This student took an English composition course that significantly improved their writing abilities. The course emphasized developing a clear thesis, effective research skills using credible sources, and thorough revision. For their portfolio, the student revised four essays. They improved thesis statements, fixed grammatical errors, strengthened arguments with research, and better addressed audience and purpose. The student learned the importance of moving beyond just their opinion to using evidence and considering rhetorical strategies. Overall, the course helped them gain confidence in structuring papers, revising effectively, and writing for different audiences.

1. Alek Morgan
English 1102
Dr. Hakala
Reflective Introduction
Writing is a field that spans so many different categories. It’s a vital skill to have yet it’s
influence is often overlooked. For most, writing is required for class or work, it’s done to
complete the assignment and “get done”. I, myself have always realized the effects writing can
have and it’s ability to influence when composed with a purpose. As I said, I’ve always had an
interest in writing and it’s influence but this course really capitalized on the concept of
developing a purpose. In every essay throughout the semester the concept of a thesis was
stressed, from creating a central idea to center my memoir around to developing an
argumentative stance in essay four; it has really increased my ability to structure a paper around
an idea and stay consistent to that throughout the piece. Besides really enhancing my ability to
achieve a specific purpose in a paper, I have grown substantially in my ability to research and
utilize sources. Before, my papers were, let’s just say, “highly opinionated”, meaning most of my
points made were just my spin off the main topic, almost just how I saw it instead of concrete
evidence supporting my claims. I’ve realized, writing that way is about as effective as a judge
with no constitution, there was no backup or credible source for my conjecture. When taking this
course, I’ve learned to extensively use sources, and not just Google search. I’ve been exposed to
the vast and intensive database that the library provides and having that many credible sources
has really elevated my ability to apply my writing style and thought process to proven concepts
and correct concrete information. Lastly, but as I found out not least important is revision. The

2. writing process is itself a battlefield, one filled with never-to-be seen again drafts, undeveloped
ideas, poor punctuation and less than par grammar.
One of the most important things I took away from this course is the ability to technically
dissect a paper, before it just wasn’t a priority; I’ve learned the ability and the importance of
revising a paper and fine tuning my ideas and grammatical errors. Beginning in essay two,
almost all of these concepts were relevant in my revising process. Thesis was my main priority in
the revision of this rhetorical analysis. While I had a developed thesis that I centered my paper
around, I used a concept that was directly evident in the ad instead of an arguable claim. After
taking a closer look, the paper was very obvious and ineffective considering the whole concept I
was describing and developing could be taken away by just reading the ad itself. I reconsidered
and looked closely (as Dr. Hakala suggested) at the less obvious aspects of the ad, realizing that
the theme of “American Spirit” was conveyed through visual pieces in the ad. I reconstructed my
paper around presenting that to the audience that it would be most effective for. Along with
developing an arguable claim, my grammar and sentence structure needed some college level
revision. Comma splices were consistent errors in this essay along with improper MLA citation, I
really learned how to properly format my paper to professional standards.
The next essay I chose to revise was the analysis of Karen Cates’ article, essay three. The
revision of this essay highlights the intended audience and counter argument skills I’ve
developed. In the original essay, I had an idea of what my thesis should be, but I didn’t develop
my idea in relationship to her purpose and intended audience efficiently. I was calling her lack of
counter argument bias when her purpose was never mentioned to be arguing with a certain claim.
Also, while she was aiming towards the audience of educators and those who influenced teens, I
didn’t pay much attention to this and almost changed the appeal to college students like me.

3. Better developing my argument about her essay, I described how her article would have gained
credibility and increased effectiveness by presenting the pros and cons of both walks of life. This
is important because it separates my own conclusion of her writing from her actual purpose. I
realized I needed to propose a new idea rather than critique an aspect of the paper that was not
relevant. I proposed the presentation of both benefits and detriments of each sides to strengthen
her point of bettering each students chance of success. Similar to the last revised essay, there
were consistent comma splices, I fixed those by bettering sentence structure to separate sentences
and provide emphasis on important points.
The final essay I revised for my portfolio is the persuasive essay. In this essay, research
was key because my whole argument needed concrete evidence to back it up. In the drafting
process, I found it hard to simplify information and balance research with my own writing.
Research is something I’ve never had to do intensively so finding and citing accurate sources
took a bit of trial and error. The citation lesson and class discussion on sources really expanded
my knowledge on where to find credible sources, especially the library database. In the first
draft, I included information without citation, and did not include all my sources in my works
cited page. Overall, my main argument was developed clearly but it lacked clear and strong
research citing and summarizing. I cleaned up my sources and made sure everything was
accurate and stated clearly, also correcting my citation form to MLA. Also, the thesis of my
paper was not obvious and lacked a concrete statement, I added a clear thesis to my introduction
to make sure the audience understands the main purpose of the paper. As with the other essay’s I
revised sentence level errors, especially comma splices and worked on sentence structure.
Going into this course, I thought I had a good understanding of the writing process and
how to use my words effectively. I figured it would be simple as have been all my other writing

4. classes thus far but I soon realized I had only one piece of the puzzle. This course really
improved my writings validity and effectiveness, from developing a clear thesis to hold the paper
together and provide a central idea to the reader, to finding and understanding credible sources.
Words use and style was only the tip of a very large iceberg, after learning rhetorical strategies
and effective sentence structure, I feel confident in my ability to write about anything with
subject matter. The ability to write and use words properly and effectively, targeting a specific
audience, goes beyond an english class. It can be used to further yourself in life, influence people
with ideas, and efficiently interpret any information given, overall I feel I’ve gained confidence
and accuracy in my writing ability.