To reflect on the reflections, (pun fully intended), I would say that the net experience was positive, in terms of the ability to reinforce the knowledge and experiences I related during the assignments. However, I would say that, at least to me, there seemed to be a hard time justifying the point system that correlated with the length of the passages that I wrote during the semester. For only 1 point, it seemed to me that some of the effort I put into the writing was too much, as I found myself, especially for the Book reflections and analysis of the contemporary issue in Turkey, to be spending too much time compiling evidence and examples with my own comments. As a result, they seemed to be too long for only 1 point in the grade-book, which I could have re-purposed in the time perspective to focus on other aspects of the course, as well as other classes in the busy timeline of a college student. Potentially, there could be a varying point system for the reflections, with correspondingly variant length requirement for the reflections. For the Latife Tekin book analysis, Kapka Kassabova book analysis, the contemporary issues assignment, and maybe others, the length requirement, due to the innate necessity of book or article analysis, could be longer and be associated for more points. In the reverse, some of the reflections could remain at 1 point with only 1 double-spaced page requirement that won’t force the student to needlessly extend arguments and points to meet some arbitrary word or page standard.
However, in terms of the rest of the course, I have very little to say in terms of the improvements department, as I felt my experience was very entertaining and enlightening, especially as a person who seeks to rediscover his Turkish heritage and culture to some extent. The lectures were tailored to the interests of the students, which was a refreshing trait to see in a college course, considering many are strictly structured to facilitate the provision of technical definitions, jargon, and examples deemed important by only the professors. Also, the use of documentaries, relevant cultural movies, and class experiences/trips helped to make the small classroom always seem busy and active. However, one general comment I would have revolves around something that I am sure everyone is already aware needs work for following semesters, which is the management of time. I understand that there are countless things, whether juggling several classes, having to communicate with a foreign university, or organizing a research survey for student, that influence the ability to conduct things in a timely manner. But I am confident that the experience from this semester will help build on the necessary organization to best time things for the future, so I know that any faults this semester will definitively help future students, which makes me appreciative of working through the semester (as well as Dr. Schoon and Dr. McClimans having the patience to work with everyone throughout the struggles). Having said all that, I have had an amazing time in Turkish 2241, and I hope that I can transfer everything that I have learned to future trips to Turkey and visitations with my family.