Reflective Essay

Introduction 

 

​When I came to ACLC in 6th grade I was very nervous. At the time going to ACLC felt like the biggest risk I had ever taken, it wasn't wear most of my friends were going, and it is structured very differently than AUSD and elementary school in general. I was very hopeful for the prospects of all this newness, but it still scared me. I remember wondering if I had made the right decision, in the early parts of my time at ACLC. Now, I can say that I absolutely made the right decision. Going to ACLC gave me opportunities that I never would have had other wise and a supportive community that wanted and believed that I could succeed. 

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Personal Qualities, Work Habits and Attitudes 

 

​Some of the things I feel I have grown in the largest part of while at ACLC is self management, responsibility, and self worth. I have grown so greatly at ACLC, from coming in as a 6th grader, having very little idea how to prioritise my work, and schedule time to work. Through the help of some of my early Special Education facilitators, I learned to prioritize things first by when they're due, then by what I can get down with the time and resources I have. This method of self management allowed me to be more efficient in my work. With this news efficiency I was able to take on new challenges and responsibilities. My responsibilities have included taking all of my required classes, along with many electives, including ones at the community college level, and Leadership. By learning how to learn, and compensate for my dyslexia I’ve been able to make enough time to dance around 10 hours a week pre-quarantine, which includes being a demonstrator (TA) at Dance Arts Project. During quarantine I have had the extra responsibility of being a part time nanny for a doctor’s children. Being able to have both the independence and the responsibilities that come with it, that are available at ACLC, has given me the confidence in myself. 

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New Basics 

 

​The two places in which I feel ACLC has allowed me to grow to my fullest potential in ways that other schools would not have are the fields of STEM, and dance. The category of STEM being in the group of math and science in terms of new basics. For math the thing that made ACLC so unique in letting me explore was that if your schedule, and grades allow it, you can take an algebra class while taking geometry, and also take community college math classes. For me I took advantage of this, by taking Algebra 2 and Geometry at the same time in sophomore year. Intern this allowed me to go into pre calc in Junior year, rather than senior year. I took this at the College of Alameda. This was a great experience which I feel I was fully equipped for, even earning a perfect score on one of the midterms. In the Peralta system if you want to take calc for STEM majors you must also take Trig, which I took for Laney. Although I would have to say I’m more of an albra person than a Geometry/Trigonometry person I would highly recommend my professor for this course, Professor Jenifer Gerry. The unique learning environment of ACLC has allowed me to take calc 1 and, next semester calc 2 at the community college level. As far as science goes, I have been supported by the ACLC science facilitators, and have been given access to competitions like the science fair and the BioEngineering (my group was BioMedical Engineering) High School Competition at UC Berkeley (BioEHS). The science fair has helped me understand the scientific process, which is very important to me, and my future. The BioEHS competition helped me to look more specifically into engineering, as well as giving me a realistic glance into my future as I was the only girl in my 5 person group. At ACLC I have also been able to take environmental science as an extra science class. ACLC has also allowed me to be able to take Introduction to Computer Information Systems, as well as Introduction to Astronomy (would highly recommend) at College of Alameda. In a fairly different field of interest for me is dance, which falls under the categories of fitness/health and arts. I have been passionate about dance since I was 5 years old, and I continue to take classes at Dance Arts Project. Through ACLC’s flexibility with scheduling, and learning how to manage my time effectively, I have been able to take 9 classes each an hour long, as well as demonstrating (teacher’s assistant) between 1 and 2 classes per week, also each an hour long. Although each of these fields may seem nearly as far from related as possible, I find it’s important to keep a balance, and in some situations they complement each other very well, after all if having your stereotypical enger be the only kind of engineer worked in every situation we would have solved every engineering problem out there already. 

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Thinking and Reasoning Skills 

 

​I feel I have really learned how to learn and make good decisions. When I came to ACLC in 6th grade, the way I was organizing how I learned was not very effectaint. With help from the Special Ed teachers I learned how to prioritize my work in a way that now seems like common sense, but at the time was a big adjustment. I learned to do my work in order of what was due closest to now, first, but to not forget about the bigger projects until the last minute. My design making in terms of goals has also improved, so that now I am able to make quicker decisions on the short term plans, and be able to make long term goals. One of the long term goals I set for myself while at ACLC was to become an engineer. I choose this because it combines math and science, two subjects I really like, and will present lots of challenges along the way-which is good. 

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Interpersonal Abilities

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The two interpersonal abilities I feel I exemplify the most is the abilities to teach others new skills, and to work with diversity. I have exemplified the ability to teach others, not only when helping other learners in class, but also in extracurricular activities. The majority of my nearly 200 hours of community service I’ve done during my time at ACLC has been working with younger children and learners. In 6th grade I did this through doing community service at my old preschool. In 7th, 8th, and 9th grades I was a CIT (counselor in training) at Menlo Madness Camps then at Steve and Kates over the summers. In 10th grade much of my community service came from working as a Junior Coach for Kids 4 Cause, this was extra special for me, because I was coaching a sizable group of younger kids who were doing large amounts of biking to benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, because of looking up to their parents. In my Junior year I got to be a Hannah Camp Counselor. Through all of these experiences I was able to work with people who came from diverse backgrounds, and be able to adapt to each new experience. Through ACLC I’ve also been able to experience a multitude of learning environments, from a more traditional classroom format, to the class being almost entirely projects.  

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Technology

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My abilities to work with and without technology have actually affected some of my efficient learning skills. This being that pre-quartineedn my phone was my only personal transportable technology, meaning that outside of school, and the weekend, I had limited access to technology. This further meant that when prioritizing my work I needed to do things that required a larger screen either on the weekends, or at school (I typically wouldn’t be able to go home after school during the week until around dinner time). Now, during the shutdown I have regular access to a computer, because I am always at home. This has taught me to apply the technology to the task at hand better, by doing things like regularly splitting a screen between the zoom class at hand, and the work being done in the class.

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Conclusion

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As my time at ACLC ends I am proud of my growth, not only as a student, but as a person. I feel I am much more efficant in my work, and have become a better leader. Beyound what we learn in teh classroom I feel I have learned a lot about fri

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