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Writing skills self assessment
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Hello Dr. Doresz,
I am writing this email to you in regards to my writing skills tests (WST) that I have taken. I have taken the WST five times, but was unsuccessful in passing the test each time. I would like to explain my reasons and concern for this matter in the hopes of receiving a waiver for the WST so I can proceed to take my English 100W course.
I would like to start out by saying that I am surprised at my failures due to the fact that I know I have the capability to write a college level essay. There were a few times where I have come close, but not enough to pass it. It’s not because I believe that I am a bad writer, but I believe that this test should not be assessed if it’s an obstacle in one’s attempt to continue and grow in the
Plato once said: “Honesty is for the most part less profitable than dishonesty.” People are taught from a very young age never to lie or keep secrets. It would be easy for anyone to stand behind the argument: “Honesty is the best policy,” but in times of personal anguish, that decree is quickly disdained. What this argument fails to consider is that keeping a secret or lying is the justifiable in times of crisis.
Several people have trouble writing college level essays and believe that they are unable to improve their writing skills. In “the Inspired Writer vs. The Real Writer,” Sarah Allen argues how no one is born naturally good at writing. Sarah Allen also states how even professional writers have trouble with the task of writing. Others, such as Lennie Irvin, agree. In Irvin’s article “What is ‘Academic’ Writing?” states how there are misconceptions about writing. Furthermore, Mike Bunn’s article “How to Read Like a Writer” shows ways on how one can improve their writing skills. Allen, Bunn, and Irvin are correct to say how no one is born naturally good writers. Now that we know this, we should find ways to help improve our writing skills, and
Students, who come from different cultures and backgrounds, are not prepared (especially on their own) to give up everything that they have spent the past eight-teen years believing in, in order to write the perfect college essay.
Transitioning from high school to college can be overwhelming. Before English 1301, I thought that I did not have to worry about being prepared for college. I quickly realized that my little background in writing essays was not going to be enough for college. Writing is not just something that I will use in English classes. In college, I will have to use effective writing skills in all my classes to complete research papers, essay tests and communicate to professors. Throughout my education, writing strategies persisted to be something that did not come easy to me. I dreaded writing because I could never find ways to get my thoughts down on paper. Ironically, a class that petrified me due to the amount of writing that was required ended up helping me in so many ways. English 1301 and my professor prepared me so much for college and real life.
When I read “Proficiency” by Shannon Nichols I really felt for her. I understood and resonated with her story perfectly, especially when she stated “After I failed the test the first time, I began to hate writing and I started to doubt myself. I doubted my ability and the ideas I wrote about.” (83). After I failed my writing assignment I was so embarrassed and didn’t want to write again but obviously, I had to. I always doubt the things I am going to say or which order I am going to organize the essay in. I try so hard to make sure all my sentences are cohesive and all my ideas connect to each other and the main concept but sometimes it just seems that when I keep messing with one little sentence or paragraph I just makes things worse.
As writers, many students write to the expectations of their professors and not to their fullest potential. Throughout English 101 I had been writing only to please my professor or to fill the basic requirement to pass English. I always felt that my writing ability was never enough for my professors throughout the previous years. They always wanted clear and concise essays, which for some reason was unreachable by me. However, starting college and taking English 101 helped me with my weaknesses and changed my technique of writing essays. My experience in English 101 taught me to write to my fullest potential and to write what I felt; rather then writing what was required.
Up until this year, before taking the class intermediate composition, I thought I was a terrible writer. I was right. Writing isn’t something that I enjoy doing, nor am I good at. Writing is difficult for me because I’m not very good at explaining things in a professional manner, that can be easily well written. While writing you are expected to make little to no mistakes, which is not something I’m great at. I am so much better at explaining things with verbal words rather than written words. I had not taken any extra writing classes before this year rather than the mandatory ones. Like I had stated before, I hate writing, with a passion. I dread writing anything, especially an essay for school, like this one. I’m
‘I am going to fail’ was the very first thought that crept into my mind on that very first day of class. Before I stepped into the classroom on the first day, I felt pretty good about my writing. I had done previously well in English, and didn’t think this class would be much of a challenge. This all changed on the first day of school, when my professor talked about the level of reading and writing expected for this class. I remember thinking ‘I don’t read, why couldn’t I have been born someone who likes to read?!’ Since this moment on the very first day of class, I have grown immensely through hard work. In this essay, I will explain what I have learned over the course of this class about myself, and about writing.
In this paper, I am to write about my strengths and weaknesses in writing. This is not an easy task for me because I have never considered myself a writer. Reading other peoples thoughts are activities that are more my speed. I simply have trouble putting my thoughts into writing. Since, I do not feel that I have many strengths, let's move on to my weaknesses.
The first writing assignment I received from high school was the Entrance Exam. Due to being fresh out of middle school, and having a summer full of tranquility, it was no wonder that my essay had its evident flaws. The topic was whether or not the US was holding up with its promises of the “unalienable rights.” After stating what the unalienable rights were, I made an abrupt follow-up with my opinion with the simple statement, “no, America is not fulfilling its promises to its people.” Reading this phrase alone, warrants a quantity of revisions, in addition to this testimony being made directly
Test passage instruction also affects students’ opportunities to learn about the purposefulness of reading. Reading comprehension is a purpose-driven practice (Duke et al., 2011). Readers read for many reasons, including to get better at reading (a common purpose in classrooms), to build new knowledge, to consider a new perspective on an issue, to try on a new identity, to impress someone they like, or to simply have an enjoyable time. However, when students are regularly exposed to test passages in their reading instruction, they mostly read for purposes such as answering the questions correctly, getting a good grade, or maybe even keeping their school and teachers from getting into trouble for continuing to score poorly.
I had always been a strong writer in high school; I know how to form an argument and support it fully, but this did not prepare me for the writing at a college level. I expected to be reading long and boring books about topics that did not pertain to my life; as it turns out, this assumption was completely false. All of the three essays that we were required to read in class were fairly difficult to understand, but after a second reading, the essay's meaning became clearer. I also feel as though their messages and key ideas are captivating. I definitely thought they would be extremely dry and difficult to understand.
One of the challenges I face as a writer is being able to connect with my audience. While I am able to put forth efforts in my thoughts and perspective on topics, the ability to convey the same in writing is still a struggle and a challenge that I hope to one day overcome. Having lived a fulfilling and diverse life, I have many life experiences that will translate well in a storytelling manner; however, the applicability to any given prompt requested gives me pause in its relatability to written assignments. Some of the feedback I have received is that while I am able to meet the requirements of any given writing assignment, perhaps in my haste for submission, I need to carefully review my finalized version for spelling and grammatical errors. With feelings of self-exasperation, after receiving the feedback, I would typically go back to my submission and scan for these errors.
The warm summer day was coming to a close. The moon would soon replace the fiery sun. The bright stars would illuminate the sky and the crickets would start chirping. I was a night owl. I hated waking up at the crack of dawn I instead would stay up into the wee hours of the night.
As I look back on my schooling I can’t believe how many papers I’ve written throughout my life. Naturally as I’ve grown up, my writing has developed from learning how to write sentences all the way up to the pages of essays that consist of deeper criteria. I know for a fact that I’m a better writer now than I was before. College writing is more challenging and I’ve had to learn how to adjust to it.