I wish to take this opportunity to thank you for your guidance in Academic English 20 course during the fall of 2018 quarter. The academic quarter went well and served as a turning point in my education particularly in the field of academic English. I had the opportunity of polishing my academic English skills through the assignments and projects undertaken throughout the course. While the other classes I was enrolled in concurrently with Academic English 20 had exposed and challenged me to readings I was unfamiliar with, Academic English 20 has proved to be the most rewarding and most challenging course that I took during the fall quarter in the University of California.
The course material engages directly with the English skills required by students in the academic field. The course material covered different topics which include the use of nouns and noun phrases, writing about the past, use of present perfect and word forms, and writing with prepositions. The use of modals, gerunds, infinitives, passive voice, and participial adjectives as also covered throughout the course. I was able to expand my knowledge in the English language mainly when writing in diverse academic contexts. The academic writing context includes the different types of university writing, use of scholarly sources, cohesion, revision and editing, and language concerns which cover the effective use of grammar, punctuation, spelling, and Capitalization. Some of the readings covered in the course include Learning to Speak up when you’re from a Culture of Deference by Andy Molinsky, Here’s why we don’t Speak up against Harassment by Zoe Chance, and Why Women Need to Stop Talking Themselves Down by Margie Warrel. I acquired academic writing skills and good command of the English Language.
The writing-intensive nature of the Academic English 20 course helped in the development and improvement of my academic writing skills. One of the areas of academic writing that was covered included the creative writing which involved the study and composition of short stories. The course assisted in describing a short story and its length and through the materials covered I was able to define the different elements of a short story which include character, setting, plot, conflict, theme, the point of view, rising action, falling action, resolution, and tone. The assignment for the creative writing module required one to write a short story using an unreliable narrator’s point of view. Before taking the course, I was not aware of the required length of a short story and use of point of view, but through the assignment, I was able to polish my creative writing skills.
Use of academic sources is essential in the academic type of writing, and the course proved to be helpful in the use of scholarly sources which include peer-reviewed academic documents and the different citation styles. I learned how to integrate academic sources and their importance and also how to cite and correctly format quotations. The knowledge acquired in the use of scholarly sources will be helpful in future projects in the course of my study especially when writing research papers and project proposals.
Academic English 20 has made me a strong writer through acquiring good command in grammar, punctuation, drafting and editing, and overall English development. I am grateful for the time, effort, and dedication you have shown me throughout the course and I hope you consider passing me. Hope you enjoyed reading my Academic English 20 portfolio.
Sincerely,
(Student’s Name)
