Reflection #1

   I am a Santa Maria high school student. There are hundreds of people that are currently taking online classes right now that attend that school but what makes me different is I am one of six people taking a different program. It's called Santa Maria Open-Source Learning Academy. It's been two weeks and I feel prepared and excited more every day to learn something that interests me. In the beginning, I'll admit, it was a bit scary because out of hundreds of students that attend Santa Maria high I was one of six and I wondered, why me? This program consists of only having one teacher and any topic you want to learn but you'll still be getting the credits you need to graduate. What made me say yes to this different style of teaching is my only teacher Dr. Preston. He was so different from the other teachers in the aspect that you could talk to him and he'll listen, understand and respect no matter what the topic or reason is. I see that he genuinely wants to help us grow as students and people, and that's how I decided that I wanted to be part of this program. I look forward to my classes, and I also feel these thoughts and ideas I can now unleash and talk to someone with experience and wisdom about it.