Reflection Essay

When I first got accepted into Stuyvesant High School, I heard countless of rumors stating: “Oh the workload is terrible”, “The competition is so fierce” or “Out of schoolwork, extracurriculars, or sleep: you can only pick two.” I found it hard to let it faze me, since I graduated from one of the most prestigious middle schools. However, the rumors transformed into reality when I stepped into Mr. Nieves’ Freshman Composition Class. The workload at the beginning of the year was brutal, coupled with assignments from other core classes that seem unaware of the workload of other teachers. Reading assignments were a regular, and there were journal entries and occasional quizzes to keep us in line. What made it bearable was the friends I made in that class; everyone had their own opinion about the topic we were talking about, and listening to other perspectives really broadened my horizon and enriched my learning experience in Stuy. Another thing that this class has taught me is the importance of time management, a skill that I will carry on for the rest of my high school career and life. When I choose to sign up for Mr. Nieves’ AP American Literature class in my Junior Year, I was hoping to relive the discussion-based lesson plans and meet more outstanding peers. I was not disappointed, to say the least, reflecting through all the experiences at the end of the course. The lesson plans he laid out for us were an interesting mix between small lectures and class output, and what I

Section three of Chapter Eight titled Doing Justice begins with the following sentence “It should be obvious that laws and trials mean something.” The role that legislated laws play in maintaining the stability and integrity of our society is something that many individuals assume to be determined by unbiased social convention. Throughout Section three the perceived significance of the law is critically examined. Additionally, the section analyzes the effectiveness of implemented legislation in the dispensation of justice to all American citizens.

GIUDICE, M. (2006). WHY OUR LEGAL SYSTEM FAILS TO DO WHAT'S RIGHT. CARDOZO PUBLIC LAW, POLICY & ETHICS JOURNAL CARDOZO PUBLIC LAW, POLICY & ETHICS

Coming into Drexel this year, a necessity, I learned was to have a clear understanding of the mechanics for literature composition. I learned that it would mature my writing to a higher level of thinking. This is seen as past experiences in my writing through high school English teacher feedback indicated my writing to be full of flaws. I often would receive feedback on my writing being awkwardly worded or lacking fluidity. The one valuable skill I learned from English 101,102 and 103 was the idea that exposure to different readings, formulas and informal writings give practice, for me to find my own voice in writing.

The first smart goals I chose are to learn to become a leader and to have better time management skills. I chose these because I work on a small unit with no assigned charge nurse. Any day you go in to work it could be your day to be charge nurse so everyone on the unit needs to be able to step up and be a leader. Time management is a skill that every nurse needs to learn. In my opinion, if you have good time management skills it can decrease your stress level and make your workday more organized and enjoyable.

I began tutoring incarcerated adults at Jennifer Roads Detention Center during my freshman year at Howard. Each week, I drive over an hour from Howard to Anne Arundel County. I park, leave my life in the car, walk through the security x-ray, and wait for an on duty officer to take my fellow Petey Greene tutor and I through the facility to the designated room. Walking through the jail, I take stock of my life and my goals. During my time at Howard University I have learned so much from allowing new experiences, to continue shaping my life. As these experiences change my perceptions of the world, my passion for medicine and desire to work with others in the practice of medicine have grown.

What motivated you to do your volunteer work? How did you come up with the idea for your activity? Who or what inspired you to get involved? How did your volunteer activity begin? Why did you feel it was important?

When the school year first started, I thought English class in junior year would be easy based on my performance in sophomore Honors English. However, AP English Language and Analysis has proven to be a difficult and rigorous course. I had struggled both as a student and as a writer in the beginning of the year, but I had learned to recognize several chronic problems I had made in my writing. Through the past school year, my writing skills had matured as I strived to fix issues in my writing. The improvements in my writing skills can best be seen through the growing conciseness, fluency, and analytical thinking in my essays.

Doors, oceans, cities, all these different descriptions have been used by different people to describe their mind. However, my mind is a never-ending slide show, with me sitting down watching different slides constantly flash before me on the projector. Their random most of the time, but I can choose which slide goes up when I need it. However, there is one slide that sneakily gets into the projector, I don’t remember putting it there, but it always manages to get in. Whenever this slide appears, shackles come out of my chair and traps me, forces me to look at this memory. I remember it well, I was around 10 or 11, I was sitting in my room playing a board game by myself, see my sisters were always busy and I didn’t have friends to play with, so I always played by myself. Then while playing I start realizing that I'm alone, I cry while the light shines above as I play this board game by myself, with no one around, I was lonely.

Throughout high school, I took my grades seriously as I maintained an overall grade point average of 93. My grades have always meant a great deal to me, however, I never knew how to correctly study. I had remained aware well before I came to college that my hands-off studying techniques would need to be forgotten and left in high school. However, until Allison Peer visited our class I was still unsure of how to get the most from my college experience and was not aware of how to successfully study. From what I have learned in this class and from Allison Peer I have decided to change a few of my study habits. For example, I would like to stop procrastinating my work and set up a schedule for studying and homework between classes, visit my professors during office hours when I miss class or when I do not understand what we discussed during class, and I have already begun connecting different ideas from different courses together to help me learn the material on a deeper level.

At the start of interviewing my father, Henry, about maturing into adulthood while in college, he sat down wearing his usual thick glasses, blue starched polo shirt, fresh boot-cut jeans, and bright facial expression; he wanted to share his past with his son in hopes of teaching me lessons from his experiences. When I asked questions, he, as always, answered with much confidence. I soon came to realize that this trait was caused by his college days where he obtained self-reliance. To understand his journey, we must observe the phases that took him to his current state.

Between the summers of 2012 and 2016, I volunteered at the bible school offered by my church. The general goal for leaders was to work with elementary school children and lead discussions and assist the children in learning more about our religion. However, my personal goals were to make connections with my students, maintain a positive attitude, and gain communication skills. The group of students each leader works with alternates each summer, proving it to be difficult to create a relationship with my students; but in 2016, I met a child who despite his own difficulties, always remained positive and was grateful for every opportunity he received. I noticed a change in my attitude that summer, I had become both more positive and gracious. I was a role model and confidant for the student, despite our relationship only lasting the summer. In return for my healthy influence, my student taught me that there is a silver lining in everything and everyone deserves to be happy, regardless of their living situation. By reaching my goal of making a connection with a student, I was able to simultaneously achieve my goal of positivity, ultimately improving my leadership. Due to my work in the program, I became more confident and gradually built up my communication skills that helped me become an effective leader. The adults who ran the program recognized my hard work and dedication to the program and would praise my leadership and compassion. To know that my leadership was making a

6. Think about an academic subject that inspires you. Describe how you have furthered this interest inside and/or outside of the classroom.

Giving back to the community is a passion of mine. The most rewarding experiences in my life have been doing what I can, to help others. As an Education major, helping children in the community is important to me, and reflected in my volunteer work. I have volunteered in several classrooms over the past two years in partnership with Junior Achievement. Volunteering with Junior Achievement allowed me to teach second grade students about the community they live in, the differences they can make in the community, and empowering students to become successful citizens who make a positive impact in the community. I have also volunteered with SA Reads, tutoring four students in reading in high-poverty schools in San Antonio. When tutoring, I use Science-Based Reading Instruction to improve literacy components. Tutoring students with SA Reads allows me to directly impact the lives of children in the community by tutoring them in reading each week, improving their reading skills, and helping students who would otherwise fall behind, succeed. Other ways in which I have impacted the community in a positive way is by regularly donating platelets at the South Texas Blood and Tissue Center, donating books to children nominated for an angel tree, volunteering at SWISD Special Olympics, Volunteering with Voices for Children, Picking up litter in a neighborhood, volunteering at the Celtic games and music festival cultural event at the kids’ corner, raising awareness of human trafficking

Tune in and listen without judging the other individual or rationally condemning the things she lets you know. In the event that what she says alerts you, simply stay quiet, yet don't state to yourself, "Well, that was a dumb move." As soon as you enjoy judgmental bemusements, you've traded off your adequacy as an audience. Tune in without forming a hasty opinion. Keep in mind that the speaker is utilizing dialect to speak to the contemplations and sentiments inside her cerebrum. You don't recognize what those musings and emotions are and the main way you'll discover is by tuning in. Try not to be a sentence-grabber (Wolvin, 1985).