Davis Brightmon Marsh

Ms. Ingram

UWRT 1103

12/5/2015

Final Portfolio Essay

To start with my FPE, I believe the organization to my work is key to seeing my

own progression as a writer. The home page gives you a short summary as to what this

portfolio will be showing and also some slight information as to who I am and what

interests me. On each individual page there are written artifacts that I can examine to

see exactly how I have been growing as a writer and where my mistakes have turned to

strengths. In each piece of writing I try to appeal to an audience that is different in the

sense of a view on a subject. Through each piece of writing I could see how I was

learning different techniques and ways of approaching different audiences.

In my midterm paper, I examined the key concepts of this course which were

critical reflection, making connections, independent inquiry and curiosity, getting out of

one’s comfort zone, and taking responsibility for your own learning. Discussing these

concepts to the core of their meaning allowed me to openly examine my strengths and

weaknesses when it comes to my writing. Through this piece, I realized that my inability

to get out of my comfort zone can affect every area of my life right down to my writing

skills. Recognizing this flaw allowed me to work to move past it, so that I can venture

out and take necessary risks. For example, in my traditional research paper, instead of

focusing solely on information that supports my original beliefs, I chose to view the issue

from both sides. Even though my paper was written in support of changing the

classification of marijuana, I did discuss how people could lean towards the other side of

the argument:“It is easily understandable that Marijuana would be placed in this

schedule when no studies were possible and the war on drugs was more prominent

than ever.” Another key concept that helped benefit my learning was the concept of

taking responsibility for my own learning. In high school, I wasn’t pressed to take much

responsibility because the classes were relatively easy and the teachers were very

lenient. Beginning college has taught me to view school less as a place to be taught

things and more as a place to learn whether that be by a professor or of my own

making. This concept has helped better my experience in this course as my desire to

learn grows.

My annotated bibliography helped better my research methods. Being forced to

organize clearly my sources and what they are doing for the paper allowed me to

evaluate what sources are actually useful rather than which ones are just readily

available. It taught me to examine how reliable the source is before using it because

previously I would just grasp onto any useful information I found in the piece regardless

of how reliable or effective it was. For example, when viewing the source “Working to

Reform Marijuana Laws”, I was able to gather information about the reforming of

marijuana’s scheduling system. “The federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA)

classifies marijuana as a Schedule I drug — one with a high potential for abuse and “no

currently accepted medical use” — and criminalizes the acts of prescribing, dispensing,

and possessing marijuana for any purpose.” This quote showed exactly what it needed

to show how the federal government’s scheduling system is not up to date and is in

need of reform.

In my exploratory essay, I talked about how my family and friends are my focus

in life. “ I would like to be able to say I would still be the person that I am today without

the help from my family, but could that even slightly be true? Probably not. I need the

people that are in my life, without them I would be lost in a world full of misconceptions

and judgements.” I still believe I wouldn't be the person I am today if I was raised any

differently. I can reflect on the person I am and focus on these positive memories, or on

the ones that were negative, and see what kind of person I actually would describe

myself as. My family has helped influence me in a positive way and I think that by

writing this paper, it gave me insight into who I am as a person, including who I am as a

writer. Writing this paper helped me to recognize what I really care about and what

motivates me. I can see how much my writing has grown as I expand on my main points

rather than just listing them. I had to go back many times on my drafts to change how I

would talk about things. A lot of the time I really just needed to expand more on certain

parts of my writing and giver more information for the reader. In my exploratory essay I

chose to go back and try to talk more about how my family shaped me and what exactly

they did to show me what decent person would act like. My mother was in education for

twenty-eight years and she has shown me through her own actions how to respect

others and learn from their various views and interpretations. “My father is very much a

people person. He has shown me how to evaluate the way I see things, such as viewing

a situation from a an empathetic empathetic standpoint. Getting all the details before

coming to a conclusion, so that the conclusion I would arrive at would not be corrupted

by an altered view.” I then proceed to talk about my sister and girlfriend. But while

writing this, and then also re-reading it, it is refreshing to have to examine your life and

what exact parts of this huge subject mean the most to you. It is a huge reflection on

one’s self and what my life means to me.

There were also many other small pieces of work that we completed throughout

the semester that helped me figure out what to write about and also how to expand on

certain topics. One day we performed an activity to brainstorm research topics that

interest us. When doing this I seem to just write out a list of things that intrigue me in

today's society. Three main topics were; Marijuana rescheduling, Equal rights,

Education. With each topic it was interesting to see exactly what I chose to become my

three topics to narrow down. It also made me look at myself as a person and question

my choices and comparing them to others. Equal rights is a very big deal to me due to

the simple fact that I believe every individual should be treated equally no matter their

race, religion, or sexual orientation. My main question for researching equal rights;

“Even though gay marriage is legalized in the U.S there are still countries that have

death penalties in place for any known homosexuals. When will we stop ruining each

others lives and just live our own?” Even though equal rights didn’t end up being my

research topic, it is still a large part of my life. When I thought about it more I chose

marijuana scheduling over the others mainly due to the fact I just wanted to learn more

about the subject and what was really holding back the end of the prohibition. It made

me look at the subject of medical marijuana, and also recreational use, in a different

light. There are many people in the country that are in need of substances that are

located within the marijuana plant for medical purposes yet they are denied because the

government thinks this plant is extremely harmful and addictive. Even though almost

half of the United States has medical marijuana, and also many patients, the federal

government still lists the substance as schedule I and jail sentences continue to pile up

every day for possession. When choosing between my topics we had to question each

one. “ How could such a simple plant, over the course of approximately 100 years

become so looked down upon? An all natural substance that has proven to be beneficial

to cancer patients, and others with various struggling victims of disease. While a few of

our "United States" have legalized for medical purposes, marijuana still remains on the

substance 1 list. What will it take to nationally legalize our right to make our own

choice?” With my interest in hand this became my research topic and I learned much

more about the process and laws the United States has been enforcing.