Reflection Paper

Ever since I can remember, I’ve struggled with writing. It just wasn’t something that came natural to me and always resulted in a very uncomfortable process. Throughout this class, I have become more comfortable with writing and its components. Though, this is only writing 101, my skill level has increased immensely. Before starting this course, writing was uncomfortable and confusing, but towards the end, my knowledge has expanded and I can more comfortably take on the majority of writing assignments.

Throughout the course of this semester, I have continuously grown as a writer. Prior to taking this course, I had little experience or knowledge when it came to writing. I used to struggle with forming my thoughts into writing, let alone a paper. I was never confident with what I wrote. My writing had no greater purpose other than the assignment. My writing process included: writing my paper, proofreading it, and turning it in. Once the paper left my hands, it also left my mind. Throughout this course we worked with others, visited the writing lab, wrote critiques, and we were able to revise our papers. I believe that all of this is has caused me to grow greatly as a writer.

On September 6, 2017, I were documented for an incident that involved a University Housing policy violation. I was charged with violating the University Housing Alcohol 1.2 policy. With my violation, came consequences. I met with The Residence Conduct Coordinator to discuss my actions and came to the conclusion that I would have to schedule a meeting with The Campus Alcohol and Drug Education Center (CADEC) and with that, a reflection paper.

During this semester in English 107, I have progressed more as a writer. Before I went to University of Arizona, my writing was rigid. I wrote five-paragraph TOEFL style essay all the time in my high school life. After I attended in English 107, I was not confident about my writing skill. Throughout these three projects we have done, I become more and more confident about my writing skill than before. The Student Learning Outcomes also helped me to grow as a writer a lot. In these goals, I did well on several of them, but I still need to work on the other goals.

Now that we are near the end of this class my lack of writing skills has come into focus. What I have learned in this class has given me confidence and conquers my feeling of intimidation when it comes to writing. I never enjoyed school and did not put much effort into my prior education. As a result, I have struggled with my writing process throughout the years. I would feel intimidated when the need to express myself in writing was necessary, such as job applications or run reports required in my current job. My lack of effort coupled with an inadequate process has led to more than one embarrassing situation for me. I believe that this course has helped me improve and also taught that putting forth more effort and ongoing education is well worth my time.

Eighty two credits into my college education and I had never taken a writing course. The thought of it filled me with dread. One could ask why I waited so long to take Writing 101. It had been since the spring of 1995 since I last participated in an English course. In addition, I hadn’t taken an online course since 2005. It didn’t turn out to matter, our class began using the new Learning Experience Online (LEO), which replaced WebTycho. At least LEO leveled the playing field a bit since every student had to adjust to a new format. I only enrolled in Writing 101 because it was required. I began Writing 101 with basic writing skills, most of which had been obtained in 1980s and early 1990s. Application of these skills in my writing prior to this course were spotty at best and based on distant memory. I made positive strides in the application of the writing process and improved noticeably in essay construction compared to my writing before this course but made less progress than I would prefer in the proper usage of grammar, primarily due to time constraints and personal management of priorities.

I have always enjoyed telling stories, it was just quite difficult for me to express my ideas well. I took this class in the hopes I could form a well written, organized paper. Expository writing has taught me my different strengths and weaknesses and how to use them accordingly. My writing skills have improved and changed drastically since the beginning of the semester. I learned to eliminate wordiness, to add detailed analysis, and improve grammar skills. This has made a significant difference in my writing abilities, preparing me for my future in college.

Three days a week, sixteen students drag themselves out of bed before the crack of dawn, wishing they had an extra ten minutes of sleep. Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, without fail, they begrudgingly get ready for the day as they pack their bags and eat breakfast. As one of these sixteen students, I myself often wondered if what I am about to do will be worth the lost hour of sleep and studying. But ultimately, I, along with the other fifteen, continue to drag myself slowly towards school week after week. One by one, we walk through the glass doors that welcome us to the place we have learned to call our home: St. Daniel’s Hall. The large hall, usually filled with groups of students joking and laughing, is still dark and quiet, waiting to be filled with the life of the day. It is so silent, we almost balk at disturbing the atmosphere. As we half-heartedly greet each other, we discuss our day to come and lament over our lack of sleep.

The second day of school into sixth grade was going fine, I was having a good day. I was excited that I was in middle school. The clock finally hit three I went straight home. I got home, I ate and watched tv shows on Netflix.I was having a laid-back day since I didn't have homework to do.It was around 8:50 p.m. and my mom told me and my sisters to go to bed since it was a school night. I went to my room but didn’t listen to my mom. My younger sister Samantha and I were playing around with my baby sister Gema. We were playing on my bed by the corner.

Throughout this semester, I was able to actively participate in the service learning project. By doing so, I learned so much regarding how to apply the marketing concepts we’ve studied. The project I was a part of this semester was for the Ronald McDonald Charity House. Our CBO, Sven, assigned us two different assignments to be completed along with our marketing plan. First, we were assigned to create a promotional video for the “Meals from the Heart” program. Additionally, we were assigned to complete an assessment of their sponsor program, which corresponds with the “Meals from the Heart” program.

From the first day I could walk my mom started to develop my athletic abilities and attitude. She would play catch with me, kick around a soccer ball, and teach me how to dribble, all at home in her free time. I was exposed to sports quite often because her, my dad, and their friends, played coed volleyball and softball. I additionally have multiple older cousins who she would take me to watch play in high school games. Here I saw not only how the games were played; as well as what a team player and how the correct attitude appears out there on the floor. As soon as I was old enough, she signed me up for recreational sports in a neighboring town. Most of the time those teams end up with coaches who don’t know what they’re doing and my mom was not okay with that. She decided to take it in to her own initiative and coach my team that way she knew I would actually be learning the sports the correct way and making improvements. She coached me in flag football, soccer, basketball, volleyball, and softball. Quite often one of my friend’s parents would help her coach. My mom led some severely successful teams in my childhood. Especially in softball where we won multiple trophies. Sometimes I would become frustrated because it seemed as if she expected more out of me than the other players and I was always getting yelled at; although, now looking back I’m thankful for all the yelling and correcting me that she did because it pushed me to be a better player.

When I was younger, I read a quote that said, “The hardest challenges are given to the strongest people.” I know those weren’t the exact words, but they became very meaningful. It all started in May, 2013. I was having back pain, but I didn’t say anything at first. If only I had known it was so much more than back pain.

While growing up in a small town with nearly 3,500 people and exactly two red lights, I heard a lot of comments made by students that degraded where we lived. Any comments from “our schools scummy and doesn’t teach us anything” to “there is nothing to do around here”, were statements I heard daily. I cannot tell you how wrong they were. Growing up in such a small school with a graduating class of 93 helped me build a strong relationship with nearly every teacher, and also shaped me into the person I am proud I’ve become and becoming. I was not exposed to nearly as many terrible events that large scaled schools are, and I also knew every single person in my class’s name. Although knowing everything about everyone wasn’t always positive, it definitely helped me learn a lot. It taught me you will absolutely NOT get along with everybody in life, but it is crucial to learn to find a positive in everyone. If you don’t, you will not be as successful as you could be. The same people that put down my beautiful and “boring” town are the same ones that didn’t remember to look for a positive in it. The positive’s being, it made us who we are. I definitely agree that it’s boring, but there is something beautiful about the simplicity features in life.

As a senior in high school, I took a medical chemistry class where I learned about the body systems, general chemistry, a foundation to organic chemistry, and an introduction to biochemistry from a medical point of view. Additionally, the second part of class consisted of going to the hospital and shadowing health care professionals from different areas of the hospital. During that time, I was able to see how pharmacists, nurses, technicians, and doctors all worked together to help their patients. It was an astonishing feeling to see parts of the heart, lung, and liver in the histology lab. I will forever remember this experience because taking this class helped me determine that my career was in the hospital.

I witness students in my Pre-Algebra class that seem to know all of the answers while I sit there completely lost. They have no problem jumping ahead while I scramble, trying to get my life together. They seem like they are professionals at school, always early, always ahead, and always answering while I stare at the teacher like a deer in headlights when he asks for an answer to a question. Those types of students are what I wish I could be. Though some students allow nothing to stand in their way to success this semester, I have a harder time dealing with the obstacles I face. Some of the obstacles I face are my lack of motivation, poor time management and several distractions.