Reflective Writing for Research Paper

Goals: How did I do with the goals I set? Why didn’t I achieve my goals? Which goals were most useful to me? Which didn’t really help?

I actually did really well with my goals. I made a goal to get my outline created and have things written already for each bullet at least a week before it was due and I had that completed a week and a half before. That was probably the most helpful goal just because I had about half the paper done super early. I had a goal to read my sources thoroughly really early on, however that didn't really happen until I was actually writing the paper. I only had a basic knowledge of each source for my outline.

Quality: Where in the writing do I feel most confident? Where am I weakest? What would I change if I had more time? What am I most proud of?

I am most confident about my use in the sources because I made sure that each quote directly tied to what I was talking about at that moment and that it fully supported my argument and help move it along. I am probably weakest at writing formally and making sure not to be repetitive. I would probably change the order of my paragraphing as well if I had more time.

Writing Processes: What writing process did I use to write this? How well did it work for me? What needs to change, moving forward?

My process worked pretty well actually. I figured out what I wanted my paper to be on and then I found some awesome sources that would help me with it. I read through those sources quickly and got the basic idea of what each one was about and wrote a paragraph about it to help me remember what each was about. I then came up with what I wanted my argument to be and devised how I could use each source to work through my points from there.

What I learned: What did I learn from this writing task? What was the hardest part? What’s something new I’m taking away from it? What part of the process interested me the most? What did my instructor do to help me learn? What did my instructor do that wasn’t effective and didn’t help me learn?

I learned that I'm not very good at keeping my writing formal. I often use second person terms and it's just a matter of rewording to fix it. The hardest part was honestly just getting my thoughts down onto the page in tandem with my sources. I loved that my professor made a powerpoint to help us use our sources throughout our writing.

How to apply what I learned: How will I apply what I learned from this writing task to future writing tasks (in my major, for example, or in the workplace)? What new goals will I want to set?

I will definitely be using what I've learned in this research paper in my major because I'm going into psychology and I'm going to have to write a lot using credible sources while also being able to distinguish what in those sources is helpful for my argument and what would be unnecessary. I would definitely want to have a deeper knowledge of what I'm writing about in the future before I decide to write about it.

Visual Rhetoric

Visual Rhetoric occurs when an author implements visual tools into their writing in order to help persuade the reader into agreeing with their argument. Things like pictures, graphs, or tables that help show the author's argument are uses of visual rhetoric. Even font changes such as bolded or italicized keywords or phrases can help the author add emphasis to the things they think are most important for their reader to understand and apply from their writing. Anything the author uses as visual rhetoric should be highly thought out and strategized to make sure the writing is as persuasive as it can be. In my own writing, visual rhetoric can help me add design to make it look more appealing to my readers. It can also add a sort of emphasis that can persuade my readers to see my argument in a new light and possibly help them to agree with me more fully.

Revision

Revision means to read over your writing and check for errors in spelling or punctuation, looking for sentences that don't make sense, fixing those sentences, and maybe even rearranging paragraphs or sentences to make the writing flow better. Revision is very important after writing because it helps make sure that the wording is correct and that it makes sense. When an author revises their work they can decide whether or not what they have written is actually what they wanted to say/how the wanted to say it, and if it's not they can change it to be how they want it before publishing it. Revision can help me in my own writing because a lot of the time I'm writing fast and don't realize little mistakes that I make and revising helps me to fix those little mistakes before I turn it in for a teacher or professor to see.

Counterarguments

Counterarguments are viewpoints others may have that are contradictory your own. They occur when a reader has different views on a topic than the writer does. Counterarguments are very important to include in a paper because they show the readers that the author has a none biased opinion and that they have done extensive research on a subject that covers their concerns as well as explains why the author has the view that they have. Whether the reader agrees with the author's argument or not can be based solely on the authors remarks regarding the counterargument and if they are respectful or not. It is important that I address each of my counterarguments because my goal as a writer is to persuade my readers to agree with my argument and if I don't address what is important to them then my writing will be pointless to them and they will excuse it.

Doing Research

Doing research in writing means finding sources from scholarly journals or articles that can benefit the writer in their understanding of the topic they are interested in writing about. A good researcher uses keywords or key phrases that are closely associated with the topic they seek to learn about in order to find information that may introduce new claims or counterarguments that the author may not have thought about before. The research part of the writing process is what produces the sources that a writer may use to add credibility to their argument and allow them to enter the conversation in a scholarly way. In the same way, I can use research to find the sources necessary to help improve my understanding and strengthen my reasons for writing. I can also use my research to more solidly cover any counterclaims that may possibly appear in the minds of my readers by finding sources that are from the other side of the argument.

Reading and Using Sources

Reading and using sources is truly essential when it comes to writing a paper. When a writer reads and uses the sources they have researched, the author becomes knowledgeable about where the conversation is currently, what the conversation has not yet addressed, and what the author can contribute by providing their piece of writing to the conversation. In writing a paper, the author can then take the knowledge that they have received from the sources and add credibility to their argument. If the paper has no credibility, then essentially the author's argument is rendered useless and will be dismissed by others involved in the conversation. By reading and using sources for my writing, I can further my knowledge of the topic I want to write about as well as make an effective and credible contribution to the existing conversation, which can potentially move the conversation forward to find a solution.

Paragraphing (Includes the following concepts: Topic & Concluding Sentences; Transitions; Old-to-New)

Paragraphing is the main form of organization in writing. It includes a topic sentence that explains what the paragraph will be about, an explanation that elaborates on the topic sentence, and a concluding sentence that wraps up what that paragraph talks about. Throughout the paragraph, a writer must use the old-to-new method in order for the writing to track. This method works by mentioning what has already been said and then adding new information to that knowledge. By taking the old info and adding new info, the writer has the ability to create smooth transitions between sentences within a paragraph. Furthermore, paragraphing itself provides the means by which a writer can transition from one point to the next without a breach of the writer to reader contract. I can use paragraphing to improve my writing by applying the principles that it suggests, which will then make my writing more effective.