John Moore 1

John Moore
Professor Jan Rieman
UWRT 1103
November 27, 2014

Final Reflection- UWRT 1103

As this semester has begun coming to a close, I reflect and realize how far I have come
as a writer thanks to not only the writing I have done in my UWRT 1103 class, but my other core
classes as well, such as intro to engineering and chemistry. Compiling all of my writing in this
final portfolio has caused me to realize just how much I have learned and matured as a writer. I
looked over all of the writing I completed throughout the semester and I realized all of the
improvements I was making as a writer such as writing flow, tone used, and awareness of
audience as I went end to end. These along with many other improvements have made my
university writing experience extremely beneficial in the long run.
One of the main things I discovered about myself as a writer within this course was what
type of locations and environments are the most beneficial to my writing. When looking back
over my WTEs, almost every paper that I felt I didnt do so well on, I completed in a busy or
loud environment. As I continued writing my WTEs throughout the semester I began to
discover what type of environments worked best for me in terms of being an effective writer.
This discovery took a bit of a time investment but now that I have it hammered down, it will be
extremely beneficial to me moving on in my scholarly career.

John Moore 2

Thanks to this course I have also learned that good writing isnt always how we
perceive it. Before beginning UWRT 1103, if you asked me what good writing was I would tell
you it is scholarly, formal, and most likely extremely boring. I have discovered that good
writing can be whatever tone, whatever formality the writer wants it to be as long as the piece
manages to engage the reader and accomplish what the writer intended it to. I am thankful for
this revelation because I am a guy that likes to include comedy into his writing and be very
informal if you know what Im sayin.
I am also very thankful for the very forgiving environment that I was provided with as a
writer in UWRT 1103. At the beginning of the course my instructor told me that everyone needs
a place to write badly and take risks (as I just did at the end of the last paragraph, fingers
crossed). All great writers were beginners at one point, they didnt just become professional
authors overnight. I had always felt intimidated by writing classes because I felt that nothing
less than perfection would be tolerated without having points deducted. This environment
allowed me to take risks in my writing and let me experiment with my writing style without the
risk of having my grade destroyed. I am thankful for this because it allowed me to write badly
and learn from my mistakes without being stressed out about losing points. I still have a long
way to go with my writing, but I am definitely proud of the advancements I have made thanks
to this course and the way it was conducted.
As I begin to close, I would like to personally thank Dr. Jan Rieman for the way that she
has conducted this class and has been so eager to help me, along with the rest of my
classmates, become better writers. It would be hard to not improve as a writer with such an

John Moore 3

open and friendly environment between student and teacher. I would regularly be sugarcoating an essay of this nature, but there is honestly no need to when I have enjoyed this class
format so much. I have matured so much as a writer this semester thanks to this course and I
have begun to see writing as more of a recreational entity rather than a tool used only in
education and work. Being able to take risks in my writing, learn so much about myself as a
writer, and have a stress-free writing environment to compose in, has contributed to a
fantastic schooling experience that I believe has been truly beneficial to my future.