Reflection Paper

Throughout high school, I stayed after school every Thursday with a group of students to discuss social issues such as the high school dropout rate in our school and the poverty in our community. Afterwards, we carried out service projects on Saturdays to help ameliorate the problem. In the summer of 2015, I participated in Trek for Knowledge with buildOn, where I helped build a school for underprivileged children in Haiti. Before the trip, our instructors told us to bring a journal and a pen, so we can write about our experience in Haiti, so we don’t forget about how we felt during that time and the memories that we would encounter with this opportunity to be emerge in a new culture. I had never written in a journal before about a serious experience in my life, since nothing exciting happens in my daily life, but I decided to actually write

During my eight grade in highschool, I was the archetype of a school nerd. My only focus was to study and exceed my teachers’ expectations at the expense of any other extracurricular activities. As many common top students, I thought I had to conform to the school rules; that is, excellence can only be achieved through maintaining good grades. I believed I did not have the power to challenge this common conception. Power can be observed in a large scale such as a whole nation, but it can also be seen in a more narrow scale as within each individual. I did not realize how much power I had until I challenged my own beliefs and went out of my comfort zone by joining my school soccer team.

Ever since move in day here at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, it feels as if a weight has been lifted off my shoulders. In terms of freedom that is. At home, I would always have to worry about what time to be home and make sure my friends could actually take me back home. I was not allowed to drive the car anywhere expect work or school and occasionally I could take it to get some food but rarely. My friends, in my opinion at least, were always annoyed they had to come pick me up or that we had to leave somewhere early because my mother called and suddenly decided I had to be home right then and there.

A colleague informs you that she has completed her science lesson plans for the following week. She agrees to share her lessons with you and leaves them in your mailbox. As you look through the materials, you quickly realize that most of the content does not coincide with your teaching style because the lessons consist primarily of lectures, tests, and worksheets.

In my early years of school, I had a general understanding of the math concepts I was being taught. Early on, I learned that I have a very specific way of learning, often needing more explanation and guidance from my teachers than my peers required. My understanding of math really began to fall as I entered middle school. I had no understanding of fractions and how they related to the world around me. In my school, I was taken to a separate room to get extra help on the subjects that I seemed to be struggling in a little more. Unfortunately, the focus was often to work on my literacy skills rather than try to increase my understanding of math. While in middle school, I hovered around the ‘not average’ but also ‘not below average’ in most of the subjects, which meant I wasn’t a priority to spend the additional resources. I was taken out of the program that gave me additional help on the subjects I was struggling in, and I was put back into the classroom, left on my own to try and comprehend the material. In grade 7, we began to use a program on the computer to learn our math, specifically fractions at this time. I struggled to learn math on a computer, as I needed real life examples to explain the material. I struggled to relate what a fraction was, to real world examples which decreased my understanding on the topic. I found out I could press a button on my computer that would pass me through the levels, making my teacher believe I understood the material. I wasn’t typically

Lastly, I generated resolutions by discussing options with my classmates, co-workers and supervisor. Unfortunately, this client is not on my case load and I only see her on occasion and she has since delivered. Thus, I was not able to follow-up with her to gain her insights on the matter. However, out of these conversations, I discovered the importance of resolving complex ethical situation in individual and group settings. Ethics consultation is supported by the code and is valued as an important tool for social workers (Reamer, 2006). Case conferencing can be an effective method for generating ideas and resolutions to problems which helps build competency. This is also a helpful tool for providing alternative viewpoints which can help social workers gain cultural awareness and insight. In addition, reflective supervision can be a helpful tool for resolving ethical challenges.

I remember in the year of 2016-2017 attending a school in California. After spending most of my time in the Northeast and Midwest, it was amazing experiencing weather that was above forty degrees year-round. In the month of April, in the nighttime, on my bed, I prayed, “Lord what should I do when I get back home to New York?” It was in the middle of the night, in a dream, I heard the words “Don’t forget about my daughters.” When I woke up, I immediately knew my journey with God began, by going after His lost sons and daughters. I felt God spark a dream inside of me to see lost sons and daughters come back to the heart of the Father. After leaving California mid-May, I traveled back home to New York and stayed at my parent’s house and several weeks later had a meeting with home church pastor.

Unfolding is not simply teaching, but rather meeting (Stewart, 73). Doing so requires believing in the other person, which can only take place by making the personal present. Seeing someone for who they are and completely accepting them. Only when one can truly see someone, can they believe in them or see their true existence. Likewise, “the educator…committed to his care…sees each of these individuals as in a position to become a unique, single person, and thus the bearer of a special task of existence” (Stewart, 73). When presenting the personal one is able to see one for who they are, in the context of unfolding, as an educator whose role is to teach others about the world around them. When one makes the personal present, they are open to these new viewpoints, which can make one’s life more meaningful with the increase in answers, opportunity, and so on.

My family, while never zealously religious, spends exactly the correct time in church to remain informed of community happenings and firmly out of the neighborhood gossip. This may, in part, result from our inability to remaining in place. Graduating this June, I will have graced the packed halls of seven schools. Seven institutions, seven communities to learn the social norms of, seven best friends who have forgotten me, and seven libraries. Thus, began my ascent into adulthood.

Jesus’ question “Who do you say that I am” has been one of the most debated questions in Catholicism. Over the past few years of Theology, I have consistently been taught that the Catholic Church believes “Jesus Christ is God the Son, who became man for us.” According to the Church's teachings, we are encouraged to live the way Jesus did, as He is our Lord and Savior. This means we must respect our “enemies”, ourselves, and for that matter all people we encounter in our everyday lives, just like Jesus did. Throughout the Scriptures, we are also reminded of the way Jesus helped people to believe and made them better people with each encounter, even if they didn’t realize it at the time. All of this made Jesus the person that many people view Him as today. So, in agreement with the Catholic Church, I believe that Jesus was the Son of God who saved our lives and saved us from our sins.

Everyone has at least one point in their educational life that has shaped them into the student or person they are today. For me, coming together after being separated as the “Germantown” and “Farmersville” kids for the first six years of school changed the way I built myself as a student. Becoming friends with new people, having new teachers for every subject, changing up the routine, and actually having to switch classes has taught me a lot of different things.

I visualized the entire process in my head: the light coming from the sun, getting trapped as heat because of greenhouse gases instead of leaving the earth and thus heating it. I started to raise my hand to answer the question and got about halfway before it happened. My hands started trembling. My throat dried up and my voice decided to take a vacation off to who-knows-where. I wanted to keep going, but the anxiety wouldn’t let me. Defeated, I put my hand down and let someone else answer the question. I had major speech anxiety.

Bang! The gun goes off and your life flashes before your eyes. It’s the moment I realize I need to focus in on my body’s effort and concentration to finish the course that lies before me. I’m thinking about the race most of the day and preparing mentally for what challenges can occur along the course. Could I fall and sprain or break an ankle? Could I get overheated and sick? I’ve ask myself these questions while running Cross Country for six years. But, nothing can really prepare me for what’s ahead when I’m running. When that gun goes off and everyone starts running, it’s a totally different environment. My dedication and pride got me through coming in last for four years of cross country. I learned this exact lesson as journeyed my way to each finish line, making me stronger each time.

Human being have the quality to get adapted to different environments and situations. However, be an immigrant student in a country with a different language and culture is a challenging. I moved to United States four years ago with a basic knowledge in english. After six months of living in USA, I enrolled in English as a Second Language at Greenville Technology College. By that time, my communication in english was not great. That was the first day that I face obstacles in getting enroll in classes. However, now that I have been in community College for two year and I moving to a four year University, I can say that as a Latino student I have been struggle in differents areas to be where I am.

I have always lived my life, hoping that someday I would finally fit into this mold that the world seems to create for people. I wanted so badly to be the normal child. A child who was able to think, react, socialize, and participate the same way that other children do. It has taken me many years, but I have finally learned that I will never be the cookie cutter person. Furthermore, when I was younger I wished and wished to be able to attend normal functions, church, or to create meaningful friendships with my peers. I never truly had that opportunity as a child. I spent most of my childhood a confused, depressed mess. However, I have grown up to be a well-rounded individual that has direction and purpose.