English 1101: Kalyn Flanders

So, in looking at what others have written, I can see that a a class, this course has broadened all of our horizons. Two people in particular have stood out in what they have learned. One is Tiffany Dunham. I like how she took and explained her struggles with MLA formatting and how she has worked to resolve it as seen here, " MLA and the works cited portion was the biggest obstacle for me. I feel confident now that I am able to execute it more effectively.". Tiffany was able to demonstrate that even though she struggled with something in the beginning, she found a way to make it easier on herself. I also took notice to the blog of Luke Grimes. MY favorite part of what he has learned is that he had a personal and educational list of what he had learned as shown here,  " Personal: 1. How to manage a large workload and can make it work from home.  2. That using a physical calendar is great when going into a new and demanding school schedule.  3. That if you are organised, t...

So, in looking back at everything I have absorbed during these last 8 weeks there is a lot I can take away from this course. One of the main things I was able to take away is that I can always learn more about a certain area than I think I can. For one example, rhetorical analysis. I just spent a whole year in AP English Language learning how to rhetorically analyze almost every single thing I read. But, taking this course it allowed me to see that there are so many other things that are considered rhetorical, such as how citing sources is considered rhetorical. Being able to see a bigger picture has allowed me to develop my writing into something much better than it was before this class. And, everything I have learned here will allow me to apply it to my future classes and career

Our Vice President, Mike Pence, made an illogical argument about the amount of COVID-19 cases showing up in the states. When asked about why cases were going up across America, Pence replied,  “And that in most of the cases where we are seeing some marginal rise in number, that’s more a result of the extraordinary work you’re doing.” Pence states here that due to the amount of testing being done, there are more cases present. This is illogical because there are still a lot of cases, they just aren't shown due to people being tested. Numbers aren't rising because people are being tested, they are rising because people are getting infected. A better way to say this would be to explain that even though there are more tests being administered, it's because of the rate of infection that there is a rise in cases. This would correct saying that just because people are being tested there is a rise in cases because the amount of cases would be the same even without testing. 

The messages on my phone are ordered oldest to newest, with a tab that filters out any unknown/spam numbers. I don't have any messages that delete after a certain time period since I view that all conversations are important and so if there is information I need I can easily search for it. All of my contacts are named with first and last name, save for the most important people I constantly talk to such as my Mom, best friend, and boyfriend. I mostly sends songs and pictures to whomever I'm texting as well as general texting. 

When organizing a paper for writing, there are many aspects to choose from. I personally prefer to list the point I view the most important before going down in scale by importance. This allows me to get the strongest point across before delving into sub-topics that clarify more of the main topic. This method also allows me to make sure I have all areas covered so that there should be little to no questions about what the reader is learning.  Another way to organize is a question-answer method. This is used to answer questions the reader might have and further explain the answer in more detail. This allows the reader to have a fuller understanding of what they are looking for, and answer any further questions. 

MLA is the traditional form of formatting used in professional papers. Do I like it, not really. Will I do it, most likely. My problem with this formatting is that the structure is confusing. Citing a source that is not only indented but always placed in a certain order is taxing. It takes away time and you get points knocked off if you didn't do the slightest thing correctly. When first learning MLA as a middle schooler, I was never taught to indent or do anything specific, just make sure all the information was there. As a high schooler I was taught just to have page references in the initial citation. I was taught to write fast and to the point, not formal and constructed. The most confusing thing, and hardest is making sure everything is in perfect order and construct. 

As I sit typing this late at night, already having procrastinated to the very last minute, this topic should com easy, it's the problem I'm facing at this exact moment. But, in fact, I'm just exhausted and would rather type this as a text instead of formally. Academic writing has such a structured and rigid feel, that while trying to write, you are trying to remember every single guideline and rule to writing a good enough paper. Texting comes at such an ease, there are no strict rules and regulations for what it has to look or sound like. Instead of writing a minimum 5 page paper to explain my beliefs, I get to write a few sentences maybe a paragraph. Texting seems faster and simpler and just all in all a better way to write. Writing for academic purposes is often put off until it seems like an almost impossible task. With so many rules to follow, it becomes a struggle to feel free as a writer, instead you feel trapped in a cage. 

Starting a paper can be one of the hardest things to do, since often you are trying to express how you feel in a limited amount of space or time, or even both. But with a little organization, writing should come at ease. For me, organizing or prepping for a paper has never been my strong-suit, honestly a majority of the time I go in cold. But, with a little practice outlining, or a shortened version has become my best friend. I start with figuring what my main topics are going to be, and then i decide if they could be split up into sub-topics. Then I go ahead and find the sources and quotes I want to use so I am not searching last minute. I then type out a basic staring sentence and enter my quotes in the general area they will go in. This helps me have a rough outline to writ around. Using this allows me to visualize how my paper is going to work and better organize my ideas so that they flow better. 

When looking at America, it's all about what you want, when you want it. But, does this actually apply to the millions of unborn children put to death every single year? The answer is no, they don't get a choice in whether they live or not, they are cast aside as if they don't matter. One reason the pro-life is the way to go is because the child should not be viewed as a burden. Yes, either something unfortunate such as rape might have happened to you, or you made a bad decision, but does that mean that the child should suffer in your place. Many women who are raped and abort say that it's because they don't want to live with a constant reminder that they were raped. The problem with this is that the child should be viewed as a gift instead of a reminder, you have the chance to raise them up to be a better person that could one day change the world. There is another choice as well, adoption. Even if you don't want to raise the child yourself, there are still opp...

Finding good and quality information to support what your writing can be hard if you don't know what you're looking for, especially when you are trying to add value as well. But, I have a plan to add both of these things to my essay on why History Education is a valuable degree to earn.  I plan on adding authority by using sources from educational sites. My sources are hand picked from various schools and programs that talk about the importance of history education. These add authority because they are from schools that offer this degree and the offer what comes next after. Using schools that offer this degree allow for a personal opinion from a professor who has their own experience. This also adds value. The sources are giving a personal opinion from someone who has experience in the degree instead of an outside perspective. This inside job is a first-hand look into what a history education degree can do for your life and career. I am going to educational sources in order to ...

There are many forms of writing that people use daily such as texting, e-mailing, and writing. These are tools that help us learn the always developing language of the world. I personally use writing to communicate with my friends and further my ability to learn. I use note-taking daily at school. I have had to adapt from copying the notes as they are strictly written to paraphrasing the information. This has allowed me to better understand and memorize information for a test or exam. Note-taking also allows for an easy system of finding information for the required subject. I personally color-code my notes so that the section that I am trying to study for is easily found within my notes. This helps me focus on a certain section instead of searching through my notes to find a single source of information. Texting is used by almost every person that owns a phone. During the 4 months of quarantine that I experienced, texting became the main way I communicated with my friends. This helped...

Finding good, even truly academic information using the search bar can be hard to find even when being specific. So, how do we find good, academic information among all the wannabees? This can be difficult, especially when you are in a rush or can't find exactly what you are looking for.  One thing you could do is use an academic search engine. These filter out unnecessary sources that are not credible to use in an academic sense. One of these engines is Google Scholar which is, "... an academic search engine from the house of Google. Especially designed to search for scholarly literature, it helps you find relevant information from the world of scholarly research."(1) This  is used to find pieces of information that will actually help in writing a paper. When looking for academic information, it is always good to look for sources that end in .org or .edu. These come from professional organizations and academic websites, such as college programs that are specialized in th...

So, the first article I read from the blog I am currently following was about an inscription found about a previously unknown Roman Senator, that was found in Turkey. This article talks about the history behind the pillar and how it came to be. The author talks about how the senator's mother kept inscriptions to tell of her son's great achievements, which just so happened to be on the pillar. This source is credible because the author uses references such as Bible verses and quotes from the people at the museum where the pillar is being examined. This artifact is very important because the experts "... had information about Celer’s mother and father with the same name. However, we did not have enough information about him." (quote in the article, never given specific author) This allowed them to gain more knowledge on a once forgotten historical figure. Other people, especially in the history field should look into this article because not only does it highlight new k...

     Many people have varying aspects on what the most important thing is to learn in an English class. It can range from analyzing text to learning professional writing techniques. But, one of the most valuable skill to be learned in Composition 1 is how to read and write critically.       This is an important skill because throughout life and throughout college you are going to be expected to write papers and understand difficult pieces of writing. Critical reading allows the reader to become more involved and see the tone, organization and many other valuable skills to help the reader better understand the reading. Critical reading is about gaining knowledge and using it to better their writing. This is a valuable skill due to the fact that without it, there would only be a basic gain of knowledge and it would be very hard to write about the subject without a deeper understanding.     Critical writing is an important skill to have because ...

Hi, my name is Kalyn Flanders and I plan on being a history major. This is my first year at MGA and I plan on going through next Spring. I am a competitive swimmer and I plan on transferring to swim at the collegiate level. I was worried when we weren't able to face-to-face class, but so far I am really enjoying how this class is playing out. This class seems really promising and I am looking foward to seeing what I can accomplish.