Reading Goal: Find similarities between Tows #3, 11, and 19
Writing Goal: Respond to assignment questions thoroughly
Overall, throughout the year, I have both extremely disliked and appreciated writing TOWs. They were annoying to write, especially under a deadline, but I found that my essay writing really improved over the year because of writing timed essays and TOWs. From TOW #3 to TOW #11, my writing improved mainly in its organization and planning. While #3 and #11 are both mostly summary and worse than #19, #11 has more analysis and is a better attempt at rhetorical analysis than #3. #19 is the best organization-wise of the three TOWs because it is structured like a mini timed essay, and was one of the first TOWs I wrote that was supposed to model actual analysis writing. It finally occurred to me during the end of the 2nd marking period that TOWs weren't really helping my writing, since I was stuck in a writing rut and my TOWs were not very well-thought out or unique from each other. #19 is also the best of the three because of what it is analyzing. The TOWs I wrote in the beginning of the year are for the most part based on interesting articles, but not rhetorical masterpieces. #3 and #19 are more appropriate for analytic writing than #11, but I still think it's good that I varied the topics I was reading about despite the fact that many times, I was not excited about the article I chose. I think that if I could change anything, I would pick articles, essays, and other writing that is both new and interesting right from the start. I think it is definitely easier to write s better essay about something you understand and can connect to. From the beginning of TOW writing to now, I think I've mastered how to form an essay. I've realized that an essay no longer has to be 5 paragraphs, should have its thesis at the end of the first paragraph, needs strong topic sentences, and doesn't need generalized or quoted hooks and closings. I used to format my essays all in the same general style, and it was decent writing, but it wasn't getting me closer to an 8 and away from a 5. On the other hand, I think that my analysis could always improve. I still have to keep in mind that I must connect my analysis and ideas back to my thesis throughout my paragraphs, and sometimes I don't have enough evidence or reference my thesis only at the beginning and end. My analysis has improved, and I see the flaws, but knowing about the mistakes hasn't made them all disappear; I think that when it comes to improvement, tying my analysis to my thesis is one of my biggest things to work on. The thing I appreciated most about the TOWs was that they taught me to write well no matter what I am writing. It could be a AP essay for points, for the exam, or just for timed practice or a TOW, but it still counts in the long run towards making me a better writer. #11 and #19 resemble essays much more than #3, which seems like a commentary or summary even though the article/essay discussed is of better rhetorical quality than the topic of #11. Writing TOWs helped my writing to become AP quality just as much as the timed essays and other assignments because it made me finally think about the quality of my writing and what I can do to improve it. I learned that I have room to grow as a writer, and that was a good lesson to learn after having theme readers freshman and sophomore years who always gave me strong A grades and no little room to improve. Writing a mini essay and maintaining a blog may have been painful and/or exhausting this year, but it is worth it now that I see how much my writing has grown.
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