Peer Review Recap 2

For the second essay of this class, writing style rules, we used a different program to peer review. The program we used is from wiki, called wet paint. Personally, I did not like this program at all. I had a lot of technical difficulties from the very beginning with this. I wasn't able to log in, it was telling me I was using the wrong password, or wrong email. The problem was that I was using the correct password. It wouldn't email me my password, and then it would say that I was already logged in with my user name. This took up a lot of time that I could have been using to review people's essays.

I did not like the tools that were available for use to edit the work. I had to constantly go to the toolbar to change the color I wanted to type with, it wouldn't allow me to just type. I wasn't able to cross out sentences the way I was with Google Docs, I had to actually type 'cross this out' which I felt looked sloppy. I don't know if there are tools that allows you to edit papers this way, but I didn't know where they were.

After looking at my essay, I realized that there wasn't much, of any, helpful corrections. I needed to help for this essay, and don't feel like I got the same amount as I did with the first essay. Another thing that I didn't like, was that some people's papers overflowed with comments, I don't understand why, maybe their the popular ones, whatever.

I would suggest using the Google Docs program. It's way more efficient, and productive as well. I felt like it was more intimate with our groups, and so the reviews were much more helpful then they were while using the wiki.

What are others Saying?

After reading a few of my classmates blogs about their feelings towards Strunk and White and Williams, I was able to see that there are people with the same feelings towards Strunk and White as mine. Many people agreed that after reading Strunk and White they had gained specific answers about grammar rules that they always had. Rebecca made an interesting statement in her blog about Strunk and White, "I was turned off when these authors put down writers who don’t follow their strict rules." (http://rcreteau.blogspot.com) I think that this is a big issue for students that are reading this book, and are trying to get a benefit towards their writing style out of it. I agree with Becca, because I felt the same after reading some of the issues that seemed to annoy Strunk and White. I found myself being turned off to what they had to say, and found that a lot of the issues they had didn't matter all that much in a persons writing style.

As I was looking at the syllabus, I must have gotten something mixed up because I thought that we had two days to read Williams entire book (not something I would recommend!) I would have to agree with Rudi stating, "Williams' book is far better, more useful and more in-depth, but also harder to use" (http://clocklife.blogspot.com) I found that this book was much harder then Strunk and White, but after class discussions I was able to comprehend each chapter much clearer. I felt that the information from Williams was a lot more beneficial as a college student. I personally don't feel that grammar is that big of an issue nowadays, with spell check so handy, but the Eloquence and Concision of writing truly makes a difference in our work. I enjoyed reading what others in class had to say about Strunk and White and Williams, I gained a new view towards the authors as well.

Comparing Strunk and White with Williams

As I was reading through some of my blog postings, I reflected back on what I said after I read Strunk and White's Elements of Style. After I read this book I really enjoyed the information that was available for me to practice. I realized that this book contained a lot of answers that I had questions to as a writer. I feel that this book is focused towards the technical part of writing, rather then the quality or eloquence of it.

Joseph Williams' book Style: Toward Clarity and Grace does begin with the same type of format, or information about writing as does Strunk and White. During the beginning 0f the book Williams begins by teaching the basics needed to write clearly, with a proper flow and emphasis of writing as well. I believe that a lot of these elements are similar in both books. Towards the second half of Williams, he goes into more depth about the eloquence and grace of writing, assuming that we can now write clear, coherent, and appropriately.

Strunk and White never seem to go into detail as the way Williams was able to. I feel that Strunk and White were directed towards a less advanced audience, and so this book was starting at the beginning, or back to the basics as some would say. I feel like Strunk and White were much more opinionated, and were trying to teach their audience how to write without annoying them. I feel like Williams directed his audience towards a much more advanced writer. Even though the beginning chapters begin with a lot of basic rules, it still seems to be more advanced and depth then Strunk and White ever really get to. I also feel like Williams is much more complex, and there is a lot of information to learn, but feel like this was very helpful for a senior in college.

Revising with Williams

After reading Joseph Williams' Style: Toward Clarity and Grave, there are a lot of helpful tips for a Style of writing. I found a passage from the 'Admissions' link in the EMU Catalogs. This passage states, "Eastern Michigan University is open to students who have the potential to succeed academically as determined by a review of official high school records and/or college records. Admission to the University is based on a combination of factors including, but not limited to, the review of high school or college grade point average, high school or college curriculum and scores on standardized tests.

I revised this passage to state, "Eastern Michigan University is open to students who have the potential to succeed academically. This is determined by a review of official high school and/or college records. Admission to the University is based on the review of high school or college grade point average, high school or college curriculum and scores on standardized tests.

I found that the passage I chose to revise was unclear, it wasn't easy for me to read and understand. After I read it, I had to read the passage again because I couldn't comprehend the direct message. I used Chapter 2, titled Clarity, to help revise this passage.

I felt like this passage was making the reader work too hard, because we have to re-assemble and sort out the actions in our minds. This is discussed on page 18. I tried to fix this by separating the first sentence into two. I eliminated a few words, and felt like this was easier to read. I also eliminated words from the last sentence. I felt like there were unnecessary words in this sentence that only took the reader away from the topic. I made the sentence shorter, causing the passage to flow and easier for the reader to understand.

Strunk and White: First Impressions

After reading Strunk and White's, The Elements of Style, I was intrigued with the information in the book. I felt the book was a fairly easy read and the information wasn't overbearing to comprehend. As I was reading, I realized that there were answers in this book to many of the questions that I had as a writer. This is a little book, but I feel that is useful to have for writers of any level. I feel that the book is conveniently small for writers to have in any place, and easy to look up information as well.

There were several "elements" mentioned that I felt are useful for me to have as a writer. The element that caught my attention was chapter 4, which was a list of words and expressions commonly misused. There are a lot of words listed that I commonly misuse, and honestly didn't know the correct meanings. For example nauseous meaning sickening to contemplate, and nauseated meaning sick at the stomach. I have always used these words interchangeably, not knowing the difference in meaning. In Chapter 4 I liked that the words listed were written with examples of how they were used incorrectly, and the correct way to use these words as well. I felt this to be most helpful.

There were a few elements that I found unhelpful for a writer, or just couldn't understand. Chapter 3 discusses the matters of form. I found that some of these were dated. The discussion of margins isn't of any help, since most writers use a word processor with margins already set. Also, I don't feel that there is one correct way of writing titles, headings, or numerals in a paper. I feel like there are many correct ways, other then the ones stated by Strunk and White.

Overall, I found that this is a useful reference book for any writer, or student to own. I feel like this is a book that answers questions that many of us have. I don't think that there are exact rules for each element of writing, but I do feel that there are useful examples in this book that a writer can always refer back to.

Peer Review Recap

The first assignment of the ENGL328 class was to invent our own writing technologies, without the use of any tools such as pens, pencils, paper, computer, basically any sort of technology. We then had to write a 5-6 page essay of how our invention process went, what we learned after writing text without the use of technology, and connections to class readings as well.

Once the essay was finished we were to submit it online to Google Docs. I have never used this before, but felt it was very easy to do. We were placed in small groups of 3, which I liked, and then share our essay with the people in our group. I thought it was cool that we could share our docs with whomever we wanted, rather then with the whole class. I never peer reviewed someones paper online, I have always done so with a hard copy. I felt like this was much better and easier to use. There were a lot of tools available to use (such as spell check, word count, thesaurus,etc.) in which I wouldn't have readily available with a hard copy in front of me. I felt like I was able to say what I wanted in the documentation much clearer then I would have on a hard copy trying to scribble and point weird arrows everywhere. I also liked that I was able to get feedback from two different people, and see which comment was from whom, so if I had any questions about it, I was able to ask that person.

The only issues that I had with using Google Docs, was that because it was live, I was confused if the person has already reviewed my paper, or were in the process of reviewing it. I felt like that was hard, but once I learned that if a person just reads the doc, it will tell me it's reviewed by that person, when this necessarily isn't the case. Now that I know this, I will need to have a little more patience waiting for my reviews from my peers!

My Writing Technologies

I have been able to read since I was about four years old, so I don't have a memory of what it feels like not to be able to read. I also have been writing since I was at a very young age as well. I have always enjoyed reading and writing, and always felt that it is the 'norm' to be able to read and write. I grew up in a household where both of my parents came to this country at an older age. They had little education from the country they grew up in, working and providing was more important at the time then school and education. I can remember teaching my father to read and write in English when I was in the third grade. My family was not big on the new technology of using computers, and so I was not familiar with a lot of technology other then the incorporation of it in school.

Now that I am in my fourth year of college I have become very familiar with several writing technologies that I use all the time. Before I read the articles in this class, I honestly wouldn't have said that using a pencil or pen to write was a 'technology' tool that I use. I was so used to writing with pencil on paper, that this actually seemed old fashioned to me. But, this is definitely a tool that I use all the time. I like to write notes in class, brainstorm on paper before I actually type an essay, because I like to see work in my own writing. I feel if I see information in my handwriting, I will comprehend it much easier. I also use the computer all the time for several writing tools. I definitely use word processor for my essays or any professional documentation. I use email to keep in touch or ask questions with my peers or co-workers as well. I have used the Internet for for writing tools as well. I have taken an online course where everything was discussed online. I have also used caucus and blogger for class discussions. I have used Livetext to post some of my writing work to be seen and read.

I feel as though I have become familiar with new writing technologies and use these tools for my advantage. I do feel that these tools have helped speed up the writing process. I feel as though information is much more convenient and easy for me to find. I try to avoid using emails as a way to catch up with a family member or an old friend. I get so busy, and am so used to being able to keep in contact with the world from my computer screen. I feel as though it is much more personal to keep in contact with a person through written letters, phone conversations, or physical visits.