Reflection Paper 2

All through high school I took basic level writing classes. It is not that I was a poor writer, I just did not want all of the extra work. Therefor, I never learned any other type of formatting than MLA. When I arrived here at UCA my writing I teacher required us to write using MLA formatting as well. This semester has been a challenge for me because Mrs.Bowles required all of our writing in APA format. I learned the process mostly through the website The Owl at Purdue. Also, I utilized the writing center for spot checking any reference questions I had. Learning this process has been the second greatest thing I am taking away from this class.

I am also in Oral Communication this semester and we have had to do papers for speech using APA formatting. References and citing withing the text has been the most challenging aspect for me.With referencing resources I used, I found that there are many areas I could make a mistake on. Different types of sources require different layout, or formats. I had the hardest time writing a reference that had many authors. Citing within the text for APA formatting is not very different than it is for MLA. Deciding to use the authors last name with the date of publication or page number is one of the things I needed the most help with. Also, I found that the running title at the top of the page to be odd.

Reflection Paper

One of the best things I am taking away from this class is the critical reading exercises we did at the first of the semester. I know how to read but my retention level was low because I was not understanding what I read the majority of the time. When we analyzed the McKracken article, I learned to read slower and more carefully, making sure I understood all of the vocabulary and phrases used. Making little notes out to the side of the passage, making a comparison with a memory, helped me to not only make a connection but also remember what I read better. Whenever we wrote paragraph summaries after we read a passage, I was able to retain so much more information. I will not only be able to use this technique in future writing classes but also in all of my other classes. Being able to transfer this type of skill to other subject areas makes me a better reader and a more productive student. I may not have to re-read an article as many times, utilizing my time more efficiently and more productively on other subjects. Hopefully I can apply this skill to my advantage whenever I take the P-CAT or M-CAT; their reading comprehension sections are usually lengthy and full of details.

Portfolio composition

I have never put together a portfolio. Mrs. Bowles' instructions seem simple enough but I know that I will meet many areas of confusion. Hopefully the class time we will spend on the portfolio will help clarify these aspects of the assignment.

The portfolio being our mean of basically begging our grade I believe is a great idea. By presenting all of the work and research from the beginning of the semester Mrs. Bowles can see how we have tried and put our best effort into the class. I believe that the majority of the class will be lacking the acceptable number of blogs required for the grade they would like.

The blogger is a good idea for the people who are willing to go the extra mile and really want to succeed in this class. One of the only draw-backs from using this as a main source of the grade is that it is really easy to forget to update regularly. I believe that the blogger can be used to determine the grade a student should receive because it shows how much effort they were willing to put into the class outside of the classroom.

Collecting Brochures

I never realized how many ways a brochure can be made until I had to make one myself. Today I went across campus collecting pamphlets from different departments, seeing the variety of styles. Some of the ones had big, bold headings and font. Others had lots of pictures with tiny font. Many posed questions then answered in a paragraph. I really liked the pamphlets that had a statement as a heading and then elaborated the statement underneath the heading. The ones that had pictures I found to be more helpful and very aesthetic. I think I have a good idea about how to design my brochure now that I have looked at so many examples.

Not so Good Friday

I do not know why but it seems like the entire state of Arkansas school systems is off today for this beautiful sunny day. Why is it that UCA is still in session and teachers feel like they should give tests? The majority of students are skipping today, most of the already on their way to a beach and a bar. So why is the world so cruel that it keeps the kids at school who are always doing what is right? I guess maybe it is because we care and actually want to get somewhere in this life. Not that the others at the beach don't want the same thing but, the world is weird sometimes in its ways. The only good thing about today is that it IS Friday and next week we DON'T have class. Even though the majority of students do have homework to keep them occupied all week. I hope everyone has a great Spring Break and good luck with all the homework Sunday night!

Dreary

I don't know why, but it seems like on days such as today events are just not in your favor. Your roommate turns off your alarm because it was waking her up so then you miss your first class. Or perhaps you have a quiz in chemistry and not know how to even start the problem?! This is how my last couple of days have gone. But this morning I was suppose to have an appointment with the writing center to go over my paper. I woke up and it was pouring down rain. So I go online to try and cancel my appointment and the server cannot find the page-this goes on all morning. I also call the number of the UCA writing center, no answer, just the answering machine every time! I was trying to be polite and call to let them know that I was canceling but oh well. So now I am going to have to figure out a way to reschedule for tomorrow in the early morning. I guess on days like these, when the world is fighting against you, it is best to just go back to bed!

Monday's meeting

I thought I had narrowed my topic enough to write a research paper worthy of 10 pages, but I was wrong. I might have narrowed it too much. Finding information is not my problem its just that all of the information tends to say the same thing! Right now I have 3 pages worth of text and I need to expand that to 8. So, Mrs. Bowles suggested that I change the paper a little and compare Chorionic Villus Sampling and Amniocentesis while showing CVS should be the chosen procedure. There are a few differences in the two test, such as the different diseases detected and the test result rate, but they both eventually produce the same results in regards to gene abnormalities. The only thing I am not for sure about is, since I am doing even more research if I need to re-do my annotated Bib and Literary Review. Hopefully I wont have to redo it all since the paper is due Friday!