Course Reflections
English 1102
Course Area : A
Although I took this class in 2012, I still remember it vividly because it greatly helped me expands my skills as a writer. This was a compositional writing class, so we wrote papers ranging from short story non-fictions to a full fledged research paper. The piece that I still have saved that really stood out to me was a creative non-fiction paper I titled Love is Dead. The selection takes a grim look at the ever growing divorce rate in our society. It explores different reasons as to why the divorce rate is so high, and if the trend is generational or not. This class not only made open my mind when it came to my creative writing, but also helped me perfect my process of writing a research paper including finding sources and formatting.
Criminal Justice 2010
Core Area : B
This class was titled Universal Justice, and I consider it one of the most interesting classes I’ve taken in college. I have always thought of myself as someone who thinks outside the box, and strives to put myself in another’s shoes to see something from a different perspective. This class explored many different subjects including abortion, genocide, war, and religion from a global perspective. We were encouraged to have healthy, educational debates about each subject, and many times the class had a wide range of different opinions concerning each subject. I was required to write a research paper on Guantanamo Bay, and the injustices that have occurred there under the control of the United States government. The paper explores the violation of human rights, and brings light to the irony of the situation in that these acts are being committed by a country that champions for human rights and just punishment. I was forced to question my personal views and morals, and I believe this class helped shape some of my personal political views I still hold today.
Art History 2710
Core Area : C
Art and History are two subjects that I have always enjoyed studying, so having a class in Art History was right up my alley. We traversed art ranging from around 10,000 BCE during the time of cave drawings, all the way to the more modern art of Pablo Picasso. We learned of different mediums of art such as pottery, painting, etching, and sculpting along with different styles and techniques used to achieve the finished product. I was required to write a research piece on a piece of pottery called an amphora. The amphora is estimated to have been created in Greece around 530 BCE, and is titled Achilles and Ajax playing a game. The research I completed explored the technique and medium used, as well as the history behind Greek idealism and symmetry in their art.
Biology 1108
Course Area : D
Although Science is not one of my favorite subjects of learning, I found biology to be quite interesting. Biology 1108 was the second Biology class I took, and I feel that I finished the class with a much better understanding of the mechanics and organisms of the world around me. This course included a lecture and a lab portion. The lab portion was very hand on, and we dissected things such as a pig eyeball, a starfish, and a squid. Although dissection was way out of my comfort zone, I learned a great deal about life forms I’d never thought about prior to taking this course. Some of the specimens we studied were so small they had to be viewed through a microscope, so I became very skilled at using that tool. This was a first for me, and I was astounded to see life forms that were that minuscule.
History 1111
Core Area : E
History has always been my favorite subject in school, but this particular class was one that truly pushed me to become a History major because Dr. Hendricks was a professor that truly brought the stories to life. This particular class was United States History that focused greatly on the Civil War era, which is a time period that has always fascinated and disturbed me. We were required to write a research paper on one of my favorite Presidents, Abraham Lincoln. My research focuses on his Cooper Union Address, which was a speech that greatly influenced his bid for President of the United States. Although United States History is very dark and full of bloodshed and horrendous acts of slavery, it amazing to see how far we have come as a new nation.
