Jahrique Stewart

ENG 121
Mrs. Litle
19th April, 2017
Strengths and Weaknesses of English 121

English has always been one of my favorite subjects because its basic and doesnt

require a lot of thinking. The study is relatively easy to decode, process and understand while

providing the knowledge to expand your speech and writing. Over the semester the class

participated in a variety of activities including journals/ reflective papers, peer reviews and long

paper assignments. Some of the activities were fun and beneficial such as the journals and

Bazerman papers while others I wasnt too enthusiastic about such as peer reviews and the final

reflective essay. The assistance of the teacher aided me to develop my analyzing skills that I was

not confident with. Some activities expressed that I was weak in some areas while others

displayed my strengths. At the end of the semester I can see the benefits and how Ive grown in

some areas of the subject.

The first piece of work that was meaningful to me was Journal two which focused on our

personality traits and the strengths and weaknesses of our personality. This was a lot for me

because it gave me time to reevaluate myself and give myself a chance to view where Im at and

where I need to be as an individual. I was able to view myself in depth and analyze what Im

really strong and weak at. I can recall that most of my emotions are displayed on a soccer field

where I feel true freedom at all times. The activity was a complete test about oneself and it was a

sort of wakeup call for some individuals, well for me exactly.

 Journal three was another activity that had a lot of an impact on me as an assignment. The

content of the activity was to choose an object or symbol that reflects you as an individual. Of

course the object I chose was a soccer ball or anything that relates to soccer because I believe

thats one of the reason if not the main reason I work so hard to achieve what I want. Most of my

life Ive played soccer and learnt some valuable lessons while playing the sport which assisted in

building the strong character/ personality that I possess today. Everything about myself revolves

around soccer from my bedroom mats and sheets to my career that Im pursuing. Im a soccer

addict.

One of the main journals that were interesting to me was Journal six which focused on

charity, the exercise was to write about a charity organization, what they do and how they do it.

For this exercise I already had a first idea for what I wanted to write about so it was a bit

manageable with the research done. I spoke about ex-rapper Akon who provided solar energy to

millions of African homes just within a year. This act of kindness was eye catching to me

because him as an individual was able to do so much that larger organizations have been

trying to do over the past two decades. This journal in particular taught me that there are no

limits to do anything that you are determined to do and excuses are just reasons for people to

pretend to assist you but they really dont want to.

The exercises that I thought to be difficult were the peer reviews, I detest that exercise

strongly and Im in high hopes that in my future education I dont encounter such activity or

anything similar to it. Its an exercise where review is done to the written draft of one of your

classmates and provide a written response about the strengths and weaknesses about their paper.

I wasnt too confident about this because I was fearful that I gave people the wrong feedback and

they altered something wrong. Added to that I dont like the idea of giving other individuals
feedback on their work because everyone has different writing styles and Im not familiar with

all. I basically just focus on my writing styles and as I go along I seek ways to improve it. Even

though the exercise proved difficult from the other activities as we continued paper after paper I

saw and felt improvements within my analytical skills.

Paper four was an assignment that brought about some difficulties for me as well. It was

an argumentative paper on whether college athletes should remain unpaid. This topic was

difficult because a lot of individuals were supporting athletes to be paid because of the benefits

generated from the college leagues and television views. However, I was of the opinion that

athletes should not be paid because of the negative consequences that can come with money in

the hands of students and the amount of focus that will be placed on studies as well, in the paper

I went a lot more in depth. Despite the strong opposition I received I stuck with my point and got

through it, this taught me to stand up for what you believe in no matter the amount of opposition

you receive.

The final reflective exercise I referred to as the worst of them all because it was more

of a digital assignment. Im a kinetic learner, I need to interact with my apparatus and be able to

touch it therefore from the beginning when I discovered the content of the exercise I found

difficulties in completing it. However, I got through it and was able to complete it for the sake of

a good grade and academic excellence. The assignment was confusing but it taught me the ability

to adjust to others people styles for the purpose of production. It reminded me that everything

doesnt go the way you want it and to be successful you need to adjust and learn other things, the

last exercise gave me a valuable lesson that I received with force.

English 121 this semester was one of the best classes Ive had over my last freshman here

at Otero. I appreciate the teacher and the efforts she placed into the class and the individual
efforts she placed into me, especially in times when I needed encouragement for exercises such

as peer review. Reflecting, I can recall that my English abilities have been enhanced both in the

fields or speech and writing and I hope I can continue utilizing what I learnt in the classroom

both in my life and be able to share it with others.