FINAL PORTFOLIO AND REFLECTION
There are two parts to this Final Portfolio:Â
1) Revisions of Units One and Two (and a finished copy of Unit Three)
and 2) A Final Reflection
The PortfolioÂ
If you get anything from this term, I hope itâs the idea that composing isnât just for college â itâs a tool you use in community, personal, and professional situations as well. And once you learn how to analyze a rhetorical situation, you can start to figure out what someone wants you to write no matter what the situation.
So⊠what we want you to do is, first, revise your first two units. Weâd have you do the third too– but we just finished that one, so we donât really have time– but if you have some changes you need to make, youâre welcome to do so. Include it anyway! Weâve talked about revision throughout the semester, reading Anne Lamottâs âSh&^&y First Draftsâ and Donald Murrayâs âThe Makerâs Eye.â They both tell us that the first draft of an article is just the beginning; we want to work at making it what Anne Lamott calls âdental,â something thatâs ready to show the world (not just your teachers.) Think too about the article we read called âClean Up Your Mess.â Make it visually readable, as well as having readable content. Think of yourself as a writer beyond the classroom. Your words are important– so present them accordingly!
For each revised unit,  youâll need to add a paragraph at the beginning explaining what you did to revise it and why (or didnât, and why not). You need to mention what you got from the feedback you received (from me and from your colleagues). You also need to explain why you either incorporated what we said or didnât, and why. For unit three, you’ll need to add a paragraph at the beginning explaining what you would do to revise it– if you had the time. I will be taking the grade your revised version of your essays as the final grade in the portfolio. Think of it as another fresh chance at a good grade, as long as you put in the work.Â
Both units one and two should be revised! Unit three must be included!Â
 The Final Reflection
I know this has been one weird few months, after a weird year. Weâre living in unprecedented times, and weâre all being asked to work in new ways. Iâm so proud of everybody for hanging in and continuing your college careers in the face of unimaginable challenges. So for this Final Reflection piece of at least 1000 words, Iâd like to ask you to consider the following questions:
What have you learned about yourself as a reader, writer and scholar this term?
How will you be able to use what you have learned this term and transfer that knowledge to other writing situationsâeither in college or in your community?
As evidence to back up your points, you must use at least three quotes from your own writing this semester in your reflection.
As a way to begin your Reflection, look back through your compendium of work: Discussion Forums, prep work for the classes, what you did/said/thought in those classes, your experiences with your colleagues, and so on. As you browse through your work, ask yourself about and take notes on the following questions (you donât have to answer them all in your final reflection. These are just to give you some ideas.Â
- Â How would you compare/contrast work you did early in the semester to now?
- What was your favorite/least favorite assignment and why?
- What are some notable lessons that have stuck with you after completing certain assignments?
- What changed in your writing (reading, thinking) as the genres and assignments changed?
- Â How did you make decisions in your assignments about content and design?
- What were your early assumptions/beliefs about yourself and writing? Have they since changed? Explain.
- What was your experience revising assignments?
- Was there any peer feedback that stands out to you and why?
- Â What was particularly challenging for you in our course this semester and how did you overcome it (or attempt to)?
Donât simply answer the above questions in your final reflection in bullet points; they are just meant to help you brainstorm ideas. Think about everything weâve read and watched about writing this semesterâsome of them certainly hooked your interest while others… probably did not. Â
The ones that caught your attention– they had a point. They werenât just lists of thoughts and ideas (what Kyle Stedman calls âUncle Barry and his Encyclopedia of Useless Information.â) So now that youâve brainstormed, is there a main point in what youâre trying to say? Can you organize your ideas a bit? Remember that this isnât just you writing off-the-top of your head; this is a finished piece of writing. Treat yourself as a respected author who has lived through a difficult time: you are someone with something to say, and not just trying to flatter your instructor. Hereâs what I will be looking for (and grading you on):
Attention to audience. You need to have a âso what?â Donât just list off a bunch of random opinions about your writingâwrite an article about what youâve learned. Think about who you are writing for (hint: itâs not just me).
Attention to organization. This does not have to be a traditional organization, but you should have paragraphs (not just a 1000 word paragraph, please) and some reason for why theyâre in the order theyâre in!
Evidence and analysis. If you tell me you learned something about yourself as a writer, show me proof! Â By proof, I specifically mean quotes from your own writing. All reflections should have at least three quotes from your own writing this semester although it doesnât matter from what (homework, finished essays, anything will do). Donât just drop those quotes in there and expect your readers to figure out why youâve chosen them. Explain why that passage is important to your readers and to your âso what?â
Care. Proofread. Make sure itâs long enough. As usual, you can use whatever language you see fit to use, but the words that are there should be there for a reason.
TIMELINE:
Final Portfolio due no later than 5 PM on 5/18. I have a shorter turnaround to submit my final grades this semester, and that should give you plenty of time to get through the revisions and reflection you need to do. Obviously I’m available via email and Zoom conference if you have questions.