For the reflective essay, you will write about an aspect of your life that has helped shape who you are as a student, thinker, and person. This essay can be modeled after some of the essays we have read in class and should be written in response to one of the following topic questions:
1. What is your identity and how have the special circumstances of your background helped to shape your educational experience in particular? Remember that identity can take the form of race, ethnicity, gender, family circumstances (divorced parents, raised by grandparents, etc.), class, geography, disability, or any number of other characteristics. These suggestions might help to generate ideas: Think about what aspect of your identity is most unique, has been a problem, or has been a source of strength in your life. How do you feel about it now, and how did you feel about it then? Think about what aspect of your identity might be most interesting for others to read about, and write an essay that reveals something to the reader that he or she might otherwise not know or realize. Help us to understand what it is like to walk in your shoes. Be specific by focusing on specific episodes that illustrate your claims.