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What is my interest in IT?

My interest in IT stems from my need to know, and about empowerment in this digital ecosystem that is infiltrating more and more aspects of our daily lives. By understanding it I hope to prepare and protect myself and those around me, as well as create a space that is useful and dynamic. The beginnings of my IT interest stem back to my secondary years when my father decided to purchase a Commodore 128 computer, second hand, to shut up my pestering younger brother. This computer came with guidebooks on how to set up the computer as well as a book on programming in the Basic Programming language. This began a journey of discovery as I tried to create my own game, which was not a success. My mother convinced me that my later purchase of an Amiga 500 from a secondary school friend was not a great idea, and I gave back the computer, but the want to program still remained.

It was not until many years later, after becoming a technology teacher, that my interest in programming was re-ignited. Getting into teaching forced me to use computer and IT concepts on a daily basis as the job required it for student management, lesson delivery,daily communication and staff training. I was also frustrated at IT issues that I couldn’t fix myself, instead relying on an over-worked IT department at my school. This urged me to seek a way to find out more about how computers, programs and networks operated, someday. A school colleague had taken the plunge to re-skill by studying a degree in IT, which sowed the seed for me to return back to study after 20 years of my last stint at university.

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Why did I choose to come to RMIT?

The choice to go to RMIT was an easy one based on its reputation as a leading University in Victoria. It also helped that my father was a student there many, many years ago and a good friend attended there some time ago, with positive experiences. My wife more recently completed an honours degree in fashion design, and she was very satisfied with the challenge, the staff support, and with their extensive industry experience to help guide her in a life after university. The flexibility that this online course gives me is very appealing as I can study when time allows, as well as hold down a teaching position in my regional school without the need for nasty commuting. I saw my wife do this for 3 years in her studies and it made for extremely long days.

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What do I expect to learn during my studies?

Personally, I consider myself a self-starter who is well organised and motivated to learn anything I put my mind to. My passion is for the power and creativity of programming, along with the challenge of problem solving by working through problems and giving myself time to come up with a solution. I’m like a Jack Russell with a bone, I just have to find a solution to the problem at hand. Sometimes this may mean leaving it to stew for a period of time, but I get there eventually. My problem with self-study and relying on endless ‘Youtube’ videos is that it doesn’t allow for networking, working others and working with others with industry experience. I would also like to get a sense of the IT market and where the growth areas are for the space.

Some more exposure and challenges with programming is the core of what I’m wanting with this course, as up to a certain point programming does get a little difficult for my secondary students, except for an exceptional few. I’m also not too knowledgeable with computer hardware and networking fundamentals. By the end of this degree, I expect to have a finger on the pulse of the IT industry and its possibilities. I would also expect to have a clearer picture in terms of what I want to do in this field, whether that is still related to education or another area that excites me. With that decision, I would expect to have the skills, confidence and some experience to apply for those jobs.