Shoot for the Stars!

Shoot for the Stars!

         Mrs. Fogarty’s AP English class was the first advanced placement course I have ever taken. I was in a new school and can admit to initially being intimidated by my fellow peers and what appeared to me as a higher academic level that they stood on opposed to the unfamiliar status I withheld on the classes overall setting.  My previous teachers, as well as my current teacher, saw the potential in me to excel in these advanced classes, but I did not. That is until I could see for myself the overall journey I've had as a reader, writer and thinker in AP language from the beginning of the year until now. To many teachers who may have known me prior to this year would have classified the work I've done thus far as a tremendous progression.

In the beginning of this year I was unable to identify writing purposes mainly because of my lack of knowledge on literary elements and techniques.  One of our classes earliest prompts were based on a speech written by Florence Kelly. This speeches main purpose was to advocate Kelly’s fight for child labor laws and improved conditions for working women to the National American Women Suffrage Association. The purpose of the prompt though was to identify rhetorical strategies she used in order to exemplify her purpose and message. In this essay I was not able to adequately synthesize the quote I used to support the reasons Kelly used the specific rhetorical strategies she did. For example I identified repetition as a literary element and as the supporting quote cited, “and as we sleep tonight”. My initial synthesized explanation was a very generally put response; “Kelly used the quote “and as we sleep tonight”, to illustrate how while America slept there were many children unprotected by child labor laws working the mills for long hours and low pay.” , this diminished the clarity in my writing. I did not richly support any claims I made leaving a very vague and incomplete explanation to the prompt. Looking back on the prompt now, I see I could have answered the, “how did she do this?” and increased the clarity and overall grade of my writing. The lack of supportive information in my essay though was great practice for more successful essays to come.

A few areas in which I have become more professional at due to this AP course are at understanding complex writings in their correct meanings and accurately understanding literary elements and techniques in their entirety. I now have the ability to break down pieces of literature, analyzing their use of literary elements and techniques, in order to clearly and efficiently synthesize the author’s message and purpose. For example, one of my best writings were on the contemporary scientist, Edward O. Wilson’s,  two passages satirizing the language of two groups that held opposing attitudes about environmentalism.  My first accomplishment was being able to identify satire. Coming into this year’s AP course I was unaware of its true meaning, then from there I was able to explain how, through the use of satire, Wilson portrayed the unproductive nature of such discussions (also known as the purpose).  I was able to explain the unproductive nature of this never ending battle between critics and environmentalist by citing quotes from Wilson’s writing and from the point of view of the critics, “Their conception of the public trust is a strong military establishment and subsidies for loggers and ranchers”, is an example of this. Citing the quote and identifying the rhetorical strategy was not the hard part, it was supporting the quote with supporting evidence all while keeping my argument central with clarity and brevity.  

 What worked for me most in this class were the Socratic seminars and In-class essays.  I would say the Socratic seminars were most effective in my personal growth because I learned how to speak in a more mature and professional etiquette, especially when it came to a topic that could be controversial and personal to my peers. This was very beneficial to me because I can use these skills in my life now and definitely in my journey to further my education and later pursue a career.  The In-class essays were helpful because, after learning the literary elements and techniques, the essays put a limit on the amount of time I had to comprehend the author’s message and further explain what the prompt asked of me (or the task). This was great practice and the more we did these essays, the better and faster I was able to successfully carry out these requirements.

I feel Mrs. Fogarty instructed this class very well. Even when I felt like I wasn't learning anything, I was truly absorbing all utensils needed to progress in the class, like the literary elements and techniques which ultimately made me a better reader in every aspect. The work load was a challenge, but very well prepared me for more challenging courses in which I aspire to attend in my future.  I've learned to discipline myself academically by using the deadlines to schedule the amount of time I would have to dedicate to my work, in order to finish my writing in a more efficient manner. I do not feel I was as successful as i could be in this class, but I definitely feel prepared to be successful in the future. 

            Some advice I would give to future students struggling in any AP class is to be attentive and punctual at all times. One of my greatest mistakes this year, as a result of being overwhelmed in all my classes, was not attending them or attending them late. You do not want to miss the experience and valuable information. Try to avoid missing classes altogether, you want your absences to be limited and your mind to stay “educationally fit”. Do your best even if it does not compare to the student next to you. Compare your work only to your previous work and you will always be satisfied with your progress.  Never doubt your potential, you must always shoot for the stars!