Ariel's Little World

  This semester, I took Dr. Sherry’s English Composition (3) course, and I don’t regret this decision at all because I gained so many valuable experiences and skills. At the start of the semester, our professor asked us to build our own Wix website. I was worried at first because I wasn’t familiar with such technical tasks and doubted whether I could do it well. However, both the professor and the teaching assistants were incredibly patient and supportive, which helped me overcome my initial nervousness and complete the assignment successfully. As the course progressed, we moved on to the next stage: creating surveys and collecting responses. Through this process, I learned how to stay calm and solve unexpected problems. For example, my first survey collected nearly 90 responses, but due to an unknown issue, the platform deleted it permanently. I was extremely panicked when I first discovered this, fearing all my hard work had been wasted. However, after calming down, I quickly created a new survey and shared it on social media to gather responses again. Although the final number of responses wasn’t as high as before, it was enough for analysis. This experience taught me how to handle unexpected situations and gave me the courage to face challenges head-on. One of the highlights of this course was learning how to use ChatGPT to improve my English writing. Before taking this class, I only knew how to ask it to “fix grammatical mistakes.” But in class, the professor taught us how to give clearer instructions to get more useful feedback. For instance, I realized one of my common mistakes was inconsistent verb tenses. Both ChatGPT and the professor pointed this out, which helped me become more aware of maintaining consistent tenses and avoiding similar errors in the future. The most challenging task in this course was writing a research report. It was my first time writing such a formal and professional paper, and I learned a lot about how to structure and organize it properly. My topic was “The Impact of Social Media on Teenagers’ Mental Health,” and while researching it, I gained a deeper understanding of this issue. At first, I found it difficult to locate relevant sources and incorporate quotations correctly. However, after thoroughly searching for references, I eventually completed the report. During this process, ChatGPT was incredibly helpful. It suggested synonyms to enhance my vocabulary, proofread my draft, and provided editing advice. These tools made my writing more polished and academic. My favorite part of the course, however, was writing journals. This assignment encouraged me to reflect on my daily life and pay attention to my emotions in the moment. Every time I wrote a journal, I would carefully recall my experiences and try to describe them vividly so that readers could feel as if they were there with me. Reading my classmates’ journals was also enjoyable, as it gave me a glimpse into their interests and daily routines—something we rarely get to share in other classes. In conclusion, this course provided me with many practical and rewarding learning experiences. From building a Wix website to designing surveys, collecting data, and completing a research paper, I gained valuable skills at every step. Learning to use ChatGPT effectively not only helped me improve my writing but also made me more attentive to details. Writing journals, in particular, taught me to cherish life’s small moments and express myself more deeply. These experiences strengthened both my academic abilities and my confidence in tackling new challenges. I believe the skills I gained from this course will greatly benefit my future studies and life.