Anna Williamson

Professor Morton
UWRT 1103
25 April 2016

Another Reflection in the Rearview

As I walked into class on January 11th was interested to discover what this class would
have to offer. Little did I know that I was going to be taken out of of my comfort zone on day one
when it turned out that we would be sharing various tidbits of information about ourselves with
others in the class. Here I am, four months later, and I can say that this class has been pleasant to
be a part of. I have met some really stellar people and one really stellar professor. Both of which
were an integral part in various pieces of work throughout the class from the Group Genre
Remix to my own individual assignments. Theyve critiqued my work, and have allowed me to
reflect on it, which has brought about change and growth.
I started the year with one goal that I would expect to share with others, and that is to
make an A in the course. One thing that I found particularly wonderful about the class from the
start is the feedback and justification that is given about our grades. I took each feedback into
account and utilized it in my upcoming assignments throughout the semester. This feedback was
just a positive aspect of the course in which it allowed me to reflect. Another goal of mine was to
not take myself so seriously and have fun with the course. The open ended assignments helped in
this way.

Another goal of mine was to have perfect attendance and at the start of each class to put
my phone at the front of class and on Pocket Points. Both of these things have allowed me to
remain engaged in the class. I am happy to say that I have met this goal and have gained lots of
pocket points in the process. Various trips to Defy Gravity have been made possible thanks to
this class.
I feel that this class has allowed me to realize the importance of drafts and going back to
take a second look. A useful strategy that Professor Morton pointed out this semester was to read
the writing aloud, so that was you will more easily be able to pick out sentences that dont flow
the best or to find errors. This has proved to be helpful throughout the semester and I will
continue to use this method. Peer revisions with my group were another useful method of
revising. Group members would offer useful feedback that would help me polish my project
before turning it in.
I expected a majority of the class to be writings in our Commonplace Book and while
that was a large portion of the class, it turned out that a lot of time was being spent in jigsaw
class discussions and team assignments. A majority of the teamwork was completed with people
who had read the same materials or had similar topics. I was a bit hesitant about the idea of
groups at the start of the semester but as the class progressed I really enjoyed my group. Queen
Bees for life, right? It was really nice having people to bounce ideas off of, and I have benefited
from my group members on multiple occasions. They have been quite a core part of my
individual Genre Remix project that was so much fun to make with them.
In the portfolio there needs to be a central theme and I have decided for mine to be
reflection and how it can be a positive catalyst for change. Throughout the semester I have been
allowed to reflect on my work and to change various elements in order to improve upon it. That

is what I was working towards all semester, so that I could put those pieces into my final
portfolio revised and changed.
I selected various individual assignments to put into my portfolio and have decided to use
my new and improved Literacy Vignette, Genre Remix, Choose-a-Text, and my Individual Mind
Map. These assignments needed to have changes made to them which is why they were selected.
These assignments have been a reflective experience in which I have taken into account the
elements that could be made better.
My Literacy Vignette has now taken into account the feedback that has been provided
and I have selected additional information to add. I have put in additional quotes and I went into
further detail about my quotes list. This was the first project that we were assigned, and when I
received the feedback for it, I understood what Professor Morton was looking for in the
upcoming assignments. I decided to include this project in my portfolio because it was a piece
that needed revisions.
My Genre Remix is also included which I had a lot of fun making. It features my group
members who were very helpful and hilarious throughout the making of the video. I made a few
slight changes to the video such as lowering the insanely loud volume of the bits of music at the
beginning and conclusion of the video.
I have made changes to the Choose-a-Text assignment because I feel that I missed the gist
of it and wanted to improve. I formatted this piece into a better flowing informational article
geared towards incoming freshmen. I would have recorded a video of me improving upon the
monotonous voice of the guy in the Library's search system video but I found the video
humorous and that would just be a shame to change it.

My Individual Mind Map was an assignment that I decided to include because it is

relevant to to the Argumentative Essay and I enjoyed searching through the library to find
materials that were suitable to my topic. I began this project using Prezi but I felt that since this
would be a personal reference I felt that it would be easiest to locate information on a Word
document so thats the format I decided on. It turned out to be extremely helpful on my
Argumentative Essay.
I decided to include my Team Mind Map and the Genre Remix. Both of these were fun to
make with my group members. Everyone pulled their weight and I was very happy with the
outcome of each of these. Our groups worked well together and we communicated more
effectively by using a group chat.
The Team Mind Map was created on Prezi and ours turned out to be super colorful and
flowed and connected well with our binding theme being the Interaction Between Millennials.
We each were able to work at the same time which was nice and it came out great. Since our
topics related we were able to bounce sources off of each other and potentially find others that
would benefit us.
The Group Genre Remix was a fun project that we put together and showcased UNC
Charlotte students. We reached out to various students and friends who wandered within our
range and gave them a bit of background on Millennials asked them to answer the question,
How would they describe themselves? The video was uploaded to YouTube, in order to reach a
wider audience.
I also included various process pieces that showcase the reflections that were to occur in
order to improve my writings. Throughout the feedback given by my peers and professor I felt

that I had a good amount of improvement to make. I have included various reader responses
which have helped impact my writings before turning them in.
My research topic tied into the idea of the change of the English language throughout
time. As I got deeper into my assignment I wondered what approach would be best to take and
what I would be able to argue for in my Argumentative Essay. I decided to watch the TED Talk
that sparked my idea for the topic and it led me to the thesis, It has been said by many that how
the language is changing is a negative consequence of the changing times, and that speakers
should stick with the languages roots, but truthfully these changes allow the language to grow
and thus allow us to more effectively communicate. I decided to take that approach to my topic
and it turned out to be an interesting subject to research.
When I am about to compose a piece I first open the rubric and highlight parts that I feel
are most important and need to be remembered to be included. I then get comfortable and create
a draft of the writing. I then find it best to leave this piece for a while and put my mind to other
things. I then return to the writing and have a second look with a clear mind and a fresh
perspective. This usually helps me to better revise my writing. A new writing strategy that I
mentioned earlier and that I have started to utilize is reading the writing out loud to proofread it.
I have also taken feedback on my writings into account when revising. Theyve proved to be
very helpful throughout the semester.
For the layout of my portfolio I wanted something that would be easy to navigate through
and had a sleek design. I stuck with the concept of reflection for my theme. If anyone gets my
title that would be radical and kudos to that individual. I feel that self-reflection should be
something that everyone does all throughout their life. It is important and is what can ultimately

bring about positive change in ones life. I selected the stars as my header because star gazing is
such a wonderful pastime of mine and it is also a place that I tend to self-reflect.
As for the fate of my research topic, I have always found words particularly interesting so
I feel that it will be an integral part of my life. Im certain that I will continue to add words to my
collection for years to come. Perhaps Ill subliminally expose my friends and family to
interesting jargon that I discover throughout my life.
I have thoroughly enjoyed my time in this class and it has been a wonderful opportunity
for growth. Contrary to my original thinking, this class has allowed me to understand that I can
have an impact on the world around me. I believe that it starts with a little reflection which can
lead to a great deal of change. By impacting one person, many others can be impacted from that
person. Therefore, it is important to remember that one simple action and speaking up about
something can be the catalyst for change. I am extremely delighted with the semester in this class
and plan to take the lessons Ive learned far from the classroom throughout my life.