Writing Development

Can you see an improvement in your own writing throughout this semester? If so, describe that
improvement and how it developed. If not, describe how areas of improvement could be better
addressed in this course.

I can absolutely see an improvement in my writing after taking this course. I feel as if this course, above
any other English courses I have taken, prepares students for the real world. Each of these assignments
is likely to come up at some point during a person’s career. This course does a great job giving you
feedback every step of the way and making sure that students can improve their work rather than just
handing out a grade and moving on to the next thing. This is something to many other classes fail to do.
It was refreshing to be able to see my improvement throughout the course and I hope that my portfolio
reflects how my writing has improved.

Course Goals
At the beginning of the semester, we discussed each individual’s goals for this course. What
was your goal for this course? Did you meet your goal for this course? If so, how did that
happen? If not, how do you think the course could be revised to better help other students
meet that goal?

My original goal was centered more on just getting through this class and moving on than
learning anything new. In the original discussion I stated “I have taken a handful of other
English / Writing classes and as such have become fairly proficient in writing. This class seems
like it will teach a new way to approach writing topics.” However, I quickly learned that even
though I was not as proficient as I thought I was, I was able to improve my writing skills over the
course of the semester. I was able to meet my goal in becoming more proficient while also
learning how to approach several new writing styles I had previously not encountered. I think
the best way to ensure students succeed is making sure they are able to receive instructor
feedback as well as feedback from other students.

Assignments

Which assignment are you most proud of and why? If you could add any assignment to this course, what
would it be? If you could edit any assignment in this course, what would it be?

I am most proud of my instructions assignment at first try. However, I am prouder of the changes I made
to the white paper document. I think looking at the before and after drafts of the white page shows how
far along my writing has come throughout the semester. If I could add an assignment to this course, I
think a professional evaluation would fit into the course. Like evaluating a certain aspect of one’s job or
writing an evaluation based on someone’s performance. The only think I would really change in this class
is how reliant we are on other students turning in their work on time as well as reviewing my own work.
For one assignment I had no reviews, and for another one I only had one. I think it would work better if
the group sizes were larger.