Ansari 1

Madison Ansari
ENGL 1302-101
Dr. Sharity Nelson
5 December 2022
My Growth Throughout the Semester: A Reflection
A reflection into the semesters work in English 1302. Throughout the semester I worked

with numerous homework assignments, peer review workshops, wrote essays, and completed in

class assignments (Nelson). There was feedback I used to aid in turning in the best assignments

possible. As a cumulative assignment I was tasked with creating a portfolio to capture the growth

of my writing throughout the semester. This essay highlights the progress and choices made in

the completion of ENGL 1302.

The rhetorical choices I made in throughout the semester led to completing essays,

annotated bibliographies, many homework assignments, and even led me to build a website.

Starting with essay one, where I was tasked with writing an experiment paper. Based on

professor and peer review there were revisions that needed to be made. Some of the comments I

received back concluded better structure to the essay, and correct citations that were not properly

cited (Nelson). When revising essay one I considered the feedback from my professor and peers.

In my original final draft, the structure of my essay was flawed. My introduction section was too

long. I had two different sections for “background” and “introduction” when really, I should

have kept it in one larger section but broke up the paragraphs into smaller sub-sections. I

followed this pattern throughout the rest of the essay, I added more detail where I lacked in the

original, and I broke up lengthy paragraphs. In the tables I provided in the first essay, originally,

I had each of my test subjects separated into two tables. In the revised version I added the tables

together, so they are easier to understand and in one place. I fixed my citations by referencing a
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handout given in class to properly use MLA citations (Nelson). For example, some scholarships

where the citation had an “et al.”, I had the period after the “et” and not the “al”. I corrected the

mistake for my final revision of the essay.

In essay two I worked on writing a research analysis paper. In this paper there was a

requirement to write a paper with the help from other scholars. I wrote this paper with the

thought in my mind that for essay three I would have to argue for a side. According to feedback

received from my professor I was on the right track to a well written paper (Nelson). My flaws in

the paper included improper MLA formatting, and my paragraph structure. In the second essay I

was still formatting my citations improperly, and some of my paragraphs should have been

broken up into smaller sections. While revising for the portfolio I used the same MLA handout to

fix my in-text citations and references (Nelson). In one paragraph I had cited authors but forgot

the “et al.” in the citation. In the same (very large) paragraph I revised sections to make them

smaller and added more details instead of a run-on paragraph.

In essay three I was tasked with writing an argumentative research paper based on the

topic chosen from essay two. Mentioned in the feedback was that I should rework paragraph

structure to make clearer points, make better connections, and provide better support for what I

wrote about (Nelson). I tried supporting my point with citations and more information from the

authors. I also needed to further correct my citations that are directly quoted. Once again for the

draft going into the portfolio, I used the MLA handout (Nelson). In the revisions of the final

draft, I incorporated more sources into paragraphs, as support to my arguments. In some

paragraphs I only had one citation and in the final revisions I incorporated at least two sources

into paragraphs. In this essay revision I looked over the in-text citation handout and mocked the

handout for my in-text citations.

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Along with the rhetorical choices I used for revising my essays I used certain choices in

my website. I tried to make my website as easy to use as possible. I put each essay as a

dropdown bar and included homework assignments and the drafts. On the cover page of the

website, I included this reflection essay and a little bit about me. I showcased my best work from

the semester into the portfolio. I wanted to choose work that also showed my growth throughout

the semester, some of these include my best pieces and others not. The theme of the portfolio

goes along with how my writing has changed throughout the course.

There were many homework assignments used throughout the semester that I used to

revise my essays and portfolios. The first one I used was a handout that demonstrated how to

properly cite sources at the end of an essay (Nelson). The homework was called “Citations and

References Cheat Sheet”. Especially when I was revising the annotated bibliography this

homework came in handy. The next handout I used demonstrated what pieces should be included

into a portfolio (Mauk). This handout explained why a portfolio is used, and that helped to

decide what should be included in my portfolio. Three more handouts that I received helped me

to complete the portfolio. These included the Portfolio Assignment Prompt, Portfolio Revision

Strategies, and the Portfolio Revision Sheet (Nelson, Nelson, Nelson). The portfolio assignment

prompt let me see what was necessary in the assignment for an A. It also helped me to see how I

should organize the assignment based on what was in it. The portfolio revision strategies

demonstrated what mistakes I should look out for when creating my portfolio. The portfolio

revision sheet was practice making sure that I don’t make the mistakes the strategies showed.

These are some of the revision strategies that influenced my work in the portfolio.

There were many different writing strategies, techniques, and other miscellaneous

practices I learned during the semester. These skills are applicable in other classes as well. In
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ENGL 1302 we learned how to properly annotate and cite sources of information. There was a

handout sheet provided that helped in practicing how to properly annotate and cite sources

(Nelson). In the future I am going to need to write more professional style papers. In ENGL 1302

practicing annotating before writing an essay was good for organizing and knowing what sources

I would need in the essay. Annotating helped my organizational skills in the sense that when I

needed a citation, I already could see the author and what their scholarships were about. Another

big part of ENGL 1302 was using MLA format in writing. Especially in any class that requires

me to write anything college level MLA formatting is important. Making sure to not plagiarize

anything is important because it can save my paper from receiving a zero and protect my place in

the university. Plagiarism is a serious offence in college and everywhere else so practicing how

not to plagiarize is a good foundation to know for when I write more papers. There was a

handout used to practice citing without plagiarizing called “Did I Correctly Cite My Sources”

(Nelson). Next semester I am enrolled in many business classes, I am sure I will have to write

professional style papers. Now that I am practiced in annotating and citing properly, when it

comes to writing these papers I won’t have to worry about plagiarism. In my economics class I

was required to write a paper in MLA format (Ansari). I had the practice of formatting in MLA

style under my belt, and I didn’t feel as though I would have to refer to google for the answers.

Writing these professional style papers can also help me in writing professional emails, speeches,

or presentations in the future. Many of the skills learned throughout the semester will help me in

the professional world.

Although there were many skills learned in ENGL that I can use in other classes there

were skills learned that are not applicable in other classes. I don’t ever recall having to write in

MLA formatting in math classes or having to annotate. I don’t think I will need to use writing
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skills in any of my math classes in the future. I am not sure what scholarly research on how to

find the derivative of an equation I would have to cite or annotate.

Throughout the semester my strengths and weaknesses changed. At the beginning of the

semester, I thought my strength was my paragraph structure. I thought I had the right number of

paragraphs, the proper indentations, and anything else that comes with writing an essay. As I

went on with the semester, I learned that my strength of paragraph structure is not as strong then

I thought it was. I was good at thinking of things to write, and then my problem turned into

writing it all onto one big paragraph. I could still write the same amount but as the semester went

on, I realized I needed to break it into smaller pieces, so it is easier understood. In essay two

there were a few paragraphs I had wrote that were too large, I broke them up and added more

detail to the paragraphs (Ansari). In the first research essay my introduction section was too long.

The introduction needed to be broken up into more sections that are better detailed.

My weakness in my writing was because I wrote too much in one section. Like

mentioned previously in some parts of my essays I wrote too much in one part instead of

breaking it up into different sections. I also struggle in citing the proper way. There were many

times when I had the right reference, but I cited it wrong in the text. For example, in essay one I

had accidentally put the period in “et al.” after the “et” and not the “al”. These were simple

mistakes, but I had kept making them throughout the semester. My biggest weakness in writing

is procrastination. I don’t intentionally mean to, but my schedule is very busy and if I don’t have

an assignment that is a pressing concern then I usually put it off until last minute. This

sometimes affects my grade on the assignment, which then affects my overall grade for the

course. Weaknesses in writing is just something I can reflect on and improve in the future.
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Completing the website was an accumulation of everything discussed in this essay so far.

The hardest aspect of the essay was building the website. It was time consuming, and I have

never used Weebly before. I struggled putting the drop downs on the different pages at first.

There was a learning curve figuring out the website. I used the handouts given in blackboard to

help me navigate through Weebly (Nelson). The other struggles with building the website were

how to format it, I questioned where I should put everything needed in the rubric. The least

challenging aspect was what to put on the website. I had a rubric to follow that had all the pieces

needed for the website. The other aspect that was not challenging on the website was the

structure because Weebly gave me templates to choose from when I decided to start the website.

In the conclusion of the course, I learned about myself as a writer. I became more self-

aware of my strengths and weaknesses throughout the semester. I learned what I liked writing

about, and what I dislike about writing. I am not sure how my identity as a writer has changed

because I guess I don’t really know what my identity as a writer was before this course.

Overall, this course improved my writing skills, awareness, and capabilities. We

practiced many writing skills that I have never had to use before. There were ups and downs, and

there are improvements to be made. I thought I grew as a writer from the beginning of the course

to the completion of it. I learned about new genres and styles of writing as well. I feel satisfied at

the completion of the course, and it was a good learning experience.

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Works Cited
Ansari, Madison. “Climate Change Effects on the Life Around the Planet: A Review of
Scholarship” 2 October 2022. ENGL 1302, Texas A&M International University Student
Paper.
Ansari, Madison. “What is not economics paper” 21 October 2022. ECO 2302, Texas A&M
International Student Paper.
Mauk, Karen. “Assembling Writing Portfolios” 3 March 2008. ENGL 1302-101, Texas A&M
International University Handout.
Nelson, Sharity. “Annotated Bibliography Worksheet” 10, October 2022. ENGL 1302, Texas
A&M International University, handout
Nelson, Sharity. “Citations & References Cheat Sheet”, 31 October 2022. ENGL 1302-101,
Texas A&M International University Handout.
Nelson, Sharity. “Did I Correctly Cite My Sources?” 10, October 2022. ENGL 1302, Texas
A&M International University, handout.
Nelson, Sharity. “Essay one final draft feedback”, 16 September 2022. ENGL 1302-101, Texas
A&M International University student paper.
Nelson, Sharity. “Essay three final draft feedback”, 3 November 2022. ENGL 1302-101, Texas
A&M International University student paper
Nelson, Sharity. “Essay two final draft feedback”, 27 October 2022. ENGL 1302-101, Texas
A&M International University student paper.
Nelson, Sharity. “Portfolio Assignment Prompt”, 21 November 2022. ENGL 1302-101, Texas
A&M International University Paper.
Nelson, Sharity. “Portfolio Revision Strategies”, 21 November 2022. ENGL 1302-101, Texas
A&M International University Paper.
Nelson, Sharity. “Portfolio Revision Worksheet”, 21 November 2022. ENGL 1302-101, Texas
A&M International University Paper.