I have learned English for more than 15 years since I was in the six grade,

however, I have been making same common mistakes and confusing about usage of

grammar repeatedly. Except these problems, the most overwhelming obstacle

preventing me from mastering at English is that I fail to appreciate the concision

and clarity which are special characteristics of English. If I am unable to appreciate

the beauty of English, unquestionably, it is less likely for me to utilize it correctly.

The main factor of this is that I always applied writing skills I have gained in

writing Chinese papers to English papers. In the beginning of this class, I was

determined to change my rigid writing habits and adapt to correct patterns. The

transition of this change is painful and time-consuming; however, I witnessed how

much I have grown. Being awareness that learning a language is a life-long process,

I will certainly continue my learning path.

The most precious lesson I have earned from this class is the confidence

about using grammar, applying sentence syntax, and forging academic papers.

As a bilingual person and English as my second language, it is pretty

annoying and exhausting that I have to translate what I think about in my mind

from Chinese to English and present them as words in the paper. However, after

exercising a large number of practices and having effective discussions in lectures

and outside the class with classmates, I am more comfortable applying useful skills

in my papers. For example, hedging refers to use modal words and probability

words to soften claim and make it much easier to accept. I have applied words like

could, should, might, will and so on in my argument paper. In addition, I have

consciousness of using academic words rather than informal words. I felt exhausted
seeking verbs and nouns that express the ways in which things increase and

decrease since I am the economics major. Fortunately, I encountered a large

number of verbs and nous could do so from text book. For instance, if I want to tell

my professor that the GDP of this year increases, I could use soar, rise, multiplied

instead of increase. Also, I could manipulate words more accurately given that I am

able to recognize the meaning of words. Most importantly, in light of more exposure

of using English, my speaking and listening skill are developed dramatically. As a

result of that, I found that I could understand every word professor said in the class,

and I could speak English naturally than I used to be.

Aside from the curricular progress, gratefully, I have established genuine

connection with many classmates and became friends outside the class. We

reviewed and studied together for exams; we also discussed about our paper

frequently; we helped each other for overcoming the stress from intense homework

and tight daily schedules.

In conclusion, what I have gained from this class is far more than I had

expected. Academic writing skills, connection with instructor, improvement of my

holistic English level, confidence of learning a language, and genuine friendship, all

of them make this semester meaningful and more colorful.