In all of my assignments and work this semester, the assignment that made me feel the most successful is my English 1A essay. I was assigned to do a 3-5 page essay on the topic of visual and connect it to the readings discuss in class. I got an A on the paper and I was extremely delighted because it was the first time that my English professor wrote good job on my paper. I learn that the sense of enjoyment and delight comes from doing my best effort and approaching the professor and knowing how to improve. I am happy because my hard work paid off. from this success in English class, i learned that it is better to be humble and not ignorant. before, i was always arrogant and i think that i can handle anything on my own. i was hit with the hard fact that the English level in America is higher. So because of this success, i learned a better system to succeed in English class. I realized that this class needs extreme support from the professor and other sources to succeed. for example, i seek support from tutors and my fellow friends in terms of editing my essay. i realized that English class needs excessive editing and i have to push my paper to perfection. So support from the writing lab and my professor really help me succeed in this class.
As for my Anthropology class, I got 40 out of 50 on my research paper and 42 out of 50 on my first exam. This made me feel the least successful because after putting in so much work and effort, the results did not show I learned that not everything in life goes the way you want and sometimes life is just not fair. from the failure, i learned that i should not take things too lightly. for this class, i am always underestimating the task and thinking "there will always be a next time". i learned to always take a test or do an assignment with a mindset of no second chances. this failure changed how i do things better in Anthropology class. i found a better system of asking the teacher for extra materials after class just to make sure i cover all the topics he discussed. i get support from my Professor and friends for this failure. i often organize a study group with my fellow Indonesian friends and we would just study Anthropology before the test for hours. my professor is also very helpful as he gives me lots of material to study from. so this failure has made me a better student in class.
Throughout this semester, I am able to articulate three things that I learned about myself as a person. As a person I learned that I am stubborn at times and I found out about this during the Team Teaching group. I always want what I think is best. Secondly, I always try my best when I feel that the work is important for me and will benefit me in the future. Lastly, I learned that am not a morning person at all. In Indonesia, my housekeeper wakes me up for school but here I have to live independently and that is really hard for me. About using the student success strategies, I have learned three things in general. First, I learned that by setting my goals, I am actually doing better and more motivated in school. Then, by planning ahead and attending class, I am able to grasp the class material easily and get my homework done in time. Third, I am able to reach my goal of doing a good job in a local basketball tournament with my team because I think ahead and practice a lot with them before the competition. We ended u getting second place so that is really good. from this success with the basketball team, i learned that being open minded in a group and learning how to not be stubborn helps your teams chemistry. if i were to fight with my teammates, this would hurt our relationship as a team and affect our playing performances. so me and my teammates develop a system of not arguing and settling our disputes after the tournament. i seek sources from my teammates on how to not be stubborn and lose my temper. so from this sucesss, i learned the most fundamental aspect of teamwork and the key ideas to succeed as a team.