Dear comrade,
My semester in college composition was a great learning experience in which I deciphered and absorbed numerous ways to write papers. I found out that there are many types of papers that all use different means in order to give a message. In class, we digested in depth subjects, like how to properly write dialog, and general topics, like how to write proper introductions and conclusions. Did you know that an introduction is best written after the rest of the essay is written? I bet you didnt!
In all seriousness, this course isnt as boring as I made it out to be in the previous paragraph. You get instruction on how to write the many types of papers that will be required of you in college. More importantly, you get to learn how to revise these papers so that you avoid handing in a pell-mell piece of crap. We all want good grades in college.
This course is heavy in writing. You will write about five to ten essay's, if not more. Contrary to what you might think, this is a good thing. The only way you learn is by actually doing. To become proficient in writing, you have to write write write. Don't worry though, the essay topics wont bore the living hell out of you as did topics in previous English courses.
I know that after taking this course, I acquired the great ability to be able to write about anything. I know I will have solid introductions and conclusions, a good title and an essay that will directly adress what I am writing about. I am way more confident in my writing than when I entered the doors of the classroom in Septemeber. I guess this is the best thing that I took out of the course, confidence. How did I gain it? As I have said above, by constant writing.
This portfolio is a bit of what I was able to pull out of the course. I analyzed and edited three separate papers that I have written. My analysis is present in reflections that begin each new post on the blog.
I analyzed a piece I did based on a class activity on chocolate. The first draft of this essay was very rough and needed much revision. After strenuous rereading and editing, I was able to produce a better draft. Further, I came up with three new introductions to the essay. We were given many different ways to write an introduction and were told to pick three. I have descibed each form in the post. My peers commented and picked an intro that they liked best. What jolly fun.
I next looked over a piece on the seven deadly sins. In two drafts, I was able to sufficiently create a story representation of each sin. I also drafted two alternative conclusions in the same form that I did for the introductions in the chocolate paper, except this time my peers did not comment.
I also self-analyzed (meaning barely any teacher help) an exemplification piece on my favorite musician. My thoughts and specific things that were wrong in the paper are present in the reflections.
I last wrote a brief reflection on the faults of a how-to paper. I did not revise the paper, however, as there was no requirment to do so.
In each post on this blog (except this one) there are specific reflections that give my thoughts on each paper. These reflections detail what I did and what needs revising. To gain a basic understanging of what this course is about, you have to read these reflections as they are unique to each paper and detail what you learn during the course.
Good luck and have fun reading!
Your Fellow Comrade,
Tim
