Dr.

Leslie Bruce
800 N State College Blvd
Fullerton. CA 92831

Dear Dr. Bruce,

My aim in enrolling in this course was to further develop my scientific writing. As a novice writer, this
class has enhanced my scientific communication skills as demonstrated in this portfolio. The portfolio
comprises of: a revised extended definition document, a literature grid, and one notable scholar notebook
entries. Each of these documents are indicative of my proficiency in accomplishing the student learning
outcomes (SLOs).

I chose to include a revised document of the definition prompt as it is a comprehensive assessment of my

scientific writing development, fulfilling the course outcomes (SLOs 1, 2, 3, 4 & 5). My competence of
rhetorical focus is demonstrated in the language used in devising an encyclopedia definition of zebrafish
catered to a general audience (SLOs 1 & 3). This is evident in the Development section where I formally
address various life stages and propagate parenthetical citations (i.e. larvae, epiboly movement) and
visuals to aid the reader’s comprehension. The overall organization of the extended definition through the
use of topical headings (i.e. Zebrafish, History, etc.) and formatting aid in cohesiveness which in turn,
facilitates audience comprehension (SLO 4). Furthermore, throughout the prompt I indicate my ability to
ethically synthesize research findings in persuasive manner (i.e. extensive primary literature) without
biases present (SLOs 2 & 5).

To illustrate my proficiency in ethical research, organization, and collaboration I have included a

literature grid of scientific journals generated by my group (SLOs 1, 2, & 6). The informality of this
document demonstrates my ability to change writing styles in order to fit the model (SLO 1). My ability
to construct persuasive arguments is evident in the literature summaries in both the Methods and
Usefulness and Conclusions sections (SLO 2). Given that this review was a collaborative effort, I
exhibited clear assessment of both my own and that of my group members’ work in the Relation to
Review topic & Other Articles sections by stating interconnections (SLO 6).

Lastly, I have included the Summarizing Article Scholar’s Notebook Entry in which I summarize a news
article for the annotated bibliography (SLOs 1, 3, & 5). The lack of prepositions and use of key words
relevant to the news article are indicative of my proficiency to synthesize a persuasive sentence by
utilizing proper academic language and design while retaining objectivity to gender and cultural
differences.

I believe after examining my portfolio and this cover letter it will validate and reaffirm the progress I have
made as a scientific writer though satisfactory accomplishment of the six learning outcomes. My portfolio
is a testament of the skills (i.e. active voice) I have gained throughout the course and advancement of my
scientific discourse.

Best,

Gerardo Sandoval