Self-reflection

Composing Process
The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet (Aristotle). Throughout the course of
writing 39C I have encountered both stressful and relieving moments, conducting research is not
an easy task, it is in fact a very time consuming one. Something I have learned about the process
of generating a research-based composition is how to successfully and efficiently conduct
research; also I learned how to analyze the research I found to back up my claims, instead of just
dumping the information, I learned how to analyze and correctly incorporate it. Writing drafts
and pre-writing tasks (forums) play a significant role in the organization of your composition.
Throughout the process of writing Composition 2, which focused on the solution to the problem,
we were assigned many pre-writing tasks which served as the back bone and outline to the paper.
Solution Analysis was an assignment which asked me to do some in-depth analysis about the
solution I was choosing; at first I thought that the best solution to prison overcrowding was to
reduce the amount of strict sentencing laws which were enacted throughout the time of mass
incarceration.

Although the main idea of my first solution, shown above, seems reasonable and looks like it
would reduce the overcrowding of prisons; changing or reducing laws is a hassle and I knew
there had to be other solutions which were perhaps more efficient. Hence, I found the right
solution which was proposed by Senator Steinberg. If it werent for this assignment, I most likely
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would have gone through the first solution I chose which would have required a much larger
amount of research since it would have been harder to convince people to support the changing
of laws.
Rhetoric, Argumentation, & Multi-modal
Communication
Writing a research-based paper requires a variety of evidence, it isnt just about using experts
who advocate the cause, a successful research paper involves multi-modal aspects. At first I
thought that images would be enough, however I learned that graphs and pie charts are also a
great ways to support your argument. A lot of the graphs and charts I used in both of my
compositions were found in articles, the articles themselves have their own claims so you can
either use them as support or as a counterargument. Youre the writer so you make decisions
about the organization of the paper.
Using multi-modal elements conveys a different take to your argument, for example I used
graphs and charts to show the severity of prison overcrowding and how it has increased rapidly
over time. Graphs serve as proof and a visual that the audience can use to simplify their
understanding of the information. For those who are visual learners, it is always good to make
use of multi-modal writing because it helps them learn and inform themselves about your topic.
As I was writing Comp 2 I encountered two solutions to the problem of prison overcrowding,
one was Governor Jerry Browns solution and the other was Senator Darrel Steinberg. Governor
Browns solution provided funding that would go towards prisons and investing in buying more
prison beds, Senator Steinbergs solution provided funding that would go towards rehabilitation
center who aimed to reduce recidivism rates. Choosing between the two solutions asked me to
Self-reflection
deepen my research and analysis about each of the solutions and after doing so, I came to the
conclusion that Steinbergs solution attacked the root of the problem. I found useful support from
various arguments, proving that Steinbergs solution was the better choice, below is an image of
what captivated my attention and allowed me to make a decision.

After making the decision, I chose to use Browns solution as a counterargument to show that
investing in prisons would not attack the root of the problem of reduce prison sizes; I compared
the cost and efficiency of the solutions to convince my audience that investing in Steinbergs
plan was best.
Revision
Revision plays one of the biggest roles in writing and proof-reading your paper to submit the
final draft; revision can play several roles, it can narrow your work down to only what is
necessary and relevant, serving as a filter. Revision can also fix minor or major mistakes, it can
point out places throughout your composition where you lack analysis, and many other types of
mistakes can be found through the process of revision. I benefited from feedback from Jaya and
many of my peers because they saw mistakes that I didnt; they provided specific criticism
throughout Comp 1 and Comp 2 that helped me improve my compositions. The image below
shows how I lacked evidence in Comp 1, I was informing my audience about the issue of prison
overcrowding but I wasnt backing up my claims.
Self-reflection

Also, throughout Comp 1 I used evidence but I based my evidence more on newspaper articles
and I needed more of a variety. Jaya pointed this out and which pushed me to conduct better
research, finding sources other than newspaper articles is something I found difficult but when
your teachers asks you to do better, you have to do it; and Im glad I did. Conducting research
became fun at some point because while I conducted research I came across many articles that
provided really interesting information, I was amazed and shocked about a lot of the research I
found and I incorporated a bigger variety of what I found in my compositions.

Another issue one of my peers encountered while proof-reading my paper was lack of analysis
I was dumping the information and quotes from experts but I wasnt properly analyzing what I
was stating. The point of doing research is to analyze it and use it to support or prove a point, and
I was finding useful research but I was not conveying it correctly. I fixed this by going back and
re-reading my body paragraphs and adding analysis to places that seemed empty, I also made
sure that I didnt end any paragraphs with quotes. I made sure all the quotes I used as evidence
were correctly analyzed.
Self-reflection

Revision served to deepen not only my research but my analysis as well; without the help of my
teacher and my peers, my compositions wouldnt be as strong as they are now. I learned a lot
from their criticism and I did what they asked to improve my research papers.
Transfer
Now that I have successfully completed the sequence of courses that fulfills the Lower Division
Writing Requirement, I feel prepared and well equipped to write papers for any other class I
encounter throughout my time at UCI. I know that the writing 39 series definitely served to
improve my writing and has made me a stronger researcher, analyzer and writer in general. I
learned how to narrow down my claims and arguments, and to filter my papers to what are
credible sources only; this has taught and allowed me to be a much more concise writer. I have
applied what I learned in the writing 39 series to writing assignments in other classes such as my
Criminology Law & Society where I had to conduct research about crime theories which explain
why convicts commit the crimes they do. I applied many of the concepts I learned in writing 39C
such as making annotations and writing source evaluations to make sure that the sources I was
using were credible. Although writing source evaluations and annotations werent requirements
for the writing assignment in my Crim/Law class, I still did them to evaluate/question the
credibility of the articles I was using as well as to take notes on the sources I was using.
Self-reflection
So far I have not used multi-modal aspects in papers I have done in any of my other classes,
simply because I have only had to write essays in my writing class and in my Crim/Law class.
However, when I get the chance to incorporate multi-modal aspects in any other paper I will not
hesitate to do so because I learned that making use of graphs, charts, images, videos, and many
other aspects unquestionably serves as a beneficial manner to support claims/arguments one may
raise. The issue of prison overcrowding is an issue I do not take lightly; I am very passionate
about it and wish that steps are taken to make some progress about solving the overcrowding of
prisons in California. After writing both Comp 1 and Comp 2 I feel greatly informed about the
issue and have taken steps to inform classmates and peers about the issue when a chance is put
before me; conducting all the research I conducted throughout this course has served as support
when I talk about prison overcrowding, and I am glad people are shocked and concerned about
the issue after I inform them about it. This class had been nothing but a benefit for me; it was
difficult to handle at times but Jaya made the assignments (forums) doable , and they served to
provide a backbone/outline to Composition 1 and Composition 2.