Writing into College

Back in August, I was feeling various emotions upon starting college. Having to adjust to a new setting can be intimidating and difficult. But in the blink of an eye, there are only a few days before the first semester comes to an end. I have learned about topics I was unaware of and have picked up new skills. A class I feel I have learned a good deal in is English. English is a subject in which there are various ways of writing an essay. I feel as though every year, I discover a new method of forming a quality paper. This class is no different and fits into the pattern.

In the summer, I wondered how well I would be able to transition into a higher level of education. In regards to English, I wrote countless essays in high school. With the bulk of this semester being spent working on essay assignments for this class, it may seem like there would not be much of a difference. However, the very first phase proved otherwise. In high school, all of the tasks would be based on a book we read. We would talk about characters, plot, etc. In the first essay we wrote in this course, the paper was meant to be about us. As foreign as this was to me, it was quite enjoyable. Much like this essay, I had to reflect upon myself rather than a fictional tale. I learned that there are various ways in speaking/writing to audiences and there is no one fixed way. Through Amy Tan, an author whose works we went over in class, I grasped that even if a way someone conveys English is not the standard way of doing so, it does not make it incorrect. There are aspects that can affect the most meaningful way of communicating. In my “One meaningful moment,” I understood what that meant for myself. Much like Tan, I realized the large role culture plays in me being a writer and speaker. There is more than what meets the eye when people use language. I never knew how deep this goes until I took this class.  

Apart from writing about ourselves, we did analyze texts both given and found on our own. As mentioned earlier, I chose to use Amy Tan’s “Mother Tongue” for my rhetorical analysis essay. For the research essay, I scoured the web as well as Baruch’s online database for sources. A new integration that was taught in class was the concept of synthesis. In high school, we mainly proved a point with sources independently and introduced them briefly. With the new format introduced to us, we were tasked with connecting our evidence together to further strengthen our point. We had to introduce the source before quoting to explain its relevance and then explain its correlation to the topic. It is amazing how I was able to connect a short 30 second youtube video with a proper article. This overall strengthened our arguments and made us better analytical writers.  

After one semester, I am proud of my improvement as a writer. Though it may have been tough in the beginning, I was able to do well with my new understanding and assistance from a great professor. I feel I have evolved from my high school skillset I came into this class with and am now leaving with knowledge that will adequately prepare me for the next writing class. Whether it’s examining new articles or reflecting upon myself, I am confident I can successfully complete the task with no issue.