I always thought English was just something you’re naturally good or naturally bad at. I mean when you look at Math, it’s a specific set of rules you have to follow in order to do it right. Math is something that you put effort in too and you can do well whereas English is based on your opinion, your ideas, your thoughts. Year 8 English for me wasn’t exactly my proudest moment. I rarely got 70’s and if I did, I would consider myself lucky. As we transitioned to year 9, I went into English with very low expectations, telling myself that I couldn’t get the scores that I wanted, that it was just luck, and that I didn’t have any but throughout the entirety of this year my whole mindset changed. My biggest achievement this year was the major improvement in my English grades. There were many reasons as to why I got the marks I did. For one, the first assessment we did I got an 80% which was my motivation for the rest of the year that I could do well if I put my mind to it. After that assessment I found myself trying to listen more attentively in class and fully take in and understand what we were learning knowing that if I did, I would improve. There were a few people that were major contributors as to why my English scores improved so heavily. A few girls in my class were definitely big part but the main contributor was my English teacher, Mrs McGiveron. I honestly don’t think I would have got the grades I got if it wasn’t for her. She always provided us with resources and made sure that we fully understood everything before moving on. She never made us feel like there was something called a ‘stupid question’ and she helped us in any way she could. After every test she would give us feedback which has helped me so much this year. It took me the entire year to improve my scores as after every assessment I would thoroughly read the feedback and see how I could apply it to the next assessment. The process I used to get me there was to try and if I didn’t do it well, I would try again knowing that, that time I was starting with experience. I never thought I would say English is one of my best subjects and that I enjoy it, but I realised this year that its not about luck, it’s about the effort you put in and your willingness towards everything. Through the next few years, I can’t wait to see my improvement in English and this class has proved to me that I can do it.