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Brady Michelow

Professor Campbell

UWRT 1104

April 26, 2019

Dear Professor Campbell,

After reviewing my eportfolio, I noticed how much my writing has improved throughout

this semester. I never enjoyed writing classes in high school because I just though they were

giving us busy work. At first, I didn’t think this freshman writing class was going to be any

different. However, I see now that everything we did helped me as a writer. We had six

assignments throughout the semester that I believed helped me improve greatly. We worked on

six Studios, Topic Proposal, Annotated Bibliography, the first Extended Inquiry Project (EIP),

the final EIP, and the ePortfolio. Each one made me grow in different aspects of my writing.

Some I enjoyed a lot more than others. Regardless of whether or not I enjoyed it, all these

assignments helped my writing. I believed my best work is by far the Extended Inquiry Project

as a whole, and also my topic proposal.

The six Studios that were assigned to us throughout the semester were probably my least

favorite part of this class. I felt like they were surprise me sometimes. I would see they were due

on a Friday, but I was so caught up in an essay and I would forget about the studio that was due.

The Studios were never difficult, but sometimes they were time consuming. However, at the end

of the day, they all helped improve my writing. For example, the studio involving writers moves

helped me use more than “however” as a writers move. With that being said, the Studios were

helpful but not my favorite assignments.


The Topic Proposal was our very first formal essay in this class that was about our topic.

I personally really enjoyed the topic proposal. It was a great way to slowly ease into the class. It

wasn’t too long, and we got to write about something that was interesting to us. I believe the

hardest part about the Topic Proposal was coming up with a specific topic. I started with

generational poverty, but that was way too broad. By the end of the semester, my topic was the

lack of education and its effect on generational poverty. The easiest part of the Topic Proposal

was definitely the last four paragraphs in the paper. This is because it was about me, and I

already know me. I didn’t need to conduct any research about my interest in the topic or my next

steps. I got an 88 on this assignment, and I feel like I could’ve gotten an A if I would’ve went

back over it a couple more times. All in all, I really enjoyed the Topic Proposal and it was a great

introductory paper into Freshman University Writing.

The Annotated Bibliography is the next assignment, and I was not a huge fan of this

paper. I didn’t mind doing the research and then writing about it. However, I did not like having

to do MLA format to cite my sources. That part was by far the hardest part of the assignment for

me. The Annotated Bibliography did help me learn more about my topic, and it also allowed me

to narrow my topic down even more. The second source/article that I used was the reason my

topic got narrowed down even more. At first, my topic was escaping generational poverty. The

article that I focused on in my Annotated Bibliography was more about education being the

underlying factor of generational poverty. With this being my topic, I could focus on the cycle of

poverty and how education affects it. This was a better topic for me because I have had

experience with the lack of education and generational poverty. We would work with kids and

the elementary school in Jamaica. This allowed me to observe, first hand, what kind of education
these kids were getting. The Annotated Bibliography helped me a great deal with my topic, but I

struggled with the MLA citations.

Next is the first Extended Inquiry Project. I was not looking forward to this assignment

when I first heard of it. I saw it as just another research paper on my topic that I have been

studying throughout the semester. I was a little frustrated because I was wondering what else I

was going to write about. My attitude completely shifted when I learned I could make it an

argumentative essay. I enjoy those essays because I can put my own opinion into the paper. I can

write a lot more because I do not need to research my opinion. For example, the first two

paragraphs of my first Extended Inquiry Project were fairly easy for me because it is about my

past experience, or a story. My least favorite part of this essay was definitely the MLA citations.

I struggled with them once again. I also struggled with repeating myself throughout the essay. I

continuously stated that the lack of education was the biggest factor contributing to generational

poverty. The First Extended Inquiry Project was a great way to dig deeper into my topic, and it

wasn’t difficult to write.

The Final Extended Inquiry Project

The ePortfolio is the final assignment for this semester. I have enjoyed this assignment

because it allows me to be as creative as I want. I get to make the website my own, and also try

to make it capture the viewer's attention. The ePortfolio also allows me to put all my work into

one place. I can make it neat and organized so it is easier to view. However, I do not like how the

ePortfolio is worth so much. I have been stressing about this assignment for a couple weeks now

because I really want to get an A in the class. I am trying to go above and beyond. I also did not

like how this Final Reflective Letter is another assignment within the ePortfolio. It is worth 20
percent of the grade within the ePortfolio as well. The ePortfolio has been on my mind for weeks

now, but I do enjoy how I can make it my own.

We had many formal writing assignments in this class. However, we also had many

informal writing assignments as well. Freewrites in our daybooks and blog posts is what most of

informal writing was. I really enjoyed the freewrite’s because it gave me a chance to release

some emotion and thoughts. It allowed me to see what I was thinking. My freewrite from March

9, 2019 is a great example of this. The freewrite was about what was on my mind at that

moment. My first sentence was, “Today, I am feeling very tired and want to eat.” I did not enjoy

the blogs as much. I forgot about them a lot of times because I was so caught up in other

assignments. They did provide some interesting articles/videos though. I did not like the group

work and peer advising that much. I like to have my writing to myself because it feels personal

for some reason. My peers did give me great feedback, and they helped me get better grades. I

loved to do the readings and research because most of the stuff that I was looking at was for my

topic.

My most important work in the class was my Annotated Bibliography. I believe this

because this assignment allowed me to narrow my topic down. It showed me what my true goals

and beliefs are when it comes to the lack of education and generational poverty. My biggest goal

is trying to end poverty around the world, and also to make education better for others. As a

writer, I want to put my research out there so people are aware of generational poverty. Before

doing this assignment, I believed there wasn’t one factor that was greater than all the others.

However, after researching my topic, I found that the lack of education leads to everything else.
One of my greatest strengths when it comes to writing is my passion. If I find a topic that

I am interested in, then I will put max effort into it. If it is something I am not interested in, then

I just want to get it done. My two greatest weaknesses seem to be lack of focus and I tend to

repeat myself a lot within my writing. I struggled with these at the beginning of the semester and

still struggle with them. For example, I repeated myself a lot in my Topic Proposal. I do feel like

I have improved these weaknesses a little bit, but they are certainly not a strength yet.

My progress as a thinker, questioner, and a writer has been incredible throughout this

semester. I would put so much thought into my writing that I would get confused and give up.

Now we are at the end of the semester, and I don’t think as much. I just let the thoughts go

straight onto the paper. I am much more curious than I was at the beginning of the semester.

After everything I read, I try and ask myself questions so I can dig deeper into the topic if it

interest me. Asking questions also allowed me to research more about generational poverty and

the lack of education. Writing is at its best when you question and don’t think too much. For

example, writing my first Extended Inquiry Project was a lot easier than I thought it was going to

be. I just asked myself more questions and found more answers.

All in all, I really enjoyed this class throughout this semester. I learned so much from

formal/informal writing. This class made me ask questions, and answer them through research. It

also showed me what I am truly passionate about. It helped me set the goal of assisting in the

elimination of poverty. I liked this class even though I had to be there bright and early at 8:30

am. I have improved greatly as a writer, and I will continue to improve.

Sincerely,

Brady Michelow

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