Author: Maya Shaqiri

     The author James Baldwin touches on many issues and cites examples revolving around  all over the world and not just America. In his quote he states “I would try to make [the student] know that just as American history is longer, larger, more various, more beautiful and more terrible than anything anyone has ever said about it, so is the world larger, more daring, more beautiful and more terrible, but principally larger – and that it belongs to him. I would teach him that he doesn’t have to be bound by the expediencies of any given administration, any given policy, any given morality; that he has the right and the necessity to examine everything.”. Baldwin’s statement cites that the world is larger than the America we live in and that there is a large world out there, therefore you should use it all to your advantage. This statement about the world being larger is a powerful reminder to look beyond our own limited perspectives. It means acknowledging that there is a vastness to the world that extends beyond our individual experiences. It’s about recognizing the diversity of people, cultures, and ideas that exist beyond our immediate surroundings. By embracing this idea, I open myself up to new knowledge, empathy, and understanding. It encourages me to step outside my comfort zones and engage with the richness and complexity of the world around me. There is this idea being portrayed that there is more to the world than meets the eye. It’s about expanding my perspectives and understanding that there are diverse experiences and perspectives beyond my own. One thing other particular thing he states that touches me is “ The purpose of education, finally, is to create in a person the ability to look at the world for himself, to make his own decisions, to say to himself this is black or this is white, to decide for himself whether there is a God in heaven or not. To ask questions of the universe, and then learn to live with those questions, is the way he achieves his own identity.”. I think that it’s a really good statement and highly important since it helps me to examine and learn more about the complexities of human experiences, particularly those that differ from my personal experience. In other words this includes understanding different cultures, education, histories, and perspectives to foster empathy and promote a more inclusive society. We can become more compassionate and help build a more inclusive society. In the end It’s all about embracing diversity and celebrating the richness of human experiences. I believe it’s never too late to gather this information and learn, we are in the age of learning and learning about as many different things as possible is beautiful. Although we did not have the opportunity of learning all these things in school the world is large so the possibilities are endless. 

                                             Very Very, Shitty Draft!!

  

      When it comes to writing your very own close and personal narrative, we tend to hit many challenges. The education narrative genre has been a pleasant genre for me to study. It introduces us to a new form of learning about studying unlike the traditional way. From what we have read so far in class the ingredients consist of a focused event, language, organization and significant details of your narrative. 

    Education and the way we learn is what shapes us as individuals. During the past five years of living in America I have had the most amazing education experiences, not just regarding school but life in general. Coming from the otherside of the world, the education system I was brought up in was very communist, or as many will say “unfair”. I believe education is something really important to a person’s upbringing.  

        All the parents in my country live with the goal of working hard and sending their kids to America for school, since here the education is the complete opposite. I was in school in Albania from kindergarten to seventh grade. Being a kid you don’t really understand things especially what’s bad and only remember the good and fun times. Since living in America and now being under its system of education for 5 years, I have realized the whirlpool I was caught up in. I remember learning things that were too advanced for my age and a lot of them at once. My teacher would make us remember everything the book in history would say, and then the next day she would pick on us and ask us to cite it word by word. This led to me having a panic attack many times and ripping my book up. The education back home had a huge impact on my mental health and I’m so glad I got to experience and learn all from the American education system. 

         Today’s world is ruled by technology and robots. There are so many programs out there that are so easily accessible such as AI, chatgbt, paraphrasing ect. They can answer math questions and tell you about important dates in history but, when it comes to writing they can never write like a human. Writing does not have wrong or a right answer is purely based on the writer’s emotions, context,style of writing and desired audience. When I think of writing, I think of all the ways I can express my feelings and talk more on things I have interest in. Becoming an architect is one of my main goals and dreams and it’s the reason why I am in college.