Skip to main content

Reflecting on Growth: My Journey in CST 338 from HW1 to Now

Looking back at HW1, I’m really proud of how much my skills have grown over the semester. At the beginning, I was mainly focused on just getting my code to work and pass the tests, but now I approach assignments with more planning and structure. I’ve learned to break problems into smaller, manageable pieces and write modular, clean code that’s easier to debug and maintain. One big victory for me was gaining confidence with inheritance and polymorphism—I now understand how to design base classes and child classes that share logic without unnecessary repetition, which made later assignments much smoother.

Another important area of growth has been my understanding and use of unit tests. Early on, unit testing felt unfamiliar and sometimes frustrating, but now I see it as a powerful tool that improves both the quality of my code and my ability to catch edge cases before they become problems. I also feel more comfortable applying access modifiers properly to encapsulate data and protect class integrity. Finally, becoming more proficient with version control—integrating GitHub with IntelliJ and managing branches—has been a practical skill that will help me work collaboratively in real-world projects. Overall, I’m proud of my progress and excited to build on this foundation moving forward.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

CST383: Learning Probability Distributions and Data Visualization in Python

This week, I learned more about probability distributions, density plots, histograms, and how to visualize data using Python libraries such as Pandas, Matplotlib, Seaborn, and SciPy. I practiced creating density plots, box plots, cumulative density plots, and histograms using real datasets. I also learned how changing things like bin width, bandwidth, transparency, and sample size can affect the appearance and interpretation of graphs. Another important topic was understanding skewness and how transformations such as log10 can help make heavily skewed data easier to analyze. One thing I found interesting was how probability density functions (PDFs) and histograms can represent the same data differently. Before this week, I thought graphs mostly showed the same information in different styles, but now I understand that each type of plot has a different purpose and can make patterns easier or harder to notice. I also learned that larger sample sizes tend to reflect the true distribution...
Post a Comment
Read more

CST383 Week 1: Python for Data Science

This week, I learned the basics of Python for data science and how tools like NumPy are used. I already have programming experience from my computer science classes, but Python feels different from languages like Java or C++. It is easier to write and more flexible because it does not require strict data types. This makes coding faster, but I also need to be careful to avoid mistakes. We also learned about the Python data science ecosystem, such as NumPy, Pandas, and tools like Google Colab and Jupyter Notebook. I liked using Google Colab because it is simple and runs in the browser, so I don’t need to install anything. However, I am curious when it is better to use local tools like Spyder or Jupyter instead of Colab. The most important concept for me this week was NumPy. I learned that NumPy arrays are much faster than Python lists because they store data in a continuous block of memory and use the same data type. This connects to what I learned in my algorithms class, where performan...
Post a Comment
Read more

CST462S - From Learning to Impact: My Service Learning Journey

What went well during my service learning experience was my ability to contribute meaningfully to the ASCENDtials web team. I was able to complete several tasks such as updating website pages, working on LifterLMS courses, and improving user experience through better layouts and navigation. I also communicated effectively with my team, asked questions when needed, and stayed consistent with meeting deadlines. Over time, I became more confident using tools like WordPress, WPForms, and course-building platforms. If I could improve something, it would be my time management and planning. There were moments when tasks felt overwhelming, especially when balancing schoolwork and service hours. I would also improve my confidence in decision-making, particularly when working independently on design or technical issues. Taking more initiative earlier and asking for feedback sooner would have made my work even stronger. The most impactful part of this experience was seeing how my work directly co...
Post a Comment
Read more