Writing for college is not a game that anyone can play along. College writing becomes difficult as time passes but students these days aren’t ready for that kind of college writing. Coming to college prepared for writing is one of the biggest challenge everyone is facing these days. Writing has become so hard that students are going away from it day by day besides getting closer to it and acknowledging it.
Being a college student and having no credit English class is getting too common because high schools aren’t preparing the students for the real life challenge. First year of writing programs in UIC is hard but for those who are not ready have an advantage and a disadvantage. The advantage is that we can learn more by being in English classes lower that level 100. The disadvantage is that we do not get the credit. The first year of writing would succeed more often if they encourage the students not just to write for their homework or papers but also for their own fun which can make them pleasant. As writer, UIC should be teaching critical thinking besides they teach you argumentative essay and summary because they think after first year we would be needing that but we need critical thinking and creativeness. Critical thinking and creativeness are helpful in future in majoring but not argumentative essay because we need to write reports not essays.
David Bartholomae, writer of an article called Inventing the University who wrote about the failure of teacher towards students’ writing skills said, “Much of the written work students do is test-taking, report or summary, work that places them……, This is a failure of teachers and curriculum designers who, even if they speak of writing as a mode of learning, all too often represent ...
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...ts to end up in remedial class or less information about that topic.
I feel that I am not connected to writing at all because I never got any encouragement towards it which will make me join writing. UIC is great place but it can be better if they start making writing fun with interesting ideas which can be organized by a club or an organization. Having students with great encouragement of writing will not only make the class better but also the whole university. If teachers push all students little more to write on their own even that might work little. Students like me do need basic skills and knowledge about organizing and analysis but if I would get enough encouragement towards writing, I would want my own essay to be perfect and I would work really hard to make it perfect. Writing is needed for education and I am willing to work out with anything to achieve it.
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.
The focal point of Chapter 4 of Successful College Writing is on how to critically read and decipher text and visuals. It highlights the importance of not just looking at the surface of the words, but diving into their true meaning. Authors put every word and picture into their work for a reason, and it is your job to ensure that you do not fall victim to biases and false information. It is crucial to learn how to identify author's tones, opinions, and overall purpose in their writings. Learning how to analyze these patterns will better equip you in acquiring accurate information and also not adopting these deceptive techniques yourself.
In Downs and Wardle’s article, they argue and identify the flaws in teaching writing in college. Demonstrating the misconceptions that academic writing is universal, but rather specialized in each case. Citing studies and opinions from esteemed professionals, Downs & Wardle state their points and illuminate the problem in today’s many colleges.
Learning to read and write are both considered to be fundamental human skills, that we begin to learn from the day we start school. As time advances, as do our minds, and we are expected to evolve in our reading and writing skills. Finishing high school is a large milestone for the lives of young adults; however, there is so much to learn in order to reach the next big milestone. To be a writer in college can challenge our preconceived thoughts on how we write. Although some skills remain unchanged, high school graduates are faced with overcoming new ways of doing a skill that seems so simple that it is practically innate. The definition of writing skills for college students is much different than high school. However, considering we have come so far it is time to go over the information we already know and challenge ourselves with ideas that we are yet to learn more about.
In “Writing to Learn: Writing across the Disciplines,” Anne J. Herrington finds different sources stating that writing is to be taken serious. Janet Emig says, "writing represents a unique mode of learning-not merely valuable, not merely special, but unique” (1) meaning that writing is far more essential than we ought to make it seem. Anne Herrington wants educators teaching in economics, history, chemistry or any other subject to guide their students into understanding why progressing their writing skills will be more helpful to them. At the end of the day, it all comes down to the educator; whether he/she wants their students to use writing as a way for students to adapt to different disciplines.
A Critical Review of "Helping Students Meet the Challenges of Academic Writing", by Fernsten, Linda A.; Reda, Mary
Proper skills for writing an essay is an important aspect a student, and even employees of the work force should be aware of. An essay is required for receiving grades in class, but they are also required for many other purposes. If an applicant is seeking for effective writing in their academic courses and for future aspirations, then The First Year Writing Program is perfect for effectively teaching the required material. The First Year Writing Program will give confidence to all successors passing the required English courses. Candidates can be aware of proper English and become well educated, by giving The First Year Writing Program the opportunity to turn them into successful English writers.
According to Runciman, there are many plausible reasons that students and other people don’t enjoy writing. Evidence, assumptions, and language and tone are the basis for which Runciman makes his argument. Overall, this argument is effective because reliable and well known sources are used in a logical fashion. Also, the assumptions made about the audience are accurate and believable. Runciman used his assumptions wisely when writing his claim and in turn created a compelling, attention capturing argument. The article was written so that students and teachers at any level could understand and easily read it. This argument is interesting, captivating, relevant through its age, and can relate to students and teachers at almost every academic level.
Freshmen always think that they have enough college writing skills. But the author in the article does not think that because most freshmen students believe they have spent a lot of time writing articles, but it's not enough for college. “What we found really
Throughout High School, going to English, there were always four questions that crossed my mind. Are we reading a book? Watching the movie of this book? Writing one essay on the motifs of the book? And lastly, I thought this was English so why aren’t I being taught English? My High School experience is a prime example of what Stanley Fish and Maxine Hairston mean when they say that teachers are spending too much time on things that will not benefit students writing skills. Stanley Fish wrote in the New York Times, “What Should Colleges Teach?” and Maxine Hairston wrote in College Composition and Communication, “Diversity, Ideology, and Teaching Writing.” Within both of these articles, Hairston and Fish agree with each other and my High School experience that Composition classes are not focusing on the right things.
This semester was my very first semester as a college student. Being the first, it was probably the semester I would learn the most in. I learned the expectations for writing that I will have to live up to for the next four years of my college career. Though my high school teachers were usually demanding because I was in the Honors English section throughout high school, writing in college has still ?raised the bar? for me. Also, in high school, we would have weeks to pick a topic, create a thesis, outline the paper, write the paper, and then revise the paper. In college, the time restraints are not quite as lenient. I?ve had to learn to manage my time and be more productive with what free moments I have. Strangely enough, I?ve found the college English experience to be much more rewarding and enjoyable than in high school.
Writing is an important part of everyone’s life, whether we use it in school, in the workplace, as a hobby or in personal communication. It is important to have this skill because it helps us as writers to express feelings and thoughts to other people in a reasonably permanent form. Formal writing forms like essays, research papers, and articles stimulates critically thinking. This helps the writer to learn how to interpret the world around him/her in a meaningful way. In college, professors motivate students to write in a formal, coherent manner, without losing their own voice in the process. Improving your writing skills is important, in every English class that’s the main teaching point; to help students improve their writing skills. Throughout my college experience I have acknowledge that
Although adequate writing skills are indispensable for life, leisure, and employment, quite a few students do not learn how to write effectively. Since writing is an exercise in thinking, it is important to balance the process of writing with the mechanics of writing. The areas of the brain involved in the writing task are varied yet interrelated; therefore, a student’s individual needs will determine the method of instruction they receive. Many students who have low expectations for their own academic success will not make even minimal efforts to complete a...
Crème, P., & Lea, Mary R. (2008). [PDF format]. Writing at University (3rd edition.), McGraw Hill Education. Retrieved from www.kantakji.com/fiqh/Research/ti134.pdf.
Improving writing skills is critical to the college student’s success across all academic disciplines. Writing has become the key to survival in many fields of study. (Pirš1, Pirš1, & Kesié, 2011) There are several strategies to become an effective college-level writer. An important strategy for a writer is project management. Next, writing with a purpose is an essential step. Another crucial guideline is following the mechanics of writing. Finally, utilizing online resources provides the writer invaluable knowledge and references.