May 7, 2015

Dr. Leslie Bruce

Department of English, Comparative Literature and Linguistics
California State University, Fullerton
P.O. Box 34080
Fullerton, CA 92834-9480
Dear Dr. Bruce,
My purpose in writing today is to inform you of my success at mastering the six SLOs put
forth at the beginning of this semester. Over the course of this letter, I will present
examples of my work as proof of my competency in each area. I am certain that by the
end of this letter you will have no doubt of my ability. In fact, I am presenting this
document as evidence of my ability to write a convincing persuasive argument. I would
also like to call attention to the flow of this letter. After much consideration, I have
decided to showcase my skills based on the work that best illustrates each SLO. This
should eliminate confusion while reading and allow for good flow from start to finish.
Designing my letter in this manner demonstrates my ability to organize and produce a
well thought out paper.
I am presenting my review article as an example of my best work. The tone is
sophisticated as it is directed to an academic audience. I believe this is best demonstrated
when I reference different ecological ideas in conjunction with data from case studies
about the Mojave Desert. The pairing of research data and conjecture about broader
implications demonstrates my ability to cater my writing to a specific audience (rhetoric)
and the sophisticated tone of the article show my grasp of conveying meaning while
remaining sensitive to gender/cultural differences (language and design). The review
article was a group project that required a lot of communication between team members.
To maintain cohesion through out our papers we used Dropbox, an online tool, that
allowed group members to view progress and share resources. This collaboration was
especially useful in helping me achieve a better understanding of what other thought of
my writing, and how I might improve. The topic I struggled the most with this semester
was proper citations. My first attempts at in-text citations were a total failure. Upon
review of my paper, I realized that although it was obvious to me that certain information
was meant to be connected with a single citation, it might not be obvious to someone who
didnt have my background knowledge. All mistakes have been corrected and each source
is now properly referenced with supporting statements linked back to the source using
citation glue as we learned in class.
Lastly, I would like to reference my final portfolio piece, a peer review. Peer reviews are
an informal approach to revising initial drafts, and they can be very useful in providing a
fresh perspective on writing style. I am confident that my review of a peers paper is

helpful and informative while not sounding too critical of her work as a whole, thus
completing the informal portion of the rhetoric SLO.
I think that you will find that the contents of this portfolio very clearly display my mastery
of each of the SLOs covered in the course syllabus. I am certain that the knowledge I
have gained in this course will enable me to be a more effective writer in all my future
endeavors.
Sincerely yours,

Brit Brown