Tuesday, December 8, 2015
Reflection on Open Letter Draft
I peer reviewed Morgan's open letter draft and Carter's open letter draft. Both were very good starting drafts for this project and I am confident they can make them even better. Hopefully the comments I left them are helpful to completing the fulfillments for their open letters. Here is Morgan's draft link, and here is Carter's draft link.
From my classmates' drafts for their open letters, I have learned that we all have similar views when it comes to the class itself. Difference in our opinions change when talking about our writing experiences prior taking English 109H. An example of this might be that we all felt that the workload for this class was intense but all had very different views of english classes before coming into college. The types of skills we've acquired throughout high school is also a difference many of us have. Considering that I am a sequential composer and a heavy reviser, compared to other classmates who might be quite the opposite of me.
Here are some questions regarding the reflection of my open letter draft:
Did you demonstrate an ability to think about your writing and yourself as a writer?
In my open letter draft, I was able to provide a precursor to a more in depth discussion about my own writing and myself as a writer. In my final draft, I will elaborate upon what I have first drawn up and will give my readers a better sense of who I am when it comes to writing.
Did you provide analysis of your experiences, assignments, or concepts you have learned?
I did provide multiple examples of my own experiences with writing. I have also included statements about the assignments throughout this course and the concepts I have learned by taking it. The discussion I have provided thus far is not exactly worthy of being called an "in-depth analysis" but will be reconstructed to fit that title for the final submission of this reflection project.
Did you provide concrete examples from your own writing?
I was able to include multiple examples of concrete evidence to back my own writing. With these I have reassured the reader that, although I am not the most experienced writer, I am a better one now that I was coming into this course. The examples I have included also support my writing process and style as I am now a more experienced writer but the same kind I was when I started college.
Did you explain why you made certain choices and whether those choices were effective?
I did explain to some extent in my letter that the choices I made throughout this class were either effective or ineffective. I have yet to discuss the details throughly but I do plan on reworking my letter to fully include my explanation of why I did some things the way I did.
Did you use specific terms and concepts related to writing and the writing process?
From all the way back in my first blog post, I talked about my writing process. In this letter I brought my readers back the sense of my writing style of being a "heavy reviser" and a "sequential composer." With these titles that I had given myself, I explain to my readers that these labels still do describe me as a writer now at the conclusion of this course. I also include other terms and concepts that help my readers understand how my skills now relate with regards to writing and the writing process.
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| bykst. "Santa Clause Winter Christmas Moose." 11/09/15 via pixabay. Public Domain Dedication. |
Here are some questions regarding the reflection of my open letter draft:
Did you demonstrate an ability to think about your writing and yourself as a writer?
In my open letter draft, I was able to provide a precursor to a more in depth discussion about my own writing and myself as a writer. In my final draft, I will elaborate upon what I have first drawn up and will give my readers a better sense of who I am when it comes to writing.
Did you provide analysis of your experiences, assignments, or concepts you have learned?
I did provide multiple examples of my own experiences with writing. I have also included statements about the assignments throughout this course and the concepts I have learned by taking it. The discussion I have provided thus far is not exactly worthy of being called an "in-depth analysis" but will be reconstructed to fit that title for the final submission of this reflection project.
Did you provide concrete examples from your own writing?
I was able to include multiple examples of concrete evidence to back my own writing. With these I have reassured the reader that, although I am not the most experienced writer, I am a better one now that I was coming into this course. The examples I have included also support my writing process and style as I am now a more experienced writer but the same kind I was when I started college.
Did you explain why you made certain choices and whether those choices were effective?
I did explain to some extent in my letter that the choices I made throughout this class were either effective or ineffective. I have yet to discuss the details throughly but I do plan on reworking my letter to fully include my explanation of why I did some things the way I did.
Did you use specific terms and concepts related to writing and the writing process?
From all the way back in my first blog post, I talked about my writing process. In this letter I brought my readers back the sense of my writing style of being a "heavy reviser" and a "sequential composer." With these titles that I had given myself, I explain to my readers that these labels still do describe me as a writer now at the conclusion of this course. I also include other terms and concepts that help my readers understand how my skills now relate with regards to writing and the writing process.
Saturday, December 5, 2015
Draft of Open Letter
This post is a vehicle to display the draft of my open letter. Linked towards the bottom of this post is a Google Document of my open letter. I ask that anyone wanting to comment on my piece do so in a manner as to politely criticize my writing. In it, I have talked about my writing experiences through this English class. I talk about how this course has bettered my skills as a writing and has put a sense of confidence in my knowledge as a writer. Through all of this however, I also state that writing is still not a strong skill of mine and I do not wish to produce as much literature as I have done this semester.
Here is the link to the draft of my open letter. Enjoy.
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| Lucas. "pen and paper." 04/23/2009 via Flickr. Public Domain Dedication. |
Reflecting More on My Writing Experiences
In this post, I will answer questions regarding some additional information about my semester in the Honor English 109H course. These questions will be answered by myself and my looking at the writing I have completed for this class.
1. What were the biggest challenges you faced this semester, overall?
As a weak writer in general, the biggest challenges during this semester mainly came from my lack of creativity when it comes to writing. I found myself struggling with writing effective and purposeful pieces to fulfill the requirements of each project and even sometimes each assignment.
2. What did you learn this semester about your time management, writing and editorial skills?
Out of these three skills, I would have to say that I learned to time manage much more effectively than before taking this class. The weekly deadlines kept me on track and made me want to work ahead just so I would not have to cram all the assignments into one day. My writing and editorial skills have undoubtedly improved, but I would not say by much. If anything, my editorial skills improved more so than my writing capabilities.
3. What do you know about the concept of 'genre'? Explain the importance of this concept.
I had not much clue what a genre of a paper was before taking this class, but now, after taking this class and having the concepts drilled into my head, I can say that I have learned the importance of effective writing for a specific genre. Knowing the genre of your essay could help an author connect with their readers as well as effectively convey the information they need.
4. What skills from this course might you use further in the next few years of college?
The skills I have acquired from this class are not plentiful but are a limited few. Of the few, I will be able to use a portion of what I have learned to better my writing in the future for additional college usage. I do not see myself using my writing 'skills' a large amount but just enough to scrap by as an engineering student.
5. What was your most effective moment from this semester in English 109H?
The most effective moments were the Q & A sessions during class over each project. This helped me the most by getting me to better understand what each project is asking for and how I should go about creating and finalizing each one as best I could.
6. What was your least effective moment from this semester in English 109H?
There were plenty of least effective moments for me during this semester, mainly the causes being myself. At the start of the course, I realized that my time management skills to begin with were trash and much better organization was needed for me to better my writing.
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| Specious. "A ball point pen in use." 07/19/2008 via Wikimedia. Public Domain Dedication. |
1. What were the biggest challenges you faced this semester, overall?
As a weak writer in general, the biggest challenges during this semester mainly came from my lack of creativity when it comes to writing. I found myself struggling with writing effective and purposeful pieces to fulfill the requirements of each project and even sometimes each assignment.
2. What did you learn this semester about your time management, writing and editorial skills?
Out of these three skills, I would have to say that I learned to time manage much more effectively than before taking this class. The weekly deadlines kept me on track and made me want to work ahead just so I would not have to cram all the assignments into one day. My writing and editorial skills have undoubtedly improved, but I would not say by much. If anything, my editorial skills improved more so than my writing capabilities.
3. What do you know about the concept of 'genre'? Explain the importance of this concept.
I had not much clue what a genre of a paper was before taking this class, but now, after taking this class and having the concepts drilled into my head, I can say that I have learned the importance of effective writing for a specific genre. Knowing the genre of your essay could help an author connect with their readers as well as effectively convey the information they need.
4. What skills from this course might you use further in the next few years of college?
The skills I have acquired from this class are not plentiful but are a limited few. Of the few, I will be able to use a portion of what I have learned to better my writing in the future for additional college usage. I do not see myself using my writing 'skills' a large amount but just enough to scrap by as an engineering student.
5. What was your most effective moment from this semester in English 109H?
The most effective moments were the Q & A sessions during class over each project. This helped me the most by getting me to better understand what each project is asking for and how I should go about creating and finalizing each one as best I could.
6. What was your least effective moment from this semester in English 109H?
There were plenty of least effective moments for me during this semester, mainly the causes being myself. At the start of the course, I realized that my time management skills to begin with were trash and much better organization was needed for me to better my writing.
Revisiting My Writing Process
This new post will focus on reflecting on my previous writing thoughts before taking this course. I will draw from my two very first blog posts ever, "My Writing Process" and "Calendar Reflection." In this post, I will explain how my perspective on my own writing process and time management had either changed or not.
From my very first two blog posts, I wrote about my writing process and my upcoming college semester. I stated that I considered my self a heavy reviser and a sequential composer when it comes to my writing style. I'll have to say, after taking this English course, that I am still those same two traits. This class has better improved my traits as a writer.
I still consider myself a terrible writer, but now I have the experience of writing in other genres, such as within this blog. I had no idea how to even create one before this class and now I have posted 60+ individual updates to my blog. As for my success, I would say this process has helped in my survival throughout this semester.
Looking over my "Calendar Reflection," I noticed my statement, "I've already felt the stress-sweat trickle down my face." This statement is not as true as it was that first several weeks of school. Once I learned to time manage, this class did not seem as stressful as it felt then. Not to say that it is not difficult, it is really difficult, but now I've learned to organize my posts for each deadline so I do not have to cram it all in one day.
Overall, I feel this first semester was a great experience for the future to come. I am excited to see what each semester brings to the table and how I learned to solve the difficult problems of life as a university student.
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| Brain POP. "The Writing process." 05/17/2010 via Flickr. Public Domain Dedication. |
From my very first two blog posts, I wrote about my writing process and my upcoming college semester. I stated that I considered my self a heavy reviser and a sequential composer when it comes to my writing style. I'll have to say, after taking this English course, that I am still those same two traits. This class has better improved my traits as a writer.
I still consider myself a terrible writer, but now I have the experience of writing in other genres, such as within this blog. I had no idea how to even create one before this class and now I have posted 60+ individual updates to my blog. As for my success, I would say this process has helped in my survival throughout this semester.
Looking over my "Calendar Reflection," I noticed my statement, "I've already felt the stress-sweat trickle down my face." This statement is not as true as it was that first several weeks of school. Once I learned to time manage, this class did not seem as stressful as it felt then. Not to say that it is not difficult, it is really difficult, but now I've learned to organize my posts for each deadline so I do not have to cram it all in one day.
Overall, I feel this first semester was a great experience for the future to come. I am excited to see what each semester brings to the table and how I learned to solve the difficult problems of life as a university student.
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