Portfolio Cover Letter

Process Essay

From my understanding the first outcome is focused on the evaluation and observation of my own writing processes over time, and how my writing style and procedures changed as I grew as a writer.

This essay in particular does an amazing job at highlighting my strategic writing process, and also shows how my writing adapts to different prompts. The steps to writing this paper made it even more rewarding than I initially understood. Quite frankly there is something to be said for doing peer reviews on an essay that is so individualistic. "Does a very good job at explaining all the different and unique working parts." From a peer review that emphasizes the need for brainstorming even in the middle of writing this paper. That in itself is a situation where I have had to use incubation as a powerful tool in order to re shape my work, and to improve the content.

This was where I learned how to develop my grammatical skills at a higher level. I was starting to outgrow the time of constantly relying on spell/ grammar check. It was easier for me to write using a higher vocabulary as I developed it. This may be made to explain but I also after this paper I realized that I was able to evaluate my writing each time I read it start to finish.

I will say that this particular prompt was the hardest for me this year. I found myself really understanding how and why writing is a recursive process. Time and time again I was going back all the way to the brainstorming phase in order to really present a compelling piece of writing. My concept was to describe my writing process in the most exact way, from start to finish, but also by organizing my essay as such. "Shortly after I write the conclusion and proof read my paper." Was a line written deliberately in the conclusion of my paper to emphasize the process of my writing as discussed above.

With peer reviews comes change, it is inevitable. "A disadvantage of mine is that I often find myself a slight bit disorganized because never plan my essays out prior to writing them." It is for this reason that the process essay exemplifies the sheer number of drafts and changes I made because of feedback from my peers and my professor.

Adaptation is something that is often underutilized. This paper represents my biggest struggle so far this year. Days were spent thinking of a clever theme and organizational "take" on the assignment. I, to some degree, adapted every aspect of my composition mind. "Attributes and considers parts to the writing process very effectively and practices how to adapt to them very well." This quote from a peer review further emphasizes the need for me to adapt and create an essay that needed a strong plan. Unfortunately, it wasn't my highest grade, but it was definitely cool to branch out of my comfort zone.

Essay Contest/ Rhetorical Analysis Essay

Outcome 2 encompasses, from my perspective, a great way to bring academic writing in to a real world perspective. Through my essay contest and rhetorical analysis, I was able to write for someone other than a college professor, which was very refreshing.

Writing towards a different audience was easier than I initially thought it would be. My paper is written towards the Giva Corporation, a customer service company. My audience were the employees of the company that were grading the essays in order to determine a winner for scholarship. Because of this, my essay has a style and tone that reflects this audience. The peer reviews further exemplified this shift by providing me with great commentary. "It was written in a casual tone like you were just talking to someone." Whether that was a positive or negative criticism, it brings to light the idea of how my tone changes with each audience I am tasked to write for. 

The rhetorical situation was the task of explaining how you would strive to benefit future generations. This presence of exigence was further expanded by asking the perspective writer what his or her personal careers goals are. My essay thoroughly answers both questions and provides excellent closure to both areas of required explanation.
     -"“How will you use your talents and education to make the world a better place for future generations? What are your career and personal goals and why?” Exigence is addressed in the form of the prompt. The situation that demands writing is the analysis of one’s personal goals, and how you can make the world a better place. There are a few ways in which this can be interpreted."

This excerpt from my paper highlights my understanding and way to address a new audience the presence of a rhetorical situation.

Writing towards a different audience was something that had to be learned over time. After this essay I finally feel comfortable enough to write under different perspectives. Also, a good reason for this skill is that the peer reviews teach you how to read a ton of different styles and tones of writing.

Having a vast imagination can be an astounding tool in writing, however it can also be a huge area for downfall. I really learned how to dial in my writing to a singular focus, because of the presence of constraints in writing. The realization of this problem of mine was realized after my analyzation of peer reviews. "The beginning of the essay didn't make a whole lot of sense, but your conclusion really summed everything up." After learning from this comment I brought the strengths embedded in my conclusion to the rest of the essay.

The effects of my writing choices have an immediate effect on the audience. Had this paper been written to the audience of a college professor it would have been much different. For example, "Overall my goals are aimed directly at the peak of the business industry." is worded to highlight my interest in the audience. Had this essay been directed to a professor it would have a different tone entirely. My rhetorical analysis paper turned out to be the best way yet for me to write under different contexts, and allowed me to apply effective conventions.

Literacy Narrative Essay

Reading complex texts is key to success at a university. Without a deep understanding and mind for analyzation college content can be cumbersome and difficult to read, let alone to derive meaning from these texts. It was through the crafting of my Literacy Narrative paper that I realized how I am capable of synthesizing meaning from complex mediums of literature.

First off, the skills required to read these articles and texts were gradually acquired, it doesn't happen overnight. My paper dives deep in to my journey as a reader and how I grew as a student. It goes through the different purposes and perspectives one must have to read the variety of content in the world today. "I liked how you wrote about a bunch of different examples of writing that you read as you grew up." Again a quote from a peer review that adds support to the idea that I had to read a variety of content in order to be able to relate to different perspectives.

As mentioned in my fourth paragraph high school was really were I started to thrive in terms of using complex texts to support academic goals. It was through DECA, a business club, that I developed the skill to re-contextualize content. "I had the opportunity to learn the ins and outs of the business world all on my own. I choose to read and watch reputable publications like Bloomberg and CNBC." This advocates of the fact that I could use different content types in one direction.Throughout this course there have been many instances where my professor has asked us challenge theories and ideas with our own perspectives and support.

The peer reviews for this paper in essence as they all are, a way to cite the work of our work and others in order to achieve higher writing goals. Each time someone comments on my writing it is my duty to improve in the area they suggest, assuming it is logical of course. And on the other hand, when I reviewed the work of my peers for this essay I put significant time in utilizing my understanding of complex texts, to apply them to collegiate essays. "The part about DECA was interesting because related to real world examples." A peer made me realize the importance of complex texts, because there is a good chance that they will be used in the real world. 



Ethnography Essay

Relationships are the focus of the last outcome. The concepts presented on the final outcome may be the most important. It shows how writing has the power to draw bridges between contrasting individuals and contrasting communities as a whole.

My paper brought a first-hand account and thorough investigation of the Sigma Chi Fraternity at UCF. It gives a detailed explanation of the various working parts of the organization. It explains the authority of the community and who has the power. It also gives two different perspectives by analyzing the fraternity from when new members start the education process all the way through initiation. "As close as the brothers were to the potential members, there was always that unspoken divide." This quote reiterates the presence of a structured authority in a community. 

Also included in the paper is a significant amount of vocabulary unique to the organization. Language itself definitely dictates the fraternity whether it is spoken or body language. "Expecting to see brothers grilling out or hanging out, a group project was getting finished in record time." This calls to attention that communication whether through language or mutual trust allowed them to finish tasks efficiently.

"You did describe your brothers as 3 dimensional and provided details. However, there could be more descriptions and other examples of communication between members." From a peer review that suggested I put emphasis on the physical and verbal communication between members. This addition was made to put draft to reiterate the importance of this concept

"However there could be more descriptions and examples of communication within the community." This quote from a peer review reflects the value of communication in an ethnography paper. My final draft addresses this discrepancy and takes a closer look at how members exchange their ideas and thoughts.