• What knowledge, skills and/or capacities did you gain or demonstrate?

I am grateful to have learned various skills and capacities this semester due to Liberal Studies 200. Before this class, I was not aware of the multifaceted process that is interviewing. Now, thanks to Module 2, Module 6, and Hermanowicz’s “The Great Interview,” I am able to professionally interview someone and, at the same time, I am able to listen to people carefully in my everyday life. I have learned about the different types of research this semester, which has helped me in interpreting data for all my courses. Teamwork has been another skill I polished during Liberal Studies 200. I really enjoyed working with my teammates. I appreciated how we helped and supported each other, specifically during the IRATs and TRATs. Working in a team taught me to listen and be confident in myself. Overall, this course ignited my hidden interest in qualitative research and history, which I am very grateful for.

 

• How does what you have learned in LBST 200 relate to other contexts and experiences?

Most of what you learn can be related to other contexts. In the case of Liberal Studies 200, readings such as Causey’s “Drawn to See” and Hermanowicz’s “The Great Interview,” evoked skills I had forgotten about. Due to this class and the readings, my drawing and listening skills have improved significantly. Now, I employ these skills in other classes such as Sociology and History. As well, these new capacities are embedded into my daily life. I now draw to express myself all the more and I listen more carefully thanks to this class. Lynch’s “The Image of the City” was another reading that directly translated into my writing. In my novels, cities are a separate character with their own personality and traits. What I read in “The Image of the City” helped me in developing the fictional cities in my writing. These are only some of the many skills I have related to other classes and contexts.

 

• How does what you have learned in LBST 200 relate to your own academic interests and goals?

My goal in life is to be an author, and I work towards that goal every day. Liberal Studies 200 has been a good tool to expand my writing skills. Module 6 and Module 3 have been the two class assignments that have aided me in polishing my writing. Module 6 provided me with information on past female authors and their experiences. This investigation shone a light towards the struggles and achievements of women authors to whom I can relate. Module 3 prompted me to observe my fictional characters in an alternative light and showed me that, sometimes, a drawing can say more about a person than words can. I am grateful to have a main focus in my career that I can apply to most of what I learn in my classes.

 

• How might you (or how will you) use these skills and capacities in the future? For example, in your Liberal Studies Tutorials and Grad Project? After your studies?

In future projects, I am certain I will employ my interviewing skills as well as my teamwork skills. These two capacities are always crucial to projects presented in any class. However, I will also be using the knowledge and intellectual tools I have gained in Liberal Studies 200 to shape future projects. For example, for my Graduation Project, I might expand on my Module 6 assignment and dive even deeper into the history of female authors. Alternatively, I might also take advantage of the North Vancouver Archives to seek inspiration and mold new writing projects. Scotland’s article will as well come in handy when observing new ideas, since choosing your research method is a starting point for projects in general. Overall, most of what I have learned has been engrained within me and will emerge as needed when working on future projects and ideas. I am very grateful to have been a part of this class and I am looking forward to the rest of the Liberal Studies Bachelor.