Let me ask you something. Does this look like fun read?

This is not even the worst part…the reference page is a whole page long.

Yeah, I didn’t think so. Even if you enjoying reading, like me, I would totally skip my essay if I saw it posted online.

What am I Doing?

My assignment for my Critical Thinking and Writing class. Or better known as the mandatory writing course here at SCU. I had to transform my 8-page “academic” essay to a blog post for anyone to read. Yup, that’s cutting 2000 words from an essay. Beyond all of the basic concerns that go through my head when I think of “writing,” my biggest challenge was: where the heck do I even start?

As the old saying goes, writing is power. (And that’s why we are taking CTW)

Start with someone talking! (literally)

So I started by searching for relatable topics to explain my argument from my way-too-long essay: The liberal arts and social activism. Casually going through Facebook (procrastinating like a typical college student), I landed on a classmate’s post about a recent march/protest on campus. I took a page out of Zach Lowe’s notebook (the master of 10-second clips) and started the blog out with the short video to introduce my topic.

Give Some More Examples

After the introduction, I still had to expand my topic and visualize it to make it easier to understand. Looking back on my original essay, I still had to break down my long, wordy sentences into terms I would use if I were talking to friends at Starbucks. Let’s look at a quote from my paper.

“Through a liberal arts education, especially at a traditional four-year institution, Ungar (an author whom I cite) argues that education will not be just skimming text books and acquiring a basic knowledge of all subjects in society, but rather developing a holistic and deep understanding of the world. “

I’m guessing you didn’t even finish the quote. That’s the point. So instead of long explanatory sentences, I looked for pictures and links of protests on college campuses and political issues to illustrate the whole picture. This way you, the reader, can choose if you want to know more about an example through a hyperlink, just as you would when you look something up on your Android phones (NO iPhones are allowed in my house!). I focused on dropping as many links to social issues and their explanations, since I cannot cover all of the details in my post. Oh, and who doesn’t like captions? They added flair and depth to my pictures.

Get A Bit Serious

After all, I have a point to make, and it’s one I really care about.  I want students who are similar to me to realize the opportunity we have to make an impact on society. Yes it sounds like some cheesy social justice presentation, but I really do. So I tried to strike a balance between being making it light and interesting while carrying a serious message at the same time. This is why I colored and bolded key words, and inserted large spaces to between paragraphs to make it an effortless read for the brain and the eyes. I also used charts and links to websites which illuminate the negative aspects of U.S. society. By choosing to focus on what college students can do and have done, I made the blog post focused and relatable, unlike my logical and far-reaching original essay.

What’s better than chatting about all the issues we have in society over coffee? (Source)

So What? Why Blogging?

What makes blogging significant? Well, the bottom line is, as much as we need Real Friends (Hopefully you’ve all read my previous post by now) for change, I need more people to see it, too. The internet connects us beyond geographic barriers and opens new opportunities. Through blogging, although it is just an assignment, I am able to communicate directly to an audience and spread my message at the same time. There are thousands of liberal arts students just like me, and my hope is that some of you reading this blog are too. And even if you’re not, I hope there is something that resonates with you!

Sometimes Facebook friends can be useful too (Source)