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Arshalisha Abellera

EN111

Professor Lee

January 27, 2017

Pre-Instruction Reflective Self-Assessment Essay

Many things I learned during my time in high school, does not equate to the things I

learned in college. College is really where the learning starts. From freshman year in high school

to senior year, everything that was taught to me in English class, I learned in college for two

months during the summer term. EN100, during the summer, was really fun. I actually learned

the very fundamental skill of writing an effective and college worthy essay. Passing EN100 was

a piece of cake, however, taking up EN110 was a challenge. I thought I learned everything that I

needed to learn in EN100, but it was not the case. On top of the skills and techniques I learned in

my EN100, I acquired many more skills in EN110. Now that I finished EN110, I am now

confident that I understand and able to demonstrate EN110's Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs)

for my EN111 class.

Although my writing skills and techniques need sharpening, I can at least formulate a

clear thesis statement and provide evidence, included in my body paragraphs, to help support my

thesis statement. One of the most important lessons EN110 teachers stress is for students to

construct a well-structured essay. A well-structured essay includes a clear thesis statement and

evidence to support the thesis statement. As part of the SLOs, a student must be able to write a

well-structured essay. For EN111, students must be able to demonstrate such skill to effectively

write a good research paper, with ideas in a good pattern.

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Another SLOs for EN110 is for students to achieve thinking "critically and clearly" when

it comes to students positions in certain topic or issues. Constructing a well-written essay is

balderdash when the writer is not making any sense. Although there's a clear thesis statement in

the introduction, the paper would not make any sense if the supporting evidence contradicts with

the thesis statement. I am confident that I know where I stand or my position when it comes to

certain topic or issues. In EN111, students should be able to write a research paper with a strong

argument, and with EN110 as the stepping stone for students, the majority will be able to

demonstrate such skills.

In both EN110 and EN111 class, students are required to take part in peer reviews to

revise their essays effectively. In EN110, the SLOs requires teachers to do a peer review for

students to gain more insights in how they can write their essays effectively. Besides that, in peer

reviews, students can also improve their writings by listening to the comments they give to other

students when peer reviewing. To avoid hypocrisy, students should also be able to do what they

suggest others do, and they can learn that by peer reviewing. This is the type of skill that I

struggled with because sometimes I am ashamed to show my essay to others, eventually, I

learned that peer reviews can really help me. In EN111, it is very crucial for students to learn

how to peer review. Since EN111 is Writing for Research, it requires students to be very

meticulous when peer reviewing another classmate's paper. A student must look at things like, if

her/his classmate effectively cited his work or s/he demonstrates clarity when it comes to her/his

argument.

In EN110, students learn how to incorporate the information they gathered, during their

research time, in their essay without having to plagiarize. In my EN110 class, and I suspect any

EN110 class, teachers teaches different ways to direct quote, paraphrase, or synthesize, a text
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from any sources, and then how to cite sources, to avoid academic dishonesty. I know I will have

no trouble in citing my sources, and avoid plagiarism, thanks to my EN110 class. In EN111, as

part of their SLOs, students have to produce a research paper without any hint of plagiarism or

academic dishonesty. Which, I dare say, would be easy.

Everything that I learned in my EN110 class, would help me pass my EN111 class a little

more easily. EN110 gives students the necessary set of skills they need to advance to EN111.

And some of those skills are, constructing a well-structured essay, being clear on the position a

student takes in any issue, participating and gaining insights from peer reviews, and finally, how

to avoid plagiarisms. I am confident I can demonstrate those skills in EN111, although not

effectively, but for sure I will.