The Due Date Gets Me Everytime

        When I was first introduced to AP Language I was excited for two main reasons: first because I would be in a more challenging class with my friends and second because someone my cousin went to high school with would be my teacher. And Ms. Fogarty you have certainly turned out to be an excellent teacher. Although as I reflect on my work from this year the effort that I put into some assignments might not show how much I actually enjoyed this class, I would like to reassure you that this class has actually helped me a great deal. Procrastination has always been a problem for me and not handing things in on time is the major consequence. I expected to buckle down this year, get all my work in and impress everyone. However I missed the mark. I found the work overwhelming at times and time management to be nothing even close to my friend. But their is a bright side to all this: I've learned from it. Reality hit me that I can not wait until the last minute and expect an essay worthy of a 7 to come out. If it wasn't for your challenging work I believe that I would go into my senior year expecting I could slack off, but now I'm certain I have to try harder than I ever have.

         My first semester work was not bad. I handed more in on time and even though I was not getting exceptional writing scores, I could see my writing improving. The more work I would put in the farther I would get. I enjoyed in class essays the most because they pushed me to get the work done right then and there in class as the ideas came to me when I was sitting there instead of never looking at an assignment until the night before it was due and not knowing what to put. The second in class essays we did was the Florence Kelley assignment and I remember being proud of what I wrote. On my first essay I had received a score of 4 and was pleased to find that my Kelley essay went up to a score of 5. A small achievement but I went with it. I was hoping for more improvement for that point on but most of my essays received 5s. The incentives argument we had done in class I was able to get a 6 on once we revised and typed them. I was rather happy at that point with my second achievement and my first 6.

         Second semester is where I fell off. I had promised in my quarter reflections that I would stay on track and hand I work and get higher scores. But I did quite the opposite. Unfortunately I was unable to keep my goals and I ended up handing in assignments late and not having much growth. Not all was lost however, I still preferred the in class essays to outside assignments and on the last essay we had done in class I received a score of 6. After receiving 5s on all my in class essays I finally stepped it up on my last one with, as the scoring guidelines would say, an adequate score. Falling behind in my other work was probably more disappointing to myself than anyone else though. I didn't manage to go as far as I wanted and with my friends all striding in front of me as proud, shining examples of what an AP Language student should be I began to feel even worse about my work. I ultimately gave up. Especially on the research essay that I had originally been exciting about, but never did. As I mentioned however, I've learned from this. I know I can not go into senior year procrastinating and I need to be able to suck it up and ask for help.

          Ms. Fogarty you have been an very challenging but wonderful teacher and I actually can not wait for next year. My lack of effort towards the end of the year does not reflect on your teaching but rather my own inabilities to meet the standards that I could have met if I just did the work. The skills and lessons I've learned through this year will certainly help me in my future work and I will remember all my mistakes. With this I feel prepared to take on more courses like this one. I just hope I remember: due dates do exist.