Just Eight Short Weeks

While taking Mrs. Laura Cline's English 102 summer course I was not expecting to learn all that I did.  I felt that I had a grasp on what was considered modern technology until this recent summer.  Blogging was something that I heard about but never attempted to do, my web cam is something that came with my computer but was never used.  What an eyeopener I had in store for me with this class.  Technology was a crucial portion of this class and without the ability to utilize and learn this I probably would of failed.  I feel that the style of teaching was very beneficial to me because now I have the knowledge to use this information towards future courses.  This English class is the last required one for my degree, but I do like to write poetry so I might take a creative writing class in the future.  Now I can create blog pages, xtranormal movies, and all other creative ways to express my feelings and work.  English is a part of everyone's career no matter what the road may lead to because the task of conversation or the need to write is always used regardless of occupation.
The required readings for this course were pleasantly enjoyable just for the pure fact of them not being 500 page text style.  The poetry of witness was extraordinary and very interesting. This collection of readings allowed us as students/readers to associate our personal life to those that were written by various authors.  I now look at poetry differently because of Mrs. Cline's teaching which should how to read between the lines.  We read a variety of poems through the collection of poetry of witness as well as an analysis of how to break apart poems to better understand.  Poetry has always been appealing to me but to read someone else work and be able to relate it to personal issues.  While reading "Immigrants In Our Own Land" written by Jimmy Baca I decided to choose this poem to relate to because I have some family relations to the incarceration issues that Baca addressed.  Also I found this poem very interesting because it was not until half way through that I discovered what the poem was truly revealing, the life of an inmate.   
Learning will be something that will always continue to grow.  The outcomes that were outlined in the syllabus were simply stated and the expectations were clear.  I feel that I personally have met what was requested by our instructor and the outcomes were accomplished.  I respect that Mrs. Cline responded quickly to e-mails and gave feedback on all assignments.  I believe that I have met the learning requirements by embracing the necessity of modern technology such as blogging and doing an entire course on-line.
Writtng has always been some what of a challenge for me because I just write what I feel and what I think and some times do not worry about the grammatical issues that are very prudent for success.  Prior to this course I wrote what was the bare minimum and wrote things in my own interpretation, which is okay but was difficult for others to understand.  Poetry was always a hot spot for me because I like the way it flowed, but now I have a better ability to write it because of the materials given during this course.
At the beginning of this course I was not to sure if I would stay afloat, not because of what was requested but the way it needed to be submitted.  I was very nervous doing the introduction and filming myself and it actually took several attempts to get the light right and to have my two kids stay quite while I filmed.  It finally got to the point of spending 3 hours to record a simple 2-3 minute film.  I was not happy with one so I would re-record, this happened to many times, but I accomplished what needed to be done.  I have never seen blogger let alone create my own prior to this course and was very intimidated by the whole situation.  Obliviously I was able to overcome my fear of the unknown and move forward.  Adding links was something that I had to review the first few weeks of this course because just as I thought I grasped the concept when it came time to place my knowledge into action I failed.  Just as the little engine that could I did not give up and tried, tried again.
This was my very first summer course and I must admit it was pleasant.  It is great to know that I was able to do what takes a whole semester to accomplish in just eight short weeks :).  This is just the beginning of the road to my education and feel confident that what I learned over summer break will help me in many other classes because now I am a little more savvy on the technical aspect of college.