Hannah Kanter

Dr. Naomi Adiv

March 6th, 2016
Winter Term Reflection
Winter term of 2016 has been one of stretching and adjusting. Since switching
from my former freshman inquiry section there was a period of adjustment, the course
structure didnt transfer and I had gotten too comfortable with what I could get away
with. Since transferring to Professor Adivs class, I have genuinely enjoyed the course
material. I appreciate that this section of Portland! FRINQ allows for the students to
actively engage with the material through field studies, guest lectures, and reading
responses.
Reading responses are something that I have had a difficult time keeping up with
since I was in high school Ill always do the readings, but the writing and turning in
reading responses is where my work ethic gets a bit soft. I know this is a problem that I
have consistently struggled with through out my educational career, but it felt like it was
amplified due to outside factors such as my work schedule. I feel like field studies were
the part that I enjoyed most about his class, but also the biggest stressor. I often found
myself in the week before the due date, with a couple of hours to complete the
assignment, but only after dark which made going and seeing the locations rather
difficult. This specific area is something I want to work on in spring term. Ive created a
more academically friendly work schedule that should help enable me to make juggling
work and school less of a difficult endeavor.
I appreciated how the guest lectures complemented the readings, for me this
helped clarify a lot of the ambiguity in the readings. For example, Professor Shobes
lecture on his book Portlandness: a Cultural Atlas helped me understand how vast
cultural geography is. Instead of having specific and structured guidelines cultural

Hannah Kanter
Dr. Naomi Adiv
March 6th, 2016
geography is more of a general category with the definition depending on perspective. I
found that this was true for most of the guest lecturers and Im looking forward to seeing
whom Prof. Adiv brings in next term.
Writing an educational autobiography was an interesting experience. I have an
unconventional track record with education, growing up my family moved about every
two years which lead to going to more than a handful of schools over the years. I didnt
realize quite how different or unusual this scenario was until I compared my experience
with other people. I typically find that those who can relate the most are often army kids.
Over the course of 14 years, I attended nine schools in Washington, Oregon, and
California. Ive been homeschooled, Ive gone to alternative and comprehensive high
schools, and Ive even braved the world of Catholic school. In writing this piece, I had to
be specific, instead it wasnt about eye-catching facts but it was about telling educational
story and remembering the people who influenced it most. I feel like this was a fantastic
reflective piece because it not only focused on the very beginning of my education, and
how that has affected me. But also my recent experiences, with professors who I didnt
think would leave a mark, but they did and having to pin point what exactly they changed
in me was a thought provoking process. In doing this, I have gone back to reflect on some
of the work that I did in each of their classes to compare how I treat my education now.
I have found that my experience with Mr. McClement has helped me cultivate a
genuine sense of security as a student in seeking academic scholarship. Professor Jay was
probably the most unconventional professor I have even had the honor of being in class
with. He was someone who fell in to the position on accident and just never left, and I
so thankful that he did not. His class was the beginning of a never-ending stream of

Hannah Kanter
Dr. Naomi Adiv
March 6th, 2016
questions, and had it not been for him I think that my perspective of the inner and outer
working of how people interact internationally would not be as keen as it is today. It was
the filler class that I took while figuring out what I planned to major in, and it was the
defining factor for me to choose the major that I am currently in and adoring every single
moment.
In this term of Portland! Freshman inquiry Ive developed a more comprehensive
understanding of not only physical geography, but cultural and political geography too.
Continuing in to next term Im excited to discuss electoral geography and further delve in
to the geography of my city. The 2016 presidential primaries will be taking place in the
spring term too and Im interested in seeing how my perspective and understanding of the
results will change in the context of electoral geography.
I know that in the spring term there are habits that I need to break, but I also feel
like I have successfully developed my understanding of geography in the context of
Portland. Geography was a subject matter that I had a very minimal understanding of
until this course, and Im looking forward to furthering my knowledge of its various
facets.