Introduction

Throughout this semester I have improved in many ways relating to English. By taking
English 120, I have worked on different course outcomes in hope of becoming a more fluent
writer. By writing many papers and completing different problems I have felt that I have made
significant gains in all outcomes, some more than others though. The projects and papers that I
completed this semester helped me understand how to use different mediums, but also taught me
more about rhetorical analysis. In this reflection, I will be covering a variety of outcomes and
providing evidence on how I have more improved towards each. In this essay, I will be writing
about two outcomes that are required, an outcome that I have improved the most on, and finally
an outcome that I improved the least on.
Outcome A
Throughout English 120, I have greatly been able to expand my knowledge and
understanding of Outcome A. Outcome A states that students need to analyze, compose, and
reflect on arguments in a variety of genres, considering the strategies, claims, evidence, and
various mediums and technologies that are appropriate to the rhetorical situation. To me, this
outcome is saying that students need to be able to analyze research that has been conducted
which helps understanding the message the author is trying to get across to their audience.
Throughout this semester, I was able to analyze the research and ideas that were already created
in order to write my argumentative paper. I was also able to find a variety of sources to analysis
their position on the subject and compile them as evidence for or against my claim. Lastly, I
analyzed the video trailer for my rhetorical analysis piece. In MWA #2, I analyzed the methods
the video creators used in order to make the movie more anticipated to watch. I watched the
trailer multiple times and looked for credibility or authority (ethos), if it evoked the audiences

emotion (pathos), or if it showed logic (logos). By showing that the trailer used ethos and pathos,
I was able to show that the movie trailer was an effective way to gain more hype for the movie
and made viewers more excited to go.
Outcome A also says that arguments need to be clear and understandable throughout
writing to help others accept our view. To expand my knowledge on this outcome, I had to share
my own opinions through arguments that I composed, an example of this was my argumentative
essay for MWA#1. In this essay, I wrote a piece about the Albuquerque Police department and
their recent aggressive events which ended with injury. In my essay I wrote about how police in
Albuquerque were to aggressive and how officers lack authority and need more training on
dealing with citizens.
In English 120, we also talked about how that arguments are described in many different
ways and how many different mediums can be as equally effective. Some genres can be better
than others depending on the audience and the type of information and arguments that the writer
is trying to get across. Throughout all the major assignments I have had throughout English 120,
I felt that gathering information and creating different genres was helpful. For our latest
assignment, MWA#3, we were required to make a documentary. Throughout the sequence
though, we wrote an informative paper on our legend which was then translated into a film. Both
were basically about the same thing, but the medium that it is presented in may be more
effective. With the advancement in technology nowadays we are able to create films or videos on
information. For example, I like actually watching something and listening instead of reading a
paper. For me, I may not be able to get through reading a whole paper whereas watching a movie
I would learn all the same material and not get tired of it. In sequence three, I felt that by creating
a different medium I realized how my switching it up really does make a difference in how the

actual information is conveyed. Throughout this outcome, I have really gained a better
understanding on how to analyze, compose, and reflect on different types of arguments. The
assignments that I have done really hit on all three of these topics and made me display them
throughout a different medium. Overall, I feel I have done a lot of work towards improving my
knowledge on Outcome A.
Outcome F
The Second Outcome that we as a class talked about and covered was Outcome F. In
Outcome F, it says to evaluate your development as a writer over the course of the semester and
describe how composing in multiple genres and mediums using various technologies can be
applied in other contexts to advance your goals. To me, this outcome means you are to evaluate
the progress as a writer, it specifically talks about if I am improving overall in my writing skills.
For me I feel like I have shown great improvement overall as a writer and through each sequence
I made progress. One thing that I felt has really helped my knowledge and understanding in this
outcome are the cover letters I wrote before each of my LSAs and MWAs. These letters helped
me really understand what, who, and why I was writing and completing these different
assignments. I was able to explain in each cover letter which outcome I felt was improving and
what attributed to learning it. In MWA 2, I felt that I learned a variety of different ways to begin
a writing process. In sequence two, we wrote different outlines and prewriting assignments
which really helped me get a better start of the final project. Throughout all the sequences, I feel
I have grasp a better understanding of the different genres and convections in my writing.
Outcome F also asks to describe how composing in multiple genres and mediums using
various technologies can be applied in other contexts to advance your goals. English 120 has
really helped me in my knowledge of using a variety of genres, media, and technologies. With

this added knowledge, it will really help me continue on my college track. I understand that
different audiences need different types of writing and what types of mediums are acceptable for
such events. I understand which genre, whether it be a paper, documentary, or a brochure, to use
in different situations. I will also be able to create different products based on technologies for
my future career. Especially for me, going into engineering many of the jobs I complete will be
actually be to have a finished product. Although it may not be a paper, I now understand in
English that there are different ways to convince and persuade someone for my stance.
Outcome I
The next outcome I would like to cover is Outcome I, this learning outcome asks students
to compose a research-based academic argument in one of various mediums and technologies
by identifying, analyzing, evaluating, and synthesizing sources, which must include secondary
sources. The first part of this outcome asks to use different mediums and technologies to
demonstrate research based arguments. As stated early in this reflective argument, I have used a
variety of different mediums in all my assignments. By doing so, it in turn helped me
demonstrate my knowledge on the specific topic. For the MWA#2, we had to write a rhetorical
analysis paper on a trailer we had selected. This paper was a good way to get my point across to
my audience while keeping my writing formal. I was able to explain what happened in the trailer
and how it used ethos, pathos, and logos. For the Urban Legend Documentary, my team created
an informational film about what our legend was and why it stuck around. By creating a film, my
team was able to show a visual instead of just having a paper. Both of the assignments written
about above were to examples on how I have improved in my English writing skills by being
able to research and create two different types of mediums.

The other part of this Outcome asks us to identify a variety of sources, both primary and
secondary. For both my MWA#1 and MWA#3 I had to research different sources both primary
and secondary. For my argumentative pieces I identified actual stories in which citizens spoke
directly about their encounters with the police. I also found past information written about how
police in Albuquerque have always been somewhat aggressive. Both are different types of
sources, but both contributed equally to my final writing piece. For my documentary, I was able
to identify sources from research and conducting interviews. I decided the interviews were
primary sources because they were direct information and from a source first hand. By
researching on the internet, I found plenty of secondary sources which aided our research on the
urban legend itself. I found pictures and articles that werent first-hand accounts, but really made
our documentary more effective.
Outcome H
An outcome that I feel I have most improved on this semester is Outcome H. This
outcome says to integrate others positions and perspectives into your writing ethically,
appropriately, and effectively in various mediums and technologies. To me the first part of this
outcome means to make sure that information used in our work is correctly cited and to use
sources throughout our pieces. This helps us a writer gain creditability and helps us present our
information. Throughout all the assignments I have completed this semester, I completed some
sort of integration of others thoughts or information. For MWA#1, I completed a lot of research
in order to gain credibility for my arguments. For MWA#2, I just had to provide a link to my
video, but was still someones ideas and thoughts that I explored. I think that overall, I correctly
cited my sources through different mediums. I decided to paraphrase instead of quote throughout
my writing because it let me explore my opinion on the information I was given. Being about to

understand and how to use different sources within my writing I have also improved in writing
and providing information in my Engineering 120 lab write-ups.
Outcome D
Outcome D states that students are to improve your fluency in the dialect of
Standardized Written American English at the level of the sentence, paragraph, and document.
Outcome D is the outcome I feel I have least improved on overall this semester. I do believe that
I have had some progress, but not necessarily enough compared to other outcomes. I have
improved on this outcome by just practicing writing. I have been able to sit down and just write
whereas in the pass I would generally hit a wall and be stuck. I also enjoyed how as a class we
conducted peer review. I felt that when others read through my document and told me where
things lacked or where things were confusing it improved the sentence which then translated into
a better document. I do wish though as a class we would have spent more time reviewing how to
write and what makes a good paper. I dont feel like I know what makes a good sentence,
paragraph, or document. I also wish we would have spent time going over key terms like nouns,
verbs, and adjectives. I have always struggled with understanding these terms and not once did
we mention it in English 120. My writing has definitely improved over the summer, but
compared to others I feel like my writing is lacking structure and understanding.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I have felt that my progress as a writer and student has significantly
improved because of English 120. I feel more comfortable analyzing and reflecting rhetorical
and persuasive pieces. I also now feel more comfortable writing and presenting information that
I set out and find. Before this semester I struggled with how to present different mediums or how

to complete a thorough rhetorical analysis. I have also learned this semester on how to provide
better feedback and how to adjust my piece from peer feedback. All these skills will be important
as I progress throughout my college courses. I feel that each of these learning outcomes listed
above have all improved, more some than others. But overall, this semester I have learned a lot
and became a better writer because of English 120.