Final Reflection Essay
Joshua Ademir González Marín
This month of classes helped me expand my confidence and become more relaxed when
speaking. I faced three major challenges, starting with my public speaking, which was a
motivational speech that I enjoy and that always helps me pick myself up. Having to
deliver it from memory was a challenge because it made me nervous, but little by little, I
lost my composure and was able to deliver it in its entirety.
The second was the informative speech, in which I talked about a topic I love and am
incredibly passionate about: Formula 1. This challenged me both verbally and in terms of
research. While I know a lot about the topic, I had to do a lot more research and create a
way to explain it to people who were unfamiliar with or new to the sport. It was a very
interesting speech, and I really enjoyed delivering it.
And the last, and the one that challenged me the most, was the persuasive speech. In
this one, I also talked about Formula 1, but it was somewhat difficult to deliver a
persuasive speech without crossing the line into an informative one. What helped me
most in this speech was remembering why I started loving this sport and why I'm able to
get up at 4 in the morning to watch a race. This month I faced one of the biggest
challenges I've ever had: having to think in English all the time to be able to explain my
favorite sport in different ways.
And while I really enjoyed presenting my speech, there were a few others worth
mentioning, for example, my classmate Valeria Perez's. She emphasized the importance
of constantly being informed about what's happening in the world so as not to repeat old
patterns. She undoubtedly convinced me to start researching more about social issues,
or in general, to investigate what happens every day, not only in our country but also in
the rest of the world.
On the other hand, my classmate's speech about the pride of being Mexican was
interesting and well-argued. She addressed cultural, social, and gastronomic aspects
clearly. Although he seemed a little nervous, he managed to convey his message. From
my point of view, he lacked projection and a little intonation, which made the presentation
feel a little flat. Still, with more confidence when speaking, you can improve much more.
And finally, Julia's presentation on how music helps concentration and desire in activities
such as study or exercise was clear and well-structured. She maintained a good pace,
and it was easy to follow his presentation. He showed professionalism of the subject and
confidence when speaking. My unique comment could be to work a little more on voice
modulation to make the mass dynamic. Overall, she had a very good wish.
So as I said before, it was a class that challenged me a lot, but I also learned a lot about
some of my classmates, and about the importance of listening to other points of view on
certain topics.