Well, the first thing I would say that I learned is how to cite. Obviously I already knew the basics of citing, but I never really realized how often it's necessary. I never used to cite things if I reworded the information but now I've realized that is very important. That is definitley something I'll take with me, especially once I transfer to a university. I also found out how bad wikipedia is. I'm incredibly upset by that, because I love wiki. But I guess, I'll have to leave that one behind :(
One of the things that helped me a lot this semester, was writing so many different types of papers. Although I hated writing them, it will help me a lot later just from having the experience. In highschool and even 101, most of the papers are generally the same thing. You always have one research paper but the rest are just why you should or shouldn't do something. The more variety that I learn now, the less that will surprise me when I get older. And I don't like surprises.
My biggest wish as a writer, is just to be better and more comfortable with it. I don't like my writing so I don't like to have people edit it. I don't even like to re-read it. I know it's bad and something I need to overcome. Hopefully as I go further in my education it's something that will fix itself. I'm seriously thankful you didn't make us read our actual papers out loud. Thanks for that :)
Overall, I would say that I learned quite a bit in this class. I don't know if I'm in the position to say if my writing has come along or not, but I know that it definitley is more correct (with contractions and citing and so forth). I enjoyed this class, and in a sense, will miss it next semester.
Monday, December 13, 2010
Blog #9
Being able to analyze texts is very important. I would say that since the beginning of the class I have definitley gotten better at it. I had a lot of difficulty at first with the TS/CD's, but at the semester progressed I almost got the hang of them. It may have taken the entire four months, but I got it eventually.
I got a lot better at using the computer to do research. Especially using the waubonsee library online. I still have no idea how to find actual books in the library or how to cite them. That is something I wish they would teach better. I got the tour in my 101 class, but obviously it didn't do anything if I still don't know how to use it.
Finding good, credible sources was something that I came a long way on. I realized that wikipedia is a bad source, unfortunately, and that just googling a topic usually doesn't give you very good results. Figuring out how to use all the reference in the online library was helpful because those for the most part give you very credible information.
I realize how important it is to be a good writer, even though I don't especially care for it. No matter what career I end up in, the odds are that I will need to do some type of writing. It's good to know the different ways to write and different ways to present your information to different audiences. It will help a lot in the long run.
I got a lot better at using the computer to do research. Especially using the waubonsee library online. I still have no idea how to find actual books in the library or how to cite them. That is something I wish they would teach better. I got the tour in my 101 class, but obviously it didn't do anything if I still don't know how to use it.
Finding good, credible sources was something that I came a long way on. I realized that wikipedia is a bad source, unfortunately, and that just googling a topic usually doesn't give you very good results. Figuring out how to use all the reference in the online library was helpful because those for the most part give you very credible information.
I realize how important it is to be a good writer, even though I don't especially care for it. No matter what career I end up in, the odds are that I will need to do some type of writing. It's good to know the different ways to write and different ways to present your information to different audiences. It will help a lot in the long run.
Blog #8
My research paper is going well. I'm writing on why it's better to buy a dog from a breeder or an animal shelter as opposed to going to a pet store. It is an interesting twist for me because, well, I work at Petland. So yes, my job is selling puppies. In a sense it is making this paper a little difficult. It's hard for me to write against what I do five to six days a week. Especially because I love my job. It's also strange because I spend 40 hours a week trying to convince people that they should buy a dog from me, and then I'm writing six pages on why they shouldn't. It's a nice change of pace though.
The other difficulty I'm running into is finding sources that are valid. Most of the websites start out saying "every dog from a petstore is from a puppy mill and is sick". Unless that person has been to every pet store in the world, they're full of it.
The easiest part of this paper, is the fact that I already know so much on this topic. I hear the complaints and both sides of the story everyday, so I can just incorporate those into my paper. All of the information is very familiar which really helps.
The other difficulty I'm running into is finding sources that are valid. Most of the websites start out saying "every dog from a petstore is from a puppy mill and is sick". Unless that person has been to every pet store in the world, they're full of it.
The easiest part of this paper, is the fact that I already know so much on this topic. I hear the complaints and both sides of the story everyday, so I can just incorporate those into my paper. All of the information is very familiar which really helps.
Blog #7
What is humor? To me, humor is my friends. And laughing to the point where you can't breath anymore. It's inside jokes that you say in front of people and they all look at you like you're crazy, except for that one person who was there to share it with you. Humor is a "haha" or an "lol" in a text message. It's watching someone do something ridiculous and laughing because they thought that no one saw them. Humor is the one thing that will make you smile, no matter how terrible of a day you've had. Well that's what it is to me at least :)
When I think of style, I think of fashion. Not necessarily runway or modeling, but the way that people dress and how they present themselves. Most of style is in the way you carry yourself and the vibe you give off as opposed to the clothes themselves. Style can be good or bad, and will change depending on who you talk to. Style varies a lot socially and changes itself constantly. It's hard to keep up with and is always reinventing itself.
When I think of style, I think of fashion. Not necessarily runway or modeling, but the way that people dress and how they present themselves. Most of style is in the way you carry yourself and the vibe you give off as opposed to the clothes themselves. Style can be good or bad, and will change depending on who you talk to. Style varies a lot socially and changes itself constantly. It's hard to keep up with and is always reinventing itself.
Blog #5
Seeing as I am writing my blogs a little late, I had to go back and figure out which paper was the evualative summary. Now that i've found it, I remember.
I had a lot of opinion in this paper. Once you were finished reading it, there was no definitley no doubt which side I had chosen. I didn't really use the as, we, are words very much. I think that's a good thing. Overall I feel like my paper was pretty well written. I think it flowed nicely, but it was a little short. If I lengthened it up a little it would probably be better.
I think the biggest issue I had with this paper was giving my opinion without shoving it down the readers throat. I have very strong feelings on obesity from fast food, my thoughts being that it is completely the consumers fault. So when I write a paper evaluating a man who says its the business's fault, I get a little... heated :) But in the end, I think I did a decent job of keeping it fair.
I had a lot of opinion in this paper. Once you were finished reading it, there was no definitley no doubt which side I had chosen. I didn't really use the as, we, are words very much. I think that's a good thing. Overall I feel like my paper was pretty well written. I think it flowed nicely, but it was a little short. If I lengthened it up a little it would probably be better.
I think the biggest issue I had with this paper was giving my opinion without shoving it down the readers throat. I have very strong feelings on obesity from fast food, my thoughts being that it is completely the consumers fault. So when I write a paper evaluating a man who says its the business's fault, I get a little... heated :) But in the end, I think I did a decent job of keeping it fair.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Research Paper Free Write
I am most passionate about animals. I've been a vegetarian for five years and I work at Petland. Ever since I was little i've always loved animals. I only have one cat and one dog, but when I live on my own I will have more. With that being said, I also have a lot of passion for other animal related issues such as; animal testing, slaughter houses, and overall animal cruelty.
As far as movies and television go, I'm a big twilight fan. Which of course means that I've read all the books about five times each. I don't really follow any shows on t.v but I love watching Jersey Shore. When it comes to the outside world, I try not to pay attention to it. The news pisses me off and all of the drama gives me a headache. I live in the country and everythings fine, as of now thats the only news that matters to me.
One thing that I'm really into is piercings. At the moment, I have thirteen. It's not as weird as it sounds because most of them are on my ears. It's a big adrenaline rush to get them, and I think that they look pretty. I like tattoos as well but I only have one. My thoughts are, I can take my piercings out when I'm older but the tattoos will be there forever. I love the tattoo that I have though. It's a set of angel wings on my right hip. It has a lot of significant meaning to me that doesn't really make a lot of sense to anyone else. It means a lot about strenth and independence and things of that nature. It's really pretty and I love it.
As far as movies and television go, I'm a big twilight fan. Which of course means that I've read all the books about five times each. I don't really follow any shows on t.v but I love watching Jersey Shore. When it comes to the outside world, I try not to pay attention to it. The news pisses me off and all of the drama gives me a headache. I live in the country and everythings fine, as of now thats the only news that matters to me.
One thing that I'm really into is piercings. At the moment, I have thirteen. It's not as weird as it sounds because most of them are on my ears. It's a big adrenaline rush to get them, and I think that they look pretty. I like tattoos as well but I only have one. My thoughts are, I can take my piercings out when I'm older but the tattoos will be there forever. I love the tattoo that I have though. It's a set of angel wings on my right hip. It has a lot of significant meaning to me that doesn't really make a lot of sense to anyone else. It means a lot about strenth and independence and things of that nature. It's really pretty and I love it.
blog #3
I hated the informal summary. I do not work well in groups, and I hate writing with other people. When I have to work with other people I feel very pressured and regardless of my partners, I feel like my work is being judged. I'm not very good at expressing my opinions, and when you have to collaborate with other people, that is incredibly important. I get clammed up when I'm in a group, and then I feel like I'm not participating enough. Once I get to that point it's all over.
My group didn't actually do the writing process together. We all wrote separately and then put everything together to make one whole paper. That made the assignment a little better, but it was still uncomfortable.
The informal summary was a lot better. Since I was able to write the whole thing by myself and choose which article I liked the best, I was able to write it a lot easier. The paper really didn't take that long to write out and I didn't mind it at all. I also like the topic of obesity and fast food related health problems. That fired me up and the whole thing was relatively painless.
My group didn't actually do the writing process together. We all wrote separately and then put everything together to make one whole paper. That made the assignment a little better, but it was still uncomfortable.
The informal summary was a lot better. Since I was able to write the whole thing by myself and choose which article I liked the best, I was able to write it a lot easier. The paper really didn't take that long to write out and I didn't mind it at all. I also like the topic of obesity and fast food related health problems. That fired me up and the whole thing was relatively painless.
blog #2
Writing the in-class diagnostic essay was pretty difficult for me. There were a few reasons behind this, A. it was the first paper that I had written in four months. B. It's difficult for me to write on the spot. and C. I have a hard time writing papers on subjects that I have no passion for.
If I could write this paper over again, I would probably try to brainstorm a little better. Once I decided on what side of the argument that I was going to take I just jumped right in. If I would have taken more time to think out the paper it would have taken me less time overall because I wouldn't have gotten stuck after two paragraphs.
I enjoy writing as long as I like what i'm writing about. I'm not the kind of person who can sit down and just write pages and pages on anything. When I do write on a topic that I like, I'm usually a pretty good writer and get very involved in my writing. The kind of writing that I like is usually free writes or topics that have very loose guidelines. I'm not very good at structured writing and I usually get frustrated and lose my train of thought easily. If I can't get emotionally attached to my writing, it isn't good.
If I could write this paper over again, I would probably try to brainstorm a little better. Once I decided on what side of the argument that I was going to take I just jumped right in. If I would have taken more time to think out the paper it would have taken me less time overall because I wouldn't have gotten stuck after two paragraphs.
I enjoy writing as long as I like what i'm writing about. I'm not the kind of person who can sit down and just write pages and pages on anything. When I do write on a topic that I like, I'm usually a pretty good writer and get very involved in my writing. The kind of writing that I like is usually free writes or topics that have very loose guidelines. I'm not very good at structured writing and I usually get frustrated and lose my train of thought easily. If I can't get emotionally attached to my writing, it isn't good.
blog #1
In the first section of readings, the biggest thing that was different from what I had learned in the past is identifying other people's arguments and proving why they are wrong. In high school, the focus is more on building your points and not leaving room for others opinions. I also liked the section on using informal vocabulary. It has always been taught that writing needs to be extremely formal and cannot be relaxed or casual. It helped how they showed formal next to informal and you could see that it was okay. I think my favorite section was the section on entering class discussions. As it has probably already been observed, I don't talk very much in school. Reading this section did help. It made the general idea of speaking up a little easier. I can't promise that it will make me overly responsive, but it does help show how to jump in the conversations without feeling awkward or getting stumped.
Monday, August 30, 2010
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