I think my project was successful to a degree. I achieved my main goal of addressing the differences between COVID-19 and the seasonal flu. I was able to go over most of the points that I wanted to address. However, I think that some points may have not been explained very well for people unfamiliar with virology or biology.
I was able to learn about the topic of virology. I only went over a small section of this area in science but I found that I had learned a lot about it and I hope to look more into it in the future. I also learned about the valuable skill of time management. I learned how to create a schedule for myself and a basic outline of what to go over in order to complete my project and presentation.
I started this project to address the fake news and misinformation spread by some politicians, who downplayed COVID-19 by comparing it to the seasonal flu. This is a dangerous move as people know that the seasonal flu comes and goes each year without much harm, which may lead to them seeing COVID-19 as an insignificant threat when, in fact, it has a higher fatality rate than the seasonal flu and is particularly dangerous for seniors. I think that my project achieved distinguishing them as two different diseases.
I wish I had answered the question in more detail and given some more differences. I also wish that I’d dedicated a paragraph to the similarities of the two diseases. I decided against looking into similarities because my project was focused on differences but I think it could have helped with understanding the diseases and why people were confusing them in the first place. I think it could have been simplified a bit more to reach a wider audience.
In the future, I’d like to address the similarities between them as well, to help people understand why they were being mistaken in the first place. I’d also like to write some areas, such as the symptoms and prevention, in more detail as I feel that I only lightly brushed over these topics.
After much deliberation, I finally submitted my project outline for the STEM Project. I’m still not 100% sure about my format but I think it should be okay (I initially planned to do a research report but I’m wondering about changing it to a magazine article).
I have a keen interest in all the sciences, but I chose to explore a topic that’s on everyone’s mind now – COVID-19. In particular, the difference between COVID-19 and the seasonal flu. I recalled hearing world leaders trying to calm the panic by likening the coronavirus to the flu – for example, Donald Trump comparing the two in the early stages of the outbreak and Jair Bolsonaro calling the virus ‘little flu’. While these people may have been under stress to take action, it demonstrates the problems we have with distinguishing and understanding the two.
When looking through the different formats I could pick, I felt overwhelmed as there were so many. I even had the option of writing a children’s book! Ultimately, I went the traditional route and chose to stick to a writing format as I feel that I am someone who is able to express their ideas better through writing than through recording.
A SWOT analysis assesses an individual’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats in a given situation. This particular SWOT analysis is me going through these four points and how they apply to me before I start working on my STEM Project.
Strengths:
Teamwork – Although I tend to be a shy person, I can work well in teams, particularly because I tend to not prefer working with certain people and I can be with just about anybody. I feel that being put into a team helps me develop a bond with members even if they’re not necessarily my friends.
Communication – I value communication or feedback from team members or other people as I feel that it can help to make the work the best it can be. I usually respond to communication in any form.
Decision Making: I can usually pick hard choices when people working with me do not want to. I don’t have preferences for most things but I try to assess all my options with before picking what I believe is best suited to me.
Weaknesses:
Organization – I don’t usually set reminders for myself or set out a timetable. This is something I need to work to improve, particularly for the upcoming IB course.
Time Management – I can sometimes be late to deadlines and I tend to procrastinate a lot. This is also a skill that will be critical for the IB course.
Problem Solving – I don’t consider myself someone who is able to solve problems easily. I usually leave this task up to other people to do. I hope I can develop myself to do this solely on my own in the future.
Opportunities:
Leadership – Even if I am not appointed leader of any group, I think that there are opportunities for me to manage decisions and encourage people to do more if their contributions are lacking.
Self – Confidence – During my recent skills audit, I noticed that I put a lot of ‘rarely’s in categories that dealt with confidence issues. This is something that I hope can improve throughout this project.
Time Management – I put this in my weaknesses category, but I also hope that this project will provide chances for me to develop time management skills such as meeting deadlines.
Threats:
Inability to communicate efficiently – The ongoing circuit breaker has me worried that communication may not be efficient enough to get feedback from my peers or teachers through digital means. I find face-to-face communication far more worthwhile but I’m sure those mentioned above will do their best.
Shyness – As I mentioned earlier, this is a major problem in my life. I’ll need to make sure that throughout this project, I won’t be afraid to ask for help or feedback to make my project the best it can be.