Maahi Parikh

On March 12, 2018, I made the decision to become a part of the International Baccalaureate program at Campbell High School. The International Baccalaureate (IB) program is a global initiative which provides students with higher education fit for globalizing the world. The curriculum taught focuses more on an international perspective of all the classes available rather than being restricted to certain subjects.

Going into the IB program, I knew I would have to write a lot of essays and papers, both for individual classes and in order to receive my diploma. In middle school, the standard for English essays was a lot different than what would be expected in high school. Therefore, I essentially had to relearn how to write a paper, with a higher level of understanding and development.

As high school went on, I began to master the skill of writing papers at the IB level. Most of the papers were expected to have similar layouts, thus making it easier for me to master the skill. In order to receive my IB diploma, I had to write lots of short essays but additionally a four thousand word essay on a topic of my choice. This was the biggest piece I had ever written, and I chose to write it about the prevalence of certain themes for Shakespeare’s short stories. Even in high school, I had a passion for analyzing literature and showing my findings.

Because of my previous experiences with writing papers and analyzing texts, I was excited for English 1102 at the University of Georgia.