Kayla Tucker

Midterm
9/29/15
Reflective Writing
Throughout the beginning of the course, I have begun developing skills such as critical
reflection, making connections, and getting out of my comfort zone. I am strongly engaging in
these skills and look forwards to further development. My critical reflection has really taken
shape not only in my other peers papers, but in my own. The first draft of my exploratory essay
was very short with little explanation. My biggest setback in life thus far is being diagnosed as a
type 1 diabetic. This is one line of my second paragraph that I have reflected on, and realizing I
need to expand upon. I turned this one line into a whole new paragraph. I realized while reading
my own paper that this specific part was not enough information to convey my message. My new
paragraph upon my diabetes is much more in depth.
Making connections has been an enormous connection in my writing. Previously, I
mentioned little to no personal information within my writing and this class has pushed my
forward to making new connections on a deeper level. During my Seeing the Moment activity,
I really connected on how to connect my writing with my personal life. I wrote about the exact
time I was diagnosed. I remember my mouth being cry and the smell of alcohol swabs from the
excessive amount of times my finger was being pricked, is a direct quote from my seeing the
moment. I realized during this activity the importance of personal connection to my writing.
Getting out of my comfort zone during my writing was previously an issue. During the
progression of this class, I have learned to get out of my comfort zone by using and advancing
my language and connecting to personal experiences. In my exploratory essay draft 2, I wrote,

Diabetes does not define me; I am going to redefine diabetes! This quote allowed me to get out
of my comfort zone by talking about my personal experience, while also giving input on my
personal goals.
My weaknesses or challenges are also very much present within the course. Critical
readings as well as knowledge of conventions are some of my weaknesses. Critical reading is
one of my weakest points in the class. I am very good at pulling general concepts out of text, but
I have a hard time with the analysis of multiple levels of text. I have a hard time understanding
the meanings of some text because of their layout. In the preface of Who says? The Writers
Research, we read about Is google making us stupid? This text is very easy for me to pull out
the main concepts from. It is personally harder for me to pull out main concepts from my peers
works, unless I am well versed in the topic of discussion. I plan on trying to diversify what I read
so that I may be able to understand a broader variety of topics and genres.
This leads to my final issue: knowledge of conventions. I am not good with
understanding all the rules for writing in different genres or the guidelines you are expected to
follow unless laid out for me. In chapter one of our textbook, the textbook talks about different
types of information that can be used throughout our writing. I understand how to apply
knowledge into writings, but I have a harder time understanding the guidelines in which you
should use the information. To increase my understanding, I plan on trying to diversify my
writing styles, so when critiqued by peers I can learn about new areas of writing.
Overall, I am feeling very successful in the course, and look forward to learning about
how I can improve in both my strengths and my weaknesses.