the last one!

This semester flew by. Looking back, I can sincerely say that this class has been one of the most useful classes I've taken – not just compared to the classes from this semester but compared to the classes I've taken during my three years on this campus.

Out of the required journalism classes, this class has added on to my list of the few classes that have actually taught me something; I walked out of Greg 1 feeling more confident in my abilities as a journalist and a possible future copy-editor. This isn't an attempt to boost my semester grade or get a better curve on some of those in-class quizzes (yikes!), it's just my way of expressing how useful and helpful this class has been for me.

In one of the last lectures of the semester, we discussed changing the format of this class, and I agree with the ones who said that this class should be a pre-req for Reporting I and II. I think I would have done better in both classes and felt more knowledgeable about the newspaper industry in general if I had taken a copy-editing class before I began reporting. One of the biggest lessons that this class has taught me is that there are so many different aspects that go into making a quality newspaper what it is; in order to succeed in this business, journalists must be as well-rounded as possible – they can't just be reporters, they have to be copy-editors as well.

I wrote about the poor grammar used in text messages for my first blog entry. As much as I'd like to say that the quality of my text messages have changed, I'll admit that they haven't. But, I can say that I definitely catch myself more in my writing and use better grammar and punctuation than I have done in the past. And, I appreciate the players in the newspaper industry a lot more; so much unappreciated work is done behind-the-scenes just to produce good quality copy for readers.

Whether my profession lies in the nursing field or journalism field is still up in the air, but either way, I'm thankful because I've walked away from this class a little wiser.

Oh… and the cookies were a plus, too. =)