My final reflection assign.# 15

 Looking back at my first and seventh blog posts, I stated that what I wanted to gain from this course were better skills in writing, be able to write college level papers, and be able write and come up with ideas to whichever topic I was  given. Well I can sincerely say that I have learned a lot this semester, I have learned how to better analyze essays, develop good argumentative essays. I’ve had more practice in writing essays, I have learned of good features that make a good essay. I have as well learned that in order to create more credibility in your paper, I need to back up my ideas with info. Although I think I have gained a lot of knowledge in writing papers this semester, I still need to practice more and improve when it comes to using more complex vocabulary. I have become more familiar with college level writing and have learned of different important features of a good paper. Some weaknesses I need to work on would be to be able to develop better thesis in papers, as well as better organizing my ideas. I still need to work as well in trying to avoid repetition throughout my essays.

Revisions assign.# 14

For my final portfolio I have chosen to revise my ad analysis essay. In my opinion I was able to describe what the ad was trying to tell its audience, and why the strange ad was able to get people’s attention. The weaknesses of my paper were that I was not able to clearly state my thesis, and I also repeated info. My strategy on how I plan to revise my essay is to make a better explanation of the ad, and look carefully at each sentence to see if they make sense. In my essay I was able to support some ideas. I feel as if I need to work as well on a better explanation of the ad, some important facts where left out. When writing my essay I am going to try to include better info to support my claims. I am going to read each sentence out loud and see if they make sense, then decide whether I need to fix them or erase them from my paper. I will as well try to organize my ideas better, and make it clear and easy to read.

Analyzing argument essay Assign.#13

When analyzing the article “Free Speech off Campus Must Be Protected” I have learned of several ways in which a writer is able to catch the reader’s attention and create credibility towards an essay. First of all the article was very well organized and well-defended by the author. Having good clear evidence and backing up your argument with it, in my opinion is one of the best ways to write an argumentative essay. Good clear evidence and having good strong reasons on your argument creates credibility towards your papers and makes it hard for it to be challenged. A positive serious tone in a paper also helps, it show confidence and gives the reader the idea that you know what you are talking about and not just making stuff up. Being well organized with your facts and ideas throughout the essay also makes the essay more easy to read and understandable for the reader. In conclusion, I guess being well organized, providing strong evidence and a good tone are some of the main points that make a good essay.

Assign.# 12 Evidence

Question:  Should stores that sell tobacco products be boycotted?

Thesis:  Stores that sell tobacco products should be boycotted, for selling a product that can cause a deathly addiction.

Compelling evidence: My most compelling evidence in my opinion would be the fact that tobacco can actually cause an addiction which could be hard to get rid of, and which could lead you to your own death. This is strong evidence because years of research have proven that smoking can cause lung cancer and other diseases. A way in which I could cause an emotionally appeal to my audience is in mentioning how even if they don’t smoke, they should be aware of how much damage secondhand smoke could cause to their loved ones. Because cancer is a very deathly disease and one in which people are the most afraid of, I can use the fact that tobacco causes cancer throughout my essay because it is my strongest reason.

Weakest evidence: I think my weakest evidence or something that could be used to challenge my argument is that, people could argue that they have the right to be able to buy this product. Although people could argue that they should be able to smoke careless about their health, they should also think about how they could still affect others because of secondhand smoke. There could be different reasons in why people could be against my argument, but in my opinion the fact it could lead people to their death could be difficult to challenge.

Common Errors assign.#11

  Looking back at several errors I tend to make when writing an essay, the most common one is repeating same stuff over and over again. And I’ve noticed that not only me but as well as several of my classmates have had this problem. As a solution whenever I write an essay I try to only repeat facts when necessary, and try to write something else when the lack of info is the cause of this problem. I’ve also noticed that I tend to write the word “Also” and several teachers have written back comments on several papers pointing out that problem. I guess a way to fix that would be to try to use other kinds of transitional words other than “also”.

   
   Another error would be that I sometimes happen to write several run on sentences in my writing, I guess should practice several remedies like using semicolons and coordinating conjunctions. Sometime I also tend to go off topic when writing my essays, stuff that is somehow related to the topic but at the end it causes a lot of confusion throughout the essay.

Peer review assignment #10

Peer review in my opinion has been effective so far. First of all everybody has different opinions and thought’s. Because of this reason peer review is effective, because your peer might have different ways to better your essay. Some of my strengths and weaknesses as a peer reviewer is that I am able to identify errors easily and I am able to give good feedback understandable enough for my peer to understand and improve his/her essay. I think doing peer review with smaller groups is more helpful and effective, because of less distractions and more able to focus on only one peer. 

My thoughts about college

   College so far has been a great experience. All of the classes I’ve taken so far, I think have been very helpful. I’ve learned a lot and I can see how these classes may be of great help in the future. I have not yet decided what I would like to major in, but I am a bit interested in justice studies. Some of the classes I’ve taken could be very helpful no matter what I decide to major in or be. Like for example my past and recent writing classes. The two writing classes have been very helpful, and I have learned a lot and so far I think my writing has improved. Being able to write good essays, and having good writing skills could be of great help in the future.

     What I’ve enjoyed the most in college is the really simple schedule, and the reasonable time for each class. But what I have enjoyed the least would be the really complex and long assignments from several classes. High school years where some of the best years of my life, but I do have to admit that I do enjoy the independence in college.