Jordan Huggins

Professor Witherspoon
English 102-01
2 December 2014
Reflection Narrative
This semester was definitely one to remember, for various reasons. This was a
period of growth, personally and academically. Throughout this semester I have learned
much about myself and what I must improve in order to produce proficient work. Of my
improvements, my writing skills were of the most crucial. I had to strengthen my
brainstorming as well as my outlining and pre-writing skills. My English class demanded
that I develop my writing, and failing was not an option.
Throughout the duration of the semester, I had to make major changes to the way
I wrote my essays. Much of my writing suffered due to the fact that I did not have much
of a pre-writing process. I would only brainstorm a few ideas and come up with the rest
as I wrote my paper. I would hardly ever make an outline. My overweening confidence in
my writing ability reflected in the grades I received. Mt grades would continue to suffer if
I did not make an effort to enhance my capabilities. My English class pushed me to take
the correct approach when constructing particular types of essays. I was provided with
guides and other instructional information for producing solid documents. For example,
creating an outline before writing my essay helped me to put forth more clear and concise
ideas with supporting details. Outlining also helps me to better organize the points within
my paper. However, this attribute alone was not the only thing that changed my essays.
This semester marks the first time I have ever utilized the writing center. I never
saw the need to visit the writing center to assist me with writing my assignments. After
an insufficient grade on one of my assignments, my professor suggested that I use the

writing center to make me essays stronger. The tutors there aided me in building a better
essay by not only clarifying my ideas, but also bringing in details to support the details
and sorting them in a certain manner. This experience was upon one of the most crucial
lessons in writing being that I could apply the information to my personal writing as well
as my writing for academic purposes.
To be more specific, I learned to take my time and think more critically when
writing an essay. Pre-writing is a very essential element of the writing process, and must
be done often. My impatience with writing assignments made this was one of the most
difficult lessons for me. It may be more work, and possibly time consuming, but it does
help to gather and apply ideas. Structuring particular essays still comes unclear to me, but
in due time I will be proficient in producing various styles of writing, including poetry
and storytelling. The lessons I have learned will build the foundation for the advanced
writing skill I plan to achieve.