Reflection 1 (9/7/22): When I read, I tend to really digest the words and annotate a lot. What I normally do when annotating is I highlight quotes or paragraphs that have a deep meaning to me or that I relate to. In Gilroy’s reading it talks about how highlighting is not a good idea, but I disagree because of how I use highlighting when I annotate. What I highlight I tend to always recall because of the meaning those words have in my eyes. When I have a hardcopy or paperback for what I am reading, I usually use sticky notes and write little things on them for discussion and to help me really understand what the author is saying. Depending on how I connect to the reading or even the author, I have a lot to say. Talking with my peers or having a class discussion can actually come easy to me, I just get nervous. I really do have a lot on my mind, and sometimes I find what the author is saying outstanding- it amazes me. I have a passion for reading and I have had this passion since I was little. I think of myself as an active reader and if I could I would spend hours reading and talking about the content I am absorbing. I love to connect with characters in novels and depending on what I am reading, I will try to connect with the author. That is why I also enjoyed reading the three paragraphs from Groopman’s “Why Storytelling Is Part of Being a Good Doctor.” Medical memoirs are beautiful and it is so difficult to incorporate both writing and medical skills while making it so the audience can interpret what the author is saying whether they analyze it in their own way or not. One thing I do that Gilroy mentions in the six reading habits article is whether or not one knows the author and their reputation. When annotating that piece I brought up the author Colleen Hoover. She has a good reputation in the reading world currently and I own many books written by her (and I love the majority of them). I do look at authors, but I am always willing to try something new. Other authors that I have heard of and have decent reputations are James Patterson, Stephen King, J.K. Rowling, Emily Brontë, etc. There is definitely improvements that I need just like any student, reader, and author. I often overanalyze and even though analyze can be a good thing, sometimes I really go over my head depending on how I absorb specific paragraphs. I could also work on outlining the text where I often look for the little things; what is hidden in the paragraphs I am digesting. I think sometimes I read “too deeply” if that makes sense, but I prefer that over not absorbing any of the text. I have high standards for myself when it comes to reading and annotating and I am happy to work on my annotation skills while still enjoying all those words on a paper.

Reflection 2 (9/21/22): I may have my good qualities as a writer, but I do definitely have qualities I need to work on, such as explaining more of what I am saying rather than only summarizing which was brought up in the recorded feedback. Another thing that was brought to my attention with the feedback I was given, was deciding whether to word certain paragraphs the authors wrote in my own way or just using the quote where it was just too similar. Taking this feedback, I looked more into the quotes and deleted some of the unneeded words I was writing and used the evidence provided instead. I tried expressing more of what I was thinking about the topics I was writing about in my draft also. Another thing I worked on when revising was the explanation on “signifiers.” Comments on my draft suggested to explain it more and in the recorded feedback it was also said that maybe I should go back to Wang’s article and try to comprehend it more. I took this feedback very well and did exactly what was suggested. I went back into Wang’s article and viewed it again, and I even found a quote to help support why I was using the word “signifiers” in my draft. Not only did I reflect on this feedback, but I thought about the feedback given to me by a student. She suggested how in certain sentences I should try connecting it back to the thesis, so looking back at my draft, I reviewed those certain areas and worded it better while also connecting it back to the thesis and doing so made my paper sound a lot better. In the recorded feedback, it was mentioned how in my free write I wrote how society will force you to fit like a puzzle piece into their simplistic ideas and how that was a strong idea. I found a place to put that sentence in my draft and revised the paragraph which I also now like more. I find feedback a really important step when writing a paper and I take all the comments in whether I end up doing what was suggested or not. When it comes to reflecting and then revising papers, I tend to look and think even deeper than before after feedback because I have these suggestions that could really create a good paper. I appreciate being critiqued with my writing because I want to be the best writer I can be and create something meaningful; something people want to read.

Reflection 3 (9/29/22): When writing my essay, the process was time-consuming, but I valued the topics I was writing about and wanted to present the best paper I could. As I looked and annotated through the readings, I would annotate similarities which would then later on be used for my connections in the paper. Before writing my rough draft, my free write presented what I wanted to write about. The free write is really what got my mind moving and what helped me decide what I wanted to focus on in my paper. While trying to put my thoughts into words while using the authors to connect and as prime examples, I would go back and sometimes re-read certain parts of the text. The issues I read about meant a lot to me and as an empath it also created anger and sadness in me for these authors which helped when writing my paper. I felt passionate about it and although that will not always happen, the best thing one can do (what I do) is try and be in the author’s perspective. Pretend you are them while you read as if it is your story and maybe then there will be some type of passion or feeling. There will be times when there is no way to be interested in a subject, but I think it’s important to push through and still try to strive for the best paper or best work possible. There is always a way around things, but if you are learning about a specific subject, it most likely has high importance whether it’s just for class or for life. The process for my essay I think went well and I took positive criticism and suggestions to help me generate more clear and better ideas to make my final draft better. Overall I am happy with what I accomplished and hope to get a good grade out of it and if not, it just means there is improvement to be made and improvement can always be made when it comes to writing!

Reflection 4 (10/5/22): These arguments in my opinion really make you think a little deeper on the topic of empathy. Each author, for the most part, uses examples to back up their argument, but what I find interesting is I am not convinced any of the authors are 100% correct. Like I have said before, empathy is a blessing and a curse, it has a good and a bad side, and I think that each author acknowledges one side, but not necessarily the other, creating an argument. I also noticed that some authors, example being Devin Price, can be very disrespectful when trying to get what they believe to be right and I only bring this up where Price brings up religion in his article. We all have our own opinions, these articles are meant to spark an argument and I think that is good writing on the authors part, but two of the articles, a pro-empathy and an anti-empathy one, both use personal experiences to defend their perspective on empathy and can’t anyone do that? I am affected by these articles in a way that makes me question society once again, but also realize that when individuals say I am empathetic and compassionate, which definitions are they using? They are separate definitions that get combined so now I am question the people around me, do they really believe I have both qualities or are they mixing a definition up? After reading all of these articles, I definitely have compassion, but the views on empathy contrast each other so much, it kinda makes me sad. I also find it difficult to believe that not only do politics affect friendships, marriages, where you shop, etc. But they affect your mental health and who you see? I am not necessarily surprised, it just saddens me that our world is so diverse to the point of there being this idea of having “two sides” and nothing more. That also fits into our whole topic of categorization. When writing, I want to have a strong impact on my audience of course and I will share my opinions, maybe even share that I am passionate about the topic, but I think it is important to have concrete examples when writing a paper and I would prefer to be un-bias, but I think being bias on certain topics is what makes an audience have such a strong appeal to the words you have written.

Reflection 5 (10/10/22): One strength I have is being able to connect readings very smoothly and sticking to the overall topic of the paper. Even if I have many strengths as a writer, I also have weaknesses. One of my weaknesses with the first paper is trying to fit words that may not be meaningful in the ending of a sentence. I am not a fan of short sentences and try to come up with words to end on and sometimes that quality of mine leads to confusion rather than making everything fit like it originally was. With the last three things graded on the first paper, I got all the points showing that even with my weaknesses, I can create a really strong paper that shows my ability to not only connect sources well, but my engagement with the authors and how when I look at the sources provided, I still use my own ideas. I engage with the readings, explore not only the ideas the authors’ have, but my own which helps generate deeper thoughts, creating a good paper. I am not a confident person whatsoever, but I strived to make this paper show who I am as a writer and I think I accomplished that very well.

Reflection 6 (11/2/22): When writing a paper, it is not always going to be easy and sometimes you have to really take time and think about what to write. With my “c” comment on paper 2, I found it hard to express myself in the introduction and why promoting complexities is important to promote. Of course I know why, but putting it into words was difficult so I had to really sit and think about it when revising. With my “b” comment, I felt like I expressed exactly what I wanted to, making my essay stronger. I had a few moments in this paper where I really liked what I said and how I said it, and moments where I was lost and had to think about what to write down. I don’t like being repetitive but sometimes that is what you need to do to express your ideas to make your essay be understandable to readers. It is hard sometimes to show what you are thinking to an audience because of how you want to word it. It needs to be worded where not only you understand it, but the audience will too. What is going on in your brain, we want to see on paper, but it has to make sense and that can be tricky sometimes. I love writing, but I have had my moments where it is difficult, including this essay. I think I also found this essay a little more difficult with my strategy, intellectual humility. In the end, I think my paper is more clear and more detailed than the rough draft. It took time, but I got there. It was a challenge, and I used intellectual humility to complete this second paper and I think it came out quite well. I know that the challenges I face can be worked on, and I can always reflect on how I do with my essays to make it better. I have high standards for myself and this essay really brought out deeper thinking.

Reflection 7 (11/9/22): One strength I feel confident about with the second paper is how I was able to revise certain paragraphs and make them much stronger. I had many strengths with connecting everything whether it be with other readings or my personal experience, but I focused too much on one study of the scientific article I used, which was my weakness for this paper. With this paper, I had a harder time transitioning at some parts and adding on to what I was saying which I hope to do better with for paper 3. I think overall paper 1 was stronger than paper 2, but I am not upset with how I did on this paper where it was definitely more difficult. The feedback from my interview I will take for my 3rd paper/podcast and I understand to maybe ask fewer questions and have longer conversations. I had two caveats in this paper and one of them worked out well and I think helped a lot, but the other one not so much. My first caveat was hard to follow and that is why I do not think it was helpful, but the second one went smoothly with my paper, so in the end with the caveats, I had a positive and negative take.

Reflection 8 (11/17/22): When I think of composition I think of the art of sports. Sports is what makes me happy, makes me feel the most. I feel composed when I am tumbling, dancing, and stunting for cheer. In non-cheer terms its when people lift me in the air, when I flip, and I feel the need to perfect it yet I feel the happiest no matter what. I get the same way with soccer and basketball. I stay focused, I have my own rhythm and I just love it. When I think of composition I also think of my love for reading. I will always be a reader, the way I can be creative with the words I read, how I can analyze the text, its beautiful. I may not be the best musician, but I feel this way with music too. It’s so beautiful, so different, a creative art that when you don’t know what to say, the lyrics has those words for you. I think of ice skating when I hear the word composition because of how focused but relaxed you have to be to skate on the ice. I feel this same creative energy when I write for school and sometimes when I speak about specific topics like medical stuff or sports. I find school, my academics, very important so I think the creative energy is a necessity and I am glad I have it.

Reflection 9 (12/1/22): Looking back at all of my reflections, I believe that I have improved, although there is always room for more improvement. I think this course has really pushed me to connect ideas in better ways while also using my own experiences. I have always had a passion for english composition and it helped that the topics discussed were very valuable and important. I still annotate the same way and I think I really improved with peer editing and feedback. With this course, I was not as nervous to speak out loud as I have been in the past which I am happy about since I was able to show some of what I knew or was thinking about. I still think I need to get better with using formal language especially in the places I get stuck, but I am very happy with how I did in all three of my papers. I think the past 8 reflections show how passionate I am to learn and how I really want to connect and digest all the readings I am assigned. I think as a learner, even when its a challenge I am willing to accept it; I am willing to accept whatever is new even if its out of my comfort zone, and I mean that with both writing and in my life as I work for security as someone with social anxiety and love it! I think I have an understanding for people that most may not and I am not sure why I am so accepting, but I really just enjoy being able to help others in any way. Throughout the course I also have spent a lot of time talking to other people about the readings we had and continued to read my own books. Throughout the course I really pushed to have good quotes and good blog posts to show what is going through my head in words, and what I thought was best for evidence. This class has meant a lot to me, I have experienced many different aspects of english but I think this class was so passionate and related to the real world, so it was definitely meaningful and I hope others also learned a lot from this class.

Reflection 10 (12/7/22): I think it is important to note the differences between writing a paper and doing a podcast on said paper. With the podcast, I really had to change the language I was using compared to the paper so that it could be understandable to my interviewee. I also really needed to explain a little more on the situation of Megan Phelps-Roper so that the questions I was asking were understandable. When speaking, you can create a different type of flow, and I think it is important to highlight how your voice and how things are said are more valued in a podcast rather than your paper. With the paper though, you can use formal language and create this excellent sentences that may not be possible for the podcast. Looking at both, a paper and podcast has its own flow, its own language, and its own creativity. I feel that I had creative energy in both the paper and the podcast, but the paper was stronger in my opinion. I have a hard time speaking, I get nervous and so even if I am prepared, sometimes I mess up (self-sabotage in a way). With a paper, I can take time to think and re-write things and really get my ideas across and I think its because I am more willing to be an open book through a paper rather than speaking due to my own nerves. Major revisions was important for this project where doing a podcast and writing a paper are unique in their own ways. Once again, the language must be changed, wording needs to be less formal, and for me I cut out a lot from my paper when doing the podcast where questioning and conversation is huge in the podcast unlike the paper. I think it is also a process to limit yourself to questions when doing a podcast so either way you really have to put a lot of thought into both assignments. I think with a podcast new ideas can spark where you are hearing from a different perspective while in the paper you are taking your own perspective of what you have read and your own experiences to express your ideas. Either way, both the podcast and paper hold different values yet the same importance in a way even if in my opinion I prefer a paper over a podcast. This project really opens up your mind, and for me takes you out of your comfort zone to really dig deeper into the ideas on the topic(s) explained.