In this year I have learned a lot in English, which made me a better student and a better learner. Firstly, I read LOTF and learned how ugly parts of the society are formed, and I was given a chance to think about the situation that the world is in now, because I thought it was deeply related to this book. Secondly, I read Anne Frank and learned how wars can affect one’s life. This book was one of my favorite books, because I could at least imagine what the war was like, even though I do not know anything about it. Thirdly I learned how to express my feelings by writing poems. The poetry unit also taught me how to communicate with people without being shy, too, and I think it made me learn one of the most important survival skills. Then, I had some discussions about “mercy vs revenge” by reading the Tempest. I learned how to discuss with others based on the theory. I had much fun learning these, because they all made me think a lot about the human nature, and by learning these, I think I achieved 3 ESLRs the most; being an academic achiever, self-directed learner, and effective communicator.

Firstly, I was an academic achiever. There are 3 reasons why I think I could be an academic achiever. Firstly, I demonstrated to work both collaboratively, and independently. I made a movie about Anne Frank with my group member, used Wikispace effectively to communicate with unknown people from other schools., wrote a poem alone, and tried to participate in class discussions. Secondly, I used technology, and technological literacy as a tool of communication. I had my own blog to show what I had done to others, used Wikispace effectively in Teenlife Project, and collected some pictures by using the internet whenever I had a project. Thirdly, I continually assessed, evaluated and adjusted my work to maintain high standards. I thought what I did badly whenever I got bad grades to do better next time, tried my best for every time, and had enough time for finishing homework since I am bad at English, the language itself. I am very proud I achieved these qualities to be an academic achiever, because I believe that being an academic achiever is one of the most important goals to follow especially for students.

Secondly, I was a self-directed learner. There are 3 reasons why I think I could be a self-directed learner. Firstly, I accepted responsibilities for my own learning. I finished everything on time, and I read pages over and over until what I understood that whole story completely. Secondly, I demonstrated competency in goal setting, time management, and organizational skills. I did not forget any homework, tried to have enough time for doing homework that is high standard, and set a goal whenever I found something very difficult, such as I tried to like poems in poetry unit to not to give up. Thirdly, I took creative risks in developing untried ideas. I decorated my poetry book very creatively, and I was the only person, who wrote a letter to Piggy’s aunt from Ralph’s point of view in LOTF’s project. I think I am a perfect self-directed learner, since I achieved many requirements to be a self-directed learner. I am very proud of myself, because I strongly believe that being self-directed is directly connected to getting good grades.

Thirdly, I was an effective communicator. There are 3 reasons why I think I could be an effective communicator. As I mentioned in the 2nd paragraph, I used technology as a tool of communication, and I demonstrated the skills of effective communication. I had my own blog, used Wikispace effectively, collaborated with others without having any problems, and listened to others respectfully in class discussions/ in poetry unit. I believe that being an academic achiever is closely related to being an effective communicator. Then, I shared my ideas with everyone by reading a poem in front of everyone in Poetry Night, participating in class discussions, and using my blog/Wikispace. I am very surprised that I actually could be an effective communicator, because I used to hate saying my ideas/feelings especially in front of people, because I was very scared of being complained by others about my opinion in the beginning of this year. Therefore, I am very impressed by this improvement of my personality.

In conclusion, I am very proud of myself for achieving these ESLRs, because I strongly believe that I could be a better student. However I still could not achieve some ESLRs, and I feel very ashamed, because even though Mr. Raisdana gave me a year to be a better ESLRSs user, I could not complete all ESLRs. I would have to achieve the rest of ESLRs by improving my research skills, knowing how to use variety of sources, caring more about the enviroment, seeking to improve the lives of others, such as becoming a leader of a group, and being an active decisions, such as being more independent. Therefore, my goal for next year would be at least try to do what I have just written so that I can achieve all ESLRs. I would try hard to achieve all of them next year.