Speer 1

Ashley Speer Eng. 102-106 Mr. Neuburger 16 May 2012 English Final Writing Taking this English course this semester has opened my eyes to a new perspective of learning. At the beginning of the semester we began by writing one paragraph essays, which at first concerned me because being able to make an essay flow properly by using one paragraph seemed near to impossible. I soon learned though that by using this technique to write I would enhance my skills as a writer. I do believe the stories I read that I wrote the one paragraph essays over helped me to become a better story evaluator in that I could read a story and tell about what I think the story was attempting to communicate to the reader. Whenever I was asked to write a 15 page paper over the Holocaust I felt overwhelmed because I had never written a paper that extensive before. I am glad we wrote the paper over the Holocaust though because it gave me insight on a subject I had never really focused on before. Being able to learn about what the Jews experienced throughout the time of the Holocaust made me even more appreciate the great country that I live in. What really drew my attention to the subject was watching Kristine Kerens survivor testimony. The agony that she and her family experienced was terrible, but the reward of surviving such a tragic time is an outstanding feat which they accomplished. Although I enjoyed writing this paper, I do wish I would of have more time to write and focus on the subject for I felt my research paper could have been much better than it turned out to be.

Speer 2

Using Technology In this class, we also used a wide variety of technology. Some of the technology we used was intimidating to me at first, but after studying and aquatinting myself with it, I realized that it was harmless and was there to help me and make my life easier. I enjoyed the use of technology in this class this semester and I wish more of my other teachers would utilize it in their classes also. There are many people at Ozark Technical Community College which are continuing their education at a later stage in life which I am sure makes using new age technology more difficult for them. Therefore, I think learning how to cope with the new devices does not only benefit them greatly, but also gives the younger generation a new view on how to deal with the technology too. Creating the digital movie was a fun a creative experience which I enjoyed. I learned how to use Windows Movie Maker and Audacity which are two technological devices I had never had experience with before. I really did not think it was possible to transport audio into a computer and add it a video. I will definitely keep audacity downloaded on my computer to use for future projects. Using Twitter was probably my favorite part of this class. I appreciated how we were able to communicate with each other and the teacher by using technology. I feel that this is an effective way to join the whole class in a discussion because many times students do not speak up in class because of the fear of having attention drawn to them and being put on the spot. I am one of those people who does not like to have attention drawn to me, so by using Twitter I felt more able to communicate with everyone in the classroom. My Teacher

Speer 3

I really enjoyed Mr. Neuburger as a teacher this semester. He was very helpful and connected with the students in a nice and constructive manner. He taught me about using technology and how to write one paragraph essays which I will use in the near future to accomplish my degree. I would definitely recommend him to other students. Overall, this I have enjoyed taking this class and I do not have any regrets about taking it. I believe my writing skills improved greatly in this class. I learned how to use headings and subheadings which I had never used before. I learned how to use easybib.com to cite my sources and I learned how to properly construct a MLA paper. I also learned how to integrate technology with projects and create a digital portfolio which will be beneficial to me in the future. I think taking this class was helpful to me and will help me later on in life.