Self Evaluation and Reflection

    I really think this ESEM course has really made me grow as a writer and thinking. I really enjoyed the discussions we had in class where we really reached out of our comfort zone to tackle and discuss issues of society addressed readings and in current events. The space was always open and comfortable and I felt free to express myself and people felt comfortable to challenge each other. I really enjoyed the readings as they were thought provoking and relevent to current day issues. They were challenging but readable. I was not able to complete most readings because I am a slow reader and it takes me a while to fully grasp material. Also there were times where I felt that there were too many readings given at once that were overwhelming in both length and complexity.

i've been avoiding this.

where you were when we began this 360° process, where you are now, and what’s been happening in between. How-and-what have you been learning? Where do you think that the edges of your learning now lie? In what ways has your understanding been expanded, challenged, or complexified in this 360°? Be sure to include reflections on the degree of your critical, active engagement with the portion of the cluster devoted to the creation of our exhibit. 

do you think

calling me ‘angry’

is an insult.

every time you call me ‘angry’

i hear your voice salt with guilt

and

i laugh.

look how easy it is to reveal you.

--- anger is a healthy and natural response to oppression

salt. by nayyirah waheed.

As I bid my family members goodbye at my going away party, I was reminded rather universal by my family that the first semester of college is the hardest part and making it through those few months is true stamina. Well, if you did not know, I am alway eager for a challenge and so I  told them brazenly that my mind was sharp and I would go bold into the unknown. This pretense set me up to have many disastrous expectations. However, I am pleased to say, Esem was not one of these mishaps.

“10 ways I can Help the Earth,” was the title of a poster I saw taped to the refrigerator at the Juvenile Law Center in downtown Philadelphia. It was a lime green initiative to combat climate change illustrated with childish cartoons and littered with nearly useless ways for saving the earth. The irony, while I attempted to learning about advocacy within a systematic firmI was confronted with the very real and often poorly dealt problem of global demise. With the looming fear of Trump’s reign in my foremind the raging mad desire to undo the probable pain that he will cause as our nation’s new president-elect, I was caught in my tracks.

Dear Anne:

Thank you so much. I’m so glad to have you in my first semester in college. I mean it.

I really appreciate the in-class discussion. I didn’t feel like to talk much in public before, not mention having discussion with others in my second language. But Anne always encouraged me to talk more in class in our conference, so I forced myself to talk more in the class. But gradually talking became less stressful, and I didn’t have force myself anymore because I started to feel comfortable to express my opinion whenever I want, and this really makes feel that I’m truly involved in this class.

I started out the semester really excited for this 360. I knew it wouldn’t be easy, but it was important to me in so many ways. I already knew that I would be declaring an English major and Education minor, with the goal of someday becoming an English teacher, so having the two subjects in one 360 was perfect, and I knew that the topic of race would be relevant to my future work as a teacher. It was also the first time I would be taking an Education class, which was exciting and scary. As for Museum Studies, I knew it would be interesting, but I was nervous, since I normally would never have even considered taking a class in such a subject.

Where Am I Now

This course has been an academic experience unlike any other that I’ve had.  Never before have I found myself in a class setting that is simultaneously open and engaging.  In other classes with a similar relaxed setting, I’m rarely able to give my undivided attention to the topic of discussion.  However, this class was easy for me to participate in.  The group discussions were always interesting and valuable.

Dear Anne,