Month: December 2018

Taylor Schwalbach 

Critical Thinking/ Problem Solving

For this skill, I think that I have developed it due to my Creative Writing Class. In this class, we all have to present one analized reading and present it to the class. I feel like this has really helped me future my development of craft analysis as well as my overall ability to problem solve when I run into text that is hard to digest.  The reason that I attribute success in critical thinking is due to how we are able to present to the class. You are responsible for reading the piece and also need to be able to explain and expand on the piece to the whole class.

Oral/Written Communication

In this skill, I would have to say that it has been developed in my English Composition class. I have always been very excited about the topic of creative writing, but when it comes to writing about writing about opinions and positions, I tend to struggle. In my English Composition class, we had to write a position paper about a topic that was meaningful to us. I was not comfortable with the idea of staining my opinion while also trying to disprove someone else’s opinion, it was difficult to say the least.  Since that project, I have developed the skills to not only get my opinions across through writing, but it has also taught me to step back in conversation as well. While the main point of the paper was to argue my point, I learned a lot about how to see others views as well.

Professionalism

Professionalism has to be the most useful tool that college has taught me overall. The class that I can really marrow down this skill being taught in, is my business class. My teacher provides us with many opportunities such as meeting people at job fairs, creating a linkedin profile to find jobs, etc. This class has taught me professionalism by showing me what it is like in the real world of business. I have gained knowledge both in communication as well as how to find a job. This class has been helpful for me because I really look forward to having an internship by the time I am a sophomore and its class has narrowed down my search to a human resource management internship.

By: Taylor Schwalbach 

I can really credit a lot of how I’ve grown as a person to what we have done throughout this course. Although out high school, I was never the one to be actively participating. While I got average grades and spoke every now and then to the class, I was not someone who you would consider to be very outgoing.

This class has really helped me get out of my comfort zone. I will admit to being a bit shy in the classroom, but I was even more hesitant to do anything in the community. As a result of this, I tended to be very involved in anything that was not school related. I appreciate the things that we did outside of class and can truly say that they have helped me grow as a member of the community rather than just as a student.

In my first few entries of my journals, I described how I was not very outgoing in very many things that I have done. Now, at the end of the semester as I look back on my journals, I think that I have grown a lot. In the classroom, I was never one to ever volunteer for anything. I hated reading out loud with th class or sharing my overall thoughts. This class has made me more confident in both myself and what I want to say.  Talking in small groups really helped me understand what was going on in the discussions that we had as a class If I was ever lost. Small groups also gave me confidence when sharing with them to then share my opinion to the class. Because of these things, I think the overall set up of this course really helped with my skills in the classroom.

Next semester, I am looking forward to applying all the things we have learned in and outside the classroom to our services project. This class in particular has made me want to help the underserved and give back to those who need it. Before this class, I took very little notice of the things around me if they did not affect me directly. I can see now why we should pay attention to things that seem to be “small problems” that people view as not worth fixing. If everyone goes around with the attitude that someone else will do it, then it will never get done. Looking into ways to give back to my community has helped me realize that even though things are not making an impact on me in amy way, my help (no matter how much or how little) will always make a huge impact on another person’s life.

Overall, this course has helped mold me into both the student and citizen that I would like to be. While I don’t feel like I am quite there yet, the steps that we have taken in class have put my foot in the door for future opportunities that I feel will get me to where I would like to be.