Dec 2, 2020
Academic Development
Through out this semester, I have been introduced to topics and ideas that I have never heard of before. From discussions about liberty to discussions about the criminal justice system and mercy, there was never a dull moment and always something to debate about.
At the beginning of the semester, I was trying to figure out just how to think like a philosopher and how to express my ideas about these complex topics. My first story was Mills, “On Liberty”, for me this was a challenging topic and one that was hard for me to express my thoughts about because I wasn't quite sure what my thoughts even were.
I believe what I wrote here was merely a summary of what the text said, even though that was allowed, I didn’t quite understand what was being said, so I just tried to translate what I thought was happening into my own words.
As the semester progressed, and the more class discussions went on, I started to really understand what was being said and was able to form my own thoughts. At this point I believe my work was really getting better and my understanding of the text was being shown in my text. In my opinion my best work was my comparison on Brink and Yanka
and my work on the State of Louisiana vs. Bryant.
I believe these were the two works that really showed my progress as I took the most interest in the topics. Criminal Justice is my minor and it is something that I am very passionate about, so having these topics come up in a new perspective I really enjoyed. Not only were these my best just because I was interested in the topic, but I was able to form my own opinions at this point and be able to effectively present them.
If someone decided to take this course they would be able to learn how to form their own ideas about complex topics in the class and outside of the class. This course is set up in a way that the student is provided with ample time to read the assigned readings and write a Medium post. They are then given time to reflect on their ideas themselves before they discuss it as a class. The weekly class discussion provides students with an opportunity to ask questions and discuss with other students and the professor about the topic in order to further their understanding.
Something I have learned to value because of this class is to be able to form my own opinion and not having to listen to what others tell me as true. I have been able to see in this class just how many differing opinions there are and I am proud to say that I now have the tools to form my own opinions and be able to base it off of theories and ideas that I have learned. I am truly happy that I was able to take this class as the skills I have learned will accompany me into my other classes and into my professional field.
