Final Reflection

 Here is the Final Reflection assignment. 

Brandi Lambright 

Mrs. Nall 

Comp I 

8 December 2024 

Final Reflection 

          The first assignment we were asked to do was a hometown narrative called “Where I'm From.” This assignment was my favorite. I thought long about what place in my hometown impacted who I am today. For me, that was the launder mat. It was a place where my sisters and I spent a good bit of our time. My process in this paper was simple. I decided to pick 3 points I wanted to have as paragraphs. I labeled them on a piece of paper as the launder mat, the load, and the fun. I wanted to make sure that the ending of each paragraph led to the next topic. It was also important to me to make sure I used as many descriptive words as possible. I wanted to make sure that the reader could have a complete visual when they were reading my narrative. I wanted them to be able to relate so much to the details that they almost felt it was a memory of their own. I genuinely loved this assignment. This paper helped me realize, over this semester, that I prefer opinion pieces more than research papers.  

           The second assignment we did in my Comp I class was Ad Analysis. This paper was a bit more difficult for me. I picked the Kaya King Jumbo Peanut ad. This ad made me laugh aloud when I saw it. I thought I was very brave of this company to picture an elephant choking on their product as their sales pitch. We were tasked with finding the ethos, pathos, and logos of our ads. I ended up accidentally drafting this paper twice. When I first wrote it, I found I had truly written a biography and not so much an analysis. I went through and picked out key points and highlights of the company and tossed the rest in the trash to start over. I then used each topic (ethos, pathos, and logos) to write my paragraphs. It was a similar writing technique I used on my first paper. This paper wanted, more so, the evidence from research to state the reasoning they produced this ad than my opinions. It was vital that I broke down the ad in full to get the completed story. The elephants, Heimlich, dislodged peanut, desert landscape, and product package were all strategically placed and pictured by this company's marketing group for a reason. This assignment was also the first where I needed a Work Cited page. I learned in this paper how to properly cite my ad with the help of Mrs. Nall.  

          The last paper we were assigned as a class to write on was the Protest Song Argument. This paper was the most difficult for me. When I first picked the song “Feel It Still” by Portugal. The Man, I just knew I was going to have so much to work with. It turns out that the song I love to listen to too was not at all about what I thought it was. The internet has a plethora of information, but finding credible sources seemed slim. I decided to only use sources that had direct quotes from the artist himself. In doing that, the song was about the artist protesting his own life outcome versus the political and government rebellion I thought it was about. In the writing process of this paper, I copied the lyrics to the song and went through each section. I took the lyrics and paired them with the artist's direct quotes to break down his true meaning. Lastly, I gathered all my collected cites. I sat on this part of my paper for a good bit of time. I was not sure if you cite a web article the same as you would a web ad. I decided to use the web link my teacher, Mrs. Nall, recommended. The site, Purdue Owl, helped me get my Works Cited page in order. That was a helpful resource and one I think played a vital role in making this paper successful.  

Learning outcomes Comp I: 

• 1. I learned to respond appropriately to various rhetorical situations, purposes, and audiences. I learned successfully how to find the ethos, pathos, and logos of an ad analysis and properly convey that to a reader. I also learned how to write a narrative in a way that the reader develops emotion from words. The feedback from classmates and my teacher gave me the confirmation that my words were more than just letters on paper, they invoked emotion.  

• 2. I learned to use writing and reading for inquiry, learning, thinking, and communicating. When doing the ad analysis, I learned how to find information and communicate the meaning of an ad. The subliminal messages were translated through research for my class and other viewers to better understand the points I needed to get across.  

• 3. I learned to integrate original ideas with those of others. In the Protest Song Argument, I was able to gather information from articles found on the internet to produce an opinion on what the artist was protesting.  

• 4. I learned to develop flexible strategies for generating, revising, editing, and proofreading. Throughout this semester I used many techniques to produce my submitted papers. In the hometown narrative, I wrote it on paper first to get my thoughts in order. In the protest song argument and ad analysis, I did a split screen and took down notes in Word as I researched. I printed all my rough drafts and allowed someone else to read them to make changes. I then gathered the information and applied it to my final papers. I also used Grammarly and the grader in Microsoft Word to help me make corrections to produce a clean and concise final product.  

• 5. I learned to use collaborative writing process. Through peer review I was able to get feedback as to whether my papers were translated how I wanted them too. I was able to also take Feeback from my teacher and apply them to my revisions to improve them and receive a higher grade.  

• 6. I learned to demonstrate Knowledge of structure, paragraphing, tone, mechanics, syntax, grammar, and documentation. In my hometown narrative I was able to get a perfect score on my revised paper. I learned how to set up a paper so that it translates well. I was also able to produce feelings in the tone which I drafted my papers. I learned how to do proper research and label it accordingly.  

 

Learning Outcomes (composition review): 

• 1. I learned to demonstrate an awareness of usage and mechanics through developing and revising compositions. That shows in my overall grade and that I have achieved that by being in the top ten percent of my class according to Blackboard.  

• 2. I learned to demonstrate critical thinking skills by reading text in various genres and responding and developing compositions. I was able to translate the meaning from an ad and song through researching different reading sources. I also am great at getting my opinion and feelings across to the reader. 

• 3. I learned to develop a variety of strategies for generating text and revising. Reading corrective feedback and being able to apply it in revision to achieve a better resulting paper has been a great strategy used.  

• 4. I will reflect through a final portfolio demonstrating and understanding of purpose, audience, and usage/ style. I have stated many ways in this final paper on how I understand and learn all the above listed.  

 

Strengths and Challenges 

I believe that being able to invoke emotion and produce a clean outline through my papers is definitely a strength I produce. Also, being able to connect and resonate with a reader is something I have achieved in this class. A weakness of mine I deal with is proper usage of commas and semicolons. Although, throughout this semester, I believe I have improved through the corrective guidance of my teacher and peers.  

Overall Benefit 

This class has benefited me greatly. It had been seventeen years since I have had any schooling. This class I feel has brought me up to speed in today's collegiate environment. I am better prepared to take my Comp II class. I believe this class has also prepared me better for the career choice I am trying to move into. Being an RN, you must be able to report clear and concise notes and in a professional manner. I think this class has added to my overall wellbeing and knowledge gained.