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

It is still so surreal to reflect back on my first semester as an incoming college student in the ENC1101 course, analyzing at my progression as a reader and writer in literacy. Since the first day of class I set in stone my goals for this class: receive a 4.0 GPA, develop my connecting theories skills in writing, and become more aware of objectives for each Unit throughout the course. All of these goals became achievements that not only make others proud but most importantly give me self pride. In order to earn the grades and achieve these goals, I went after every opportunity that I was given as an incoming college student, such as office hours and extra credit. By taking this course I have gained confidence with the utilization of literacy, and made an addition to my group of impactful literacy sponsors. Once students are finished with high school they assume that there is nothing else to learn beyond the stereotypical five paragraph essay, but they are so wrong. I was able to obtain so much knowledge about numerous course concepts from Writing about Writing, articles, and my professor. These concepts will carry on with me throughout a bright future of writing courses, job interviews, and any other skills that require literacy. The four outcomes listed below will help illuminate how I improved as a writer, by being a driven college student and going out of the way to earn my achievements in this course. In the first outcome I improved comprehending scholar texts,

I began to fall behind and continued to stay behind in two of my classes. I started to skip many assignments because I did not manage my time well. My goal wasn’t reinforced because I didn’t read it before making a choice or evening trying to remember it. I realized that I was letting myself down and I wasn’t doing what I needed to do and that all my grades were slipping. I work twelve hour shifts that cause me to become very tired. I began to correct myself by staying up after I got off work and I made myself do two to three assignments before I was allowed to go to sleep. By staying awake after work I got to study more and with a clearer mind understood better, and gave myself a treat by relaxing

Throughout the semester I have faced many difficult and different challenges. One major challenge has been to be acting as a single parent again. Recently my husband left for another deployment which has left me alone to care for our children. It has become my sole responsibility to take care of our children and transport them to and from daycare. I also have to make sure I have childcare lined up if I pick up shifts at work. Another thing that has fallen on my shoulders is the responsibility of all of the housework. Instead of having my husband's help with cleaning and putting laundry away, I now have to rely on myself, which I hate. Another challenge I have faced this semester is getting back into a good school routine. When I left high school

I was in a new realm of what I considered to be failure. My junior year was loaded with college classes. On top of that, I had three advanced placement courses. These included: AP Chemistry, AP Spanish Language and Culture, and AP American History. The end result of this terrifically horrible year was all two’s on my exams. The exams that I had worked towards for an entire year had ended in a missed goal and quite a bit of tears. The exams that I had put my family on hold for. The exams that had made me cry, laugh, and fear all year long. The anticipation for the exam results was excruciating.

During the first semester of my senior year I had no motivation. At this point everyone expected me to be absorbed into my future plan and career, yet I apparently didn’t get the memo. The only thing I could think about was that I had finally reached the top of the school and I was allowed to have open periods. I set myself up to have an easy first semester and that is exactly how it

The lesson I’m going to tell you about was a very important one. It shaped me into who I am today, and the outlook I have on things. This might not be a situation that other people would think would be important, or necessary, or something you should remember for years to come. But this moment has stuck with me since I was 8. This instance was when I Skipped school back in 3rd grade.

As a freshmen, I was an exited student who truthfully cared more about the freedom that the English course provided than the actual lessons and content that it taught. The teacher did not seem to care if work was done in class or not. As soon as the lesson was over so was our learning. Perhaps my lack of focus is the sole reason that I did poorly in not only my English class but my other classes as well. My mark was a low 70 and I was extremely disappointed with myself and my lack of care for school. I decided that in Grade 10, I would focus and put my greatest effort into my English class. My hard work paid off and I ended up getting the English award with a mark above 90%. The same happened the following year in Grade 11, where not only did I start to strive for a high mark, but strive for an insightful and productive semester. I drew the conclusion that first and foremost, I am capable of achieving and taking advantage of learning opportunities, but it is important to have the drive for this and put a good effort in. Through my effort, I was able to see and come to

I chose to major in English at the University of Oregon because the major offered the most beneficial coursework in preparation for law school. Also, I am passionate about research and teaching, and throughout my undergraduate career, I was able to actively pursue these passions. I received a 3.3 GPA.

I learned a lot in my life like math, history, fitness, health, etc. Though I always had one curriculum that catch my interest than others. That subject would be english as the one that caught my eye as one might say. I was always fansticated with the certain techniques and skills you can learn from it. The expressiveness that people can learn from that subject and put what they learn into something big like for example writing an play, movie, skits, etc is truly something special. So as young adult I find myself willing to learn these intrestic skills that many talented writers have master and I have belief that my techniques will be sharpen to mastery. In english 102 I can proudly say that those beliefs did happen as the class went further through days and weeks so did my progression as a researcher and writer that in factly impact my future career. I own to the teacher and support programs in the school that provided me this which I couldn’t thrive without.

To begin any task, one must have a minimum amount of effort within them. Even if the task is something they do not want to do the anger of having to do it fuels the effort. And that is how I myself begin an essay, full of anger. The base of an essay begins with writing the assignment in my planner and trying to figure out how to spread my process around. Here is the mind process of an assignment for myself “okay if its due next Monday and today is Wednesday that is 4 days away, I start the outline today begin writing…Friday and then there’s 2 days left I will figure it out from there.” 4 days is a good example for my process because in my unorganized mind I like to think writing a (short) paper takes 3 days. The first I outline, the second I write and the third I revise.

Throughout this assignment, I worked hard for success and learned a lot from my mistakes along the way. I strongly believe that I have successfully met the criteria and accomplished the requirements for this rant. I was dressed appropriately, with no bright colors or designed shirts, to prevent any distractions whatsoever, however, I had a smart student look, which I would think is the ideal clothing for a rant topic such as mine. I maintained a steady, slow pace, and I frequently stopped moving and turned my body to the camera. I performed this at times I felt were necessary in order for the audience to understand when I am delivering a main idea or main points. “The fact is that our school washrooms are never fully clean and this really pisses me off”. This is an example of when I stopped walking and turned my body to the camera. This line is one of my main points that I wanted my audience to clearly understand. My setting was adequate and relevant to my topic (Bell High School Washrooms). In the start of my rant, I showed a school sign that displayed “Bell High School”, then I walked past the lockers of my school during my introduction. Soon after, when I was talking about girl’s washrooms, I stopped walking in front of one. Furthermore, when I was discussing the interior defects and unsanitary environment, I placed myself in a male washroom, so the audience can have not only a verbal understanding, but also a visual understanding, which I feel had an impact on how much

As I read J. K. Rowling’s commencement speech for a graduating class of Harvard University, I found myself connecting with the text on a very personal level. As I reread the speech for tis assignment I was able to reconnect with the text and old memories came rising up to the surface of my mind. I connected with the following quote: “It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well not have lived at all- in which case, you fail by default.” Rowling’s statements regarding failure relate to the time when I failed my math class last year and how that experience changed my life.

When I first heard we were writing this essay, I honestly thought it was kind of pointless (no offense). I always thought that english class was meant to be analytical, and this paper seemed like it had no real purpose (other than maybe helping with college essays). However, as I was writing I really began to appreciate what this essay allows you to do. English was never my most favorite subject ( I tend to lean towards math and sciences), but this essay felt so easy to write. I really enjoyed how it allowed me to truly reflect on who I am as a person and recognize how and why I am who I am. I think that being able to reflect on who you are can allow you to see what the good parts of you are, what the bad parts of you are, and what the

“Legacy, what is a legacy?” The quote stated before was taken directly from the Broadway hit “Hamilton.” This question runs rampant in Alexander Hamilton’s mind as he is face to metal and gunpowder with Aaron Burr’s bullet propelling from the chamber of a gun like an agitated bull in a rodeo. When confronted by this question I knew I couldn’t evade this question from the inner machinations of my own inquisitive mind. It is as if my very soul yearned for the answer to this very broad question. In short and all you have time for I am sure, I had to know. I decided I would have to self-reflect and answer this to escape the imprisonment that is the fact of never knowing an end to this puzzle of my own definition of what’s to come after, well, me.