To whom it may concern,

Over the fall semester at SUNY New Paltz, I have acquired knowledge to improve my English writing and skills. Over my semester in English Composition, I have written three essays highlighting the university-level writing skills I learned in this course. In these essays, I implemented the skills I learned into my assignments, which helped me gain writing abilities to lead me closer to a satisfactory university-level writing level. The three papers emphasized the wage gap, why the gap needs to close, and how we can close the gap. My proposal essay taught me college-level writing skills and helped me educate myself on issues involving the wage gap. My annotated bibliography taught me how to comprise various beneficial articles and academic papers involving the wage gap to incorporate as evidence in my research paper. Then, I executed the writing skills I developed from my proposal essay and annotated bibliography into my final research op-ed while learning new writing skills and exploring a different aspect of writing I’ve never done. This semester in English composition has allowed me to enhance my writing by deepening my understanding of writing skills I already knew and allowing me to touch upon new writing skills.

 

Before this semester, I had prior knowledge of composing essays because, in high school, I took honors English courses where I developed many writing skills that I continue to integrate into my papers in college. However, I was unaware of how little writing skills I had. After receiving feedback on my first paper, I reflected on my essay and realized that I had not expressed my point clearly. Over the semester, I feel I have improved in writing clearly and concisely. Before English Composition, I often used unnecessary phases and redundancies instead of transparent and straightforward language. I have learned to avoid unnecessary words and phrases to express my point more clearly. Utilizing a more active voice in my papers has helped me become more comfortable and confident with my writing abilities. Although there are areas in my writing that I need to work on, I feel there are areas I have significantly improved in since the beginning of the semester.

 

In my writing, my successes include research, backing my thesis, and incorporating detailed evidence to prove my point. When writing about something I feel passionately about, it’s crucial to ensure I include strong, intricate evidence in my paper to back my thesis by taking plenty of time to research various articles and reports on my topic. Another strength of mine includes rhetorical appeals. In my research op-ed, I presented a logical thesis with an emotional inducement in my writing to sway my reader towards a particular perspective. The two strongest rhetorical appeals in my paper were logos and pathos because although I include emotive writing methods in my research op-ed, I also comprise logic and reasoning from multiple sources to back my thesis. One thing I need to work on is my organization in essays. I usually have a lot to write about in my papers, causing my paragraphs to look extensive and overwhelming, which is unappealing to the reader. When reading a piece, most prefer smaller, spread-out sections rather than immense, all-together paragraphs. I also need to work on my organizational transformation, as I tend to move from one point to the next without using transformational writing skills. Without using organizational transformation to move from one matter to the next, it may feel like I’m writing from a list and not from a genuine place of heart. These flaws in my writing are easily recognizable, and I plan to work on them as my writing evolves.

 

Although the proposal essay, annotated bibliography, and research op-ed were the principal assignments that helped me grow as a writer, other assignments were beneficial and relevant to my writing skills. Composing a professional email and developing a working thesis were two assignments that helped grow my writing throughout the semester. The professional email lesson was significant to me because, in the future, I will most likely have to write plenty of professional emails throughout my career. It’s important I learn to formulate a professional email early in my educational career. Although developing a working thesis tied into my research op-ed, that lesson was crucial for improving my writing because it helped me realize that I needed to be less vague in my papers. At the time, these lessons seemed minor to me, but as I look back, I realize that these small lessons were the ones that significantly improved my writing skills throughout the semester.

 

Over the fall semester, I’ve learned new skills to enrich my writing by stepping out of my comfort zone and composing essays I’d never done before. Through these essays, I obtained knowledge to strengthen my writing skills and deepen my understanding of writing skills I was already familiar with. I acknowledge that I need to work on particular areas in my writing, but English Composition taught me to recognize those flaws and fix them. As I continue my academic journey at the State University of New York at New Paltz, I know I am ready and confident to continue composing information and learning new skills to enhance my writing.