Blog Post #7

Blog Post #7 – A Reflection on This Course

Things I've learned... I have definitely learned about the different formats used for writing, such as MLA, and APA, and their differences. Citing using MLA is more confusing for me than using APA. The Citation Machine never matched what the handbook said to do for the MLA format. It seems that even the computers can't get it right (smiley was supposed to go here ;o).

I have also learned more about using educational on-line sources such as ProQuest, and how to search them. I have learned to analyze poetry in ways I had not thought of before, and gained greater insight into analyzing other types of writing as well. I have learned how to give a better critique of other's works – sandwiched between positive observations, to encourage as well as critique. Critiquing others has also caused me to look at my own writing in a different light. I enjoyed reading and evaluating my peer's work, some of them gave amazing insights on our subject matter. The feedback I received was invaluable as well – very detailed, and caused me to look at my work through another's eyes. Plus... I have to admit, the praise was good too.

I am a fairly new college student with a long way to go, so all of these added or enhanced skills should help me in my future classes, especially the analytical skills. If I do decide to become a writer (most likely in the health industry), these skills will be especially beneficial to have. One link that I was surprised not to find on the library data base was “PubMed” (similar to “Medline”, but no sign-on required), or you can just Google “PubMed”.  This link was especially helpful to me last semester. I hope it helps others as well, and because it's free, you can give it to others that do not have access to our library's subscribed sites.

This was a very interesting class using materials that are engaging, not boring. I chose this ENG102 class based upon two criteria: it was all on-line, and the materials chosen by our instructor to use as the teaching tools were not the stuffy old text books. The poetry section was a surprise, but was especially enlightening. My eyes have been opened, and I will never look at poetry the same again. I never looked that deep into it before to find the hidden meanings. When we read certain sections of O'Brien's book (like the animal abuse part), and Huze's play (eating lunch while watching an enemy soldier suffer and die), I became very upset, and wondered if I had made a mistake in my choice of classes. I continued on, and am glad I did. The rest of the readings were still not pleasant – war never is, but the stories were not as gut wrenching, and the overall experience made me more understanding of the problems our Vets return with. Whether our Vets became Vets voluntarily, or otherwise, they deserve our support and respect. Now days, our troops that serve willingly deserve it even more. God bless them!


So far, I have meet the learning outcomes for this class, and I hope I don't botch that up when it comes down to the final week. My writing style has changed a bit – more streamlined, and easier to follow (I hope). I really struggled with the thesis on our final paper, but with the revisions based on Laura's suggestions, I've improved.  I know I may need a little more work in this area, but I have received some good advice, and I will continue to work on it in the future.  This skill will be helpful in my future writing projects, especially in the nursing and science fields. 

All in all, this was a very good class. I am surprised at how many people fell behind, but this was my only summer school class. If I had taken additional classes, with home and family... it would have been too much. I would recommend this class to anyone that is looking for an interesting and engaging ENG102 class... as long as they can handle the war stories. It was definitely not boring.

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