Draft Due:Â Tuesday, May 16.
Final Reflection and Portfolio (and all work) Due: Tuesday, May 23.
Reflection
(approx 600-900 words)
We have arrived together at the end of the semester! Now it is time for you to reflect on what you have learned and accomplished over the last few months. You will write a final reflection in which you consider the three questions below. Additionally, if you have revised any previous projects, include a paragraph in the final reflection for each revision, explaining the changes youâve made and why. This is a graded assignment, worth 10% of your final grade (which we decided at the beginning of the semester).
As you write, consider your purpose and audience for your reflection. I am part of your audience, but I would also love to share your final reflections with future ENG 1121 students. Even if you choose to make your post private, you can imagine your classmates and future ENG 1121 students included in your audience.
Questions for your reflection:
- What have you learned about yourself as a reader, writer, or student this semester? Include specific examples.
- How have you changed or developed as a reader, writer, or student this semester? Include specific examples.
- Discuss what you learned in this class and how you might transfer this knowledge to other writing tasks, assignments, or situations either in college or in your community. You might also consider how you transferred what you learned in ENG 1101 to the work you did in ENG 1121.
In the course of your reflection, use examples from your own writing from each of the three projects from this semester. Quote passages from your writing that illustrate something about your writing, the assignment, or the genre, and explain why you have included these particular examples of your writing.
Review your work, and brainstorm:
To help generate material for your reflection, look back through all your work (writing, reading, talking, thinking) from the semester. Use any of the following more detailed questions to help you brainstorm ideas for answering those main questions for your reflection:
- What did you expect to learn in this class? What did you actually learn?
- What are some notable lessons that have stuck with you after completing certain assignments?
- How does your work from early in the semester compare to your work now?
- What changed in your writing (and reading and thinking) as the genres changed or as you became more experienced?
- What were your assumptions/beliefs about yourself and writing at the beginning of the semester? How have they since changed? What motivated these changes?
- What techniques or ways of thinking about writing helped you this semester?
- What was your experience when revising assignments? If you revised any of your assignments, be sure to identify what you changed and reflect on the changes.
- How did feedback on your writing or other input (eg from me, classmates, tutors, librarians, your personal support team) factor into your work? What additional feedback would have been helpful?
- This course did not have late work penaltiesâhow did that affect your work and your work habits?
- What was particularly challenging for you in our course this semester and how did you overcome it (or attempt to)?
- What advice do you wish someone had given you to help you with this course? What difference would it have made for your learning and your writing?
- What advice do you have for future ENG 1121 students?
- What advice do you have for ENG 1121 instructors as they prepare to teach this course again.
How to submit your work
- Share your Final Reflection and Portfolio by publishing it as a post on our OpenLab site
- In that post, be sure to link out to the posts for your Project 1, Project 2, and Project 3 so I can find them. If you revise a project for the final portfolio, include a link to both the original and the revised versions. If you revise within the same post, be sure I know to look for a revised version in the same post!
- You can include your links to your projects in a list at the start of the reflection, or you can link out to each as you write about them in your reflection.
- You can make your post private if you prefer (see #7 in the Help page on writing a post).
- Choose the category Final Reflection and Portfolio
- If you want, you can add an image at the start of your reflection or any other place throughout.
- If you need help posting your work, please refer to these instructions on how to write a post.
- If you have not submitted at least two projects, please meet with me before submitting your final reflection and portfolio.
Grading criteria:
Your successful Final Portfolio and Reflection will be a well-organized, easy-to-understand narrative that addresses those three main questions by referring to the work you have done throughout the semester. Use the following grading criteria as a checklist to help you develop your narrative:
- Content: your reflection has all the components listed above, is thoughtfully written, and includes details and examples that illustrate your experiences in the course by including quotations from, references to, and links to your written work from the projects, posts, and discussions this semester. And does all of this in approximately 600-900 words.
- Organization: Your reflection is a narrative that has a central focus, but it does not need to have to have a traditional organization. Be sure to write in paragraphs (not just one long paragraph) and order them logicallyânot simply a list answering the questions above but instead a narrative about your experience in this course this semester. Your reflection will have a thesis statement, even if it doesn’t come at the end of your first paragraph.
- Presentation: Your project is written in a way that your audience can understand what you want them to take away from reading your reflection. You use formatting and sentence structure to help your readers make sense of your writing.
Support
Please be sure to talk with me, come to student support hours (office hours), and conference with me to help you with this project. Also, be sure to ask any questions you have in class, as a comment on this post, or via email. We will have time in class to work on brainstorming and drafting.
I know you’re each developed as writers and students this semester, and I look forward to reading your thoughts about your experience.
Ian simpson
05/16/2023
ENG 1121
Final Reflection
âStarting strong is good but finishing strong is epic.â by Robin Sharma. As I reflect on this semester, I had time to develop my reading, writing, and student skills. I discovered that personal reading preferences, such as genres or topics can enhance motivation and engagement. The more time I spent in ENG 1121 helped me realize that I fancy telling stories. I’ve made mistakes from projects 1-3 but didn’t let that define me. This semester showed that my time management skills are getting better due to my effective study routines to meet deadlines and balance coursework efficiently. In our class discussions, the feedback from my peers helped me pinpoint what I needed to work on and visualize the messages I wanted to convey. As I look back on these last few months I can’t help but feel a sense of accomplishment and gratitude for the experiences and knowledge gained.
One of the most significant aspects of this semester was the development of my time management skills. Balancing multiple courses, assignments, and extracurricular activities required careful planning and organization. I learned to prioritize tasks, set realistic goals, and create a schedule that allowed for both academic pursuits and personal well-being. While there were moments of stress and overwhelm, I ultimately emerged with a greater sense of discipline and a more structured approach to my studies.
In terms of academic growth, this semester provided numerous opportunities to enhance my skills as both a reader and a writer. By annotating and summarizing assigned readings I deepened my understanding and critical thinking abilities. The valuable skills I learned will be used in future classes and everyday life. As well as any jobs I pursue or any other subjects I choose to pick up. I always believed that knowledge is power and that the world can be yours as long as you can learn.
Between Project 2: âmedia powerâ and Project 3, I aimed to shed light on the powerful influence exerted by media channels and the manipulation of information in shaping our perceptions, beliefs, and actions. And my goal was achieved due to feedback and revision. Some advice I can give to future ENG 1121 students is to make sure they have a goal that they always want to achieve because it motivates them to âfinish strongâ. Everyone starts with 100 but not many can stay 100. Your goal shouldn’t be to achieve 100 but reach far past it.
However, this semester was not without its challenges. I encountered moments of self-doubt and faced academic issues that tested my resilience. However, these obstacles taught me valuable lessons about perseverance and resilience. I learned to seek support when needed, whether from professors, classmates, or campus resources. Embracing a growth in my mindset⌠I viewed challenges as opportunities for growth rather than roadblocks. Through persistence and determination, I overcame these obstacles and emerged stronger and more confident in my abilities. Project 3 I had the most fun with because it gave me the chance to speak to different discourse groups in my school. With every person I interviewed, I got a better understanding and was able to see a different perspective.
In conclusion, this semester has been a transformative and rewarding experience. It has allowed me to grow both academically and personally, deepening my understanding of the subjects, improving my writing and reading abilities, and enhancing my skills as a student. While it presented challenges, it also provided me with the tools and resilience to overcome them. As I move forward, I am grateful for the valuable lessons learned and excited to apply these newfound insights and skills in my academic and professional journey.