A+ Blogging

When I first signed up for this course, I was thinking, “Okay, UWP 101 will be a basic writing class where I have to figure out what the professor wants to hear and then write it out in 12 point font and double spaced.” It turned out I couldn’t be more wrong. Blogging was not only a different experience in writing for me, but also a chance for me to discover my own style of writing. Ever since grade school while learning the basics of sentence structure and correct punctuation, I despised writing because of all the formalities and guessing games of figuring out what the teacher expected me to write and how he/she expected me to write it. I would spend a great effort in trying to write a paper that my teachers would find “A” material, but apparently they just thought it wasn’t good enough and I became accustomed to receiving “B’s.” It was always, and will continue to be, difficult for me to write what my professors believe is “A” material, but this class helped me find my own writing style through blogs. Since the blogs provide a somewhat informal setting for writing, I wasn’t afraid to write what I wanted or the way I wanted. Of course there were still guidelines I needed to follow, but nothing as strict or demanding as a traditional writing class.

Another aspect of this course that made writing much easier for me was the idea of analyzing the very basics of written language: words (Keywords to be more specific). Our text forced us to step away, look at the bigger picture, and analyze words that we take for granted in everyday use. It makes me hesitant to use words such as “race,” “family,” “media,” and “image” since now I know that these words can mean many different things all at once. I guess this is what makes written or recorded language so difficult, but because of the informal setting of blogs and studying the backbone of writing, I have a better understanding of good writing and critical thinking.

I think the idea of blogs is a great idea and more classes should be taught this way because it gives everyone a chance to write for an audience other than the teacher. Students are less restricted by what the teacher wants if the teacher is willing to use blogs to their full potential, which is allowing writers to get what they have to say across in their own style. We have all gone through the processes and fundamentals of writing from grade school through high school, so why can’t college be the time that we use what we have learned to create our own style of writing that is efficient and effective? Maybe now I’ll be able to write “A” material.