Day 33 5/3/2018
I am delighted and fulfilled today. I have quite a lot done with only mild level of pressure.
One thing I did differently today after a few stessful days was besides planning my day in the morning was to list down things I have to do next to each specific hour of the day.
A plan like this helped reminding me what I had to do at a particular time of the day. Also, it was clear enough for me to glance and understand what I have to do now and the next thing after this. I really like it since it helps me visualize my day very clearly. One thing I want to add to it is the clear description of what I have to finish/ accomplish withing a certain period of time. I believe this will help me to become even more productive.
I felt so fulfilled today. After having been reading chapter 5 of Vygotsky for 3 days (I lost counting it already), I finally reached chapter 6 today. I felt so good to have accomplish one tiny little thing I had worked hard for it. Looking back while reading this chapter in particular, I know now that the strategy that worked best for me when it come to a really dense, packed, difficult text like this is to first read through each section quickly, then take notes doing the second round of reading, and read the notes for the third round. It is time-consuming, but it is worth doing it since it pretty much ensures that I will have notes in case I need to review it and I will not need to reread the whole thing all over again.
Another exciting today, well actually there are two, was that first I took “Searching the Literature” course today. It was a two-hour taught course. Unfortunately, I was late for 15 minutes which is unusual for me now but it was because I got totally lost in Derwent College. Luckily, the lecturers were kind enough to let me in and it was a wonderful session. I first had thought I knew so much about online searching tools and resources. I still learned so much from the course today.
Another amazing thing about today was that I now officially have a desk as a phd student. After a surprisingly not tedious arrangement with some help of Susan, the PG administrator, I got a desk offer in a week! Today was the day I had scheduled to meet Debbie, who is the coordinator for the Research Center for the Social Sciences. My desk is on the second floor (or the third floor based on Thai and American cultures) with a lot of natural light during the daytime and it was very quiet which is suitable for working and concentrating on work. The facilities seem very nice as well. There are even showers in the building! All phd students who have a work space there have access for 24/7. At this point, I plan to go and work there at least 3 times a week. I first should plan on what days I should go.
All in all, it was a good day with nice weather and quite a lot done. I really hope that tomorrow will be another productive day.
Research Related Notes:
- I should start reading more about dialogic teaching from next week on.
- Start thinking about ideas for proposal revision!
- Write a medium- and long-term plans for life and phd research.
When things are too tight, nothing will fit easily.
5/3/2018 11.21 pm
