Victor Meza

College 001
Professor Vasquez
12/3/14
Final e-Portfolio
Well the RRJ assignments were very pointless in my point of view because we had to read
long chapters which were about 20-30 pages long. Then we had to summarize what we had read
for that entire chapter and find important stuff that had happen while reading. The RRJ were our
assignments for college 001 and they were about 20 points so everyone had to do them because
that was basically your grade. The character that influenced me was Juans father, Manny,
because he was an ex gangster and I wanted to be like him when I was a really small kid. It got
me thinking that gangsters like Manny did not like going to school because they found it
pointless. When reading this book it got me to think that I had made a good choice by coming to
college and decided to myself that I was already here and why quit? If I am here might as well
complete my task at Pasadena City College.
My reading has changed dramatically since high school because when I was a senior in high
school I did not read as much as I did when I was in 9th and 10th grade. I think it was the teacher
that I had when I was a senior he made read us once in a while he mostly put Shakespeare
movies so the class can watch them, and I thought that was boring. That would put me to sleep
and I would feel lazy for the rest of the day. Now that I have been in college for a full semester I
can say that my reading has improved because we had a lot of reading to do while in college 001

and also in my English class. The strategies that I have developed are that I read and I talk to my
text and ask myself questions about what did I read and I underline important information. I put
sticky notes inside my book and write quotes or character names there when I do not have room
in my book or paper. Something that I read and it was difficult was my English prompt essay. I
did not know what it meant It did not make sense to me so I had to take it to a coach at the TLC
and let them explain it to me better. I was scared because it was going to be my first college
paper to do and the prompt was very different then it was in high school. I feel like an insider
because I am reading with everyone that is inside that class with me and I know that the
professor is there to read too. Were all on the same page and I know I should not be worried
what I read is stupid because that is what we are reading as a class. I feel like an outsider because
I think at the pace I might read at is not the same pace as everyone else that is reading in the
class. In other words I feel like they could be judgmental towards me and others that might feel
this.

The one assignment that made me feel successful about myself was when I took my first
real big test for my math class which was 100 points. I got a 90% on it and I was very proud of
myself and surprised too because I thought I was going to fail it. I accomplished this success by

asking for help from my classmates and the professor. I visited him during office hours too and I
knew that was a big help too because it was just me and him one on one and he was explaining
everything to me carefully without any other students. I learned something, when you ask for
help you learn better, and when you take proper notes and reflect on that to do your homework
you also understand the material so much better. Another thing that I learned was that not to take
the first test for granite because that does not mean that forever you are going to pass all the tests
that you encounter in the future does not matter what class it is.
After my first quiz that I took while I was barely getting used to college I took a math quiz
which was out of 15 points and I failed it. I grew from that by telling my own self that this was
not over and that I had so many opportunities still in my math class as in I could pass my next
quiz and then just study harder than what I did for the first quiz. I used a special resource which
was talking to my girlfriend on our own time and telling me it was only the first one and that
everyone makes the same mistake in their first quiz or test. She made me realized I was not the
only one that had made this mistake at all she also knew some of her friends that made this
mistake also. Yes, I was more successful at the end because I told myself not give up basically
and that I had other opportunities to get my grade back up in the class I just had to put in the time
which was to study harder and be less on my phone because I was really addicted to it. I learned
that if you fail at one thing there will always be a another chance for you to get a better outcome
out of it. Another thing that I learned was that even if it is your girlfriend or at least your little
baby sister that cannot even talk properly you will always feel like you were not the only one that
made that mistake because not everyone is perfect in this world.

One of these identifies my bad score that I got and the other one identifies the better score
that I advantage to get.
Dear Future FYE Pathways/College 1 student,
Hello my name is Victor Meza and I am currently a first year pathway student. Pathways was
a great help for me when I started the program. Everyone who is in pathways as in the coaches
and tutors are all very nice and have a lot of patience with you. It was different at first going
through the change from high school to college because I thought it was going to be like an
environment where people were going to miss treat you. A reference that I would recommend is
the author of the Madonnas of Echo Park. The 4 guides that I used to be successful in my

college life were the (TLC) that is the home for pathways students. I know it might sound a bit
odd but it is true only PATHWAY students are available to step foot inside of that building.
Coaches are there and tutors are also there and they will put in the time to help you succeed in
your first year of college for all you fresh newbies out there. During the semester I read a book
called the college reader and I read some articles along with my college 001class every Friday.
Lets Teach Students to Prioritize: Reconsidering Wants and Needs, and Understanding
and Overcoming Procrastination. These were two of my favorite articles because it talked about
the wants and the needs of a person especially when they are kids. Young people should be
taught at a very young age what is the difference between a want and a need because not
everyone needs that special thing that everyone is getting and not everyone wants that special
need. I also have leanred that working with groups is more efficient than working alone because
couple more heads are always better than one and you get to annotate the text better and
everyone processes something important on what they are reading. Everyone in the group stirves
for that better grade for everyone but everyone has to be involved in this together. The things I
used to be successful were the tlc, library, wifi lounge and office hours. The tlc was the best of
them all because not only did I get to do homework but I printed my stuff out there and I typed
them too when I had the chance. The library was also good because when there was no
computers available in the tlc I went there to check one out and use it for two hours while I did
my homework on it. Also it was very quite inside of the library thats another reason why I liked
it very much. The next thing was the Wi-Fi lounge because that was another spot you can use
laptops for homework and people were loud there too and you could interact with so many
different people. The Wi-Fi there was really good too by the way I decide you guys check it
out when you start college. If you needed sleep you can knock out in there and sleep for a few

hours I did because I was really tired and I had class around 12:00 P.M. The office hours were
the last thing that made me successful I made appointments with professors and visited during
the hours they provided on the syllabus. They cleared my mind for the homeworks they had
assigned and the tests that were coming up they clarified for me too. I was confused about ho to
register for classes but then I talked to my coach about it and it was so easy to register If I did it,
YOU can too! Go ahead and sign up for PATHWAYS NOW!
Sincerely
Victor Meza (FYP)

This is the Wi-Fi Lounge that helped me catch on my sleep so I can fresh and active for my next
class.

This is the Library that made me feel relieved if I didnt have a computer to use at the TLC.