Reflective Essay
I thought that the class was just about reading and writing. I thought it would difficult for me to succeed in this class since English is not my first language. Later on, I found the class interesting because we do not only learn about reading and writing, but we learn about how to create, discover, and analyze things that are used in our daily life. When talking about my skills and how I improved them there is a lot to say. Reading and understanding were difficult task to do, especially when we I was asked to read some novels which have so many vocabulary words that even native speakers have difficulties in knowing what they mean. On the other hand, writing essays and research papers were even worse; because I had to follow certain format in writing the research as well as the grammar should be almost perfect. I believe that cultural difference is the major issue behind these difficulties that I am facing right now as well as learning English as a second language. Because writing techniques can be similar between some cultures, but most times there are huge differences which make it so hard for non-native speakers to write and follow these formats. Therefore, learning these writing techniques and reading skills were essential. And step by step I found that I have improved my skills throughout the course period.
Additionally when talking about inquiry and critical thinking. Critical thinking is essential for us as learners. In this course I learned how to improve my skills in critical thinking by observing, evaluating, and designing. In the umbrella project made my skills improve in many different ways. The process of umbrella design required observing and thinking from the right perspective. For instance, in designing the umbrella I had to find the right design that fits so many people with different abilities. The design process improved my skills as well as my thinking abilities, and made me be a better critical thinker.