Grade 10 Academics Reflection

This year my biggest improvement among all my academic courses might be English. As I said in my highlight, I got an 88 on my Remembrance Day essay. This might not be a very good mark for others, but it's really a big step for me. Our class did peer editing and re-edited it after. I was worried to let others read my essay because I thought it was very bad; however, I found the advises from others very helpful. I learnt that it's fine to make mistakes because we can always learn from our own mistakes, and that it's important to listen to others' ideas.

I moved to Canada last year from China, and I didn't use English often. English was the hard for me, and it was my lowest subject last year. When I came to Collingwood halfway in Grade 9, I got a 57 on the first report card; my final mark improved but was still only a 71. This year, I tried even harder than in Grade 9, and my goal was to get an A. On the first report card I got an 82, which is a great improvement for me, but I still had to push myself harder so I had a talk with my English teacher Mr. Shirkoff. He gave me a lot of useful advises on how to write essays, and suggested that I should get more complex into my ideas when I prove the thesis. He also told me to be more active in class, which is still hard for me. With his help, my essay writing skills improved quickly. I also did well on all the Barron's quizs, which helped me bump up my marks, and I'm staying at an 89 right now. From 57 to 89 in a year and a half, I’m very proud of myself for this progress.

This academic year is important to me because now I have gained more confidence in myself, and have got a clearer understanding of my weaknesses. Now that my essay writing skills are better, I still need to force myself to participate more in class. It has always been hard for me because I have a hard time communicating with others in English, not only because of my language barrier but also because I was afraid to make mistakes. Now I'm more willing to challenge myself, and don't always worry about making mistakes. I believe that my English will be better, and I might even take English AP in Grade 12 if I find English easy next year.