Reflection: What I Learned In My Writing Class

Through this Writing 1133 taught by Professor Gilmor, I developed and practiced writing skills related to research that I had not practiced before I took this class. I developed observation skills in which I did not have before, the ability to document workshops with peers, and the ability to construct a research plan and a secondary source literary review in preparation for a final document. I found that overall, this class taught me to approach the process writing in a pragmatic way when involving research. These skills that I have developed will translate well into various other situations for me. After taking this class I feel more confident in my research skills and more comfortable with the process developing a piece of writing.
The first sample of writing above, Observations Notes, challenged me to think about the limits of my writing while also enhancing my observation skills for research. Leading up to the Observation notes assignment, we discussed in length in class about how to take observation notes correctly in a thorough and ethical way. The assignment was to go out and observe a space and observe how people used the space, and how they interacted with each other in the space. Before completing this assignment, we discussed the difference between details, or facts, and impressions, or opinions
I learned many new skills and also practice different ways of thinking. My observation skills were practiced and improved, my planning skills were bolstered, my research skills were practiced, and writing was challenged. I learned to think about many things like the limits of a piece of writing or observation, what it means to contextualize and why that is important, and how to focus on using framing language to make my essays flow. Overall, this class has exposed me to many new things and has improved my writing skills and my understanding of the writing