The Language Barrier - Essay Example

Jalal Hassan Fattore Expository Writing 102 9 May Dear Reader, I hope that you understand that I am a non-native taking an English course about writing. The projects which are contained in this portfolio are a compilation of some of the work that I have been able to accomplish in order to engage my audience in an interesting topic. I have submitted this portfolio for my expository writing class in order to reflect on the barriers that I already had to overcome as a non-native student but as a student overall because I had other obstacles that others did not have. I hope to address some of the leaps and bounds that I have made in my journey through this class this semester and explain the methods I used to come up with thought inducing topics but also to be able to express papers through methods in which the assignment was clear but still had a point. When I would first try to determine the topics for which I would write about, I would consider my own personal experiences and the things around me that influence my thinking. The best way to determine a topic for me was to take a subject of interest and conduct research in order to elaborate more on it. When I did some thinking, writing and research my ideas would change and I thought of ways to narrow down a topic and the way in which to portray what I was trying to say. There were several times when I had to determine whether or not the topic that I was most interested in was one that I really wanted to write about or if I could find enough research about it. To decide, I would use library services and also the Internet to find topics that had supporting research. I still wanted to maintain my own voice in these papers because they were of interest to me. When looking at some of the most difficult problems I faced while writing, the fact that I am a non-native speaker and student made it difficult. There were some issues or concepts discussed in writings that I was unfamiliar with. I found that some of my information should focus more on the United States and some of the situations found in the culture and society here. The cultural differences and importances in society made a difference in some of the things that I would write about. My grammar and basic way of thinking is a struggle when compared to American English and it was a bit of a challenge to overcome. I did my best to seek out help in order to write to the best of my ability and still organize papers so that they made sense. When researching, I took the advice of my professor, my tutor and my peers. I was often provided with information that could help me grow as a writer. My friends would sometimes look over my paper for me just to make sure it flowed okay. I mostly used the advice of my tutors as I was able to sit and talk to them in a one-on-one situation. Advice that I sometimes ignored was that of my peers and friends. I know that they were trying to help me but they are in the same situation I am and are just students themselves. They rarely had time to provide me with much feedback and since they are completing their own assignments, I know that they were not expert writers either. Overall, I listened most to those that had the most experience in writing and offered constructive criticisms that would better help me construct a better paper. One thing that I learned in this class is best reflected in a diagram. This is is in regards to adding quotations to a paper where I see that there is a need. A quotation can sometimes include information that cannot be better said just using paraphrasing. Instead, using a quotation is more powerful in getting the point across. In order to discuss quotations, there is the quotation sandwich which is comprised of three different components. The sandwich diagram helped me realize the importance of a quotation and how it could contribute to my papers and then would allow me to further to utilize the quotation in order to transition into the rest of my paper and how it all tied in. I think that in conjunction with the objectives that I was intended to learn from this class, I grew more as a writer. I was able to take the writing process from generating ideas, conducting research, determining what type of paper I was wanting to write and then be able to write a thesis, draft and eventually a final paper. I had to think on a more critical level in order to narrow down topics and think in terms of rhetoric. I had to take what it was I was reading in my research and then apply that to a paper that I was writing. Sometimes I had to summarize in my own mind what it was my research article sources were trying to say in order to determine whether or not it was plausible enough to be used in my own writing projects. What is great about my experience is that yes, I have struggles because I am a non-native speaker, but I was able to grow and prosper more. Through the use of this course and the work that it involved, I gained more insight from those who provided feedback so that I would write better the next time around. While other students struggled with writing, I was trying to overcome my own barriers just in order to write an English paper. Sometimes what I was trying to say was difficult for me to portray with clarity. I had these thoughts in my mind but it was difficult to put them down on paper in order to build a paper that was smooth and progressive. Through the use of tutors on campus, I have been able to accomplish many of the goals of this class which are some that I can continue to use in future writing projects in other classes. This class and its objectives helped me to develop an intelligent framework for a foundation for the rest of my classes. Some of my writing pieces such as one that I wrote about Surviving the Language Barrier, I introduced others to my struggles. It was a real life portrayal of something that I was experiencing in my classes. I recognized that I had to connect with others who could help me learn English and try to overcome the wall of language. Translating information into written words was definitely not easier. Putting English words into a sensible statement was sometimes hard for me but I have to say, I have come a long way. When looking at my other topics such as legalization of marijuana and the paper about President Barack Obama, I had to familiarize myself with some of the laws of the United States and was able to learn more about the American culture based on these topics. The sociology and thoughts of Americans are different from where I am from so it was interesting to be able to offer my own point of view while using primarily American written resources such as journals and articles. In order to check for clarity, I sometimes had to alter my titles to not just discuss what I was talking about but make them more specific. Legalizing Marijuana is a broad topic and my title could have been more specific to identify the overall goals of my paper. I should have titled it instead, “Legalization of Marijuana in the United States,” in order to convey what I was really trying to say. For “Surviving Language Barrier,” my narrative, I could have also narrowed it down for clarity to include surviving a language barrier as a college student in the United States. I also sometimes had a hard time narrowing down my thesis. Though I knew what my topic was about, it was difficult to properly state what my projected outcomes of writing were. Clarity and the way that I varied sentences was hard for me, especially when I tried to write drafts on my own. When I was able to receive help, it became easier for me to see where I could write paragraphs that could transition from one to another. While I have put a great deal of effort into this course, I know that I have some room to grow. While some of my papers have been satisfactory, I have learned more than I have ever realized. I have personally grown too because I realize that with the right help, I can overcome my own issues of fighting a language barrier. My papers started out a little bit rough around the edges and while still not perfect, they have greatly improved. I recognize that the whole writing process is an essential foundation not only for the rest of my college courses but for the rest of my life. Clarity has been the largest obstacle for me to overcome and though writing is a process that is constantly evolving, I can see that I have at least began building a foundation that will assist me in writing better papers in the future. Respectfully, Jalal Hassan Enc. 4 Read More