Reflection
During the beginning assignments, my organization and flow were extremely lacking. This made the logic and thought process of the papers difficult to follow at times. I feel that this is one area where I have …show more content…
The literature review required the understanding of writing for peers versus writing for the public. While this may not seem like a major concept for many people, I have always had difficulty toning down my use of jargon. For some topics, even peers need definitions before reading a paper heavy in terminology that they don’t use on a regular basis. When this is combined with a general consideration of the literacy level within the audience, it makes the paper an easier read for them and allows for better communication between myself and the authors. I have seen my understanding of these concepts improve from the genre and audience analysis to the literature review. I now have better knowledge of what each type of audience needs from me and how I can provide that more readily. I feel like this may have been one of the largest takeaway points from this class that I probably wouldn’t have gotten in another …show more content…
Not knowing how to write for a reader with low health literacy to make sure they understand how to prevent worsening their condition would be a potentially fatal mistake in my future. Not being able to organize my ideas and support them with credible research would not likely be fatal, but would still present a problem in communicating with my patients through writing. Understandably, this was a concern of mine when starting the class that has considerably decreased now. In fact, from the first genre analysis assignment, I learned how to adjust my writing for different situations. This will be important for situations where I need to bring information in an accessible way to my patients to ensure that they understand what is necessary for them to get healthier or to not exacerbate any conditions they may already have. In addition, this will be important for the publication of research or public service announcement type writing. Knowing what kinds of terms to avoid in writing to the general public and what terms to define for colleagues is something that will serve me well for communicating