Mulkey 1

Tyler Mulkey!
Professor Olivia Zicherman!
University Writing 1101!
16 September 2014

It was just a normal school morning a day no different than any other. I woke up, got
dressed, brushed my teeth, grabbed some breakfast on the way out the door (I never got up early
enough to actually sit down and eat breakfast), got in my car and took off for school. I got to
school, grabbed everything I needed for the day out of my car and began my normal high speed
walk towards the entrance. On the way to the school entrance, I paused, hit the lock button on
my remote for my Jeep, waited to hear the horn beep, and continued. I entered the building just
like any other day, stopping frequently to shake hands with only my closest of friends (other
people weren't that important) and arrived to Mr. Johnsens Civics and Economics class a few
minutes before the bell rang. Mr. Johnsen always stood at the entrance of his door in the hallway
until the bell rang. Almost every morning consisted of more than just a normal greeting between
Mr. Johnsen and myself, we would usually talk momentarily about something that happened the
previous night, most of the time it would be a sporting event (especially if the Tar Heels played).
Following the brief conversation with Mr. Johnsen I proceeded to my seat, sat down, took out the
things I needed for class, and waited for class to begin.
It was second semester of sophomore year. We were in the home stretch of the school
year, just a few weeks away from taking our final exams and getting out for the summer. I was
not, and still not a big fan of school, but Mr. Johnsens Honors Civics and Economics class was

Mulkey 2
one I did not mind going to. In fact, I looked forward to attending his class. Mr. Johnsen is in his
late twenties, a UNC alumni, and a lover of sports, therefore we have a lot in common (me being
a die hard Tar Heel fan and lover of sports as well). Throughout the semester Mr. Johnsen and
myself formed a tight bond, not only relating to events outside of the class but in the class as
well. He was, and still is one of the very few teachers that made me want to learn. One of the
most admirable characteristics about Mr. Johnsen is that he cared. He takes his job very seriously
and education of his students even more serious. He is not one to go over a powerpoint, have you
write down notes, and quiz you frequently to see if you understand the material. He is going to
insure that you not only know the material before the test, but before you leave his class to go to
second period. The way he captures your attention and pulls you into the lesson often times
makes you forget to even take down notes. It was nearly impossible not to enjoy his class let
alone do bad in it. The class environment (Mr. Johnsen, digital technology, intriguing and
learning atmosphere) set you up for success and make it very hard to succeed. You are probably
wondering when I am going to stop talking about Mr. Johnsen and get on with my story, but he
has been gifted with great teaching abilities, therefore he deserves the recognition. Now my story
begins.
It was just a normal day in Mr. Johnsens Civics and Economics class when he asked us
to read an excerpt about the declining economy and recession. Without hesitating, the class
began to read the excerpt (this was an individual reading assignment). As a part of his normal
routine, Mr. Johnsen would roam the class, peeking over the shoulders of students, not to just
make sure we were on task but to stop and ask questions, ensuring we understood what we had
just read. Finally, Mr. Johnsen arrived to my desk, standing over my right shoulder.

Mulkey 3
What do you think Tyler?, Mr. Johnsen asked.
I am not really sure what to think, I replied. Granted, the article was a very complex piece of
reading (especially for a 10th grader) explaining why the economy was the way it was.
Mr. Johnsen asked, Well, what do you not understand?
Everything, I replied. I just do not understand it.
Well, lets try to understand a small portion of it before we try and understand the whole thing,
he proposed.
Sounds good to me, I responded.
So, from there we began to go over the article. We broke the reading down into significantly
smaller sections, stopping frequently to reflect and comprehend what I had just read.
Often times, especially in a difficult reading such as this one, you have to view it as a puzzle.
Break it up into smaller sections, stopping very often to ask yourself if you understand what is
going on because you have to understand what happens first before you can understand what
happens second, Mr. Johnsen proclaimed.
I get the whole puzzle concept Mr. Johnsen, but is that not more of an elementary reading
concept?, I asked.
Mr. Johnsen concluded, It may seem that way, but look at the outcome. When you first read the
article you had no idea as to why the economy was the way it was, and now you have a basic
understanding as to why it is the way it is.
Agreeingly I said., Yeah i suppose so. I guess it doesn't really matter how you go about
understanding it as long as you understand it.

Mulkey 4
Not many specific moments from high school stand out in my mind like that one. But that
two minutes of going over that article with Mr. Johnsen changed the way I view advanced /
complex articles. To this day I still use that strategy, and it has helped me tremendously. When i
look back on that moment I cant help but laugh and wonder why I never though of a concept so
simple. Although I had probably been introduced to the concept in a previous class, it was just
not a strategy I had ever put much thought into. Usually in high school, you read an article, and
are asked to answer questions about what you just read or say aloud what you understood it to
be. If you didn't understand it then you probably just tried to answer the question as best as you
could, still unsure of what you just read and not really worried about trying to understand it. But
using the strategy Mr. Johnsen introduced to me has improved my reading comprehension. The
reason it is so useful it because it makes me take my time. It requires me to stop and think
instead of just rushing through the article. Throughout high school you are taught knew reading
strategies and then told to practice them, some may work and some may not. But as I have
learned more, I just try to keep it simple. Understanding reading can be easy if you want it too. If
you take out all the complex reading strategies and keep the understanding process simple then it
is going to be easier to understand what you read.
This moment was one of the most vivid memories I have in a classroom from high
school. Who would have ever though a concept so simple could have changed the way I view
literacy? Although it is a simple concept and seems like a strategy for someone a lot younger
than 15 years old to use, it has a been a huge difference maker. Ever since that moment in the
classroom, my constructed responses, short essays, etc., have greatly improved. And what I
learned is something I plan on using for a long time to come.