Blog Post #6, What have I learned?
I was never terrible at writing, but I cannot say I was the best at it either. I did not understand why this class was mandatory for freshman until I had spent some time in it. I can say I have seen a few changes in my writing, but they are positive changes, my writing is now more up to the right standards. It is not as perfect as it could be, but it is definitely better than before. I have learned how to properly do citations, how my topic sentence should look like, to stay on topic, include what is important, and that I need a good hook in order to captivate the reader’s attention. Although citations were my least favorite thing to learn. Something important to keep in mind when writing is that every class will be different, especially if they are from different areas, for example: Humanities, Social Sciences, Natural Sciences and Applied Sciences. Not only have I learned how to improve my own writing, but I have learned how to help someone else improve theirs too! I learned that I cannot do it for them, but I can help lead them in the right direction with my feedback. When you are giving feedback, it is crucial that you do not try to force your writing style onto them, do not give bias feedback, and give as many details as possible so that they know exactly what it is that they need to work on or go back and review. Once I get a hang of what to write about, I think I can write up something decently good, my issue is having enough creativity to create a hook strong enough to reel the reader in. I will admit, it is not as hard as it seems to be it is just that I unfortunately procrastinate to the last few days before it is due. Therefore, I feel more pressure to get it done and probably do not do as good of a job as I could have if I had done it earlier. If I do happen to struggle with remembering how to do something I can always go back to my books Understanding Rhetoric, Academic Writing and They Say, I Say. Thankfully, they are not hard to read and understand. The semester is not over yet, so I hope to improve my writing a bit more as it progresses!
Dear Dallana,
I really liked reading your post because I can relate to a lot of what you said about writing. Like you, I didn’t really understand why this class was required at first, but after going through the lessons and writing assignments, I’ve realized how much it helps build the foundation for all kinds of college writing. It’s great that you’ve noticed positive changes in your own writing, things like learning how to structure a topic sentence, stay on topic, and write a strong hook are all important skills that make a big difference in how your work reads.
I also agree with you about citations. They were one of my least favorite things to learn too, mostly because of how specific the formatting can be. Still, I’ve come to appreciate why they matter. They show that we’re using credible sources and giving credit where it’s due, which makes our writing more professional. I think it’s smart that you mentioned how every discipline requires a slightly different writing style. That’s something I didn’t realize before this class either, and it’s been helpful to see how structure, language, and references can change depending on the subject.
You also made a great point about giving feedback. I like how you said it’s important not to force your own writing style onto someone else. That’s something I’ve been working on too. I’ve learned that giving detailed but fair feedback helps both people improve, the writer gets guidance, and the reviewer gets practice thinking critically about writing.
I can also relate to what you said about procrastination. It’s easy to put writing off until the last minute, but when that happens, the pressure makes it harder to be creative or fully polish a piece. One thing that’s helped me is setting smaller deadlines for myself, like finishing an outline a few days before the essay is due. That way I have time to revise and make sure my ideas are clear.
Overall, it sounds like you’ve grown a lot as a writer this semester, and it’s nice to see how you’re using what you’ve learned from Understanding Rhetoric, Academic Writing, and They Say, I Say to keep improving. I’m sure that if you keep practicing and give yourself more time to write, your creativity and confidence will continue to grow.