Course Projects

• What are you most confused by or nervous about in regards to the four major projects?

I am most nervous about the preparation involved for the rhetorical investigation. I will need to begin finding and securing interviewees for that as soon as possible. Then comes the responsibility of actually interviewing them: I will need to have all my questions thoroughly prepared in order to make sure I get all the information I need to complete that project.

• What are you most interested in or excited by in regards to the four major projects?

However, I am still excited to complete the actual rhetorical investigation. As a pre-business student, this project will likely have me analyzing the intricacies of professional communications. I previously studied this type of communication in a Marketing Dynamics course in high school, but an even deeper look into the language of business will be illuminating.

• Based on your understanding of the major projects, what are the elements of this course that you have to plan ahead for? How will the coursework described in the four project assignment sheets challenge your time management skills this semester?

Most obviously, the rhetorical investigation will take the most pre-planning, as it requires two interviews to be completed. This means that interview subjects must be identified, and a location and time to meet must be scheduled. Additionally, for the completion of the video essays and podcast genres, microphones and cameras must be reserved ahead of time. These factors mean I must have a timeline arranged to ensure that I can have the materials I need when it's time to assemble these projects.

• How has your past English coursework in high school or college prepared you for the challenges of this course? What skills will you bring into the course with you?

In my junior and senior-level English courses, we did a research project each year as a major grade. For these projects, we had deadlines for each component of the final product, such as deadlines for the assembly of sources and rough drafts. This practice of marking milestones will translate over to the pre-production, production, and review phases of this course. 

• Do you have any questions about the four major projects that haven't been answered by the assignment sheets? What do you still want to know?

At the moment, I do not have any pressing questions about the requirements of the projects. If or when a problem arises, I will make sure to present it for clarification.

16/01/24 11:01PM ETA: Viewing Alex and Jacob's posts, I got a general feel of the outlook for this course, and some of my concerns were re-affirmed. Most people are looking forward to the genres this course requires as a positive experience. I share that viewpoint; I believe it will be interesting to create something more thought-intensive than the standard college essay that we've learned to craft for years in high school. Additionally, everyone mirrored the importance of time management. Clearly I will need to measure out my time wisely to complete these projects efficiently.