Marcelo Pleitez

Petrides 101
December 7, 2015
Reflective Essay

English is the national language of this country, and the English

courses and classes taught throughout our great nation are vital to the
continual growth and improvement of our language as a society. English
courses serve to better the sophistication, complexity, eloquence, and
correctness of our mother tongue. Throughout the course of English 101 here
at Montgomery College under the brilliant instruction and guidance of
Professor Petrides I feel as though I have learnt something truly unique and
have grown as a writer and speaker of the English language.
During the English 101 course it is apparent to me that our professor is
keenly aware of common struggles that ail a majority of students. Our
professor has taught students the importance of trying to grasp whole
concepts and understanding the grand scheme of things. We have learned
how to take a step back in order to have a more complete and total
understanding of themes and messages portrayed in images and photos, as
well as in bodies of texts. Professor Petrides also introduced students to
various forms of writing, and what style to use in order to reach and express
certain messages or desires as writers. We have learned about the
differences between both informative and argumentative differences, about
the necessity of knowing and applying MLA citation formats, as well as
learning how to apply in-text citations and quotes. We have also learned how
to pool resources together in an efficient manner in order to write a well-

Marcelo Pleitez
Petrides 101
December 7, 2015

researched and respectable piece of research assignments. Despite the

introduction of key concepts and the differentiation between forms of essays,
one may feel as though grammar was neglected. However this, in my
humblest of opinions, seems not to be the case. Our professor had required
each and every student to purchase a small Browns Handbook which
specialized in rules and standards of grammar. Although we were not
explicitly taught from the handbook to the extent at which we were taught
how to deal with essay expectations and the standards of academic/college
writing, the idea was not neglected. Through my studying of the handbook I
feel that understanding of the foundations of the English language has
improved, thus improving my English grammar. This improvement in
grammar I attribute to Professor Petrides. Thus it is without a single strand of
dishonesty that I confess that this English 101 course, in my mind, has
covered every aspect that needed covering for an entry level college course
for freshmen college students and has helped me grow vastly as a writer and
scholar.
English 101 has helped me improve in many different areas. I feel my
improvements are most notable in my effectiveness in expressing my ideas,
and understanding/organization of essays has improved as well. One of our
first major assignments in class, the literary analysis of Child by Tyger is a
testament to the significant impact that mere weeks had on my ability to
write. The little time that I had spent in Professor Petrides class had improved

Marcelo Pleitez
Petrides 101
December 7, 2015

my skills enough to write what I believe is one of my best literary analyses of

my young career as an English student. The literary analysis was perhaps our
3rd essay assigned to us, the 96% scored on the literary analysis is a drastic
improvement from the 75% I received as a grade in our first assignment of
the course: Who is in the Picture, an essay based the reflection of
ourselves in a photo that had us in it. The literary analysis is filled with ideas
stated in more complex ways while still having more mature and clearer
understanding of the work being observed. The literary analysis also has
fewer flaws and better structure than that of my first essay in this class.
My main two areas needing most improvement still are finding and
applying more sources to essays, and citing these effective and credible
sources in my works cited page, as well as using them in-text. Both my
Smithsonian research essay and my argumentative essay both lacked
sufficient sources to meet the required amount, and as a result it is apparent
that my essays full potential were not realized. The use and application of
sources for any form of essay is fundamental and a critical part of forming a
well informed and respectable essay. It has come to my understanding that is
rare to find any essay with too many sources as one can hardly ever be too
informed or too knowledgeable on a certain topic. Sources remained a key
struggle for me towards the end of our course yet I understand their value
and will strive to pour more effort into finding and using more sources for my
essays.

Marcelo Pleitez
Petrides 101
December 7, 2015

Nearing the end of this English 101 course I am confident about how I
will perform in English 102. I strongly believe that the foundations and
lessons taught by Professor Petrides have improved my skills enough to
continue to grow as a writer. What areas I am most worried about
(researching and application of sources) can be improved with practice and
devoting more time to these areas of writing essays. Thanks to Professor
Petrides, I am now confident in my skills as a writer and feel prepared for
whatever English courses I may take in the future, regardless of its difficulty.