portfolios ENGL101 Writing Rhetorically
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LEE TORDA 310 Tillinghast Hall Bridgewater State University 508.531.2436 [email protected] www.leetorda.com On Zoom: https://bridgew.zoom.us/j/3806648927 |
Fall 2021 Open Hours for students (office hours):
MW (in-person or Zoom) 1:30 to 2:30 T (Zoom only) 10:00 to 11:00 R 1:45 to 2:45 (in-person or Zoom) And by appointment Make an appointment, either face to face or on zoom, during office hours or at another time: Let me know you want to meet by adding yourself to my google.doc appointment calendar here: https://goo.gl/3CqLf. If you are meeting me on zoom, I will send you a zoom link for the time you sign up for. |
Overview: Portfolios work in different ways in different classes. Sometimes they are used to simply collect the work that a student has done over a period of time. Sometimes they are used to mark progress via revision. And sometimes they are used as a way to assess student work—not simply his writing work but his effort and progress in class.
The portfolios you will turn in will do a little bit of all three of those things. This is a chance for you to collect/reflect on your work, to think about what you’ve done well and what you still need to learn. I’ll ask you to write about this in a reflection letter that you include with the portfolios. Another way you will showcase your progress is through revision. You will revise some of your formal writing from each half of the semester. You’ll write about this in your reflection letter as well.
Finally, I will use the portfolios as a way of assessing your effort, progress as a writer and as a student, and the quality of your written work. I will assess the portfolios and include a lengthy letter to you when I return them. That letter will detail your entire career in this class up to that point. It will give you feedback on the quality of the portfolio itself, and I will give you a letter grade that marks your progress in a way that is valued by the college.
NOTE: I can give you two pieces of advice about how to approach portfolios: 1) I take the cover letter seriously. If you don’t, I will know. It only frustrates me to have you waste my time with fluff that you don’t mean and that doesn’t help me to read your portfolio. 2) I look for revision. If you have attempted good revisions, then you will be rewarded for it. If you say you’ve attempted revision but haven’t, you’ll be penalized for it. I don’t know how I can be anymore straightforward about what I will look for in the portfolios.
Midterm portfolio and cover letter info
Your midterm portfolio is a first shot at revision. It is a chance to show what you’ve learned in the short time from the beginning of the semester to midterm.
This portfolio is worth 10% of your final grade. To earn a B, you must include the following:
“The charm of baseball is that, dull as it may be on the field, it is endlessly fascinating as a rehash.” - Jim Murray
“You can’t be afraid to make errors! You can’t be afraid to be naked before the crowd, because no one can ever master the game of baseball, or conquer it. You can only challenge it.” - Lou Brock
“People who write about spring training not being necessary have never tried to throw a baseball.” -Sandy Koufax
“Don’t forget to swing hard, in case you hit the ball.” -Woodie Held
. For each of those quotes, explain to me:
Other things to know about how your portfolio will be evaluated:
*If any of these materials are not included, you can only earn a C for your midterm portfolio.
*Failure to turn in 3 will mean you've failed the portfolio.
*An "A" portfolio is the result of doing everything required for a B; thoughtful and substantial revision on your archive paper that reflects the feedback you got from me, your classmates, and your writing fellow during conferences and class workshop; your effort to be thoughtful about what you've learned in your portfolio cover letter; and, finally, your effort to write about your revision in your midterm portfolio cover letter.
Final portfolio and cover letter info
Your final portfolio is your last opportunity to demonstrate to me what you’ve learned this semester. It is an important document. Here is the place to worry about the details and editing and typos. It should be the most polished writing I see from you. This portfolio is worth 10% of your final grade. In order to earn a B for your final portfolio you must include:
To Write your Final Portfolio Cover Letter: I have four questions for you to consider as you write your final cover letter:
*If any of these materials are not included, you can only earn a C for your final portfolio.
*Failure to turn in number 2 will mean you've failed the portfolio.
*An "A" portfolio is the result of doing everything required for a B; thoughtful and substantial on your revision of your first or second paper; your effort to write thoughtfully and about what you've learned in your portfolio cover letter.
Final Portfolios are due by 5:00 PM on 16 December 2021. You will turn in your final portfolios electronically. There are three ways to do this:
Option 1) One google doc with each section labeled as follows:
Option 2) Send one MSWord document or .PDF as an attachment in an email. Label each section as above.
Option 3) Create a shareable link in MSWord to one document, again, labeled as above, to me in an email.
The portfolios you will turn in will do a little bit of all three of those things. This is a chance for you to collect/reflect on your work, to think about what you’ve done well and what you still need to learn. I’ll ask you to write about this in a reflection letter that you include with the portfolios. Another way you will showcase your progress is through revision. You will revise some of your formal writing from each half of the semester. You’ll write about this in your reflection letter as well.
Finally, I will use the portfolios as a way of assessing your effort, progress as a writer and as a student, and the quality of your written work. I will assess the portfolios and include a lengthy letter to you when I return them. That letter will detail your entire career in this class up to that point. It will give you feedback on the quality of the portfolio itself, and I will give you a letter grade that marks your progress in a way that is valued by the college.
NOTE: I can give you two pieces of advice about how to approach portfolios: 1) I take the cover letter seriously. If you don’t, I will know. It only frustrates me to have you waste my time with fluff that you don’t mean and that doesn’t help me to read your portfolio. 2) I look for revision. If you have attempted good revisions, then you will be rewarded for it. If you say you’ve attempted revision but haven’t, you’ll be penalized for it. I don’t know how I can be anymore straightforward about what I will look for in the portfolios.
Midterm portfolio and cover letter info
Your midterm portfolio is a first shot at revision. It is a chance to show what you’ve learned in the short time from the beginning of the semester to midterm.
This portfolio is worth 10% of your final grade. To earn a B, you must include the following:
- Select your strongest Reading Journals. INCLUDE A 300 WORD, TYPED answer the following questions: what have you learned about reading for college classes from doing Reading Journals? What have you learned about Writing about what you read (or watch or listen to, etc) for college?
- Your best book club journal so far. You do not need to revise this. Just include it in your portfolio.
- Your completed The Big Deal: Archival Ethnography of Bridgewater State. Include BOTH your first draft of your essay from our conference/class workshop and the final, revised draft. INCLUDE A 300 WORD, TYPED answer to the following questions: what is successful about this paper? What are you still struggling with in this paper?
- Your Midterm portfolio cover letter. It should be 300-500 words long. You can write it like a letter. You can write it like an essay. You can write it like a memo. You can put each quote (see below) on the page and write the answer below it. Whatever. I don’t care how you format it; I just want it done.
“The charm of baseball is that, dull as it may be on the field, it is endlessly fascinating as a rehash.” - Jim Murray
“You can’t be afraid to make errors! You can’t be afraid to be naked before the crowd, because no one can ever master the game of baseball, or conquer it. You can only challenge it.” - Lou Brock
“People who write about spring training not being necessary have never tried to throw a baseball.” -Sandy Koufax
“Don’t forget to swing hard, in case you hit the ball.” -Woodie Held
. For each of those quotes, explain to me:
- Why you think I chose it: explain to me what you think I was thinking it says about learning to be a better writer.
- In what ways you have, as a writer and student, learned some of these lessons--talk about specific parts of the writing you are including in the portfolio as examples of how you have learned some of these lessons.
- What you still have to learn and work on this semester.
Other things to know about how your portfolio will be evaluated:
*If any of these materials are not included, you can only earn a C for your midterm portfolio.
*Failure to turn in 3 will mean you've failed the portfolio.
*An "A" portfolio is the result of doing everything required for a B; thoughtful and substantial revision on your archive paper that reflects the feedback you got from me, your classmates, and your writing fellow during conferences and class workshop; your effort to be thoughtful about what you've learned in your portfolio cover letter; and, finally, your effort to write about your revision in your midterm portfolio cover letter.
Final portfolio and cover letter info
Your final portfolio is your last opportunity to demonstrate to me what you’ve learned this semester. It is an important document. Here is the place to worry about the details and editing and typos. It should be the most polished writing I see from you. This portfolio is worth 10% of your final grade. In order to earn a B for your final portfolio you must include:
- Select your BEST Reading Journal from the entire semester. Include with it a 300 word reflection on why this is your best reflection--good job at this, good job at detail, good job at connecting thesis to detail? Whatever makes it the best, tell me.
- A revision of EITHER Your Big Talk OR your Big Deal. Include all of your previous drafts. Include with it a 300 word reflection that discusses what changes you made and how this version of your paper is different/improved in this draft, and what does it show me about what you've learned about about good writing.
- A 300 word, typed, reflection that talks about what was successful about your final presentation Pecha Kucha We Are Bridgewater, and what you would change/revise if you had the chance.
- A 500 Word Book Club Reflection. Answer two questions: 1) What is the point/theme/main idea/big issue that this novel discussed. Another way to put it is what does the author want you to think about by telling this story in this way? and 2) What have you learned about college-level reading? What skills do you know you've got and what skills do you need to work on based on your experience in book club?
- A final portfolio cover letter, 500 words, double-spaced, typed that answers the four questions below:
To Write your Final Portfolio Cover Letter: I have four questions for you to consider as you write your final cover letter:
- How successful, academically, was your first semester of college, why or why not?
- What did you learn about how to be a successful student from working with your other professors and from being a part of this class this semester?
- What will you try to do (maybe differently, maybe more of, maybe less of) in the coming semester to continue on or get on a successful academic path?
- What have you learned about reading and writing in this class that you will take with you into other classes during your college career? Please refer to specific parts of the work you are turning in in this portfolio to help prove your point.
*If any of these materials are not included, you can only earn a C for your final portfolio.
*Failure to turn in number 2 will mean you've failed the portfolio.
*An "A" portfolio is the result of doing everything required for a B; thoughtful and substantial on your revision of your first or second paper; your effort to write thoughtfully and about what you've learned in your portfolio cover letter.
Final Portfolios are due by 5:00 PM on 16 December 2021. You will turn in your final portfolios electronically. There are three ways to do this:
Option 1) One google doc with each section labeled as follows:
- Best Reading Journal Reflection
- Revision of first or Second Paper with Reflection
- Pecha Kucha reflection
- Book Club reflection
- Portfolio Cover Letter
Option 2) Send one MSWord document or .PDF as an attachment in an email. Label each section as above.
Option 3) Create a shareable link in MSWord to one document, again, labeled as above, to me in an email.