Writing the Journey

Hi everyone! My name is Iris Vu, and I’m from Vietnam. A fun fact about me is that my name originates from a purple flower that symbolizes the goddess of the rainbow. I am a first-year student at UCI, and I can’t wait to start this journey with all of you. I major in Biological Sciences because of my love for healthcare. I also have a few hobbies such as watching movies, eating out with friends, and traveling. Upon reflection, I am not usually the one who makes the first move, but I would love to get to know people if they open up to me.

PREVIOUS WRITING CLASS

Before 39A, I was taking AP English Literature and Composition. I have to be honest. It was a significant time commitment. However, literary exposure gave me a head start for college. I learned how to annotate the readings and draw comparisons from the text. I had to read many books in preparation for the final exam, but the effort was all worth it.

SELF ASSESSMENT

Looking back at my writings, I usually run into problems with using new vocabulary. I try to avoid redundancy in my texts, but I can’t seem to find new words that fit. Also, I tend to easily go off track, making the connection between support sentences and the topic fairly weak.

On the other hand, I am quite confident about my grammar skills. Of course, it is not perfect. But I have learned a lot from my English class in high school. I love the teacher’s lessons about grammar punctuations, and somehow that knowledge still sticks with me until today. I am actually grateful for having her as my English teacher. I was constantly reminded that “practice always makes perfect,” and I try my best to utilize those skills in all my writings.

Doing the Language and Grammar Diagnostic at Connect provided an excellent review of the content to strengthen my skills. I was not entirely sure about the quotation marks and italics section since it was quite tricky. However, by chopping up the review into sections and revising the answers carefully, I got a perfect score on the quiz. I was pleased with the results. Again, I realized that all the lessons from my English teacher are valuable, and I am excited to learn more in this writing class.

CORE ELEMENTS OF THE COURSE

The syllabus information clearly states what I need to accomplish for each week about the course contents. I will be learning about Disney films and their contributions to the construction of society’s values and norms about gender roles. There will be assignments due on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays. To be successful in this course, I would not procrastinate but rather finish all my works on time. Besides, the professor has added her office hours to the syllabus. I think communicating and asking questions are crucial aspects to learn more efficiently.

Also, the course objectives indicate that students should be able to explain the course question, collaborate effectively, and sharpen writing skills as a result of learning. I am looking forward to becoming a more effective communicator.

Most importantly, meeting the minimum requirements and submitting the works will not be enough to achieve a decent score. One needs to put more thoughts and effort into the class if he wants an A.