VerNia Barber Professor Kate Kimball ENC1101 3 December 2013 Essay #1- Revision

Global Issues: 1. Purpose- I added dialogue and supporting details that tied into the purpose of my essay which was about the turning point in my life where I learned what kind of learner I was. 2. Organization- My final draft was organized but once I had a clear focus on the purpose of my essay, I realized I needed to change the placing of some of my points and details. Local Issues: 1. Title- I changed the title of my essay to something that related to my essay. It is also eye catching and makes the reader wonder what is going to be talked about. 2. Paragraph Focus- After receiving my essay back and reading it aloud I realized I was very repetitive and some of my paragraphs did not flow together. I created points in my paragraphs that transitioned into the next paragraph.

Barber2

VerNia Barber Professor Kate Kimball ENC1101 1:05 11 November 2013 From Failure to Success Have you ever struggled with something but it looked like no matter what you did you couldnt find your way out of it? Well I was in this predicament in the ninth grade. Most people say math is hard, some say it is easy. In this instance I dont know what math is. It was something I could not describe. Not knowing what math was was unreal. It impacted me on my work and educational performance. This became the ultimate struggle. I always ask myself if I just dont like this subject or if it is actually hard. This is one struggle I didnt know if I would ever find my way out of. Since elementary school and middle school I have been an outstanding student academic wise. I brought home As and Bs all the time. Being a great student gave me the opportunity to receive a tremendous amount of awards. This put me in a place where I was selected to do things such as, join the elementary and middle school national honors society, be the captain of the basketball team, and also participate in being a page at the capitol. Shockingly, I was hit with a major adversity once I reached high school. I began to struggle in math. My As began to fall to Bs, then Cs, then Ds. I tried my hardest to get to the root of the problem but for some reason I kept getting stuck. My mom began to get frustrated, which made me mad as well. This was not only taking a toll on me mentally but also on my high school GPA. What do I do now? is what I often asked myself.

Barber3

This turning point in my life put me at a setback. I found myself studying more and more with the same results. Nothing better came out of my hard work. I began to think about the steps that were taken for me to end up in this predicament. After thinking long and hard it finally clicked! I was a different kind of learner. In my ninth grade Algebra I class my teacher would solve math equations but would never let the students do any work. She was the kind of teacher who got annoyed when students asked questions or didnt get things right the first time. For instance, one day I kept asking her questions on a particular section in our lesson and she got mad because I did not understand. The lady was rude and disrespectful. Even though it irritated her, I continued to ask questions until I got the answer I wanted. I was determined to pass that class. In class we would just have to sit and learn visually without putting in effort or action. This annoyed the living daylights out of me! When I would get home after school I would not know what to do. I was completely lost. The homework looked like another language to me. Some of my classmates could look at my teacher do examples on the board and they could get it right off the bat. I was different. And I was determined to find out a solution that worked for me. After a few weeks of not knowing what to do I finally spoke to someone. This person was my guidance counselor. She helped me realize that the way I learned was different from others. She gave me a test to see what my learning style was. The test showed that I was a kinesthetic learner. Once I found this information out I began to act in hopes to change my problem. Later, I learned once my teacher worked a problem out I had to then do the same. Taking the initiative to do the equations on my own is what I had to do. Kinesthetic learning is when a action is carried out by an action. One cannot simply just listen to a lecture or look at a video. This gave me a thought in mind on what I had to do. Once the action was put in place my grades began to go from Ds to Cs. But I still was not satisfied. My mother hired a tutor to help me fix this situation

Barber4

I was in. Together we worked on things to help me continue to excel higher. My tutor was the total opposite from my teacher. She was calm, patient, and knew what she was doing. This helped because she did not mind if I asked one thousand questions, she would continue to answer them and help me until I got it right. Also when I was being tutored, I felt like I was doing the work because she did not do it for me. My tutor was just reinforcement if I needed help on some things. We worked together three times a week and sure enough my grades got even. My grades shot up like a rocket, from Cs to As. I was memorizing information and studying adequately. I was so ecstatic! Actually ecstatic is not even the word to describe how happy I was. My mom was back to being happy and not yelling at me for bringing home bad grades. Seeing my mother unhappy with my grades motivated me to use my help wisely and do better. All I wanted to do was make my parents proud. My brother on the other hand, told me I was overzealous but I did not care. This was what I had been waiting for. I was not going to let him steal my shine. Finally all my grades were back to As and Bs. I actually think math is cool. Now I had identified my learning style and my approach is different. My learning style impacts my education pathway tremendously, not only in just math but in my other classes. I can now succeed because I have the right tools to help me learn efficiently. Finding out that I am a kinesthetic learner was great because now I am proactive about being active in my education. This turning point no longer had me at a setback. I have moved forward. Now I have another turning point but now it is in the right direction. That direction is understanding math and getting my priorities straight. Sometimes I help my peers if they have trouble in some classes. I even helped out the person with the highest grades in one class. I was proud that I could help someone else achieve their goals. I dont struggle in math but sometimes I still call on my tutor to help me before I get in trouble. Every time I call her she comes through. I want to pass the same sense of

Barber5

help and care on to others. This is important to me because I want others to succeed in life. Failure is not an option. I characterize myself as an active student now I see there is no room for slacking. I am more of a problem-solver. Being a kinesthetic learner means I am a do-er, I get physically active with things now. The same goes for learning. Now in class lectures I dont just sit in the back of the class hoping to do well. I get involved and get active in discussions. This has taken me a long way and the journey is not over yet. As for my ninth grade Algebra I teacher, lets just say she is no linger in that position anymore. So many more students complained on her teaching style that she got demoted. Now she is a moderator for a virtual school class. I am just happy she does not have to start anymore students high school GPA off badly like she did mine and a few of my peers. One may ask, What can be learned from this experience? The purpose of me expressing my struggles is to help others learn from them and take a different path to succeed. If I had a chance to give someone advice it would be not to just sit back and spectate, get active, investigate what kind of learner you are and excel. I wish I had someone who told me that before this turning point. This impacted the way I look on my education and now I wake it much more seriously. Everyone has different learning styles so this approach wont work for them. Now I can stand here and say I defeated that struggle. I found my way out of it. Not only that but I know what math is now. In my head I see math like a car. There are many components that one needs to learn and master before putting it all together. There are directions in math books, directions in mechanic school. Also there are teachers in school and engineers in the mechanic industry to help guide us through this journey. Once you are given the right tools and

Barber6

directions it is time to make the car. A masterpiece should be the end result. To make things transparent, this means once you are give the lesson and math equations it is time to work the problem out and conquer it. Its now time to go to work.