My name is Jasmine Wright and I am in the 11th grade. In a way I would describe myself as being ambitious, smart, goal-oriented, goofy, and successful. The reason I am taking human anatomy is so that I can have knowledge about the human body and the way its structures work together to keep me breathing. There are many things that I hope to gain from this course, but I am coming into this class with an open mind. I am a very optimistic person, so I think positively about everything. Ever since I stepped into high school and learned that Banneker had an Human Anatomy course I couldn’t wait to take it; in fact Human Anatomy is actually related to a career that I will soon be in one day and this is why the information that I get from this class is very crucial in determining my success as being a registered nurse. When you are a registered nurse you have to know a lot about the body, but we will get into how human anatomy relates to a certain career as the continuance of my portfolio goes on. To go into detail, what I hope to gain from learning about Human Anatomy is; how the skeletal system and all of its parts work, how the reproductive system makes a baby, how the nervous system works, why we need at least 8 hours of sleep, the main reasons why we sweat, and the names of different types of muscles. The list goes on and on. I absolutely love science so I am hoping that this year will be one of the best yet. One of the first units that we covered in this course was Introduction to Human Anatomy and Physiology. The objectives of this unit were; students will describe the structure, composition and functions of the organ systems of the human body; Students will describe how the organ systems function and interrelate; students will learn basic technical terminology and language associated with anatomy; students will describe how humans adapt through their anatomical design; students will describe how the anatomy of humans relates to that of other vertebrate animals. An assignment that we had to do for this unit was list the 11 organ systems of the human organism. Some things that I learned from this unit were; Anatomy is the study of the structure of the human body; Physiology is the study of the function of the human body; the organ systems that make up the human body are; skeletal system, reproductive system, integumentary system, muscular system, nervous system, endocrine system, cardiovascular system, lymphatic system, digestive system, and urinary system. The next unit that we covered in this course was Human Growth and Development. The objectives for human growth and development were: Students will have a basic knowledge of human development; Students will understand the process for making informed responsible decisions; Students will have a positive attitude toward human sexual development; Students will clarify their own value structures as a basis for decision-making; Students will develop skills in developing and maintaining interpersonal relationships. For one of the assignments for Human Growth and Development, we were supposed to describe how people change in terms of their cognitive abilities, psychosocial development (including moral reasoning, affective development, and personality structure), and biosocial status through adolescence. Some things that I learned from this unit were that; human growth begins at birth and doesn’t end until death; as individuals go through these life stages, four main types of growth and development occur (physical, mental, emotional, and social. Another thing that I learned is that infants are dependent on others for all needs. The next unit that we covered in this course was Cells and Tissues. The objectives for Cells and Tissues were; Students will understand the structures and purposes of basic components of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells, especially macromolecules, membranes, and organelles; Students will understand how these cellular components are used to generate and utilize energy in cells; Students will understand the cellular components underlying mitotic cell division; Students will apply their knowledge of cell biology to selected examples of changes or losses in cell function. These can include responses to environmental or physiological changes, or alterations of cell function brought about by mutation. An assignment for this unit was to define the key vocabulary terms. Some things that are learned from this unit are; the cytoplasm contains many structures and all the processes that keep cells alive take place in the Cytoplasm; the nucleus sends chemical signs to the Cytoplasm which start or stop the chemical process going on in it; cells from the green parts of plants contain chloroplasts; All cells have a Cytoplasm, Nucleus, and Cell membrane. The following unit that we covered is Skin and Membranes. The objectives for this unit were; the student will identify the different structural and functional characteristics of the four primary tissue groups: Epithelial, Connective Muscle Nerve, the student will name, describe and provide functions and locations of tissue types within each group above, the student will discuss how tissue is repaired and factors influencing the rate and efficiency of repair. An assignment that we had to do for this unit was take notes. Some things that I learned from this unit were; Synovial Membranes are composed of connective tissue and contain no epithelial cells at all; the skin includes the cutaneous membrane, skin, nails, hair, and sweat glands; the dermis is a dense connective tissue and connects tightly until a burn or friction causes a blister. The next unit that we covered is the respiratory system. The objectives for this unit were; the student will list the general functions of the respiratory system the student will describe the structure and function of each organ of the respiratory system; the student will explain how inspiration and expiration are accomplished, the student will name and define each of the respiratory air volumes, the student will list major homeostatic imbalances of the respiratory system. An assignment for this unit was to work on a reproductive system project. Some things that I learned from this unit were; female and male reproductive systems are connected by a series of organs and glands that produce and nurture sex cells; sex cells are produced by a special type of division called meiosis; meiosis I separates homologous pairs; the fluid the urethra conveys to the outside during ejaculation is called semen; the penis conveys urine and semen. The last unit that we covered is the muscular system. The objectives for this unit were; the student will name and describe the characteristics of the 3 types of muscle tissues; the student will identify the gross anatomical structures of skeletal muscles from an illustration, including the connective tissue coverings (i.e., epimysium, perimysium, and endomysium); the student will identify the microscopic structures of a muscle fiber and their functions; the student will explain the major events that occur during muscle fiber contraction (sliding filament mechanism); the student will describe factors that contribute to the strength of muscle contractions; the student will explain how energy is supplied to the muscle fiber contraction mechanism, how oxygen debt develops, and how a muscle may become fatigued; the student will identify various muscle groups on a dissected mammal and compare and contrast their movement or function to a human. An assignment for this unit was to define all they key terms of the unit. Some things that I learned from this unit were; the skeletal functions are to; protect the frame work as posture, ribs acts as protection for the lungs and heart, and the skull protects the brain; joints connect the bones; ligaments reinforcing a joint are stretched or torn, axial goes down the center of the body; appendicular goes down the sides of the body; the muscular system consists of the long bone, short bone, irregular bone, and the flat bone. The career that I picked that is related to Human Anatomy and Physiology is Chiropractor. A Chiropractor treats patients whose health problems are associated with the body's muscular, nervous, and skeletal systems, especially the spine. The educational requirements for a chiropractor are: 4 years of training to be a doctor of chiropractic, 2 years of basic sciences are required followed by the need for a successful completion of National Boards; the next 2 years of chiropractic training include the clinical sciences after which National Boards; Part 3 of the National Boards chiropractic training that is necessary if the chiropractor plans to use physiological therapeutics in practice; Part 4 tests three practical skill areas, including: Diagnostic imaging, Chiropractic technique, and Case management. Some cons of being a chiropractor would be; you must be able to work independently, you must have a supportive family and friends, you will have to contend with the bad press, you’ll need to hunt down start-up money, and you will have a limited ability to collect money from your patients. Some pros of being a chiropractor are; shorter training period, scope and focus are up to you, regular work hours, reasonable malpractice insurance rates, painless licensing process, and help for those who have despaired. In my opinion, I would not consider a career in this field because for one I am not interested in being a chiropractor at all and the pay isn’t as good as people make it seem. Lastly, in writing my reflection I am going to be honest. This year has been a rollercoaster and I am glad it is over! When I first started this school year off in Human Anatomy I became very neutral on whether or not I liked the course. A reason I liked the course is because learning about the body excites me period. A reason I didn’t like the course was because of the interactive notebook which was also my least favorite assignment. This was not my first time doing an interactive notebook, but on this particular notebook I was confused about what assignments were supposed to be on what page and overall I bought just about 3 interactive notebooks because I kept messing up. I have to say that I did learn many things from this course such as; how the reproductive system operates or what the definition of axial and appendicular is off the top of my head. Since we are still being honest here, I DID NOT like the way the material was being taught to me. Whenever I had a question to ask I could never ask it because the teacher never paid any attention to me and would get an attitude if I didn’t know something. As I said before I am a very ambitious person so it wasn’t like I wasn’t trying my best. Some things I feel that should be changed in this course to better help the students next year are; if you are going to do an interactive notebook with the students explain it to them the best way you can, have more group projects, have more hands on activities with the students, and make sure you are present for the majority of the school year so that the students aren’t misled. My most surprising learning experience was when we got to look at different types of animal cells through the microscope; the activity was so different from the others and a fun learning experience. My enrollment in this course will influence my learning skills as I continue the start of my career as a registered nurse. I know more about the human body that I didn’t know before I took this course.
