Mackenzie Wenner #10

Address your journey in 332. Did you change? What did you discover about yourself? Your community? What will you do with what you learned?

Throughout my entire life I have valued the fact that I am an individual before I am a member of any group. Part of what resonates most to me in the idea that has become the United States is its individualistic spirit. I believe the greatest achievements are inspired by personal motivation and freedom to innovate. These beliefs have not changed. However this class has given me a greater appreciation for the kind of learning based community we created this semester. As opposed to the classes I am accustomed to taking in the Gov and Econ departments that are focused on the individual student, the group focused style of this class resulted in 30+ professors and countless points of view all presented harmoniously. And while I was initially uncomfortable fully joining the circle, I found the experience was not complete if my questions and perspectives were not addressed by the group.

The community taught me another form of communication. Early on in the semester I told Francis I was much more comfortable in group discussions that were aimed at a specific question and stayed on topic. But as I gained respect for the group and its many voices, I found myself enjoying the meandering dialogue the circle produced, and found value in that it could end in greater clarity and understanding than the specific discussion of any one topic.