1. I can definitely see improvement in my writing throughout the semester.

The main
improvement I’ve noticed is how I have become more comfortable writing in all aspects.
Before the semester I always dreaded writing assignments because I never thought my
writing was all that good. This course has forced me to write and because of that, I am
more comfortable writing, and more confident in the way I can express the information I
have learned on paper. The email assignment especially has made me feel better writing
to an authority figure. All of the assignments have helped me feel much more
comfortable and knowledgeable when having to write in a formal tone. Another area that
I feel improved and I’m glad we touched on this semester was the instructions packet. It
was really cool to create instructions and do a useability test on those instructions. It
really opened my eyes to the work put into creating instruction manuals and how
detailed and thought out they need to be.
2. My main goal before taking this class was to strengthen my communication and writing
skills. I think that both of those goals were met and exceeded. This happened through
the repetition of having to use my skills in actual job-like experiences. All of the
assignments have made me use my communication and writing skills in actual real-world
applications. Although I don’t think I will be having to write a white paper in any of my
future jobs, I am glad that my writing is now strengthened because I know how to write a
strong well-crafted white paper. One area I don’t think I really improved upon was my
presentation skills. We only had the opportunity to present one time this semester, so I
don’t think my presentation skills were strengthened. But, with the single presentation, I
think that my skills in taking the information that I had and condensing it into an effective
PowerPoint that strengthened my presentation.
3. The assignment this semester that I am the proudest of is probably my white paper. I
was really stressed over that paper, but I am really happy with how it turned out. My final
revisions have made me so happy with the overall appearance of the white paper. Also,
the context and conclusion of the white paper along with all the evidence involved was
very professional. The whole paper just made me feel super confident in my writing. One
assignment that I wish I could edit would be my presentation. I would look over the slides
and try to make better transitions into the next slides when giving the presentation. I
would also like to have been more confident in exactly what I was going to say next, I felt
very unsure of what the next topic was when giving the presentation. I am glad that I was
able to revise my email and memo before submitting it for my portfolio because I feel
that I really over-thought the logistics of the whole assignment. By overcomplicating it in
my head I wasn’t able to properly convey what I wanted to say, but through the peer
review and the final revisions of the portfolio, I feel very confident in my ability to convey
the message I want to send in a formal manner.