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Final Reflection Questions

1. If you were to teach this class, what ideas would you emphasize?
To be successful in this UWRT course, all one must do is simply follow all
guidelines and requirements. That is the idea I would most emphasize if I were to
teach this class. Of course, it is not exactly referring to the more personal and
creative aspects of writing, but it is the key to success. I know that as a wrote my
thesis, it was important to make sure of things like correctly citing in text using
MLA, discussing the credibility of the sources I was using, and using transitions
when ideas were changing. I do not have to be the greatest writer to know how to
do these things, but I would lose many points if I do not do them.
It may be hard to teach someone who was never taught how to properly
write a paper, to become eloquent and understand diction and syntax, but you can
tell them the bare bones of things the MUST include, and that is where the
majority of the points lie. Perhaps I am only saying this because I am a student,
and my GPA is very important for me to maintain for graduate school purposes, so
I am worried about points rather than the actual writing process. But if I was a
teacher I would understand that most students are in the same boat as I currently
am, so I would let them know how to maximize the amount of points they earn
and get an A.

2. This is your opportunity to write a letter to a writer we read and wrote about
in class. What will you say? If you like the piece and found it helpful, why
and how? If you disliked it, why? Write to the person.

Dear Tim Parks,


Your piece, A Weapon for Readers, suggests that one should read with a
pen in hand and to make critical, even aggressive, comments on every page. By
doing this, one becomes a more active reader and more attentive. I am writing you
because I agree with what you have to say. To look at a text with a critical mind
will not only make you understand something better, but will improve writing
skills as well. Things that I mark I make sure to avoid when I am writing.
I had to peer edit several papers while taking this class and had to have my
paper edited as well. This practice would not even be going on if we didnt know
already the benefits of reading work with a pen in hand.
3. Imagine you are in a class that requires a lot of writing, but does not have
time allotted for peer feedback. You would like to start a writing group with a
couple peers from the class. How do you persuade them to meet? What
behavioral suggestions do you give them to help group members do well on
their papers and grow as writers?
I must say, although my previous experiences with peer editing were not
as helpful to me as I had anticipated, the time we had allotted in this course really
did make a difference and help me in the process of writing my thesis. It was
beneficial because the focus was not on grammar; rather it was placed on the
ideas and general flow of the paper. I like that the feedback helped me know what
to include and what to take out of my paper. I would use this fact to persuade my
peers to engage in a peer editing session. Many think that they can edit their own
papers and that all that needs to be fixed is sentence level errors. The focus of the

peer edit session would be helping students define the inquiry question to be
concise and clear. This will help them know in which direction they choose to
take their essay.
A behavioral suggestion I have for my peers when it comes to the revising
portion of writing a paper is to read the paper aloud. This will help when finding
long or awkward sentences or phrasing. I also suggest to have someone else look
over the paper (and come to the peer editing session), because once one has been
looking at something for so long, they no longer see the errors. The paper needs a
fresh set of eyes.
4. Describe the process of writing on of your major papers. How did you go
about drafting it? What feedback did you receive? What choices did you
make? Why? What are your thoughts on the final product?
The process I followed when writing my thesis paper was to just have a
general idea of what I wanted to write about. When I read The Book Thief, all I
kept thinking was how none of Hitlers power could have been possible without
media and propaganda; Mein kampf even played a large role in the novel. From
there, the research summaries helped me decide my specific question. I was
looking though many sources and seeing what is available and what I wanted to
be the focus of the paper, and then look for similar sources. Once I had a concise
question, I began writing my thesis but it became very difficult and messy. I
decided that it would be best if I made an outline for my paper. In this outline I
included what main points I want to discuss and where my research from the
summaries where going to be placed. This was not a definitive outline, but it gave
me a good general sense and direction for my paper. Afterwards writing the paper

was simple, it was just a matter of connecting already existing ideas with my own
opinions and thoughts.
5. Looking forward: What have you learned about writing that you can take
with you to other classes an writing situations? Focus on purpose, audience,
inquiry, joining a conversation, etc.
As aforementioned, I was lost on how to make my paper flow until I wrote
an outline. It becomes difficult to write when you do not have purpose or do not
know what you even want to discuss, but that problem easily disappeared once I
organized all my thoughts onto one sheet. I will be continuing this practice in
future writing situations.
I also have learned that writing is not a straightforward process, and that it
can take many trial and error situations until the final outcome is acceptable. I did
not come to my inquiry question easily, and I had to change the entire idea every
once in a while to accommodate the sources I found or the direction I wanted to
take.

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