During the fall semester of 2017, I was enrolled in the Honors section of English 2089, Intermediate Composition. As I am in the McMicken College of Arts & Science, Intermediate Composition is a part of the required curriculum, and I decided that I may as well take the opportunity to take the Honors section to collaborate further with peers who are more intently interested in developing and mastering writing skills than I may find otherwise.
What I found the most impactful about this class was the input given to me by my peers, but especially by my professor, Gary Vaughn. It was truly a great blessing to have such close dialogue about writing and rhetoric between the small group in this class of only 8, where each student was genuinely talented and intended on fine-tuning his or her own writing style and skill. All the more, Professor Vaughn took the time to meet with us all individually after every paper we turned in, directing individualized attention to each student's strengths and weaknesses in his or her text, and encouraging us to look forward to how we can improve as people who are inherently writers, regardless of our chosen career pathways. I was floored by the way that Professor Vaughn encouraged me and challenged me to develop my skills, especially since I entered the course already proud of how I perform in writing-heavy courses. Nearing the end of the fall semester, Professor Vaughn encouraged me to submit one of my writings for the university-wide writing competition, and after some thought, I decided he was right. I had never before tried to have my writing critiqued by anyone other than a professor, but I submitted my first essay (attached below) of the semester after some heavy editing. Though I didn't get the Intermediate Composition award, I left the semester with new insights about my own writing style, improved rhetorical skills, and a new confidence regarding my writing capabilities and my ability to succeed in the future.
What I found the most impactful about this class was the input given to me by my peers, but especially by my professor, Gary Vaughn. It was truly a great blessing to have such close dialogue about writing and rhetoric between the small group in this class of only 8, where each student was genuinely talented and intended on fine-tuning his or her own writing style and skill. All the more, Professor Vaughn took the time to meet with us all individually after every paper we turned in, directing individualized attention to each student's strengths and weaknesses in his or her text, and encouraging us to look forward to how we can improve as people who are inherently writers, regardless of our chosen career pathways. I was floored by the way that Professor Vaughn encouraged me and challenged me to develop my skills, especially since I entered the course already proud of how I perform in writing-heavy courses. Nearing the end of the fall semester, Professor Vaughn encouraged me to submit one of my writings for the university-wide writing competition, and after some thought, I decided he was right. I had never before tried to have my writing critiqued by anyone other than a professor, but I submitted my first essay (attached below) of the semester after some heavy editing. Though I didn't get the Intermediate Composition award, I left the semester with new insights about my own writing style, improved rhetorical skills, and a new confidence regarding my writing capabilities and my ability to succeed in the future.
literacy_analysis.docx | |
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File Type: | docx |