A. Look back at your first blog post from this class.

What questions did you pose

two weeks ago that you can now answer? Moreover, now that you have 2 weeks (the
equivalent of half a semester) under your belt, what advice would you give to the
brand new freshmen who will arrive for the Fall semester?
For the most part, I do have an answer to all of the questions that I had in the
beginning of UTOP. I was curious about where the idea of Reader Response Letters
(RRLs) came from and I found out that Ms. Ingrams friend, who teaches as well,
gave her students a similar assignment to the RRLs. I wanted to know what the
difference was between someones writing rituals and their writing process. I
learned that their writing rituals would be what they always do before writing such
as getting something to drink or go for a walk. Their writing process would be how
they plan out their paper and execute it. Lastly, I had a question about the Final
Portfolio Essay and based on some former portfolios, I have a good idea what it is
about.
Now for the freshman advice, I would say that you do not need to be afraid to ask
questions in class. I guarantee there is going to be something on the syllabus or
assignment sheet you do not understand and need clarification on. I would also say
that it would not hurt to get to know a couple of people. No one wants to be that
awkward person eating lunch alone. I know I dont. Get to know the campus. Knowing
the buildings and the ways to go would save time on the way to class and make sure
you do not get lost. Being early for class makes sure that you have the seat you
want in the classroom or lecture hall. You do not want to end up in the back,
especially if you have a big class.
B. Look at the 10 key concepts on the
Course Description & Materials
page of this
syllabus. These concepts are practices or "habits of mind" that you should engage
with during this course. Which ones do you feel you're doing the best with and
how? Which ones seem the most challenging and why? What questions do you have
about them?
I would personally say that I have gotten out of my comfort zone since the
beginning of this class. I am more familiar and comfortable with academic writings
than personal writings. I had to write these letters and the literacy narrative.
Those assignments were basically about your opinions on certain things and how you
felt about writing. The narrative was about how you became a better person,
writer, reader through writing. Providing and receiving feedback has not been a
problem for me. I have been providing feedback during peer workshops since the

fourth grade so, it is not anything new. Some things that I may still need work on
are making connections, multi-modality and some parts of the writing process. I do
have problems when it comes to making connections between different topics,
scenarios and objects. I understand the concept of multi-modality but I guess I
would need more practice or time going over it to firmly grasp it. The only part of
the writing process I do have issues with is brainstorming and collecting my
thoughts together. I would write out the thoughts that I have and plan it out, but
then how do I put it all together? That is where the connections problem comes up.
C. Let's examine the literacy you wrote about in your Literacy Narrative. In class
we discussed the complex definition of literacy and how, today, it means more than
"the ability to read and write." Here's an even more complicated explanation of
"literacy" from a first-year writing textbook titled
Everything's a Text
:

These traditional ideas about literacy have been challenged by rapid transformations in America
and around the world. You've probably heard terms like multimedia, multiple intelligences,
multiculturalism, and multilingual. The traditional idea that there should be one standard way of
writing and speaking in America is being questioned by educators who think of literacy as
"multiple." Because of this increasing diversity [...] a literate person needs to know how to cross
linguistic boundaries and how to respect language and cultural diversity
. (Melzer &
Coxwell-Teague 2)

So, my questions are:

What type of literacy did you write about in your narrative,
how do you define that literacy, and
what did you learn from it?
Did you learn anything about the relationship between language and power?
I am not sure what type of literacy I used in my narrative, so there is no way I can
define it. From the narrative, I learned how to interpret what the author might
have been trying to say through their writing. Some of the readings I did also gave
me some insight on the society in different parts of the world. I also got an
understanding of how human beings would react based on different situations. So
overall, they were just literary eye-opening experiences. In regards to the
relationship between language and power, I learned that knowing more can open up
doors that you did not know were open. Reading, writing, and speaking on different
topics can make you stronger and more powerful in a way. You know things that
other people do not know or want to know. That places you on a higher pedestal (it

should not but it does) than others around you. You have the potential to become
more open-minded and understand situations from different perspectives and not a
lot of people are willing to do that.
Here is another passage from that same textbook to give you some ideas about
that last question: Critical literacy educators argue that an important part of being
literate is being aware of the relationship between language and power, and they
ask who is left out and why one group gets to decide what the rules of
communication are and who gets to speak (Melzer & Coxwell-Teague 3).
So, you might want to think about all the people in your narrative. Who held the
power and why? How did that power present itself? (Do your best with this: I know
we didn't discuss it in class--I just want to see your inquiring minds at work!)
I think that I, the writer, had the power in my narrative. The writer chooses what
to include and what not to include in the paper. They have the ability to format
their paper anyway they want to, as long as they are able to convey their message
to the audience. However, thinking on a higher level of writing, I think that the
editing and publishing companies have the power. The editors decide what stays in
the manuscript and what goes but only because they want to help you appease the
publishing companies. The publishing companies have the final say so in whether or
not your book gets published. They make the rules that say what should and should
not be in the book depending on the genre.
D. What are your academic goals for the second half of this semester? You may
write about goals you have for your other classes as well. What is your plan for
achieving your goals? What resources might you utilize that you haven't yet?
For the second semester, I would like to continue writing expressively. I really
enjoy the switch up from formal to informal. In writing, I would start using the
Writing Resource Center in the future for my papers because I know that I
probably will not have peer workshops in my Geography class. I need to start taking
more detailed notes so that studying would be a little bit easier, therefore, making
the quiz or test easier. So instead of taking notes on some major and some minor
details, I would just need to take notes on everything.