Over the course of the semester, I have progressed as a writer. Through the Essays, reflections, peer reviews, and the amount of time brainstorming how to improve my essays, I have developed in a way that I can say that I have achieved each of the learning objectives namely: “Examine how attitudes towards linguistic standards empower and oppress language users, Explore and analyze, in writing and reading, a variety of genres and rhetorical situations, Develop strategies for reading, drafting, collaborating, revising, and editing, Recognize and practice key rhetorical terms and strategies when engaged in writing situations, Understand and use print and digital technologies to address a range of audiences,  Locate research sources (including academic journal articles, magazine and newspaper articles) in the library’s databases or archives and on the Internet and evaluate them for credibility, accuracy, timeliness, and bias, Compose texts that integrate a stance with appropriate sources, using strategies such as summary, analysis, synthesis, and argumentation, and Practice systematic application of citation conventions.” Throughout this semester, I have made progress that achieves the learning objectives of this class. 

The first learning objective was to: “Examine how attitudes towards linguistic standards empower and oppress language users.” We had a reading related to this topic called: “Language is going to the dogs.” by David Shariatmardari. During this reading, we see Shariatmardi rebuking the statement that language is getting worse by claiming that it is evolving: “Younger people tend to be the ones who innovate in all aspects of life: fashion, music, art. Language is no different” (Shariatmadari Page 37). He is saying that language is constantly evolving and those who say that it is wrong simply don’t like modern language because it is outside of what they are used to. This is an example of how a negative attitude towards newer linguistic standards of younger people can really oppress those who use this type of language. We had a discussion in class about this and we realized how some people’s attitudes towards linguistic attitudes differ for various reasons. When it comes to applying this in our writing, we realized that factors such as linguistic choices can have an impact on whether or not someone actually listens to your message. 

The second learning objective was: “Explore and analyze, in writing and reading, a variety of genres and rhetorical situations.” During our essays, we had to make rhetorical choices. During Essay 1, I spoke about my experience as an Altar Server during the 2022 Easter Vigil Mass. The point I was trying to make was that I wanted to show my class, whom I consider to be my audience in this case, what my job as an Altar Server is whilst using as many details as possible. I used these experiences to convey the point that Altar Servers are in fact very important to the Catholic Church (I would further this claim in the Research Paper.) This assignment made me think about how I was going to achieve these goals. It made me think about how I was going to convey my point to the audience and how I was going to share my experience. One of the readings we covered was: “Storytelling, Narration, and the Who I Am Story” by Catherine Ramsdell. One of the things Ramsdell stated that I thought about when it came to writing the first essay was: “Because the purpose of a Who am I story is to illustrate something about oneself, some might assume that character is the most important aspect of the Who I Am story, but in truth, as novelist Henry James asserts, both character and action are important in this type of story” (Ramsdell page 275). With this in mind, I decided to include an emphasis on the actions I did as well as who I am. The impact of me doing this is that I was effectively showing as well as telling what my job is as a server, who I am, and how I do my job. This is a rhetorical choice I made that would help the readers understand the rhetorical situation I am describing. 

Another learning objective that I was able to accomplish was: “Develop strategies for reading, drafting, collaborating, revising, and editing.”  When we read: “What’s That Supposed to Mean” by Jillian Grauman, we learned how to make suggestions for each other’s writing (Grauman page 150). This was accomplished during Peer Review. What we did was engage in conversation about how we felt our essays were. We would give feedback to each other about the essays. During my Peer Review, My partner notified me that I didn’t really focus on the emotional side of the first essay. I then used this criticism and revised and edited the essay. What I learned was to receive criticism and then apply the necessary changes to the essay.

The next thing I learned over the course of the semester was: “Recognize and practice key rhetorical terms and strategies when engaged in writing situations.” It occurred to me when I was writing my essays about Altar Serving, I had to take into account that the audience likely didn’t have much of an idea of what I was talking about since they more than likely have never seen an Altar Server nor knew what one was. So I decided it would be best to use figurative language. This would give the readers a better view of what I was talking about. In Essay 1, I stated: “This is the most important Mass in all of the Catholic Church. The Easter Mass is like the Indianapolis 500 to us and we need to be giving it our best.” This gave the readers an idea that this Mass was a huge deal and therefore needed maximum concentration.

The next learning objective that I achieved was: “Understand and use print and digital technologies to address a range of audiences.” During my Autoethnography Essay, I included pictures of the Church I go to. What this does is it gives the reader an idea of what the setting would be for Altar Servers. It also gives the reader a look at what Catholic Churches look like. The impact of me including pictures is that it allows me to reach more people in my audience. If they are more of a visual learner, they can definitely benefit from seeing pictures rather than just reading. 

Another learning objective that I achieved was: “ Locate research sources (including academic journal articles, magazine and newspaper articles) in the library’s databases or archives and on the Internet and evaluate them for credibility, accuracy, timeliness, and bias.” When we visited the library earlier on, we learned how to create citations and what sources to use and what sources to not use. For example, we learned sources such as the Onion are not good sources since they are parody websites. Sites like CNN, Fox News, and NBC would be better off since they are more legitimate. We also learned to use the CCNY Library to gather online documents that could be used for our essays. We learned that we can look for documents that were peer-reviewed only just by simply changing a few settings on the search engine. This would be really useful when it came to obtaining sources. 

Another thing I have learned is: “Compose texts that integrate a stance with appropriate sources, using strategies such as summary, analysis, synthesis, and argumentation.” When making my Research Paper, I took a stance and stated that Altar Servers are Necessary to the Catholic Faith. Using the sources of information that I had acquired, I synthesized the information to make it more understandable to the audience. I also included my own personal experience which increased the believability of my statement. The main takeaway I have from this is that in order to create arguments correctly, I must take a stance and back that stance up using the various information I obtained in a manner that is understandable and logical.

Another thing I learned was: “Practice systematic application of citation conventions.” During class, we learned about how it is plagiarism to not add citations when using sources. We learned to use specific websites that can turn our sources into citations that we can use in our essays without the threat of plagiarism. By adding them to the essay, you are acknowledging their work. You are also giving the reader a way to make sure your work and the sources you cited are legitimate. In other words, they can check to ensure that the source you used is relevant. 

The lessons I have learned throughout this semester are very valuable as they have molded me into a much better writer. Through the readings, essays, and peer reviews, I have learned how to do things such as examine how one’s attitude towards a certain style of language can be used to criticize a group of people who use that language. We learned to analyze rhetorical situations and their impact on our writing. We learned how to strategize when it comes to writing by means of peer review as well as various readings we did over the semester. We learned about rhetorical terms and how they are used. We learned how to use digital technologies that allowed us to reach a greater audience. We learned from the librarian as well as in class how to search for academic sources that are credible as well as what sources to choose and what not to choose. Lastly, we learned how to cite our sources and why you should. These lessons have molded me into a much better writer than I was at the start of this semester.