In this reflection, you are to going to be reflecting on reflection (very meta ;-) and your own writing process. Questions to respond to:
*Why is reflection important to Yancey? How does Yancey define reflection? Why might it be important to have as part of your writing process? Have you ever used reflection when writing before?
*Pick an object, event, idea, method, etc to describe your writing process. What is it? Based on this object, event, idea, method outline your writing process and discuss why it looks like that.
Make sure, per normal, you support your thinking with evidence from the text AND that you are talking with one another/mentioning other posts.
You should hit about 250-350 words.
While reflecting on Reflection, my mind has opened up completely to new ideas about the reflection process. We can conclude that reflection is important to Yancey because he states that “reflection is not only aside the drafts but within them.” This quote is saying that we may not always realize we are reflecting when most of the time, we really are. This has broadened my view on reflection because I have always had a mind set that the reflection process is a process that you do once you have finished writing a paper to look back at it. Yancey defines reflection as “the processes by which we know what we have accomplished and by which we articulate accomplishment and the products of those processes” This is saying that our reflection is a process, we have to set goals in order to proceed. The reflection process is so broad, there are so many factors that play into it, for instance, “reflection is both individual and social.” Having a reflection as a part of our writing process is important, not only for us, but for teachers. Reflections are great for teachers because it helps them understand what we have understood from our writing process. We don’t always realize that we are using reflection since most of us think that it has to be an extra assignment, when in reality, our reflection might already be included within our writing. I have used reflection in several ways: within my piece and separate from my piece if writing. As of now, I would describe my writing process as setting specific goals for myself. My process has so many goals because it is helping me with my time management and keeping me organized.
ReplyDeleteReflection is important to Yancey because it helps aid in the growth of your writing ability allowing you to improve your writing constantly. As Dominique says reflection is important because Yancey states in his paper “reflection is not only aside the drafts but within them.” This means to me while you are writing you are constantly going back and checking your paper subconsciously to make sure everything is the way you envisioned it. Yancey also says, in relation to reflection, that he wanted “growth of consciousness but not defined behaviorally as pauses and rescannings”. This solidifies my point that reflection is constant growth of writing ability through the growth of one owns consciousness. It is important to have reflection during the writing process so you can constantly improve your writing, you can even see the growth of your own character through your writing. It is important so you can develop ideas and feelings in the way you want them to develop instead of leaving these things undeveloped throughout your paper. I have used reflection in my paper, often thinking of words or sentences in my head before writing them and then consciously reading each word to myself as I write to make sure it sounds just the way I want it to. Usually when writing I will just put everything down on paper and then constantly rework it, I find that if I have the core idea written down then it is much easier for me to write around that core idea opposed to say writing an outline or something of that sort.
ReplyDeleteMost of us may not realize it, but we reflect upon most things that we do. Writing proves no exception. After reading Yancey’s article, it was evident that reflection, he believed, was vital to any well-written paper. Yancey went even further to define his meaning of reflection as, “1) the processes by which we know what we have accomplished and by which we articulate accomplishment and 2) the products of those processes.” When writing, I definitely reflect on what I have written and review whether it accomplished what I had intended. Reflection is a very important procedure that everyone should include in his or her writing. Not only does it strengthen a piece, but allows one to evaluate their paper so that they can remove or add certain details. I agree with Dominique that reflection applies to a broad variety of subjects. Even while writing this blog I reflected on what I wrote just to confirm that I kept the main focus of my piece on reflection. My writing process went as follows, I first analyzed Yancey’s article to see how reflection was valued to him and his definition of it. I then proceeded to incorporate my own examples and use of reflection within the piece that I was writing, which would be this blog while reflecting in the midst of it. Every time I write, I somehow or another reflect upon the very words that I am writing down. Whether it be an essay, a text, or a speech, ect. I reflect on the work so that I can produce the most effective writing possible.
ReplyDeleteReflection defined by yancy is what stimulates the growth of consciousness in students about the numerous mental and linguistic strategies they command. I constantly reflect on all my writings to make sure that i use the correct wording and also if i have answered the question correctly. In other words reflection is a way to improve your writings, for example every time you go back and check you paper while you write you are reflecting on your piece making sure that everything is how you want it. i agree with luc when he says reflection is important in you writing so you are able to constantly improve your writing, in other words you want to be able to see you paper grow and improve as you finish your essay. Also having set ideas and bullet points before you start writing can really improve they way you write, as in Being able to do an outline or brainstorm before you began your piece can really help you improve. Also I agree with jonny and dominique when they say that reflection applies to many things not just writing a paper. For example when your writing a text to you friend, as you write the text you are constantly thinking and reflecting on the choice of words you are using in your text. finally it is very important that you use reflection in your writing to be able to set a goal and believe it or not it can also help you out with your time management as well.
ReplyDeleteMost of the time we are reflecting on things that we do, and never really realize we are doing it. Yancey defines reflection as, “ the processes by which we know what we have accomplished and by which we articulate accomplishment and the products of those processes.” This definition to me, is saying exactly what Dominique mentions in her blog post, that reflection is a process. It’s true that it’s a process. We never really remember everything we have accomplished. Reflection is important to Yancey because he states, “reflection is not only aside the drafts but within them.” This just means basically what I mentioned in the first sentence of my blog post, just that we never really realize we are reflecting when we are. Using reflection during the writing process I think is really important to use. I agree with Jonny when he states that it strengthens a piece and also allows one to evaluate their paper so that they can remove or add certain details. I couldn’t have said it any better than that. Even though I never really notice that I’m reflecting on things in writing or life in general. I agree one hundred percent with Sammy also when she says that while writing a text you have to keep constantly thinking about what words you want to use in the text to your friend. In my ENC1101 class last semester, my professor had us do a reflection exercise after we wrote a paper. Also, if we had to give ourselves a grade what would be the grade? That helped me reflect on what I wrote and think about if I wrote everything I wanted to say, and if I wrote the paper smoothly. Normally when beginning a new piece, I like to do the “bubble” method. Have the main point in the middle then draw the circles around it and branch out from there and then make a final outline on paper.
ReplyDeleteReflection is important to Yancey because he believes this ability appears to be the essence of the difference between able and not so able writers from their initial writing experience onward. In Yancey's eyes, along with being revealed in a study, reflection is the single most significant aspect of the composition process. Yancey goes on to define reflection as "the process by which we know what we have accomplished and by which we articulate accomplishment". Thus, creating the "product of those processes". As Luc mentioned, reflection allows a writer to continuously make improvements to their composition. The more one can reflect on their writing, the better their overall outcome will be. I have used reflection often in many of my most recent papers. Using reflection has definitely aided me in making better connections throughout my papers. I agree with Sammy, Jonny, and Dominique that while reflection applies to the writing process, it can also apply to many other events. For instance, before presenting my senior project in high school I was asked to reflect on it. This resulted in better word choice, organization, and interaction through my audience. Overall, reflection is immensely crucial in the writing process if one desires to improve their composition and become a better overall writer.
ReplyDeleteReflection is very common in everything we do Yancey defines reflection as the process by which we know what we have accomplished and by which we articulate accomplishment. Yancey also mentions something that I like he says that reflection is the difference between able and not so able from their initial writing experience and onward. And with that I highly agree. As put by Brandon reflection allows a writer to continuously make improvements on their composition. So the more we reflect the more we make improvements on the composition. This does not only apply to composition this applies to life in general the more we make reflections on life we are able to make improvements and learn from what we did change or fix it and do it again. In high school during a writing assignment or the FCAT I reflected numerous times sometimes without me even noticing. It gave me time to improve and catching my mistakes. It made writing easier and quite fun because you can go back read something and say hey that’s my work of art. Reflection was always a positive when it came to my writing. The more I reflected the more I was confident in my paper and I knew I was getting a good grade or a passing score. Reflection is something everyone should do and use. Like Yancey said it’s the difference between able and not so able writers. Reflection is a great tool in writing and has to be used or should be used to have a great paper.
ReplyDeleteStarting off, I am going to have to completely agree with you Johnny. We all do reflect upon most things we do whether we realize it or not and it is part of everyday life. Anything that we feel like we have successfully accomplished we will look back at what we have done and scrutinize the obstacles we overcame to reach the goal we set for ourselves. Yancey explains in the short story that reflection is realizing what you have accomplished and looking back on them for the next time you set goals to successfully make an accomplishment in whatever it is that you do next. While writing it is evident that you do reflect on your paper because if not, you would have had no goals set for the quality of your paper and would not have accomplished anything. A few people have mentioned that Yancey states that “reflection is not only aside the drafts but within them” and I am only bringing this up again because it is perfectly depicted because it is so true that you do not only look back at what you have done afterwards, but you also keep looking back at your unfinished work to make sure you are doing a good job. Following off the fact that you reflect upon your work in the process, Luke, you brought up a great point about Yancey stating that he wished there was more consciousness but not referred to as pauses and rescanning. It is completely true because when I write I look back at whatever I have done to make sure it flows without even realizing I am doing it. Whether you realize it or not, reflecting upon your work will always be apart of good writing.
ReplyDeleteWe use reflection all the time; we reflect upon the actions we take, the words we speak, and even what we write. It is obvious that Yancey feels that reflection must exist for successful writing, and when you figure out how to reflect, it becomes “a habit of mind”. He also says that “reflection is a critical component of learning and of writing specifically”. In other words, he expresses that understanding what we have learned and how we learn is vital in knowing how to continue to learn. Yancey defines reflection as “the dialectical process by which we develop and achieve, first, specific goals for learning; second, strategies for reaching those goals; and third, means of determining whether or not we have met those goals or other goals”. Having reflection as part of my writing process is important because it allows me to analyze what I have written in hopes to find my mistakes, or weak points as well as my strong points. By doing this, I am able to know what I should work on and what I have spot-on. Much like Jonny mentioned, every time I write, I try to reflect on what I am writing so that I can figure out what I might be able to do better. I have used reflection many times, mainly to find mistakes within my writing. For example, last semester, our first paper comprised of 5 vignettes about different experiences within our lives and how they connected. After I was done with my second to last draft which my professor tore apart in our conference, I reflected upon what I had written in hopes of fixing my mistakes. I analyzed my feelings and emotions, or lack of, and was able to go through and add in more of them. I ended up with an A on the paper. Reflection is vital when it comes to successful writing, especially because within reflection, you can find what you can do better.
ReplyDeleteReflection is a very important part of the writing process according to Yancey. I always believed that after the draft is written that was the time to reflect and change what needed to be corrected. That is not the case according to Yancey, the reflection process should be done before starting on the piece. In a way I did reflect on the topic but not to the extent I should have. Mostly just wrote whatever came to mind. I agree with Dominique when she says that reflected involves many goals, as she quoted, “the processes by which we know what we have accomplished and by which we articulate accomplishment and the products of those processes.” That is what Yancey defines as reflection and it clearly states that it is a long process that must be done by setting marks and goals to accomplish. Reflection must be done to broaden your work, and allow for new ideas. It is a way to make your writing better because I am constantly going back and reflecting on my ideas and how I could make it better. Your goals could be set to how many times you go back and add new support to your writing. Or how many times you should read it out loud to yourself. Even how many days you wait before you go back and read it again. It always seems to be different after you allow for some time to pass; things may not even make as much sense as you though they did. All of these are important factors to consider on reflection.
ReplyDeleteReflection is important to Yancey because it is an essential tool in improving your writing skills. Yancey defines reflection as “the process by which we know what we have accomplished and by which we articulate accomplishment.” It is important to the writing process because it gives writing significance, as well as improvements that should be corrected in the future and strengths in your writing. Zoe mentioned I have used reflection in writing once before while writing for ENC 1101 for my radical revision. I had to explain why I chose my particular project and how it changed from its original draft. However, I agree with Jonny when he said, ”We reflect upon most things that we do. Writing proves no exception.” I find this particularly valid in my life due to my tendency to over analyze past events. I don’t always find this as a flaw because through reflection I grow and improve, just as writing should. Dominique pointed out that most students don’t appreciate the helpfulness of writing a reflection because it is viewed at as more work. This, in fact, is the wrong approach because a reflection can only help a writer get their thoughts together and work organized.
ReplyDeleteI am also going to agree with Johnny. Everyone reflects in one way or another. We reflect on past experiences, what we write, and even what we say. We may not realize that we are doing so, but it happens to most of us. Reflection is important to Yancy because he sees it as progression with every time you write. Yancy defines reflection by "the process by which we know what we have accomplished and by which we articulate accomplishment". Like Dominique said, I believe this quote means that our reflection is the process. Reflection is a huge part in the writing process. I reflect on all my essays and writings I do to make sure that it was written to my best ability. When I do that and go through everything again I usually end up with a good grade on my papers. Without reflection I tend to make more mistakes. Reflecting on past work I have done makes it easier to write because I know what to do and what not to do. When I'm writing something that's more personal I reflect on the wording more than anything. Reflection to me is more than looking back. It can also be looking forward. I reflect on the goals I have in my life and how I got to this point now.
ReplyDeleteReflection is an important process in writing and I life. Through the process of reflection one can reflect on many other processes, this is important because this is the time one pays attention to detail and is able to revise and reflect upon the accomplishments of the goals one has set forth. We can infer reflection is an important process to Yancey because he describes how everything we do in writing and in everyday life form from some sort of reflection this is despite the potential to not be cognizant of the reflection occurring. While reading the article I was enthralled with Yancey’s point on the versatility of the word reflection itself. Yancey borrows’ his definition of reflection from the Russian psychologist Vygotsky who describes it’s meanings as: A revision of one’s goals, or more often their work; he moves on to say it may also mean reflection of self-assessment, this is a unique definition because Yancey is describing the self reflection of the goals one wished to accomplish or the work one did. In this type of reflection the writer is evaluating themselves and the life experiences which may have influenced their work. (It is important not to be too critical when making this type of reflection) Vygotsky also said reflection can mean reflection beyond the classroom, or it can entail projection of which provides a baseline which projection can be evaluated. Kyra supports the Idea’s I presented with her description of Yancey’s accounts of reflection being the realization of the accomplishments you have made, and looking back on them, for the next to time you set goals you will be able to successfully accomplish your endeavors. If I had to explicate my formal writing process as a real-life situation or occurrence I would have to describe it as a soccer match. Basically the ideas are bouncing around my head like a soccer ball being kicked between players, and only when my thoughts come together in a smooth, flowing, rhythmic, comprehensive style my paragraph forms thus my team completes that run down field. This leads into an amazing play resulting in a goal for my hypothetical team and a score for my personal development in writing.
ReplyDeleteReflections have become a vital part of writing, from their short history, it has in its own way revolutionized writing improvement. As Luc F explains, “while you are writing you are constantly going back and checking your paper subconsciously to make sure everything is the way you envisioned it” this allows immediate response, and keeps your writing flowing smoothly. I personally have a habit of doing this every time I stop writing, whether that be because it’s the end of my train of thought, I stumble upon a classic case of writers block, or the paper is done, it doesn’t make a difference to me. Ill rewrite the same sentence four or five times if it makes a paper flow better and I catch it in time. Ill also do my best to remember how I wrote it, usually on a subconscious level, for the next time I need it. Yancey explains that, “reflection is realizing what you have accomplished and looking back on them for the next time you set goals” thus when you learn something about your writing through reflection it is important that you retain that information to be able to apply it to a later writing project. This is the whole point for reflections in general, to learn from your own mistakes within writing, to improve each time you write. This technique can also be applied in other areas in life, whether it be in sports performance, academic purposes, or attempting to attract the opposite sex. As the graph above is general enough to be applied to just about anything you do, reflections will help you improve whatever that is.
ReplyDeleteI’ve had to reflect on essays that I write in my past English classes. To me it is just a nuisance that takes up most of my precious time, but to Yancey, reflection means something a lot more important. Yancey believes that reflection is important because it helps us to see where we stand in our writing process. For example she states that reflection is, “putting multiple perspectives into play… in order to produce insight.” She believes it is important because it allows us to see our improvements, accomplishments, or what we might need more work on. I agree with Jackie Young that reflecting is important because it allows us to recognize our strengths in writing. I imagine my writing process like playing flag football. I played the quarter back and running back position, so it was very important for me to know all the plays and be able to execute them effectively. So one thing that I made sure to thoroughly overlook is the playbook. I would first look at the plays and imagine running through them in my head. This is like brainstorming. You have to sit and imagine all different things that can make your paper come out effectively. Next, I would practice the plays over and over again. The first time carrying out the play may not be a success, so I keep on going through the plays until they are executed successfully. This is like writing rough drafts. The first draft may be a little “rough,” but all you can do is make it better by writing more drafts in order to make it better. I do this by making people read my drafts and giving me criticisms. Sometimes when practicing plays, I might realize that no matter how many times I go through a play, it doesn’t work out right. So what I do is try to switch it up a bit to see if it comes out stronger. This is like writing my final draft, I try to see what little details can make my essay a lot more stronger.
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