From the Literacy Narrative, to this very self-assessment, and all the free writes in between, I have grown and evolved as a writer. I now write more than one draft for an essay, my thesis is a crafted sentence that answers a prompt, and my analysis’s are no longer glorified summaries. I actually think about my grammar and sentence structure when I write along with creating a rhetorical situation and relationship between my audience and myself. Over the course of 16 weeks, I have developed a more enhanced set of skills as a writer due to this FIQWS 10108 class.
Looking back at the first essay that I wrote for this class, the Literacy Narrative, I see so many simple errors. The transition from the hook to the thesis is weak, multiple commas were unnecessarily placed in sentences, and there was a struggle between summarizing and analyzing. On the other hand, I notice portions of my essay that I already successfully implemented such as essay structure, a capturing hook, and a thesis. This essay was written in five drafts, a new record for me during the month of September. In high school, I used to write one to two drafts before completing an essay; however, over the course of this semester I began to write numerous drafts for each essay. The multiple drafts and free writes written for each essay helped my writing improve and evolve. Furthermore, I have been in honors or AP classes for all four years of my high school education and the five-step body paragraph structure has been drilled into my head since I was fourteen years old. For every essay, I always focus on writing an interesting introduction, so I did not make progress in that field this semester. The first essay for this semester aided my growing knowledge of genres and stance because I now not only recognize different genres but clearly state my attitude in each essay.
The next essay that I wrote for this class, the Expository Essay, was the first mark of successfully achieving Course Learning Outcomes. Between the seven drafts that I wrote and the two in-class peer reviews, this essay was thoroughly revised and revamped. I collaborated with peers and Professor von Uhl as I was allowed an opportunity to rewrite the essay. This essay taught me the importance of citation, for while I was strong in APA citation before this semester, I was not taught MLA citation. I learned how crucial it was to cite every piece of information that was not my own. If I were to leave this class only knowing one fact, it would be: cite cite cite! When I compare the first draft of this essay to the final draft I notice far more citations, transitions, and overall better paragraph structure. While I was strong in analysis, summary, and purpose before this semester, this essay helped my relationship between my audience and medium as a writer evolve.
The final essay written for this class, the Critical Analysis Research Essay, was the longest and most extensive essay that I wrote for this course. Many Course Learning Outcomes were achieved such as locating research sources (academic journals and peer reviewed articles), writing in a new genre (research essay), using both print and digital technology to extend my audience range (evidenced with the extensive outside information in my essay), using correct citations (MLA format and a completed Works Cited page), and implementing critical analysis, interpretation, and argumentation (connecting the short story “Diary of a Madman” to research about treatment for schizophrenia). This was the essay that proved my growth as a writer during this semester, due to the constant drafts and online research. In addition, I organized the prompt into my own words and organized/structured my essay according to my lengthy thesis. I annotated the short story, and improved my topic sentences as well as my conclusions. When I compare this essay to my Literacy Narrative, I notice a stronger thesis and argument emerging in the essay. This Critical Analysis Essay strengthened my sense as a writer, from the extensive research process to supporting my thesis.
Outside of writing essays, multiple class sessions further developed my knowledge about rhetorical concepts. For example, the grammar packet, “The Mechanics of Writing”, and the Norton Field Guide to Writing helped my counterarguments and articulation evolve. The BEAM and Toulmin method along with the book They Say I Say developed my roots of writing: interpreting texts, introducing quotes in text, evidencing claims through warrants, and the basics of writing any form of essay (analyze what others say, analyze what I say). Professor von Uhl’s discussion about mentioning the thesis in every paragraph of an essay to prove its relevance was something new I learned this semester. Now, every paragraph of every essay that I write is always relevant to my topic for there are no “lost paragraphs”. Through reflections for each essay, I learned that I need to improve my relationship with my medium and audience as a writer, and further that relationship through my stance. This connected with peer reviews: I learned what was clear to my audience and what was not clear. My purpose and exigence are not always clear in my essays so in the future I will try to clarify that rhetorical analysis in my conclusion, instead of trying to create a solution in every conclusion that I write.
This section of the FIQWS class taught me more about revision than psychopathology but to be honest, I learned more useful information about grammar for the future than about mental illnesses. For future writing courses, I know now to not be afraid to create multiple drafts, break down a prompt, or collaborate with a peer for an extra revision session. Furthermore, most importantly, I learned to always cite outside information. This will be a course that I will carry into the future, as I learned useful information about writing and grammar that will always be relevant. I immensely evolved through the four essays and reflections of this course and will continue to grow through these four years of college.
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