English 111: The Low-Down

The Low-Down

I can't believe it's already time to reflect on my first semester at TCC. Time has really gone by faster than I expected and I feel that I have already learned so much. Having dropped out of this class last winter semester I felt I should say apprehensive about coming back with the same teacher; I have to admit the way Mr. Gasparo introduced the class did make it sound like it was going to be a lot more work than it actually was. Although i was always a smart kid, I lacked the motivation to apply myself all through my high school career; my attendence and grades were the result.

After settling in and making it past the first few weeks of English 111, I started to get the hang of the way all classwork was supposed to be organized and I learned how to used blackboard quite efficiently. This allowed me to stay on track with the assignments that were due and having access to email made it even easier. In my opinion you are either going to enjoy this class or totally hate it, depending on if writing appeals to you. For me, this class allowed me to express my world of imagination in my writing; for example the narrative diagnostic essay allowed me to tell a really cool story on paper.

The way Mr. Gasparo presented the information he was trying to instill was in a sense very logical and it allowed me to clearly undersand the topics. I am happy because I have come out of this class with a much clearer understanding of MLA format(I hope), and with a refreshed sense of writing style.

My favorite assignment to write was definitely the diagnostic essay because it was a narrative for one, which are my favorite because I can express my imagination most easily and I feel like I can easily create a picture using detail in words for the reader to visualize; that allows them to vividly understand my writing. The fact that it was also a true story and the most incredible time I've ever had in my life made it really easy and fun to write about.

I can honestly say that I did not have a problem writing any of these assignments; I guess i was lucky because i was able to choose easy topics to write about because they all applied to my life. The hardest part about this class was writing the research paper because I had never written any type of paper that long nor have I ever had to include and cite images before. Nevertheless I am happy I have learned how to do that and look forward to moving on.

Overall this class was incredibly enjoyable for me and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys English and writing. All you have to do is keep up with your assignments and it's fairly stress free. I recommend Mr. Gasparo to anyone who takes school seriously and can dedicate time and a little imagination into their writing because he makes the class enjoyable to be in with his sense of humor. It's always great to be able to relate.

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