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Personal Essay

If there's one thing you've had a lot of experience with at this point in your life, it's our class topic--education. You've been through at least twelve years of formal schooling, and you've probably had plenty of other life experiences that could be considered educational. This first piece is informal. Think of it as a chance to reflect on one of those experiences by writing about it.

The key question you'll answer is "How has this experience affected the way I think/feel about school education or learning?"

You're answering the key question for an audience you identify. You might write to your classmates, in which case you could think of this piece as your contribution to our conversation on the topic of education. You might write to friends who are still in the high school you graduated from recently, in which case you'll need to remember that they haven't been reading and talking about the ideas we have in this class. You might write to a relative or close friend elsewhere, perhaps someone who shared the experience with you. Keep in mind the kinds of things your readers/classmates will understand already and what you'll need to explain and/or describe in greater detail. Please note your target audience at the top of each draft as you revise.

Your goals as a writer include:

Strategies for completing the essay include these: