Independent Study Update

1) What have you chosen to do as your first independent study?


- I have chose to fix up my Honda Prelude Completely since it doesn't run right now because it doesn't have a head and everything in the motor is basically no where close to being adjusted.

2) How does this relate to your essential question?

- This task relates to my essential question because in order to become a successful mechanic you have to stay up on the latest high performance parts and also have a proper mechanic shop to work in and that is exactly what I'm going to do because I'm going to put the latest high performance parts and also be working in a proper auto mechanic shop.

3) What tasks associated with your first independent study have you accomplished so far?

- I have toed the car to the auto mechanic shop where I am going to work on it and I have also asked the owner if he, Rick Rice would allow me to work on the car at his shop and he seemed very glad to let me.

What I've Learned So Far

In regarding to my senior project, I have learned many things about the make up of a motor and different things needed in order for your car to obtain the maximum life possible. including when it is time to change a certain part on a car. I have learned all of this by working at a mechanic shop and seeing things for my own.

Essential Question

EQ: "What is the most important thing in becoming a successful mechanic?"

a) There is multiple meanings that "important" can have. List of important things needed to become a successful mechanic.

b) What is the MOST important thing: In my opinion the most important thing is to be innovative in the way you fix a problem.

c) Volunteering at mechanic shop. Taking mechanic courses. Asking specific questions to a successful mechanic.

5 min presentation reflection

What would you say stood out about your presentation performance and what was most challenging to do and why?

- I would say that what stood out most in my presentation is that i brought different examples for the different types of spark plugs that i was going to talk about, and i also showed the whole the spark plugs so they could see what i was talking about. There where a few things that were difficult to do in preparing for my presentation first of all finding the different types of spark plugs was a very hard thing to do because I was searching for a pretty long time in a mechanic shop to find those examples and the other difficult part was once i fund them what brand were the spark plugs but besides those two things everything went well.

Interview 1 Reflection

What was the most important thing I learned from this interview and why?

-I learned a lot of things that are important in becoming a successful mechanic. First of all I learned that you need to at least take 2 years of college in order to actually have a good pay. If you don't take any extra schooling for mechanics and you just become a mechanic by learning as you work on cars there will be two things that will affect you a lot, first of all your pay will be a lot lower and second you will get lost when newer cars come out that are run almost completely by a computer. So I learned that I must go to college even if i don't want to.

Interview 2

1. I started doing mechanics at about the age of seven when i was able to tighten a bolt, i started working with my father doing anything he asked me to do whether it was cleaning his tools or tightening loose screws but whatever it was i would enjoy doing it.
2. The reason why i choose this career is because my whole family is made up of mechanics, my father and all of my six brothers, and also because my whole life i grew up around cars being worked on.
3. I attended one school in Mexico named School of Engineering Mechanics Polytechnic.
4. About four in a half years.
5. Well this is only the second shop that i have ever worked at.