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Garrett Simes
Professor Jan Rieman
English 1103
October 9, 2010
Self-Assessment:
I feel much better about my paper after these revisions. I feel
better about the paragraphs 3 & 4.
I still feel that my conclusion is a little weak, but my peers
didnt have a problem with it. I havereworded a few things and
worked on paragraphs 3, 4 and 5.
Looking Forward and Looking Back
We have had quite a few writing pieces in English 1103 this
semester. We have written
about many topics from choices in our lives to the language we
use with different groups people.
Many of my writing practices have been consistent throughout. My
last writing to explore
looked into my writing rituals and I learned how comfortable I
am with them. I have used those
rituals for all of my different writing pieces so far. All of my
papers have been based on MLA
format so far. I write in this form because I understand it and
I am comfortable with it. I
brainstorm and outline for all of my papers, in English and in
my other classes. I do this
brainstorming and outlining on the same notepad. I always write
my papers and read for class in
the same spot. That spot is in the lounge on the third floor of
my dorm. It is always a quiet place
that I can free myself from as many distractions as possible.
Even right now, I am writing from
the lounge.
All of these practices or rituals make writing easier for me.
Another thing that makes it
easier for me to write is when a paper includes my opinion. I
know exactly how I feel about
things and I do not have a problem writing those feelings in a
paper. One thing I struggle with is
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writing papers on things I am not as familiar with. I also have
problems with writing objective
papers. I have an opinion on everything and it is very hard for
me to exclude my opinions from
my writing. It is also a heck of a lot easier to write about
things I know and understand. I also
struggle to write in other forms than I am comfortable. I write
all papers and essays the same
and I dont feel comfortable changing how I write.
I believe that everything we have done inside and outside of
class has worked toward the
class goals. We have read and discussed academic texts,
including Sponsors of Literacy,
Intertextuality and others. We have used key ideas, terms, and
concepts when we applied the
term sponsors of literacy and applying it to Learning to Read,
by Malcolm X and Alexies
The Joy of Reading and Writing. I still would not call reading
academic essays and books a
hobby, but I am not dreading it as much as I originally thought.
I am still working on exploring
other modes. I hope to address this as I continue through the
semester. I think that the
classroom culture document is being followed and that it is
further encouraging the achievement
of the class goals. All the rules help us, as the students;
complete our goals and those of the
course. This class makes reading and writing a lot more
interesting; its by no means fun, but it
is much more bearable.
Editing is a big piece in the puzzle of writing. No one writes a
perfect book the first time.
Editing is the way to transition from getting your thoughts out
to having a final draft. Peer
workshop is very helpful for the development of my writing. It
is really hard to evaluate your
own writing. It is much easier to look at your paper with new
eyes by actually using someone
elses. I also enjoy receiving multiple opinions. I also
appreciate that those opinions are those of
my peers. My first drafts are defiantly not ready for the eyes
of a professor. Every time we have
a peer workshop, I take all the advice given and it always helps
me better my essays.
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My inquiry has branched off of the writing I have done so far.
My inquiry question is
based off of one of the writing to explore prompts. It was
conceived after reading about the
writing log prompt. It made me wonder how technology has
influenced the way people read and
write. So much of the information we receive comes from
technology. I know that technology
has changed the way I write. Gone are the days of writing and
erasing over and over. Here are
the days of digital drafts. Through my research I have decided
to focus on the digital language
formed from this new technology. I want to learn how this
changes the English language as a
whole, if at all.
We are halfway through the semester and it has gone by extremely
quick. One thing has
held true. This class has focused on writing. We have written
over 25 pieces of writing so far
and I dont see the pace letting up any time soon. We are making
good progress towards the
accomplishment of our goals. I look forward to the continuation
of the class and the semester
and finding out what else we will write in the course.
