Alyssa Desormeaux

Major Project III Reflection

University of Central Florida

 The process for completing this assignment was, like my other Major Projects, hard.

However, when it came to completing this specific project, I found it to be harder than my other

projects to complete. It was hard to completely understand the main concept and later complete

the main task/assignment, which eventually made me feel as though it was easier for me to get

distracted from my goal of keeping focused and completing my main task. What I did to develop

ideas for this project would be to reflect on how I and my family would communicate with each

other with the different languages that we spoke, (being Kreyol and English).

The main terms/course concepts that were very necessary for us to know and understand

in order to employ it in our writing assignments would be “Translingual Literacy” as well as

“Code-Meshing”, which is a concept that was taken from the concept of Translingual Literacy. I

struggled with completely being able to understand these specific terms for this assignment.

There would be times in which I would see that I would understand the terms and concepts that

we were supposed to know, but then later I would find myself being a little confused on the

concepts again. But when I did find myself feeling as though I would be able to understand the

concepts, I found it a little hard to figure out how I would be able to express how these terms and

concepts strongly applied to me, and how I would efficiently show my understanding of these

terms, and strongly apply them to my essay.

When it comes to the feedback that I was able to receive from my peers, lots of the

feedback included how I should first introduce the concept to the readers/audience for them to

understand the idea or main theme of my essay. I also got some feedback in which I was advised

to include more details or examples of when and how translingual literacy would happen within

my household, with my friends and family, and if I were to have had gained some advantages or

disadvantages from these forms of translingual communications. I used the feedback that I had
from Professor Vazquez on my previous projects to help me consider that I had to include lots

and lots more details and/or specific examples portraying the events or themes that I wanted to

express or that I was specifically talking about.

When doing this assignment, I found lots of it to be hard for me. I found making sure that

I fully and strongly undertood the concept itself to be hard, and I additionally found it to be a

little hard to try and express my understanding of the concept into a well written essay. I had to

figure out a way that did not just simply have me writing out some examples of conversations

that I would have with friends and family in Kreyol and English, and simply translate it later on.

I had to figure out ways in which I could creatively put those examples into my essay, and

elaborate on them, such as explaining when or where I would use these expressions or phrases,

or what the situation was when these phrases, sentences and/or expressions would be used.

Another thing that I found to be a bit difficult when writing this essay would be the

amount of time it took for me to sit down and thoroughly think and reflect on some specific

examples of ways that I, my family and some of my friends would use translingual literacy when

conversing with one another in Kreyol and/or English. Because there is the possibility that we

use it almost every day within my household, or when speaking with friends that are of the same

cultural background as me, it may seem more normal, to where I wouldn’t really think about it

once it happens. And sometimes when it does happen, you may not realize it is happening,

therefore making it a little hard for me to remember specific examples of me using translingual

literacy because of how it may no longer be obvious due to the possible many times that I, my

family and friends, may possibly unknowingly use it.

When writing this essay, I learned something more personally about myself when it

comes to writing essays. For example, I was able to learn that when it came to me writing essays,
if it was a hard one itself, where I either found the concept to be a little too difficult to

understand, or I just did not know what to write, then I tend to get distracted easier. There is a

higher chance of me putting it off and going on to focus on something else that I knew would be

a little easier for me to understand, manage or have me interested in, and in general, complete.

If I had more time to work on this essay, I would have probably changed my entire draft

itself. I would have possibly shifted the focus from how I, my family and friends would use

translingual literacy and code-meshing with the two different languages that I spoke/ heard

around me, to a whole new different topic. A possible different topic that I would then use would

be how I would use code meshing and translingual literacy when I would text, or simply when I

would talk to someone and how sometimes I would use my hands, or facial expressions mixed

with my words, as a way to emphasize the meaning of something or show how I felt about what

was being said, and more.