ENGL 298 B: Intermediate Writing Social Sciences   Autumn 2011, University of Washington

One of the biggest differences I have noticed so far this year is that there is a big emphasis on embracing the process of writing and not worrying too much about grammatical errors. I would often churn out papers in an hour during high school and get good grades. This strategy is no longer a viable option in college but because of it I know my writing will improve. There was a bigger focus on how to organize a good essay and much less focus on the quality of the ideas in high school. That concept is almost the exact opposite from what I have been told so far. I have heard numerous times how you really need to start working on essays far in advance to really get something worth turning in. I have done my best to embrace these new concepts. Some of them are still challenging me; it’s hard to work on any assignment days in advance but so far it has been working for me. I know that I have a lot of room to improve as a writer so I am just trying to change as many bad habits as I can. The biggest habit I have had to break is my reading habits. Luckily I am a quick reader, but that does little to help my comprehension, so I still find myself readings some of the texts twice and still not understanding it completely. In high school I would just move on and ask for the teacher to explain it in class. In college, often there is no much text that the professor can’t explain every single part so a lot of the understanding falls on your own shoulders. I think that all these changes I have made so far have been for the better and I have yet to come across advice that I really didn’t agree with.