I feel that my attendance in the second half of the semester was much better than in the first half. During the first half of the semester, I was involved in my engineering service-learning project which required me to visit and teach at U-High. In order to teach, I had to miss a few Thursdays. I also missed some class because of unforeseen circumstances. Despite a few absences, when I was in class I participated in the discussions and completed the in-class writing assignments. Being involved in a discussion at 7:30 in the morning is quite difficult for me. I do feel that I participated and contributed to discussions in the class.
Blogging:
I can quite honestly say that this was my favorite part of the class. I worked on my blog all semester. I posted often and I picked a background that related to my topic. I also added some cool gadgets. I added a poll that I hoped some of the class would respond to and they did. I also tried to include images and videos with each post. I basically researched some of the controversy surrounding the Ender's Game movie, where I learned about the two sides of the arguments for and against it. I liked Chris' blog and how he included personal videos of him performing. From this experience I learned some of the blogging lingo and how to use gadgets. I think the blog entry below was one of the best or at least more interesting because I feel like controversy always generates an interest no matter the topic. The controversy was what made me choose my topic in the first place.
Private Journal:
My private journal entries were more my inner ramblings than any deep thoughts or musings. I write up tests that I have that day or the things I've seen that are on my mind like movies, songs. I made 20 private journal entries. I don't really like writing journals, but I can see how it would be good for other people. I learned that when writing journals you write as if you are talking to a friend and that is how all writing should be (excluding technical papers). This private journal entry is about my anxiety over my two best friends leaving me alone here at LSU. It is a very casual entry.
Grammar:
I think the idea of everyone in the class teaching a certain grammar concept was a great way to approach such a tedious topic. I think towards the end of the semester the order of presentations fell apart with some people not remembering that they had to teach. I am glad I was one of the first to teach so I could get it over with while it was still fresh in my mind. I taught the class about adverbs. I had prepared a video to show the class but the computer was not working so I moved to the lesson I had posted to moodle. I tried to find clear examples for adverb usage. I hope the rest of the class took some new knowledge away after my lesson.
Style:
I found reading through the chapters more difficult than anything else in this class. It was a struggle to push on. The main things I took away from reading the chapters were that people tend to use more complicated language when they are not completely confident in what they are writing about or if they do not know their topic very well. I also learned that placement of certain parts of a sentence matter in writing for clarity. I feel that when I write my next paper I will feel more comfortable in writing for clarity rather than trying to impress with word chose.
Course Objectives:
As a class I feel we at some point in the semester met all the course objectives. As far as essay chose, I believe all the essay topics were interesting enough to make my job of writing easier. I personally enjoyed writing and reading the "Changes" essays. This class provided us with a chance to write and work on improving our writing and grammar without fear of failing or being judged. We were able to get to know our classmates through reading their essays and learn about their hobbies, opinions, and experiences. We also had the freedom to use multi-media to emphasize certain important parts of our essays inserting pictures and videos into our assignments. I think when I missed class I was more behind and lost than I wanted to be, not completely sure what was going on because the majority of the work is mostly done in class. In looking back at my essays I think about my indecision on whether to write about something so personal as my father's passing or to pick an easier subject. I also think of the essays I read like Anthony's experience after Hurricane Katrina and how that affected his life. I also remember our small groups where we discussed the essays and how encouraging everyone was to each other. Through these essays we thought about what makes us who we are and how others have influenced us as well. Overall I think the class and I were successful in meeting the course objectives.
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