Final Educational Narrative

Amanda Chance

English 101

Rough Draft

Educational Narrative

 

 

 

 

Recalling my first golfing trip is quite difficult. It was very sun filled day. Going into a golfing trip without much prior knowledge was the way I did things. So embarrassment escaped my emotions as I first stepped up to the driving range. I had begun this trip to impress a man; it wasn't just any man of infatuation, but my father. Being a busy man, it was decided our quality time was to be spent on the golf course. The course that day was a bit wet because of the sprinklers having just been on but with the sun I was already hot. The sun was bright and it was lucky I had brought my hat. I waited by the driving range for ten minutes before I decided to start without him. Buying a bucket of balls with no direction proved quite difficult. I put several quarters into the machine before a grounds keeper stopped me and sent me inside. It turns out the golf ball machine didn't take quarters but a special type of coin only the golf shop supplied. Then upon returning to the machine, to my surprise the golf balls flew every direction other than in my bucket! Again, the hat came in handy, but instead of blocking the sun, it blocked my flushed cheeks.

Five weeks earlier I had gone to my mother with a request. I think she expected anything other than what I was going to say, “Mother, may I have $200 for golf clubs?” Her hands were wet from washing dishes and she was only half listening. When the amount was heard, something in her head triggered ‘panic’ and I had her full attention. With a little convincing she agreed that it was time for me to get a job. With my first paycheck, I bought my desired clubs. They were pink and wonderful. I had to proclaim my effeminacy with everything that came within my sixteen year old ownership. Those clubs were a true treasure of mine, you never quite forget those first clubs. In my eyes, I hold them as dear to my heart as my first car.

With those clubs in tow I approached the driving range; I took my time putting on my pink golfing glove and pretended to stretch while I watched the others hit their golf balls. It didn’t look too difficult. With my stance in check I took my first swing, and had my first miss. It was no small miss, it was quite the charade of physical comedy as I almost went full round with my pretty pink club. To my surprise, no laughter escaped the men behind me. I continued to try and continued to watch the people around me. One hour later, I was hitting the ball. I knew how impressed my father would be. He would say “You are a natural” or “Wow that’s great” I went back to the club house to grab a soda and wait for him. It was through a phone call that I realized my first golf trip would be alone. My dad, having owning his own business, was required to stay at work and handle some sort of crisis. I continued on to learn to drive a golf cart, keep my own score, and lose about 20 golf balls, but I completed that trip with a smile and a sunburn. In the memory of my first golfing trip I don't think of only the disappointment of my father not showing up but of the whole experience of my first trip and how much fun I had.

Whenever I think of golfing, I think of my first set of clubs. I think of how I must have looked to all the others who were veterans of the course. In every aspect of my life I relate something I learned while golfing. Even in the long talks in the golf cart, or the adventure of driving a golf cart into a sand trap. The connection gained through different golfing trips will last me forever. Looking into the future I see many more golf trips and vacations. Golfing means family to many people I associate with, which includes of course my husband and son.

For any person that is just starting out I would argue against going alone. It isn't a sport easily learned by an unaccompanied self-starter. While in my situation; observing and making giant embarrassing mistakes was an alright method, as an adult I would never suggest that to anyone. If an interest in golf has you sporting clubs and ridiculous outfits, take a friend or do a lesson. Lessons are not that expensive, most of them are taught by old men that are absolutely in love with the game. They are patient and kind and not at all grumpy. The reason I know is through knowing a few personally. Living in a country club area, I was lucky enough to see these instructors from my patio quite often directing young men and women in the ways of golf. If only I had gone about learning in a different way, it may not have been as big of a life lesson. I don't know many people that could say they learned a lot from doing something perfect the first time.

The biggest benefit of learning golf has been the attachment of my husband. He loves to play more than I do and is quite good. It has already been a bonding experience for our young son, whom we take with us whenever we go. In the real world, I have forever benefited from the patience learned on the golf course. Without the steadfast determination and the overall stubbornness a golfer must ensue, there would be no college for me. I would have given up on my dreams a long time ago. It seems so strange to attribute a life lesson from a hobby that was originally meant to impress my father. Now it impresses my son. Maybe one day that will be turned around and my son will use it to impress me!

While the experience of being left at the golf course has taught me what to expect of my father, this year I finally got to go golfing with him. After that first trip we kept making new plans to go golfing but it almost always ended up the same. Sometimes the excuse was different; things like he wasn't feeling well or he had some across some issue at work. Eight years has gone by since I went alone to the golf course with my pink set of clubs. It has not been what I would call a disappointment. The relationship with my father has always been strained; we have just had a hard time connecting. When I got married, he invited my husband and I to the golf course to get to get better acquainted with my husband. The first trip was fun. A turn out my dad is not a very good golfer. Since then we have gone a few more times. My father lives in Arizona and the weather is always nice when I visit. He even has a set he keeps extra for me and my husband to use when we come visit. For the rest of my life, I will always try to get the approval of my father. Even as an adult with a child and husband, I still strive to impress him. The easiest way is through my golf score, and while he has yet to admit he is proud of anything I have done, hearing him say, "Nice shot" is more than enough of an alternative for me.

 

Which paper I enjoyed most.

While each paper particularly struck me as enjoyable, one in particular stuck out. It gave me the most to learn and also attentioned my interest the most. Franklins narrative, from his autobiography, has led me more to seek out his lifes details and given me the most to think about. There are many examples of this throughout the paper. Especailly when it is learned he did not complete formal schooling above the age of 10! How can it be that someone of such great importance to our countries history could have so little education? To me this must be attributed to the times of his life. Franklin, as many of us have done in our lives, kept a job to which he had no desire to keep. Learning this also gave me what can only be described as hope. It is working a job that I despise that keeps me in mostly bad spirits through out the week. I Live only for the weekends spent with my dog and son. Otherwise every moment would be spent pulling my hair out! To learn that such a philisophical man dealt to with this problem, gave me more interest in his autobiography. His history is very well known but his lack of education is not. I also thought that his love of books was above all else, what was responsible for his success. It was flattering to learn that, as I too have a great love of reading. I do think his interest of poetry led him to be more philisophical and to think of things differently. It was enough to convince me to try to read more poetry. I liked the autobiography best for many different reasons, the chief of which was we have many things in common that lead me to the thought, 'Maybe I will be the next Franklin,' then again maybe I will just admire him more if I do not become as important.

Rose, Franklin, and X

How do these three papers even begin to compare? There are many different ways. Including of course the generation of each. While each paper does describe an educational experience, not one of them is it a happy experience that can be blamed on a true "teacher" That they have more in common, to show what they learned not from a class room but in fact from life. Even in the case of Mike Rose, you can see the experience of a bad classroom environment was what lead him to eventually overcome his indemnity. For each of the papers there isn't so much room to explain away their shortcomings without holding their parents and teachers accountable. Who ever heard of a president not completing his schooling?! If Franklins father had known his sons eventual job, I think he would have put a bit more emphasis on his sons education. However, it doesn't seem as likely that either the others would have that advantage. There is hardly a child in the country that can be a street drug dealer and say his parents gave him every good opinion of school. Mike Rose doesn't lend his parents much credit either. In this way each of the papers has that in common. The differences are of each experience. Franklin talks of his desire to read books especially of poetry. Malcom X also tells of his continuous desire to constantly be reading. Mike Rose does not speak of his love of learning or of reading. His paper seems to be the most different in each of these ways. In each paper, there is a lesson to be learned of the writers overcoming some obstacle which has them learning something. The differences are not as evident as the similarities. It is easier to find the similarities because of the theme of our first paper. I enjoyed reading each of these immensly and also would enjoy learning more about each of their lives.

rough draft

Amanda Chance

English 101

Rough Draft

Educational Narrative






Recalling my first golfing trip is quite difficult.  It was very sun filled day. Going into a golfing trip without much prior knowledge was the way I did things. So embarrassment escaped my emotions as I first stepped up to the driving range. I had begun this trip to impress a man; It wasn't just any man of infatuation, but my father. Being a busy man, it was decided our quality time was to be spent on the golf course. The course that day was a bit wet because of the sprinklers having just been on but with the sun I was already hot. The sun was bright and it was lucky I had brought my hat. I waited by the driving range for ten minutes before I decided to start without him. Buying a bucket of balls with no direction proved quite difficult. I put several quarters into the machine before a grounds keeper stopped me and sent me inside. It turns out the golf ball machine didn't take quarters but a special type of coin only the golf shop supplied. Then upon returning to the machine, to my surprise the golf balls flew every direction other than in my bucket! Again, the hat came in handy, but instead of blocking the sun, it blocked my flushed cheeks.

Five weeks earlier I had gone to my mother with a request. I think she expected anything other than what I was going to say, “Mother, may I have $200 for golf clubs?” Her hands were wet from washing dishes and she was only half listening. When the amount was heard, something in her head triggered ‘panic’ and I had her full attention. With a little convincing she agreed that it was time for me to get a job. With my first paycheck, I bought my desired clubs. They were pink and wonderful. I had to proclaim my effeminacy with everything that came within my sixteen year old ownership. Those clubs were a true treasure of mine, you never quite forget those first clubs. In my eyes, I hold them as dear to my heart as my first car.

With those clubs in tow I approached the driving range; I took my time putting on my pink golfing glove and pretended to stretch while I watched the others hit their golf balls. It didn’t look too difficult. With my stance in check I took my first swing, and had my first miss. It was no small miss, it was quite the charade of physical comedy as I almost went full round with my pretty pink club. To my surprise, no laughter escaped the men behind me. I continued to try and continued to watch the people around me. One hour later, I was hitting the ball. I knew how impressed my father would be. He would say “You are a natural” or “Wow that’s great” I went back to the club house to grab a soda and wait for him. It was through a phone call that I realized my first golf trip would be alone. My dad, having owning his own business, was required to stay at work and handle some sort of crisis. I continued on to learn to drive a golf cart, keep my own score, and lose about 20 golf balls, but I completed that trip with a smile and a sunburn. In the memory of my first golfing trip I don't think of only the disappointment of my father not showing up but of the whole experience of my first trip and how much fun I had.

Whenever I think of golfing, I think of my first set of clubs. I think of how I must have looked to all the others who were veterans of the course. In every aspect of my life I relate something I learned while golfing. Even in the long talks in the golf cart, or the adventure of driving a golf cart into a sand trap. The connection gained through different golfing trips will last me forever. Looking into the future I see many more golf trips and vacations. Golfing means family to many people I associate with, which includes of course my husband and son.

           For any person that is just starting out I would argue against going alone. It isn't a sport easily learned by an unaccompanied self-starter. While in my situation; observing and making giant embarassing mistakes was an alright method, as an adult I would never suggest that to anyone. If an interest in golf has you sporting clubs and ridiculous outfits, take a friend or do a lesson. Lessons are not that expensive, most of them are taught by old men that are absolutely in love with the game. They are paitent and kind and not at all grumpy. The reason I know is through knowing a few personally. Living in a country club area, I was lucky enough to see these instructors from my patio quite often directing young men and women in the ways of golf. If only I had gone about learning in a different way, it may not have been as big of a life lesson. I don't know many people that could say they learned a lot from doing something perfect the first time.

The biggest benefit of learning golf has been the attachment of my husband. He loves to play more than I do and is quite good. It has already been a bonding experience for our young son, whom we take with us whenever we go. In the real world, I have forever benefited from the patience learned on the golf course. Without the steadfast determination and the overall stubbornness a golfer must ensue, there would be no college for me. I would have given up on my dreams a long time ago. It seems so strange to attribute a life lesson from a hobby that was originally meant to impress my father. Now it impresses my son. Maybe one day that will be turned around and my son will use it to impress me!

While the experience of being left at the golf course has taught me what to expect of my father, this year I finally got to go golfing with him. After that first trip we kept making new plans to go golfing but it almost always ended up the same. Sometimes the excuse was different, things like he wasn't feeling well or he had some across some issue at work. Eight years has gone by since I went alone to the golf course with my pink set of clubs. It has not been what I would call a disappointment. The relationship with my father has always been strained, we have just had a hard time connecting. When I got married, he invited my husband and I to the golf course to get to get better aquainted with my husband. The first trip was fun. Turns out my dad is not a very good golfer. Since then we have gone a few more times. My father lives in Arizona and the weather is always nice when I visit. He even has a set he keeps extra for me and my husband to use when we come visit. For the rest of my life, I will always try to get the approval of my father. Even as an adult with a child and husband, I still strive to impress him. The easiest way is through my golf score, and while he has yet to admit he is proud of anything I have done, hearing him say, "Nice shot" is more than enough of an alternative for me. 

Prewriting I have used in the past.

In general the studies I have done in the past require very little planning on the part of papers. Usually I just use a typical outline and make sure throughout my paper that every single sentence helps to prove my thesis. In the case of this paper, I will have a bit more work. Writing about an emotional experience such as learning to Golf, I am interested to see how I can not have a thesis and instead of using each sentence apply to the thesis. I am will be making each sentence form a story that is interesting and capable of keeping an audience entertained. I will admit I am not very excited as this is a new type of paper for me. I also am interested in using the text book as a tool to keep my paper an A+.

Mike Rose Response Questions

1.
Mike Rose had a life in vocational education not unlike that of many children in American schools. His lazy indifferent unauthoritative teachers lacked any sort of teaching skills that a group of children like that would need. His life in vocational ed was in a short description wasteful. He did nothing of use while in the program except maybe learn how to procrastinate and demean teachers. I have indeed experienced teachers like this before. Unfortunately, it has ruined me. My teacher didn't challenge his students. He let us do whatever we wanted and had an open book test once a week. a couple months into the year he left the class and moved to another state. We as a class were stuck with a different substitute teacher every week for the remaining eyar. needless to say we didn't learn anything. I was given an a and sent to the next level of that class which I of course failed out of and ruined my high school career. It was an abomination. I wish I could go back in time and do something to change all of this, maybe because I was young and excited about an easy a, I didn't force myself to learn. That sort of discipline should not be left in the young hands of a 15 year old.
2.
Vocational Ed made Rose and his fellow students further fall into the trap of being incompetent. the idea that they are lazy o good for nothing, was further institiuted by being treated the way they were. Later on in his math career it seems Rose has a hard time learning how to enjoy school and he already has thought himself a failure.
3.
Ken harvey seems to be a kid with a very different view of life. He doesn't want much, "to be average" is his main goal. with so many pressures in high school a kid like him is pushed into being more than average or exceptional. He copes with it through his "I don't care attitude" By taking everything that he fears, like all the school work and brushing it off that he doesn't care about it. A lot of kids use this same method, some kids use drugs and cliques as a coping mechanism. While still others deal with the pressure and succeed.
4.
The only thing I find disorenting about college is the day care. I hate leaving my son at night with a day care. I hate that I work a full time job and see my son on average an hour a day during the week. I keep telling myself that it is for the best but it gets harder and harder to drop him off.  There are no steps to take to lessen this. I just have to deal with it until my husband returns from deployment and can watch my son at night while I go to school.
5.
I think my experience of education compares only in a small amount. I had one bad experience and while I have never been in a remedial math or vocational educaiton plan, I can attribute the feeling of inferiority that that teacher gave us to the same feeling Mike Rose had. It is not a good feeling and I can't imagine anyone feeling that way their whole school career.

How the Text relate to the Paper Malcom and Franklin

In both of the papers, there were many examples that I could use for my own paper. The tone in Franklin's narrative helped to boast his story. In the way that he used his authoritative tone to set up how successful his life was. I can use that example to my advantages. My paper can use the same type of tone to accentuate the amount of success my educational experience has given me. In Malcom X's paper, he uses his tone to set up how low his life was before his experience. I can use that in my paper as well to show the giant difference in a comparison of before and after my educational experience. In both of the papers, they list out things that happened to them chronologically, which is how I am going to set up my paper. Each paper exampled how much the writers success is based on their own will and desire to overcome an obstacle. It is a great way to help engage the readers and keep them interested. Both papers were good examples for the first units writing assignment.

Malcom Vs Franklin-Missed Assignment

Many differences can be found between the two pieces of writing. The generational and cultural backgrounds of the writers is very evident. While most would think that would take cause for a person to identify with one or the other, it was found that both of the writings were relevant to life for an average person. While one man struggled with prison life, the other was busy forming his opinions and argument's that would shape our country. Of course the people of reference are Malcom X and Benjamin Franklin. Many times throughout the paper of Malcom X, he talks about his love of books and the knowledge gained from it. That is also a source of Franklin's paper as well. He speaks of only having gone to a few years of school before he was made to work for his family. In the case of either man, school only went as far as eighth grade! To think men that shaped our country have so little schooling is astonishing! It is unsure as to whether one should fear the educated or the uneducated man more. When so much can be achieved without the formal education that many think is necessary to become a success, what could have been achieved had these men received all the advantages of that education? In the instance of these men, it seems their tribulations taught them more than education ever could. The difference between the stories lie in the style of writing. Old English can sound outdated and make a paper often boring to read. While Malcom X has a style of writing that appeals to a larger portion of people. It is more modern and tells a story of overcome more obstacles. It is the story of Mr Franklin that requires more attention and imagination, especially in the matter of modern grammar and spelling. The stories of both men are nothing short of amazing. Any person that can go from that low to that high deserves to be immensely recognized. Overcoming adversity is what America was founded on and what continues to be its truest aspiration to other countries. Each of these papers exhibited that exactly on target. So it shows how from the 1700 through out all of our history America continues to do that.  Hopefully that will continue through out the entire future of our country.
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First Writing Assignment

Describe it:
Recalling my first golfing trip is quite difficult. It was so long ago as to be mostly clouded and jumbled in my mind. It was very windy that day, going into a golfing trip without much prior knowledge was the way things were done by me. So embarrassment escaped my emotions as I first stepped up to the driving range. I had began this trip to impress a man; It wasn't just any man of infatuation, but my father. Being a busy man, it was decided our quality time was to be spent on the golf course. The course that day was a bit wet and with the wind it was very chilly. The sun was bright and it was lucky I had brought my hat. I waited by the driving range for ten minutes before I decided to start without him. Buying a bucket of balls with no direction was quite difficult. I put several quarters into the machine before a grounds keeper stopped me and sent me inside. Then upon returning to the machine to my surprise the golf balls flew every direction other than in the bucket! Again, the hat came in handy, but instead of blocking the sun, it blocked my flushed cheeks.

Compare it:
Golfing is a frustrating sport. It is the only sport which can so infuriate a person and yet encourage them to continue at the same time. Golf has many different levels and the level of which I play is; and always will be, beginner. Comparing golf to any other sport seems odd. You hit a ball, of which almost every sport is involved. A golfer keeps score which also is common to most sports. Here the similarities end. Even with the score, the lower the better. Not even the most obscure sport of bass fishing does that apply. It is always better to have more points in other sports. Golfing is a sport for the patient. When you hit a tiny ball hundreds of yards towards a tiny hole, there are many swings and misses. A lot of other sports base their pace on the faster the better. This holds especially true for NASCAR and other race type sports. For all of its frustrating points, golf is still a beloved past time. It is not just loved in the United States, but all over the world.

Apply it:
The biggest benefit of learning golf has been the attachment of my husband. He loves to play more than I do and is quite good. It has already been a bonding experience for our young son, whom we take with us whenever we go. In the real world I have forever benefited from the patience learned on the golf course. Without the stead fast determination and the overall stubbornness a golfer must ensue, there would be no college for me. I would have given up on my dreams a long time ago. It seems so strange to attribute a life lesson from a hobby that was originally meant to impress my father. Now it impress my son. Maybe one day that will be turned around and my son will use it to impress me!

Associate it:
Whenever I think of golfing, I think of my first set of clubs. I think of how I must have looked to all the others who were veterans of the course. In every aspect of my life I relate something I learned while golfing. Even in the long talks in the golf cart, or the adventure of driving a golf cart into a sand trap. The connection gained through different golfing trips will last me forever. looking into the future I see many more golf trips and vacations. Golfing means family to many people I associate with, which includes of course my husband and son.

fingerpaints

Any child, in any given day care has at one point been given finger paints. When the child learns that what is covering is hands and is icky gooey and very messy, is allowed to be rubbed everywhere, he learns how to destroy his family home. Most children are very excited when they discover finger paints, but the damage it does to the actual home is very large. The child takes what he has learned and applies it to every facet of his life. Dads shaving cream becomes a lovely new color addition to the dogs fur. A plate of beans is a welcome  decoration on the living room wall. Dirt from moms garden takes art to a whole new level on the couch. Day cares are teaching our children that it is ok to be destructive. An argument may be made that the emotional damage to mom is not worth the creativity learned by the child. While finger paints can be fun in the classroom, at home it is a disaster not worth the time. Most people would agree that if mom is happy the house is happy. With finger paints that is not possible.

Goats

Goats are simple creatures, they are as simple as other animals. One specific animal that is often compared to a goat is a cow. Cows have many of the same traits. Both provide a constant supply of milk. Both also eat lots of grass. In some farming cultures the cow is sacred for its greatness  and also the goat is well thought of in many cultures. Most goats are kept for the benefit of their milk and their ability to keep a lawn and weeds in check. Cows also are kept for those same reasons. When comparing goats and cows, the largest difference is of course their size. While it may cost much more to keep a cow rather than a goat, the benefits of a cow can be more. While many people eat beef on more than one occasion per week, hardly any American families have even tasted goat meat. Goats can also be kept as pets. In a popular after school club called 4H, goats are often kept and judged at different meets and fairs. While cows are not often in those types of competitions. Goat cheese is rising in popularity and therefore raising of goats has become more popular as well. Goats overall are just as useful as cows and cheaper to maintain.

First Blog Post, models for the first paper

In the assigned readings, there were many good examples of personal and education goals being met. One example that was quite striking, was in the first reading “how I learned to program computers” While encouraging his readers to use his method as a microcosm for their own methods, he shows his success. With his very apparent success he utilizes the readers attention from that to finalize his point, which is mostly “do side projects. ” The very point is stressed through reputation as well. He repeats that phrase so often that it is almost impossible to read this without taking that lesson away from it. This is a great model for the assigned paper because it was interesting, informational and clearly explained his rise to success through his educational goals and achievements outside of school. While reading his narrative of success, a person can’t help but be inspired. Any person would agree that in the case of education goals he has been more than successful. With all the achievements of the first paper, the second paper disappointed on several levels. The second reading was not an ideal model for a few very good reasons. The first achieving his goal of engaging the readers attention. The main reason for this paper was to convince the readers to do the same thing as he did and rid themselves of Google; it is not at all effective. His lack of a back story or reason as to why he is trying to do this, did not achieve his papers goal. It only adds to the reason readers will be uninterested inbeing his lengthy way of describing a very monotonous occurrence in his life. He doesn’t not require the readers attention for any reason. There is no goal presented that the reader can follow other than to not use Google for unknown reasons. While attempting to remove himself from the Google radar, so to say, what could have been an interesting narrative, turned into a sleep inducing “report” of his shallow attempt. The man did address feelings at one point but it was shallow and uninviting. He was not  his paper.

With each of the readings, there is a goal being met. The assigned paper is about an educational achievement and therefore each can be used as a model. With the first narrative the reader is more hooked and impressed with the achievements of the writer. With the second assigned reading the reader is presented with many facts and information. A good combination of the two papers would indeed result in a very great first paper for the class. One more so than the other. Overall, a suggestion may be made to aim towards the first style rather than the second.