watch the video to see an example of how interdisciplinary approaches can solve problems.
4) Now search for your own current news story, providing the link and explain how it is interdisciplinary or what an interdisciplinary solution might be.
Make sure to reply as a comment and not as a new post! Also respond to at least two other student’s comments.
TO me, integration is the act of combining two different things to make something better. My areas of study are Letter of Modern Language, Humanities, and my minor is Mass Communications. I think that these areas are already integrated in some ways. Letters of modern language is used in Humanities when we write papers and do research. In Mass Communications we use letters of modern language to in grand writing and press releases.
ReplyDeleteIntegrating these areas are important when you go out into the corporate world. It will give you experience in a vast variety of subjects and areas. I think that these areas are very well integrated already. At many colleges and Universities it is required to take upper level English classes before taking certain humanities classes. That is integrating the two areas. I enjoyed the way the video integrated two totally different things. It defiantly got my attention and would make me want to learn about the subject matter.
A recent news story that involves integration is the recent merge of Ticket Master and Live Nation entertainment. I work for Live Nation, who has become the largest entertainment company in the world. When the two companies merged into one company it was a great thing because it made sense in the aspect of ticket sales. It made it easier for the live nation customer and for the Ticketmaster customer. It is now a one stop shop for your concerts and shows.
Maria I found interesting your choice for a recent news story involving integration. I think you 'got it' in terms of a great example of blending.
DeleteI absolutely agree with what you said about incorporating ideas to make something better, which is a useful tool when moving into a corporate culture. Companies are looking for new, innovative ways to catch not only their target audience but also as a way of retaining employees. I am a firm believer in taking a creative idea and incorporating it into a company to rejuvenate people's thinking. Google is probably the best example of this.
DeleteI enjoyed your definition of Integration, I too see it in the same way.
DeleteMaria,
DeleteI didnt know that about ticket master.Thats a big move in the business world!.....So does this mean you can get Magic tickets??!!
sorry...but no magic tickers. But I do get tickets at any House of Blues and all the Live Nation Amphitheaters in the country.
DeleteI like your definition for integration. Your areas and minor definitely benefit from integration. I cannot think of any area that would not benefit from letters of modern language. Effective communication not only helps when writing papers and doing research but it helps the audience understand what they are reading. It seems like you are learning first hand about integration in your occupation and how it can benefit not only the company but also the customers as well. Thanks for sharing your news story.
ReplyDeleteRobin:
DeleteYou are right in that writing and researching for modern languages is important. It is the basis for everything and every class that we take. I guess you could say that it lays the foundation for integrating everything else.
Rosalind
My idea of integration is combining to make a whole. To make it all harmonious. My two areas of concentration are Behavioral and Social Sciences and Humanities and my minor is Law. I will have integrated my majors and minor to make me a better attorney who will serve abused women and children in our community and around the world.
ReplyDeleteThe integration of my concentration and minor is important in terms of professionally being able to psychologically and historically understand the victim and the abuser and to use that knowledge to help my clients even more. Academia for me will be in being so well-rounded in my education. Personally, I grow with each class and each assignment I take. I am becoming more and more 'layered' and I love it.
My chosen link is about low-income women and food stamps. I believe that it is interdisciplinary in that there are many levels here at play that successfully combine to help these women. You need to understand where they are coming from, the history, legally and blend it all together to best serve these women get back on their feet by educating them, showing them a different way, and step by step how to do it.
Kristen Wiig and Chery Smith, Dept. Of Food Science and Nutrition, University of Minnesota - http://journals.cambridge.org/download.php
Rosalind, I read your article about low-income women and food stamps. It was very interesting. Healthy food is often expensive but there are other ways to eat healthy without spending a lot of money. Another integration for this topic would be the outreach programs that teach low-income women how to grow some of their own food. Thanks for sharing the link.
DeleteI like your approach to this problem of low income women who are in a position where food stamps is the only option. I also agree with Robin that it would be interesting to teach women how to grow food on their own. I actually just read an article this past week about Whole Foods trying to appeal to a larger crowd, looking for healthy meals that won't break their bank. Integrating such ideas leads to effective solutions for such complex problems.
DeleteRosalind,
DeleteIt seems like your integration of your areas really is going to work well when applied in the real world.
In reading my peers post, I don't know that I gave a good example. So, here is another one:
ReplyDeleteThis is a blending of Yahoo and Facebook. It is a new and social way to consume news.
You will be able to see what news stories your friends have read on both Facebook and Yahoo News.
http://mashable.com/2011/09/22/facebook-yahoo-news/
1. Integration is a combination of ideas used to come to a solution. If I chose to, I could definitely integrate my areas of study, which are Hospitality Management, Mass Communication and Letters and Modern Languages (Writing, Literature and Languages). Surprisingly, however, I have just entered a new career in Financial Services, so my areas of Mass Communication and Modern Languages is helping me more than what I learned in my Hospitality classes. I am a firm believer in Communication, despite if it’s over public airwaves. Furthermore I have to practice effective communication among my colleagues everyday, whether it be spoken or written.
ReplyDelete2. Well, like I mentioned before, not all my areas of study are being used in my current career path. Each class, despite their area, have helped my shape the way I communicate, the way I fulfill my leadership role and the way I talk to people and write office literature. College ultimately teaches how to manage our time well and meet deadlines, which is something that can be carried over into any career.
3. I thought the video offered a new way of teaching material to students who might be inclined to listen to that genre of music and are interested in more alterative ways of learning. To be honest, I don’t think I could manage a whole hour of class like that, but I love the innovativeness of what he is trying to accomplish.
4. This article is about new, upcoming shows to be viewed exclusively online. I thought it was interesting since technology is something that is ever changing and always combining existing ideas to make everything more efficient and advanced. This article talks about how the combination of tv and online technology. Enjoy!
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204883304577223630028525366.html?mod=WSJ_Tech_Europe_LeftTopNews
I too am interested in studying communication/writing because of how important I see it as. As you described in your career, it helps make your communications effective in the workplace. A skill such as this is priceless. Working with employees who can not communicate their ideas or conclusions clearly and thoroughly can be very difficult.
DeleteElizabeth,
DeleteI too already have a career and my degree does not go with what I currently do. But it does help me communicate more effectively too.
Communication is vital in the world we live in today. It is so great that UCF offers classes that help to accurately and positive communicate in the world we live in. I believe that it is so important to be able to professionally communicate at work. Far too often I see employees being held back because of their lack of ability to communicate professionally.
DeleteElizabeth, thanks for sharing the link. This was a great article. It shows how creative and ever-changing we are. Innovation is endless. I am interested in seeing how this all plays out, there are some big names attached to this idea and it definitely looks like the next big trend. I understand in your current career how you may not be utilizing the integration of your areas to their fullest potential but the knowledge gained will give you that extra edge in situations where you will call upon it. I believe interdisciplinary studies gives us an advantage over others when it comes to being able to see multiple perspectives. Even if it is not an area of your discipline, the practice of integrating areas can be easier for students who have combined perspectives in the past. For others, they may be more limited to a tunnel-vision way of thinking because they have not had the opportunity to practice this way of thinking before. Thanks for your post.
ReplyDeleteTo me, integration is the intermixing of multiple ideas or beliefs to create a new way of thinking. My area of concentration is writing, and minors are in Marketing and Information Technology. I integrate all three of these areas of study on almost a daily basis. Information Technology has given me the knowledge needed to program and customize the Android OS. Marketing has given me the insight used to acquire a large user base of my work. Lastly, the study of writing allows me to feel confident in the post I write on my website to inform the user base about my work.
ReplyDeleteWithout the ability to integrate these three areas of study, I would not be able to keep up with the demands a project such as developing the Android OS requires. For example, if I were to work for a company on such a task, there would be developers, project managers, and product marketers involved. The people in this position each have skills in specific areas and together create what Interdisciplinary Studies is helping me become.
My example of an Interdisciplinary approach to integration is one of Google’s latest products, Chrome for Android. Chrome is Google’s desktop web browser that is known for its speed, simplicity, and optional extensions. This past week, Google made this product available for Android devices, integrating all the features users have learned to love seamlessly from desktop to mobile phone.
http://chrome.blogspot.com/2012/02/introducing-chrome-for-android.html
Peter,
DeleteThanks for sharing your link. I like how you have integrated your areas and minor. The creativity that you need in your field pretty much makes interdisciplinary approaches a must. I agree that integrating your areas gives you a lot of insight into the marketing needed in your industry. Writing skills are a great benefit when marketing anything. I can see how integration of your areas will give you an edge in the IT world.
I love how you are fearless in diving into the technology field. Android is such a great product and I feel like you have the passion to back up such a great product and that will help to create some pretty awesome user friendly features/apps onto the Android market. Thank you!
DeleteMy definition of integration is when an idea or object is intertwined together to form something. My two areas of concentration are Sports Management and Digital Media with a Minor in coaching. I have integrated my minor with my two areas. With Coaching it can coincide with Sports management cause a coach is essentially a manager. And Digital Media is every where, its what most sports teams and players use to make the sport experience a more pleasurable one.
ReplyDeleteThe current news story I chose is about how social media giant ""Twitter" affects the sports industry. And its interdisciplinary in many ways. Social Media is everywhere and is highly assessable to everyone. College sports officials have thought of using these outlets as positive and negative. Pro sports think the same way, and they too have placed policies and procedures with players when using these the sites. All of the levels involved in this growing phenomenon reaches the professionals to the fans.
http://www.springfieldnewssun.com/springfield-oh-sports/commentary-twitter-activity-has-its-effects-1316329.html
Eli,
ReplyDeleteI like how you have integrated your areas and minor. It seems like digital media could really enhance your abilities as a coach and sports manager. The amount of information that can be found on digital media that will help with coaching and management is limitless. With everything I think you are right that policies and procedures need to be established when players are using these sites. Thanks for sharing your link.
Rosalind, Robin, and Elizabeth... I love your ideas about low income women growing their own food! I think we all need to be doing that. I teach gardening workshops from time to time, and it is great to know that the power is being passed along. Perhaps their could be saved space or community gardens devoted to empowering women and their families.
ReplyDeleteSummer,
ReplyDeleteI agree about providing space for community gardens. The city I live in has a couple of community garden locations and I think it is a great idea. I personally have my own garden as well and I love it and it saves on groceries. Thanks for your post.
I believe integration to be a culmination or mixing of two or more in this case focuses in order to be applied to one idea. An example of integration that is particular to my field that I can think of is smart phones. Today, smart phones can create all kinds of digital media. A person can take 8 megapixel images or record a HD video clip, edit it, and email the final product on one device. That is integrating a number of technologies and mediums to transfer images to the masses. ‘Instagram’ allows iPhone owners the ability to take a picture, edit the photo, and then share it with the world. That’s integration!
ReplyDeleteMy concentrations are geared to give me the ability to create a photography business with the skill of digital media and the business know how with leadership. My minor is to add a benefit to me through a personal development. I am a Judaic studies minor. I am interested in continuing education possibly a masters in religious studies and Judaic studies is a stepping stone to start that process. Also, I’m fascinated with Jewish culture ☺
Mission of Hope is a non profit organization that is dedicated to bringing life transformation to every man, woman, and child in Haiti through following Jesus Christ. I have developed such a heart for this organization. They are using a nutritional program and education to empower the children of Haiti to rise up and take back and turn around their country to be a successful country that will one day be rich with culture and agriculture once again.
http://vimeo.com/30163926