Final Reflection ENGL 1001
Morgan McIntosh
University of Cincinnati Blue Ash
17 April 2018
In this course, English 1001, we learned the aspects of successful writing through assignments that built upon one another. Beginning with a list of sources, then moving through an annotated bibliography, research report, genre recast and a theory of writing paper. By learning this way, we also learned a structures writing process that will continue to benefit us in and out of the classroom.
Rhetorical Knowledge
Audience is the driving force behind all aspects of my writing. It defines my purpose, tone, language and even content. Knowing your audience allows you to decide what is appropriate to include in the writing and how to best present that information to the reader/viewer. As the audience changed with each assignment, so did the way I wrote and my purpose for writing. For example, in my research report, I was writing for professionals, researchers and adults. Because of this, I used scientific words and included information that suited their more advanced comprehension level. This differs from the video I created in the genre recast because the intended audience was children, rather than more-educated adults. Therefore, I used smaller words and included solutions that they could easily preform.
Critical Thinking, Reading and Writing
As a writer the ability to read, comprehend and transfer that information into writing, while speaking your own thoughts and ideas that go beyond what you have read is, important trait. This ability has been necessary for all assignments in this course. In the beginning, compiling a list of sources and determining their credibility required reading and analytical skills. This was again present in the annotated bibliography, where I was required to thoroughly analyze each of the sources and summarize the most important information. Next, critical thinking came into play when writing the research report. Not only did I have to include the information I had found in my research, but based on that, develop my own solutions to the issue being discussed. Finally, critical thinking, played a large role in the genre recasting assignment because I had to determine how to present the highly advanced information in a way that children, who are, for the most part, unfamiliar with the field, would understand
Processes
The writing process is structured much like the work in this course. Each element builds off of the one that came before it. First, you gather information, then develop an outline for your writing, add quotes and supporting details, write a draft, edit until final, and lastly, reflect.
When gathering information, it is important to take into consideration the credibility of each source. You must also be sure to cite all information correctly. Researching is perhaps the most time consuming part of the writing process. After doing so, using the information I have gathered, I organize the facts with my own personal thoughts to create an outline and guide for the piece. When all the preparatory work is complete, I finally begin to write. I use the first draft as a way to simply get everything on the paper. I then revise and edit it so that the writing becomes cohesive. Finally, when the writing is completely finished, it is important to reflect upon the work. Determine which parts were good, where there is room for improvement, and how this piece is different or similar to pieces I have written in the past. Reflection allows you to grow and improve as a writer and clearly see how what you have learned is applied to your writing.
By following this process, I am able to create new information and draw conclusions of my own, expanding upon the work of others rather than simply reiterating what has already been said. This is a skill that will benefit me in all areas of learning and life. By having the ability to develop my own ideas, I am capable of being successful in all classroom settings, as well as, become an asset in the professional world.
Conventions
English 1001 is a diverse course. Not only did we learn how to write essays, but also how to write in several other formats and how to be successful in doing so. The annotated bibliography required a completely different writing style than the research report and the genre recasting video. In this, it was necessary to list sources, and provide short, concise summaries of each. This contrasts with the highly detailed and elaborate paragraphs in an essay. Finally, when creating a video, there was not a large amount of writing involved at all. Instead, the voice over was more similar to writing a speech rather than a formal essay.
However, one consistency throughout all the writing is the style in which they were written. Based on the field and major we were studying in, the format used will differ. Personally, I used APA formatting in all of my assignments this semester. When writing in APA you must include a title page, page numbers, and a references page. In citations, the focus is on the last name of the author and the dates in which the article was written.
Electronic Information
Most of the information used in my writing was from scholarly journals, informative websites, and news articles found using Google Scholar and the Academic Search Complete provided by the UCBA library. Determining whether or not a source is credible depends on several factors. Some of the most important things to consider are: if the author is a professional in the discipline (field) and their credentials are clear, if the date is recent or relevant, the website (.edu, .gov, or .org are reliable), references and if the source connects to other reliable sources for support, if it is relevant to your topic, and there are no glaring errors of format or language presentation.
As a writer, mastering word processing tools is highly important. When writing, the paper should be double spaced, in a twelve point font and an using an appropriate font. Also, when drafting, some helpful tools include the word count and spell checking options. Lastly, while editing, the suggesting and commenting tools, allow you or a peer reviewer to make changes without permanently changing the paper. This way, you have the ability to consider both options and decide how to move forward.
Conclusion
This course, English 1001, has taught students how to be successful writers, in all genres and formats. I have grown and greatly improved as a writer and will continue to do so using the processing steps learned in this class.