3013 Eagle St.

Los Angeles CA, 90063

5 June 2015

Anita Fischer

Professor

UCI Department of English

HIB 304

Irvine CA, 92697-2650

Dear Prof. Fischer

As a student in your Writing 37 class, I can definitely say that the quality of my writing has improved. Ten weeks ago, I entered your class as an immature writer that was ready to gain the knowledge to become a successful writer. My portfolio is a clear demonstration of the growing transition my writing went through. My first essay was a five paragraph mess. The following weeks allowed me to learn skills to develop persuasive essays. Because I was able to implement the skills I learned, my second essay did not need as many revisions as my first essay. Overall, through the knowledge I attained in the last ten weeks from peer reviews, attending office hours, completing homework assignments and going to the writing center has allowed for me to grow.

The texts that we read throughout the quarter reflected the class theme and future essay topics. Confession as the theme was interesting because we were able to read stories from Edgar A. Poe. Your class was the first time I read texts that had an unreliable narrator. It was until you assigned for us to read “The Imp of the Perverse” that I understood the rhetor’s justifications. Another text that interested me was, “This is Just to Say” because of the ambiguous nature. I wrote several of my essays on this poem because I wanted to understand the rhetor’s purpose. These stories needed critical analysis in order to understand the rhetor’s true purpose. In this way, I was able to develop a thesis driven argument that included the rhetorical triangle.

The essays presented in this portfolio developed from the origin of a canvas assignment. I personally believe that Canvas assignments are extremely helpful in completing my work on time and developing ideas. My first essay originated from an assignment on Canvas. The questions asked in response to the reading such as, “what is the rhetorical situation?”, allowed for me to relate the text to the class material. It helped me initiate the thought process and get feedback to what would later become the CRR essay. Receiving feedback from my peers on the online posts was also very useful. My peers would tell me when a certain idea was great and ask questions for me to clarify my arguments when needed. These assignments were the beginnings to my processes in developing the strength of my essays.

Attending office hours, taught me that creating an outline is a vital first step for crafting my draft. When I received feedback on the CRR essay, I knew I had to seek help. I attended office hours and learned that analyzing the poem chronologically would improve the fluidity of my argument.This strategy helped eliminate most of the repetition. Before I began the writing process again, I made an outline with the organization I learned. This strategy was effective because it helped avoid repetitive ideas. I also learned that incorporating transition sentences into my topic sentences would help create cohesive paragraphs. By going to office hours I was able to identify my weaknesses and learn strategies to solve them.

After completing my draft, I primarily focused on revising my language. During office hours, I also learned that one of my weaknesses is word choice. I started the quarter without knowing that this was a weakness of mine. As the quarter went on, I grew into being able to identify my own errors. Peer revisions also helped me identify these errors.For example, In my RA essay, I thought my topic sentence was clear until one of my peers told me that it did not make sense. It is great to have another pair of eyes because they are able to tell me when a sentence did not make sense.

Similarly, the Writing Center was also a good help on targeting these language errors. The peer tutors advised for me to read my essay backwards in order to interrupt the fluidity. Reading my essay  out loud and backwards helped me to be able to identify the errors on my own. It is important to be able to identify my own errors in order to become a better writer. I am hoping that with in time of practicing the revision process I can become a writer that has control over my language.

Moreover, writing 37 was a great experience that helped me grow as a rhetor .My portfolio exhibits a life skill, writing. Throughout my years attaining a higher education, it is important to have control over my writing. Whether I may be writing an essay for sociology or a scientific journal, this class has been a building block to becoming successful.Through this class I was also able to both identify and utilize rhetoric in my essays. As read in the Anteater’s Guide to Writing and Rhetoric, rhetoric is everywhere and can be situated. I did not fully grasp this concept until we were presented with a film review that utilized rhetor to sell the movie to the audience. After this I honestly seen rhetoric in practice through conversations I was having with my friends. This class has prepared me to identify rhetoric in the world and utilize it in my benefit.

Altogether, my portfolio is a clear demonstration that the steps I took helped me grow as a writer. I truly do believe that I worked hard to improve my writing. I attended all lecture and submitted all my assignments. My portfolio reflects that I looked for help whenever I needed it in order to grow. I made sure to always ask questions to my peers in order to make progress.

Sincerely,

Zulema Cuevas

Undergraduate Student