Final Semester Reflection

Mary Parker
maryparker@mycwi.cc
English 201-002W
Final Semester Reflection
12/15/2014

It’s a Process

     Rewind to August 25th, 2014. I would be lying if I told you I could remember exactly what I did the first day of this semester, but, for the purpose of this paper, let’s say I was a model student. I got up bright and early, ate a healthy breakfast, and opened up Blackboard without delay. I am not sure what I expected from this class, but we’re fictionalizing, remember? Perhaps I expected to breeze right through, write a couple of three page papers, and review some grammar (spelled with an AR, thank you very much). I guess the joke is on me. I don’t have to guess when I say that what followed was a very challenging semester for me, especially in regards to my writing stamina. But, as I tested new strategies, and applied myself to the writing process, I discovered that I could manage the challenge, and even enjoy the experience.


     The most important thing that I believe I have gained from the work we have done this semester is a greater comfort with longer essay assignments. While all three of my essays turned out to be very similar in length, the level of effort required to achieve those essay lengths diminished with each assignment. I remember how I felt when I viewed the first essay assignment, and I saw that it was to be 5-7 pages in length. I was not at all used to writing that long of an essay, and I didn’t really believe that I could pull it off. Somehow, I managed. I say that facetiously now, but at the time that’s how I felt. However, by the time I started working on my third essay, I felt quite differently. I had learned how to bulk up my essays with more research and better sources. I began to enjoy the process, because I saw how much more satisfying and complex my essays could be when I had the space to explore a subject in depth. In fact, I found myself having to cut out a lot of material from that essay in order to stay within the parameters of the assignment.


     Of course, there are still things I need to work on in the future. Most importantly, I need to work on my editing. Anyone who has read both the first draft and the final draft of any of my papers would know that very little changes between drafts. This is possibly due to poor planning; I don’t give myself enough time to make any significant changes to the final draft before I submit. But it’s more than that, really. It’s that I’m blind to my specific faults, although I am generally aware that I could have done something better.


     Regardless, I am pleased with the ways in which my writing has improved this semester, and I anticipate that I will enter my next round of classes confident in my ability to handle any writing assignment my future teachers throw my way. Although I have decided that the English degree is not for me, I am thankful that I had the chance to take this class, if only for the confidence I have gained. I now know I can go the distance if I need to, and am much more prepared to generate a scholarly response to topics from multiple academic fields.


     So where does that leave me? I can honestly say that I am a very different student than I was on August 25th, 2014. A lot of that is due to this class. In this class I learned to research more thoroughly and think more critically. I learned that I don’t need to be afraid of assignments that challenge me. But most importantly, I learned not to expect anything worthwhile to be particularly easy. I haven’t changed completely, though. You might notice that this paper is only two pages long, despite my self-congratulatory comments on my recent improvements in page length. I guess it’s a process.