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Jackson Barlow Masterton
Professor Voltz
UWRT- 1102
May 1, 2016
Course Reflection Essay
Over the course of a college semester you will put yourself into many different situations
and be presented opportunities that you once might have never had. You grow over a college
semester in many different aspects of your life. Maybe you used to be the quiet type who
enjoyed silence and solidarity, but now your participating in multiple clubs, Greek life, and with
friends all through out the day. Perhaps you once thought that you were a conservative and that
your values were deeply rooted in the Republican party. Since starting college and being away
from your parents realized that youre a bleeding heart liberal. You might have even though you
couldnt eat anything but your Mommas home cooking, but now you solely survive on the
sustenance of Ramen noodles. While at college you will slowly transform into the adult youll be
for rest of your life. Youll wonder Have I always been this way? The only way to understand
what youve become is to look back at what you were. Writing a reflective essay is the best way
to convey that story. Its different from other types of essays. Most essays youll write about the
thoughts and ideas of your current self, but with a reflective essay you write about the thoughts
of multiple yous through out your life. This essay is important on figuring out your progression
as a writer and what you have become. I am very excited to show you how I personally have
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changed as a writer and a human being in this essay. For example, heres me on the firs day of
High school and the first day of UNC Charlotte.
As you can see I have changed quite
drastically. Reflecting on these pictures Ill point out that I now know that Mohawks arent good
hairdos.
When I first started at this University, I could honestly say that I was an awful writer with
no Idea how to accurately express my thoughts with pen and paper. Last semester I had an
English professor who I can only describe as the Destroyer of Dreams. On essay where we
would be required to share our thoughts and feelings she would tell us they were wrong and that
to get a better grade we would have to adjust our opinion. So I stopped writing what I felt and
started writing essays that reflected the views of our teacher so that I could get the best grade for
the class. That experience really put a damper on my artistic capabilities. So when I came to
Charlotte I was truly confused when my professors first assignment was a free write to let her
understand the classes abilities as writers. At first I held back my true feelings in my writing,
thinking that If I really opened up that I would be Immediately shut down. Then after a couple
weeks I realized the classroom was an open space for imagination. Through my writing I was
able to reveal my true thoughts on many topics I had once felt differently about. I was opened up
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to the negative effects of conformity. That even though it might be unpopular to be different
from society that it is actually healthier. When you follow the heard you cant grow and youll
just be another zombie being lead around with a leash by the oppressive grip of Social Unity .
Realizing this allowed me to write on a whole new level. I wrote down Ideas that back in High
School I might have hated my self for. This new expression of feelings gave me an outlet for my
freedom of speech. What many people do not understand that our First Amendment to the
constitution actually advocates for the use of free expression without fear of persecution wether
that be by the law or even by your peers.
My best piece of writing over the Semester would have to be Journal entry number 9. The
prompt was to choose a topic on something you cared deeply about and show it artistically in any
form possible. I chose to write a poem. I had never written a poem before and I thought I should
try something new because it would help me improve as an author. My topic was the same as my
Extended Inquiry Project, the Marine Corps. It is a topic that I have always been interested in
and plan on making it my career. It was an interesting task to take on. I had to really dig deep in
my brain to figure out how to form my thoughts into a poem. I used this writing as an
opportunity to indirectly relay a message through a poetic story. That is why I believe this was
my best piece of writing throughout the semester.
There were many life lessons that I learned over this semester, in my writing and in my
social life. However, there is one that I really took to heart and know that it is how Ill live my
life from now on. That is to write whatever you want. There might be times when your thoughts
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might not be politically correct and might offend a majority of people. Hey you might even loose
friends over your writings. But its all worth it because at last youll keep your integrity. People
who shy down from truly expressing their feelings will never truly live. When we watched the
video from the episode of South Park, I took it more than just kids swearing, but as the creators
saying Hey, we arent afraid of what we have to say, just try and stop us. I since have applied
this trait to every aspect of my life. I have not only seen and improvement in my writing because
of this but also that people respect me more for speaking my mind and not being a coward. That
is what I believe is the most useful thing I have learned all semester.
When I think of a Research paper I think of, long hours in the library, reading boring and
pointless text books and studies and, that there is no way Ill be able to do this. Research papers
suggest that youll to learn about a topic you care nothing about. To me death sounds like an
easier path. But when I hear Extended Inquiry Project, I think of being able to do research on a
topic that is fascinating. Ill be able to inquire my thoughts on the subject instead of what some
professor wrote down in a book. When I first started my proposal I knew that I was going to
have to really choose something that would keep me motivated. I thought hey If I am going to be
joining the Marine Corps in a few years Id like to know more about it. In my proposal I wrote
about what I had previously known about the Corps through school and personal experiences.
Then I wrote about what more I would like to inquire about the Marine Corps. I started my
research and found that there were many websites that explained the history of the Marine Corps
and what its current role was in todays society. I found many blogs on what peoples views were
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on the Marine Corps and what they do. It was actually quite surprising what I found and how
much the internet had to offer. I started on first draft writing about why people have changed
their views from supporting the marine corps to full on anti-military, I wrote about their current
actions in the middle-east and in America. Lastly I wrote about how underfunded our military
was and why we should fund it more. After I had someone review I really didnt change much
besides grammatical errors. But I do agree that it was a major help. The EIP was probably my
favorite assignment during the semester and it really let met see what my future holds with the
Marine Corps.
In conclusion, I am happy to say that I can see that I have grown this semester into a shy,
conservative loner. Into a free speaking, open-minded college student. I credit this class into
developing these skills and straits that I will have with me forever. But there is no one else I
thank more than Professor Voltz. Her love and support allowed me to be me. She was
understanding when I was going through some emotional times with my family. I hope to find
professors half as loving as her in the years to come. Know after reflecting, there is only one
more thing I can say. Carpe Diem!