English+103+Final+Portfolio+-+Benny+Hill

= **__Cover Letter__** = My experience in English 103 this semester has certainly changed my knowledge of writing styles. My eyes have been opened to several different styles of writing that I hadn’t ever experienced before, at least not wholly. I can remember in times past writing research essays, or persuasive speeches, which to a certain degree can be related to some of the writings we have done this semester like the academic research argument paper, for example. Of those I mentioned, I had experience with that style going all the way back to my high school days. When I wrote in these styles again in college, it seemed that I was just required to be more detail oriented than in the past, more thorough, or even more organized. I felt like I hadn’t really learned anything new. Throughout this semester I have pushed the boundaries of my writing by trying completely new styles like the open letter or multi-genre essay, which I had never thought to be an assignment style of writing.

For fun, I thought I might pull out some old writing from high school and past college classes and compare it to my writing this semester, though it hardly could be called a comparison. I found a persuasive speech that I wrote freshman year of college at Pace University in New York. I thought of it as my best piece of work, and at the time it was. Now I read it and I can see the syntax error, the lack of planning and organization I have gained in experience of this class. The other thing I really noticed was that my writing was mundane and immature, even for college. As I read on I notice all the required inclusions that were present as instructed, as well as the common parts of any writing that we as students learn in the early years of grade school: a beginning, middle, and end. Yet it lagged in order, flow, and felt very rigid.

Since it was nearest in form and writing style, I decided to compare it to my research essay that I wrote for English 103. The first thing I noticed was the difference in my works cited section; despite the fact that it comes last, the differences were much easier to spot. I had made so many errors, nothing in the way of missing the information, just in the structure and build. Citing sources, in APA or MLA has always been a struggle for me, because no one has ever taken the time to break it down for me and show me what I was doing wrong. The answer I always got was “it’s in a guide somewhere, if you don’t have it you need to go buy it.” While I don’t doubt it is a useful tool to have an APA or MLA manual, I also don’t feel it’s the total answer. Upon my first look at one, I found myself even more confused than when I had started. I needed someone to help me interpret this manual. For the first time ever this semester, Dr. Hartman did just that for me. I really admired his one-on-one conference style to independently review each student’s progress.

When comparing, the extra help I received this semester speaks for itself. I have a clear, concise and well organized research paper, argument well in place and well supported. I have respectable sources that I might not have otherwise been able to find without what I have learned in this class. I am best at researching online, but finding reputable sources online is a very difficult task; in the great scheme of the World Wide Web with all it’s likely billions of sites out there, there are only a metaphorical handful of sites acceptable for use in academic research. This year I learned that our own library has access to a database of thousands of articles that come from different sources, both print and electronic. Each one of these sources is compiled into this easy to search database that can easily be maneuvered and manipulated so that the user only gets the data they want. In addition, it’s so well organized that it only takes a few clicks to get a proper APA or MLA citation out of the data, saving me time when doing my research and planning. I have been at Ball State University for well over two years now and never knew those archives and electronic (or electronic versions) existed. Even better is that I now know where to go when I need to find information quickly and organized for research.

Much more than just noticing the difference in my works cited, I noticed a dramatic improvement in organization. At the time I thought I had organized my ideas very well into a logical order, and while some of them are, they lack a certain cohesiveness that I hadn’t learned until this semester. In my research paper, I feel much more confident about the way that the ideas and topics transition from one to another. They seem to Segway seamlessly from one paragraph to another. My previous writing was cut and dry style, announcing one topic, finishing it’s evidence, then announcing another. In my research paper this semester, I feel that I linked one topic together with another, creating a smooth flow from one to another.

At this point, I wish I had contact with one of my high school English/speech teachers. I found her to be the most amazing teacher; she was so inspirational, so motivational. She was the type that made her students want to write, and provided them the encouragement they needed to succeed. I will admit that until now, she was the biggest influence on my writing, and also the one I learned the most from when it came to writing in general. I know that she now has her Ph.D. and works at a university somewhere in their education program preparing young minds to be excellent teachers. Even though I don’t have contact with her, I would venture to say she would be pleased with my progress, especially when comparing my high school, early college, and current writings. I think she would see a great advance in maturity and practice, and see that I have taken the knowledge she gave me, added it to information I have learned along the way and came to this point, a place where I feel that I am producing high-quality academic level (my academic level anyway) work.

Though I do feel that this portfolio reflects some of my best and most unique work yet to date, I know there is always room for improvement. I can take the information I have learned, the new styles in which to write, and the organizational skills to apply to future writing. I’ve had the opportunity this semester to look at what works for me and what doesn’t when it comes to planning and organizing and also when writing. I have learned that it is okay that just because something works for one person, it’s also okay if it doesn’t work for another. Everyone has his or her own way of producing great work. I know now that I shouldn’t force myself to fit a certain method like diagramming or listing; if free writing and editing works for me, then I should stick with it. Now if there were only some way I could figure out how to do my work ahead of time instead of procrastinating until the last minute, as I always seem to do. This portfolio is no different really, but at least this time, I’m bringing something to the table I’m proud of, and despite it waiting until the last moment, I know it’s my best work yet.

= __Pieces__ =

**Memoir** - This was a great opportunity to write about a memory that we have from our past. It really gave me the opportunity to explore my creativity in writing. I was able to come up with great methods of painting a picture for my reader, being as descriptive as possible so that the memory I have so vividly in my mind can also be so vivid for my reader.

**Open Letter** - This piece was really important to me this semester because it was completely open-ended. This was probably one of the things that influenced my writing the most in the sense that I was not tied down in subject matter, I could write about what I was passionate about. This letter allowed me to express some feelings I was having at the time and continue to have today.

**Research Paper** - This again was important to me for many different reasons. Again I felt very liberated by having an open subject matter, the only thing being closed was the type of paper it had to be. I also enjoyed the semi-group concept, in the sense that I worked with a group to come up with a subject and research, but was allowed to have my own creativity when writing my own draft.


 * Multi-Genre Essay ** - This was perhaps my favorite writing of the semester, introducing me to a style of writing I had never encountered before, and realizing that writing can be so much more than paragraph after paragraph. It really pushed me outside my comfort zone and made me think.

**Blog Post** - I decided to include a blog post because it is something I really enjoyed. I never realized how writing on a weekly basis with something that's your own can be so inspirational and fun. It's something I may continue outside of class. Benny's Blog Post