Soliz 1

Adely Soliz Diaz

Dr. Paul Niemeyer

ENGL 1302

05 December 2022

Final Portfolio

It's a nice feeling to be able to see the effort as if it where dollar bills as the semester

comes to a close, and I take a time to look back on all the hard work I've put into this course and

appreciate how much growth there has been. This semester flew by so fast, I cannot believe it’s

already over. I swear that just yesterday I was in class wondering how I was going to manage my

time to work on the essays but good enough this class was not as hard as I expected. In a similar

manner to that of English 1301, the workload for this semester consisted not only of the

mandatory reflective essay but also of three additional essays on a variety of subjects in addition

to related assignments.

(1) The process of revising each essay was difficult; I often found myself wanting to

preserve something, then eliminating it because it wouldn't make sense, and then bringing it back

again because it was essential to the point that I was trying to make. For me, the process of

revising and editing essays is essential if I want to hand in work that makes sense; that is, if I

want the reader to be able to grasp the point, I'm trying to convey from a mile away. I couldn't

help but question whether the essay made sense when taken as a whole, as well as if the

arguments that were made thereafter, made sense. Next, I went through and examined each

paragraph to see if every word contributed to the goal of the paragraph and whether the

arguments, I offered flowed logically from one to the next. I also made sure that each argument I

presented was relevant to the aim of the paragraph. Make sure that I use correct language, that
 Soliz 2

my punctuation is where it should be, and that the meaning of what I'm trying to say comes

through very clearly. In addition to the topics that have been discussed up to this point, I need to

take into consideration what my classmates have said about the areas in which I can improve as

well as the feedback that my instructor has given me. And it's not just about making sure that

there aren't any typos or grammatical problems; I consider it as a means for them to aid me in

correcting any mistakes or omissions that I made. It is more about taking a step back and letting

someone else to review my work as a whole to determine whether or not I have successfully

expressed my concept. This may be done by asking a friend or colleague for feedback. It is

necessary to evaluate my paper in light of their comments in order to identify areas in which it

may be enhanced.

(2) Because it makes the most sense if the themes of my website and my essay are

consistent with one another, I designed it to reflect that similarity. Since the topics related to

stress and money, I decided to fit those themes to the websites design through images. The name

of the website is shown at the very top of the page, and the reader may access the last portion of

my reflective essay by scrolling all the way down the page. Simple, short, and sweet. The next

three pages will be taken up by each essay and its draft, and I haven't decided whether or not to

add the journal assignments to the tabs that are already there for the essays or to make a new one

designated to only journal assignments. In addition to the three drafts, the final version, a

reflective essay, and maybe even a journal assignment for each article, I will also provide a

concise description for why I selected to write about the specific subject matter. Since Dave

Ramsey's recommendations served as the foundation for Experiment 1, I will present a short

biography of Ramsey, together with a photograph of him and a rundown of his most well-known

works on this page. For the second essay webpage it will just be the annotated bibliography
 Soliz 3

which contained 10 sources, I really hated this essay simply because of how long it took. The

third and final essay will be about just my take on the whole process and my stand on what I

researched. Overall, the essays tell a story through an experiment, a backed-up research, and my

stance.

(3)The homework’s that played a role in this assignment was merely just the beginning of

the thought process of it all. The assignments, as I saw them, like a guide. For example, the

second essay I did not really understand what an annotated bibliography was supposed to be but

through this assignment, where we had to look at the book for more instruction and then answer

what we learned under this reflection question. I found this useful as not only did this help me

see it through a different perspective, but it helped me answer my own questions without having

to ask someone how to do it, I was able to figure it out on my own through the resources

provided. In all honesty, the book was a great help along with the OWL Purdue website that our

professor so kindly provided for us throughout the semester to help us in any way. I especially

appreciated when we would have no idea how to format an essay, our professor would kind of

give us an outline of what he would want to see in the essay just so that we wouldn’t be too lost

on what to turn in.

(4)The thing that not a lot of many student’s grasp is that they will see English

everywhere—literally because of the language itself—but the contents itself. English 1302 is a

continuation of English 1301, the only difference is that 1302 is designed to prepare students

how to academically write essays, the college way. Our instructors instill in us the ability to write

essays by instructing us in the conduct of research, the application of rhetorical strategies, and

the production of arguments that are compelling. On addition to this, they train us in the

grammatical and stylistic norms that are to be followed in advanced academic writing, which in

turn prepares us for future academic success. The skills that I have made in my 1302 class that I
 Soliz 4

know I will take with me for future college courses will be how to construct compelling

academic arguments using primary and secondary sources and produce at least one research-

based essay to demonstrate my ability to do so. Apply my understanding of ethics and the ability

to think logically to the analysis, comprehension, and assessment of a number of different texts.

Because of these techniques, I will be able to advance in my career and become a more effective

communicator in the future. These strategies will make writing, reading, and presenting

presentations much easier for me to do.

(5) If I told myself that this was the last time, I would ever have to deal with English

writing in the course of my Business degree, I would be telling a lie to myself. It is difficult to

provide an answer to this question given the pervasiveness of the English language in

contemporary life. English itself is about the academic part of writing and how to write essays

that will best work with professors, so to say I won’t use the skills I gained from this class would

just be like throwing all of this knowledge away. Knowing English is a tremendous benefit in the

business world, despite the fact that many individuals are under the impression that it is not

required. Studies in English and literature will help me for example strengthen my analytical and

communication skills, while a foundation in business will prepare me to operate in a broad

variety of industries. Strong communication skills are a need for those who want to succeed in

business. It is highly advised that even if I do not major in English, my objective in being a

competent communicator and writer will be extremely beneficial in my future profession. This is

because my goal is to be able to communicate effectively and write clearly.

(6)My progress as a writer throughout this semester can definitely be seen in my work.

More specifically, in the event that we are discussing writing of this kind. The writing I've done

in the past, such as for my English 1301 class, was far more difficult than this, but definitely

prepared me to face the kind of challenges I’d face in this class so the fact that it's so much easier
 Soliz 5

gives me the impression that I've made great advancements. My strategy for writing essays has

undergone a significant transformation over the course of the last month. In the past, whenever I

was assigned a paper, I immediately became anxious and had no clue where to start and would

procrastinate really bad. It's possible that I had a concept of what I wanted to write, but I lacked

the necessary linguistic ability to put my thoughts into words and publish them. In spite of the

procrastination, I would find a way to manage my time and start on the essay by working under

pressure. This came as sort of a relief to me considering that essay writing has always been the

topic in which I have struggled the most. I would really appreciate when others would read my

work and give me very positive feedback, like how I would have a good outline and even though

it wouldn’t contain a lot of information my peers would be really sweet and say that the finished

project would sound just as good as the outline, and that they were excited to see what I came up

with. Through their criticism and knowledge, it helped me organize the structure of my paper. I

loathe turning in work that is substandard, and I always hope that readers will find something

they value in what I've written straight away. When it comes to the writing of essays, I have a

tendency to be somewhat of a perfectionist.

(7)Even though I'm not an expert in web design, I think I've come up with something that

performs a respectable job of meeting its objectives. I decided to create this website so that my

classmates, my professor, and anybody else who is interested may learn precisely what it is that

they can anticipate seeing from me as well as the topics that I will be discussing in my writings. I

wanted the overall aesthetic of the website to be friendly and approachable so that site visitors

would be tempted to explore all of the content that I made available to them. This allows my

audience complete insight into the process that was made for the creation of my essays. When I

first used Weebly back in 1301, I didn’t really know how to navigate it but when I retook the
 Soliz 6

class it was so much easier and through those experiences, I know feel super prepared to add

everything in the website for this time around. Having used Weebly in the before, I didn't have

too much problem with it this time around; nevertheless, I discovered that the process of delivery

was more challenging than I had expected. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out how to

make a website using Weebly, and once it's up, it's simple for anybody with an internet

connection to share and explore the site.

(8)The beauty of writing is that once you start typing, you never stop; it's an addiction,

especially when the essay is about something that one as a person is passionate to write about. As

a college student, my writing is certainly not perfect of course, because after all I am still a

student, and as a student, I will of course say I suck and give up. If you have the drive,

everything else is just a hop and a skip away. When it comes to writing, I strive for perfection,

excellence, and I want the end product to be of the highest quality. Nevertheless, pursuing such a

high standard of perfection may be quite taxing. When I'm writing, I sometimes run into a

writing block, at which point I have to drag myself away from the computer and go for a walk.

It's during these walks that I often think of new ideas for phrases, since the change of scenery

helps me concentrate better. When I go back to finish, I regain focus while making any required

adjustments.

As a result of the knowledge, I gained in English 1302, I have made significant progress

in my writing. During the course of the semester, I wanted to push myself to the next level of

writing ability and work on improving my writing skills overall. Therefore, I instructed myself to

develop the skill of finding proof to back my views. Before starting this project, I had never

written so many essays on so many different pieces of literature. The obstacles I had in the

beginning helped me become a better writer over time, despite the fact that they were frustrating
 Soliz 7

at the time. There are definitely aspects of my performance that I will need to enhance in the not

too distant future. As I reflect on the last semester, I realize that I was able to break through

many of my writing blockages and make progress as a writer as a result of my efforts.