WRD Class Reflection

This has been one of the biggest projects I have ever done with a group, and it was a completely different experience for me. For my group, our biggest struggle for this project was the time it took for us to edit the movie. I certainly did not have any experience with editing and it took us much more time to fix audio and to place the movie together than expected. What made me most proud of the documentary was being able to see it all put together and watching the final cut after a whole semester of planning for the whole documentary. My group and I did the best that we can, so I think that I would not change anything about the documentary. The main responsibility I had within the group was setting up the citations of all the sources we used for the documentary, as well as deciding meeting times and helping Anna come up with a script. However, we all were able to contribute in other roles to making this documentary a success. I definitely learned how to do cuts for certain clips and got to speak in the voice recording room. It was a joy working with Monique, Anna, and Emma; we all got to know each other a little better and had many jokes throughout the project. I wish I could have been more resourceful with editing the movie. Overall, I couldn’t have asked for a better group.

            The course was unique, in comparison to a typical English class, and allowed me to interpret readings and projects to the outside world. None of the readings affected me significantly, but gave me insight to what other people consider as symbolic to them. “Born into Coal” was one of the lectures I most enjoyed because the video informed the audience about the burden coal actually is to some families, despite the benefits of coal in the United States. The project has helped me realize things that I never knew about study abroad and that I would remember when I decide to participate in education abroad. Public speaking was something I did not enjoy. It still is something I do not enjoy and never will. However, I have hopefully improved skills in getting the audience more involved and entertained during presentations. Speaking in front of the class is more than just the content of a speech; it also involves using space, keeping eye contact, and projecting your voice. It is often difficult, though, to be able to reach these goals when speaking, especially with the nerves I usually have when it comes to speaking or when being graded for how I communicate. In my opinion, I believe verbal communication is more sophisticated than writing essays and can be better used in the future. The style of the course was laid back and gave time for working in groups for the project. However, I would have preferred more assignments and homework so that the grades do no substantially shift. If that was the case, I would have got a preferable grade. Participation plays a significant role in grades for this class, which was inconvenient for many who may not be as talkative as others or may have nothing to say. I would suggest fewer discussions and maybe more activities that relate to the topics so that all the students could participate in class.