My enrollment to take a course in WRTG 101

My decision to enroll in WRTG 101

My decision to enroll in WRTG 101 was one of the best moves I’ve ever made. I have developed notable textual communication skills, which I have then applied to my speech communication. Science students, including engineering students, are thought to lack reflective writing skills, according to Chalk and Hardbattle (2007). Yet, incorporating a writing course into the curriculum has been beneficial in demystifying this myth. At first, I lacked the necessary skills to properly identify my audience, establish a meaningful objective for discussion, and choose and use resources in research in accordance with APA format rules, but they have since improved. At the beginning, I did not resonate with the idea that different audiences needed to be reached in diverse ways. Stakeholders, politicians, economists, and students have a language that speaks to their person. Essentially, communication targets to pass information in a persuasive and enticing manner. From the introductory lessons on grammar skills and sentence fragments, there was always something to learn. I understood better the sentence patterns, which could be used to convey specific messages with precision. Moreover, I appreciate the reasoning behind planning before penning ideas, since it is a means of achieving coherence of thoughts and ascertaining clarity of the intended information. Subject and object identification helped me establish ideal means of sentence construction.

Additionally, the knowledge of the different formats used for various pieces of writing

Additionally, the knowledge of the different formats used for various pieces of writing was valuable. Through the class assignments, I searched online resources and learnt a plethora of approaches available for writing essays and research papers, and the expected content coverage for every piece as per the APA requirements. These conditions included referencing and citations, which complemented the writing skills I garnered in high school. Consequently, I learnt message manipulation to suit the targeted audience. Besides, diction selection for every paper depends on the audience the writer has in mind; a fact I adhere to diligently. It did not matter the magnitude of vocabulary I was endowed with, or the writing skills I had accrued, but the focus was on ensuring my audience, which included my lecturers, fellow students, and other affiliates, understood my point. I was oblivious of this fact, since I believed writing was merely a display of the prowess one had accumulated over the years of industrious study.

Another lesson I learnt from the planning lectures

Another lesson I learnt from the planning lectures was the formulation of the messages to suit the purposes for writing. Mostly, sciences constitute some of the technical domains of education, and it is imperative to understand that most of the people we communicate with do not share our classes. For this reason, the purpose for writing should be clearly outlined from the onset to limit incidences of irrelevance or documenting information incomprehensible to the readers. Planning also ensures important thoughts are not omitted in the course of writing apart from reducing incidences of being wordy hence impede the identification of the gist of the information. Having shared my essays with my classmates, I learnt the veracity of creativity. I understood plain messages take more than just concentration to reading and writing demands keeping the reader captivated all through - it can only be addressed through thorough planning.

Professionalism is a qualification attained progressively

Professionalism is a qualification attained progressively by practicing that, which is taught in class or the simulation laboratories (Reis, Wald, Monroe, & Borkan, 2010). Indeed, writing too is a profession that requires nurture to hit the desired standards. WRTG 101 as a course shaped my formatting skills. Written pieces are only appealing and exciting to read if properly organized and systematically arranged. Furthermore, the enlisting of the sources of reference may spark the curiosity of the reader to delve into knowing more. That forms the essence of writing - leaving the readers yearn for more. APA formatting permits the use of headings, which enables me to organize my thoughts and write them under the appropriate headings. I have learned the art of being concise and precise with my message. Understanding the differences existing in the formatting of various papers has been valuable to me, since I can pick on any topic for discussion as per the expectations of experienced language users.

Conversely, I did not fully get to learn some of the areas in the course

Conversely, I did not fully get to learn some of the areas in the course. One of the objectives that I feel I did not meet was the utilization of cause-effect analysis as part of the application of rhetoric writing patterns. Mostly, the effect of an event is witnessed before the cause is elicited. Therefore, I find the concept of writing retrospectively challenging, since it demands in-depth analysis of events, and at times I miss the language to articulate my thoughts in a reversed fashion. Moreover, the approach required demands the use of numerous sources ranging from websites, journals, books, and online pages, for which referencing may prove difficult. Despite the challenges witnessed in this learning domain, I am optimistic that practice and consultation with classmates, and my instructors will build my skills in this kind of analysis. Thus, I need to dedicate extra time to learn and polish the skills I was not able to hone in the course of my lectures and assignments.

WRTG 101 is a course that has transformed my writing skills

WRTG 101 is a course that has transformed my writing skills through laying emphasis on the importance of planning, intricacies of grammar, and formatting of papers. The course’s objective is to shape communication skills within and without the faculties through the enhancement of effective, coherent, and concise writing capabilities. I strongly believe that through a little more dedication, I will be at par with the postulated goals of the modules offered. I have come to appreciate that language is a universal channel of passing information and is one of the fields, in which learning never ceases. Importantly, language is so broad, and it is not pragmatic to span its scopes through individual effort.

References

Chalk, P., & Hardbattle, D. (2007). Does Reflective Writing in the PDP Improve Science and Engineering Students’ Learning? Investigations in University Teaching and Learning, 4(2), 33-41.

Reis, S.P., Wald, H.S., Monroe, A.D., & Borkan, J.M. (2010). Begin the BEGAN (The Brown Educational Guide to the Analysis of Narrative) - A framework for enhancing educational impact of faculty feedback to students’ reflective writing. Patient Education and Counseling, 80(2), 253-259.