My history as a Writer 2

When I came to college I did not know what was going to be expected and my writing. I thought that maybe, like in high school, every class I took would emphasize the importance of writing. That I would be shown how in all of my different areas of study, being able to convey effectively what it is you are trying to say was very important. However, this was not at all expected of me. In my English class, yes, I was asked to make points, describe settings, situations, and logic, and analyze many things. But not in my other classes, and I think that I know why.

Instead of teaching the importance of good writing skills, and asking a student to write a paper on a specific thought, my classes are just based on the fact that if you cannot write well, you will not do well. Now, I still have classes that require papers to be written about history, science, or engineering, but I also need to write well for many other things that I do. I must be able to explain myself on tests, my reasoning on lab reports, and even take good notes. Some of my classes are very heavily lecture oriented, and lecture is important in all of them. If I am able to write well, then I will be able to copy down the correct notes and read them later to remember and learn everything that I had to. More importantly, I will be able to recognize what is being taught by the professor easily.

I believe that I have come a long way as a writer. At the beginning of high school, my writing skills were limited to writing a biography on a famous person, or writing a book report. But now I use my writing skills all of the time. Being a good helps me in all of my classes. It helps me communicate with other students and professors, it helps me compose papers on exactly what I am trying to say, and it makes me a better student as it is an intellectual way to express my idea.
Oh yeah, and then there is the whole writing poetry thing that never really worked out for me.