Document their work using appropriate conventions (MLA).
Most of my classes in high school required everything to be in MLA, so it is a very comfortable way to write for me. Although I am good at using MLA formatting, at times grammar can get the best of me. I have worked on my quote integration over the semester and I think that has significantly improved. I think it is something that not everyone really thinks about when they think of formatting. However, I think it can really make or break a paper. I really enjoy using embedded quotes and think they make my writing flow a lot better. The style of MLA makes for a clean and put-together paper, and the writing should also reflect that. The simplistic format also carries into citing the references. I think that MLA might be the easiest way to cite sources. The class was a good reminder of the proper way to do that in MLA. Overall, I think this practice helped strengthen my writing and I can now confidently write a paper in MLA format.
Control sentence-level errors (grammar, punctuation, spelling).
Even though I am familiar with MLA format there are still many things I needed to learn such as specific conventions, block quotes, etc. Through practice, I have been able to learn how to correct these mistakes. I would say that I am not the best writer but also not the worst. I think my fault tends to be in the small more technical things. My brain works much faster than my hands and I tend to focus more on my thoughts rather than the structure of a sentence. Semi-colons are an area I need to work on as my general sentence structure. I think I could always benefit from another pair of eyes on my writing when it comes to commas and semicolons. This has been an ongoing struggle for me and is something I definitely need to strengthen. I think that over this semester I have become more confident in my ability and will be working to further it over my career.
