Mateo Quiroga

Ms. Thompson
AP Language, Block 2, Skinny A
16 May 2015

Portfolio Reflection
Each and every year, teachers have always made an impact upon my
education. I cannot say I have ever closed a chapter in my education career and left
without any new knowledge. This year - and course - is no exception. Reflecting
back upon everything that Ive done and learned, I can say this course has been
extremely beneficial to my learning.
Throughout all the pieces, there is a clear improvement - going from I Just
Want to Be Average all the way to the term paper. In I Just Want to Be Average, the
paper was a bit convoluted and lacked a proper thesis. The thesis did not pass the
so-what test - it lacked additional implications. Looking at the term paper, however,
thesis development has improved significantly. By the time of the term paper, the
thesis had a further implication and passed the so-what test. A plausible
explanation for this may be all the thesis development exercises conducted
throughout the year.
The diction and syntax of the pieces have gradually improved as well. The
vocabulary has improved. By the term paper, the vocabulary is more astutely
placed throughout. In I Just Want to Be Average, the vocabulary seemed a bit
spurious and haughty. Nowadays, the vocabulary meaning has changed and it
serves to embellish the paper. This embellishment serves to spice up the paper and
allow it to deviate from an average paper.

While structuring still needs work, there was an improvement going from the
rhetorical analysis to the term paper. In the Modest Proposal rhetorical analysis
paper, the structure was a bit cryptic and did not properly organize the paper. The
paper was analyzed from paragraph to paragraph. This elementary style of analysis
demonstrates a lack of higher level writing. The paper ought to have been written
by device usage and examples. This would show a higher level writing. In the term
paper, however, the structure was better organized. Each paragraph, after the
introduction, was grouped by the points stated within the thesis. The paragraph
always related to the thesis and the paragraph was always substantiated with
evidence. This showed superior writing and clear improvement.