English 102 Portfolio Assignment

A portfolio is a collection of the work that you have done for a course, for a project, or even for a career (artists have art portfolios, advertising agents and architects keep portfolios of their previous work, writers keep writing portfolios, etc). This collection is often intended to show the best of someone’s work in a particular field or to show improvement or change over time.

The English Portfolio is a mandatory assignment for this course. Failure to submit a portfolio will result in an automatic letter grade reduction in the course. The goal of this portfolio project is to persuade the WNMU composition faculty that you have successfully learned the NM competencies required to pass this course.

“2” score: your course grade will RISE a full letter grade

“1” score: your course grade will REMAIN the same

“0” score: your course grade will DROP a full letter grade.

You must earn a ‘C’ in English 102 to pass this course.

Remember that the Composition Department instructors at WNMU will grade your portfolio, not necessarily your own instructor. They will read it blind (without your name or personal info on it). They might be stricter in grading than your professor has been throughout the semester, so PLEASE make sure you follow the guidelines here EXACTLY, or you may risk failing English 102. If you have ANY questions about how to prepare your portfolio, please first read the guidelines carefully and then ask your instructor.

May 9th at midnight the course CLOSES and you will not be able to access the course or see anything in it.

Required Portfolio Materials:

Portfolio Cover/Introductory Letter
2 essays (or 10 pages minimum) that you’ve written for English 102 this semester

Portfolio Cover/Introductory Letter

This is a crucial part of the project, as it is your chance to prove to the composition faculty that you have successfully acquired the state competencies required to pass this course. Everyone has strengths and weaknesses in writing, and identifying them as well as recognizing how one can continue to improve is required of all writers, even famous ones. Therefore, your letter should show that you can reflect on and continue to improve your writing.

This letter must follow standard formal letter format (typed, double spaced, 1” margins, 12 point Times New Roman font) and should be at least 2 full pages (approximately 500 words). Your evidence is the work you’ve submitted in your portfolio; that means you need to quote and analyze your own writing from your portfolio. Since you are trying to prove that you possess solid composition skills, that also means that the letter itself should be strong and without errors.

Your letter should consider the following areas of rhetoric and composition:

Content: Thesis, content development, selection of evidence, analysis/explanation of evidence, English 102 documentation
Organization: Essay and paragraph organization
Expression/grammar: sentence structure, punctuation, sentence complexity, sentence fluency and variety, word choice, and concision
Writing process: planning, composing, revising

Portfolio Documents/Artifacts and Organization

You must include at least 2 essays (or 10 pages minimum) that you’ve written for English 102 this semester. These cannot be revised after the instructor has scored it. You are not allowed to revise it again after your instructor has completed the grading process per his/her grading policy as outlined in the syllabus. You may arrange these essays in whatever order makes the most logical sense based on your cover/introductory letter.

Do not use your name or your instructor’s name anywhere in the portfolio. Identify yourself by W# ONLY.
Your instructor will show you how and where to submit your work into Canvas.
You may submit your portfolio either as a .doc/.docx or a .pdf file.
All portfolios will be run through turnitin.com.

NM Core Competencies Assessed:
1. Students will analyze and evaluate oral and written communication in terms of situation, audience, purpose, aesthetics, and diverse points of view.

Students will express a primary purpose in a compelling statement and order supporting points logically and convincingly.
Students will use effective rhetorical strategies to persuade, inform, and engage.
Students will employ writing processes such as planning, collaborating, organizing, composing, revising, and editing to create presentations using correct diction, syntax, grammar, and mechanics.
Students will integrate research correctly and ethically from credible sources to support the primary purpose of a communication.
Students will engage in reasoned civic discourse while recognizing the distinctions among opinions, facts, and inferences.

PLEASE PRINT OUT THE FOLLOWING SO YOU HAVE IT TO REFER TO:

English 102 Portfolio Assignment Spring 2016.docx

English 102 Portfolio Rubric Spring 2016.docx

Portfolio Submission Directions English 102.doc