Write an essay critically reflecting on your development as a science writer throughout the course. Address how you have achieved the course learning objectives, such as linguistic awareness, rhetorical sensibility, collaborative writing, and effective source usage, while identifying areas of growth and those requiring further improvement. Contrast your initial perceptions of writing and language, as introduced in your Letter of Introduction, with your current understanding. Use evidence from your portfolio works to illustrate your progress and provide a thoughtful introduction to your portfolio. Focus on assessing your learning journey rather than simply proving achievement of all goals.

 

For as long as I can remember, science and math have been the fields that sparked my curiosity. Because of this passion, writing about science initially seemed like a trivial task for me, where I could “have it easy” this semester. I had this perception because from a universal appeal of the general public to the sciences. However, this course quickly gave me a reality check and showed me that writing about science is far from easy. At first, I thought writing about science was about making the subject more enjoyable. Still, I learned that it involves crafting ideas that resonate with a specific audience for a specific purpose. These ideas includes writing about science about moral practices, using writing to call for action, or inspire research for noble causes.

This writing for the sciences course has highlighted these principles through assignments such as the informative review essay, where we conveyed scientific research in a way the public could understand; the sustainability project, where we advocated for environmental protection and justice; and the research proposal presentation, which promoted further research and development on critical issues. This essay is an introduction to my portfolio. It reflects on the challenges I faced before, during, and after the writing process, the areas where I aim to improve, and ultimately showcasing my progress to better science writing.

Before this course, my instinctive habit of writing was to prove to the audience that I understood the material given to me. I have instilled this habit because of the standardized tests I took in elementary, middle, and high school. I would write essays half filled with quotations; the other half was my explanation. Now, my strategies are different. Writing now involves me  using sources to support a specific goal rather than merely summarizing them. When engaging with scientific papers, I don’t just read the facts. I ask why the author wrote the paper and evaluate whether the content is something I can use for a particular assignment, a message I want to share, or a particular type of reaction I want to give to my audience.

During the revision process, I focused on conciseness and clarity so that my writing is easy to follow and less intimidating for readers unfamiliar with science. For example, in my informative review essay, I explained, “HeLa cells are special because they are ‘immortal.’ They can live outside the human body in a lab setting and, given time, can divide and grow the cell population indefinitely” (Mozumder 1). I crafted this explanation with the audience in mind.

For assignments like the sustainability project and video, my primary goal was to remove people’s cynicism for certain issues that they think they are powerless to solve. For instance, my sustainability video project showed New York City’s terrible transportation system and advocated for major changes. I understood that although it was a noble cause, the audience would most likely glance over the topic because they believed nothing would change. I also understood that people generally skip the videos if it is too long, they don’t necessarily like to read and instead like to watch a short video.  Because of this, I structured the video to be short, engaging, and easy to follow, like content on social media platforms. By doing this, I engaged the audience long enough so they are not so cynical at the end.

Collaboration played a significant role in my writing process. After writing a draft, I sometimes ran the writing piece with my peers so that they could peer review the paper. The peer review improved my work in significant ways. For example, I showed my research presentation to a classmate, where he suggested including a video to make the presentation more engaging. I took his advice to find out that not only did the video make it more engaging, it made my job easier as a presenter by not having to remember as much. It can address certain questions that people might have effortlessly. This advice was sound and boosted my presentation.

The sustainability position paper was a key assignment where I had to have a key stance, which is part of scientific writing. My paper was about the problems of the MTA. I knew that I had to engage the readers in some way to make them understand and accept my stance on the topic. To do this, I used emotionally charged arguments, such as addressing corruption within the MTA. For example, I wrote, “One of the primary reasons for the MTA’s lack of improvement is internal corruption. An example is a case from 2003, where Luis Anemone, the MTA’s then-director of security, exposed the practices that contractors were partaking in, such as bid rigging, payoffs (bribes), and multi-million dollar overruns” (Mozumder 2). This evidence-based argument added weight to my position. It can be percieved as a stronger stance because of the major issue that is a problem.

Library databases were also key in supporting my writing, particularly for the informative review essay and research presentation. The databases provided access to research papers I would not have found otherwise. For example, I reviewed papers on HeLa cells in space missions in the informative review essay. I found out that bacteria can grow faster if there is long-term exposure in space, however HeLa cells relatively stayed the same. The conclusion I came up with was only possible due to the access I had to the research papers from the databases. This assignment made me realize the essential part of writing about science, where you need to have access to reliable sources.

This course has given me a new lens in scientific writing and changed my understanding of writing in general. I learned that writing about science requires more than just sharing facts. It requires information to inspire a specific audience, whether that be to inform, persuade, or call for action. I can achieve these goals by using evidence to support a purpose. I can also improve my writing by asking other people their opinions on what I need to improve upon.

While I have made significant progress, I recognize some areas for improvement. For example, I am working on being more concise and furthering my understanding of a particular topic. This portfolio showcases my growth and serves as a testament to the valuable lessons I have learned in this journey as a developing science writer.

REFERENCES

• Mozumder, M. (2024, December). Research of HeLa Cells in Outer Space. NYC ; CUNY Commons

• Mozumder, M. (2024a, December). Lack of Improvement in the MTA Subway System: A Missed Opportunity in Governor Hochul’s 2023 Clean Energy Plan . NYC ; CUNY academic Commons.