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Thlog #9

No one ever said week nine was easy, and I’m not quite sure that I disagree with the popular opinion. While the idea behind WP3 I found to be pretty interesting and provide a great amount of room for creative input, I felt like the project as a whole was a bit rushed. We did have a decent amount of time to come up with our ideas and compose our proposal, but I felt like I had an inadequate amount of time to really execute the project to the extent that I would have liked. I guess part of this likely came from not wanting to begin my transformations until they were somewhat “approved.” Despite this feeling of being a bit pressed for time, it got done and now it is time to focus on the final portfolio. Again, I’m feeling slightly overwhelmed about taking on this project, but I’m hoping that as I begin to work on it, that stress will be eased.

            As far as actual class time went this week I found myself to really enjoy the activity with the McCloud piece. I thought it was both interesting and beneficial in understanding the key “arenas” that he points out authors can interact within. I also always find it helpful to hear other student’s definitions of the same topic, as sometimes they may provide a clearer definition. I felt like this week in class we spent a decent amount of time interacting in small groups, which led to a good chunk of time to bounce ideas off of each other. For me, verbalizing my ideas can be particularly beneficial, so I really enjoyed the class time that allowed for this. One more week! So close, yet so far…

WP3

The article “Self-Efficacy Belied and Motivation in Writing Development” by Frank Pajares considers how an individual’s level of self-efficacy can be beneficial or detrimental to his writing performance. Previous research has suggested not only that self-efficacy is a decent predictor of academic performance, but rather that it is even a stronger predictor than previous performance. The article discusses several ways in which self-efficacy is formed, though previous experiences and social persuasions were the most prominent. Pajares discusses three major ways in which self-efficacy can be measured: writing skills, writing tasks, and ability to earn a particular grade in a language arts class. Regardless of the method chosen to assess self-efficacy, its impact on writing performance is significant. One of the primary differences between those with and without a strong sense of self-efficacy is their level of motivation. Thus, when self-efficacy means motivation, increased effort and time expensed also follow. The piece concludes with a discussion of the importance of fostering a sense of self-efficacy in children, as it ensures that the trait is strengthened as opposed to lost.

Transformation for a younger audience:

Transformation for a younger audience:

Self-efficacy can arguably be thought of as one of the character traits that all would most like to possess, but that the least strongly do. Its applications span through nearly every spectrum of a person’s life—from day to day encounters with peers to academic performance to professional interviews. I read the article “Self-Efficacy Belied and Motivation in Writing Development” by Frank Pajares, which, as the title obviously states, deals with self-efficacy in the context of writing. Due to the nature of the topic, I found it only appropriate to transform the article into genres that to some extent were able to help the reader. In the same sense I felt it was best to stray from a directly obvious “help-centered” genre. After all, the article did not emphasize how to improve self-efficacy, but rather how having (or rather not having) a strong sense of self-efficacy can affect one’s writing. Taking this all into consideration I decided upon a magazine article for my older audience transformation, and a MADLIB for my younger audience transformation.

The first transformation of the scholarly publication I did was a magazine article intended for the publication Writer’s Digest. Putting the article in this particular magazine helps to ensure that the target audience is met. Readers are likely of a more mature demographic, as well as have an interest in writing. Pajares’ piece focused on the importance of self-efficacy in writing specifically, which is an important distinction from the importance of self-efficacy in life. The scholarly article focused specifically on the effects of self-efficacy in school-aged children, but in the magazine article that I formed based on the initial piece, I transitioned the content to be appropriate for an older audience, and I used a variety of moves to accomplish this goal.

In his paper “Writing with Pictures,”McCloud discusses several assets of writing that an author makes decisions upon. He states, “There are the five arenas where your choices can make the difference between clear, convincing storytelling and a confusing mess” (McCloud 10). Each of these “arenas” can be considered fields in which a writer can make specific moves. One of the moves that I made was the usage of quotations, both old sayings and information directly from the text. Old phrases can hold a greater meaning for adults than for kids, largely due to familiarity. Direct quotations from the initial article, as well as phrases such as “research shows” provide a sense of reliability that is likely to be appreciated by mature audiences. I chose to make each of the five ways to “improve your self confidence with writing” short and sweet sentences that captured the attention of the reader and encouraging him or her to read further on. The difference in font styles between the titles and main text was also an intentional feature to again grab the reader’s attention. To me, the ability to capture a reader is one of the most important features of a magazine article, as if this is lacking it very well may be skimmed over.

            For a younger audience, I transformed Pajares’ article into a MADLIB. One of the main reasons that I chose this as an application of the scholarly piece was due to its emphasis on self-efficacy stemming from social persuasions, as well as previous experiences. One of the key features of MADLIB books is the ability to complete the pages in either an interpersonal or intrapersonal manner. With this in mind, I attempted to create a story that could inspire confidence both within oneself after completing it on his or her own, or within oneself by hearing the positivity arising from a friend or family member.

Some of the moves that I made included specifying that the missing word need be a “positive adjective” instead of simply an “adjective” (to avoid the potential for any negativity, thus decreasing self-efficacy), encouraging kids to try again even if they are not successful the first time, and emphasizing that he or she is not the only one who may be struggling with some given action. Similar to the transformation to an older audience, I attempted to transition the content to a more accessible form, as well as diction, for a much younger audience. Word choice is an essential part of aptly communicating ideas, as McCloud points. He states that “word” means “Picking words that add valuable information” (McCloud 10). Moves can be made to use specific words perhaps in order to cater to the correct audience. Regardless of the reason, words should be chosen to strengthen the argument rather than add unnecessary length to the piece.

Self-confidence can be a tricky subject to discuss, especially with a younger audience, which was another major reason I chose an interactive and fun genre which is already well-perceived by children. One of the best things about the MADLIB genre in particular is the fact that one could complete the activity without even knowing that there was a focus on self-confidence. By looking solely at the first page, which only states the types of words needed (and not the actual story), kids avoid any judgments about any activity surrounding a topic as “boring” as self-confidence.

As I learned in creating genre transformations from the same article, so much of the way one interprets information is a result of the way it is presented. This can be in the sense of what information is conveyed to a reader, or how information is conveyed to a reader. Both of these, along with every other choice the writer makes are considered “moves.” Moves, such as the use of pictures, use of interesting font, or use of challenging word choice, can help tailor any piece of writing to a specific genre and audience. As a writer, moves are made regardless of whether they are intentional or not—even the most “basic” decisions (which are often made without thinking much about them) can be considered moves. The use of moves, as can be seen through the transformation of a specific article into distinct genres, can have a significant impact on the way information is presented to an audience.