Reflection Post

To whomever reads,
Throughout this English 201 course we have engaged deeply in many different pieces of writings. From which all of these I have learned or discovered something new. When I first started reading most of these public literacy documents I would always do one thing first. I would try and never take a side of the argument or idea, I would always have an open mind and really try and understand what the writer was trying to make out. I found trying not to take a stand on either side would help me out when I would write a rhetorical precis about the piece of writing. Throuhout the course I found material that helped me out and some that didn't helped me out so much.
One of the writing assignments that I felt was difficult was classifying Evansville by reading through daily papers. I found it was difficult to follow along everyday and figure out what Evansville is all about. It was hard to find enough evidence to back all of my arguments up.
One of my writings that I was really pleased with myself was the Martin Luther King Jr. rhetorical precis. Even though I got a C+ on it I am still very pleased that I was able to understand the different appeals that he used in his writings and explain how he related to his audiences. This was one of my first precis that was over a lot of material and I believe I was able to cover it really well. I think this helped me throughout the rest of the course when I would look at a piece of writing and really understand it.
After completing the whole public sphere day I wished I would have approached in totally different. I would have actually set a project that involved the students actually doing something. I feel like getting volunteers around campus to actually get involved in a real project instead of sitting their handing out flyers would have made a better impact around campus. I would have probably had a totally different project if I could start over.
Public sphere week was helpful becuase it helped me understand how many other people around campus share the same ideas as you do but are afraid to bring the topic out to the public.It was also helpful because it allowed me the opportunity to express what I really thought on Conservation and Wildlife Management. I do believe the setting up under the UC was pretty much wasteful becuase no one really came to our booths, but I believe next year this will change and have it in between classes or have it in the UC food court.
My writing in the course have changed since last semester. I feel like I now really make a connection with the writer and now able to understand things that go beyond just the main point of the writing. I feel like I am really able to take all of my ideas and put them all on paper.
Overall I believe this class has taught me more than any other English class I have been in before. I feel like I have learned many things in such a wide variety of topics. I believe this class has changed my writing styles the most compared to any other English classes. Some advice I would give for future students of Dominic Micer is to not jump to conclusion about his class. I felt like dropping it very fast but I stayed and now I am really glad I continued on through the class. Public Sphere day sounds really dumb at first but turns out to be a lot of fun and you are able to do something you have never done in any other class. Overall I really enjoyed this class and got a lot more out of it then I would have ever thought.