UWRIT MIDTERM

Kelsey Summey
UWRIT 1101
Ms. Ingram
By
A.
Questions:
1. Will you tell the class what assignments will be counted as Low Stakes or High Stakes?
2. How often will we be reading in the textbook?
3. Will you give us assignments that wont be posted on Moodle 2 or Weebly?
4. What exactly do we put inside of the e-Portfolio?
5. Are we going to be reading various books outside of class?
6. What will our e-Portfolio presentation consist of?
7. How long will it have to be?
8. Will we need Blue Exam Books for this class?
9. Will the final exam only consist of e-Portfolio presentations?
10. During your office hours, will we be allowed to get help with our papers, e-Portfolio, reading,
etc.?
11. Through your feedback, what exactly will you be telling us?

Answers:

1. Yes, Ms. Ingram will be sure to let the class know what assignments will be considered as
low stakes or high stakes.
2. We read the textbook whenever we have a RRL (Reader Response Letter), which consists of
us writing our personal thoughts and feelings toward a certain essay. We then discuss these
articles in class with our large or small groups. We then turn them in to Ms. Ingram for her
to review and give feedback.
3. No, Ms. Ingram will not give us assignments that wont be posted on either moodle or
weebly. At the beginning of the year, she gave us a very specific syllabus consisting every
assignment of the year.
4. Throughout the year, we have a bunch of different assignments, and we get to choose
which assignments we put into Weebly for our e-Portfolio. We choose which assignments
go into our weebly blog because these assignments are meant to show our writing
progression throughout the year.
5. No, according to the syllabus, we do not read any outside books, but we do read articles
that Ms. Ingram posts on moodle.
6. I am not aware of the specifics of the e-Portfolio project. All I know is that, we must follow
the e-Portfolio grade scale listed on the syllabus.
7. Again, I am not aware of the specifics of the e-Portfolio project.
8. Yes, during exam time, we will finish presentations and receive our final course grades. This
exam will be taken on Wednesday, December 3
rd
.
9. Yes, the exam time will consist of e-Portfolio presentations.
10. Yes, Ms. Ingram is sure to give you feedback on your papers, RRLs, e-Portfolios, or anything
else we have worked on throughout class or for homework. If we miss class, Ms. Ingram will
also take her valuable office hour time to review our work and give us feedback.
11. Throughout the feedback from Ms. Ingram, we will receive ideas and suggestions. She will
never directly tell you what to write or do in your paper/blog. She is sure that we are
independent writers, as she wants us to grow.



Our first blog post assignment was to pose a bunch of questions that we had about the class. At the
time, I had no idea what these answers were, but as time went by, I got used to Ms. Ingram and the
assignments we had due each class. Now, I look forward to making new blog posts and looking at
others e-Portfolios. The things we are doing in class are very fun.
B.
Key Concepts That Im Doing Well With Key Concepts That Im Doing Poorly With
1. Independent Inquiry
2. Getting out of your comfort zone
3. The writing process & revision
4. Providing & receiving feedback
5. Intellectual growth & Maturity
6. Curiosity
7. Responsibility for your own learning
1. Making Connections
2. Critical Thinking
Explanations:
Independent Inquiry: I feel that I am doing well with this. I am always confident in the way I review or
examine things. Im always try to think outside the box, although I am not that good at it.
Getting Out of Your Comfort Zone: I am not a shy person, but I do have trouble speaking in front of or
during classes sometimes. While in your class, Ive gotten out of that. Ive noticed that Ms.
Ingram and the rest of my class is accepting of everyones ideas and perspectives, so Im not afraid to
throw out my opinion.
The Writing Process & Revision: While I am writing, I feel that its easy for my thought, feelings, and
ideas to transfer. For example, as I am sitting here doing this Midterm, I am already at 750+ words.
This is because Im used to expressing myself through my writing rather than my actions.
Providing & Receiving Feedback: This process has gone very well for me! As we just got done with our
first peer review sessions, Ive gotten a lot of great feedback from my pears. Ive also left pretty
good comments on my peers papers. I made sure to express suggestions, praise them, and let
them know what was missing in their papers. For the most part, I didnt have much to diss
because everyones papers were so good.
Intellectual Growth & Maturity: Through the essays we read for our RRLs and through the peer review
sessions, I feel that I have matured a lot as a writer and as a person. In an essay we had to read,
it talked about cultural differences, which was an eye opener. This allowed me to connect with
other peoples papers while going through our peer review sessions.
Curiosity & Critical Thinking: Curiosity and Critical Thinking go hand in hand, which is ironic to how I am
handling one thing well and the other poorly. I am very curious when it comes to other peoples
ideas and thoughts, so I tend to ask many questions. I do fall guilty to not thinking things
through all the way, which is why I am doing so poorly with the Critical Thinking aspect. Ill critically
think about a subject later then go back and evaluate my response, but at the time, no I do not
critically think.
Responsibility for Your Own Learning: I am very responsible for my own learning. I do the research; I
ask question; and I consider different point of views. I am sure to be a very curious but sure learner!
Making Connections: I am very good at making connections to peoples lifestyles, ideas, and thoughts,
but its hard for me to connect one main idea to another. When other people connect, it makes
sense and I can follow, but its hard for me to come up with a random connection.
C.
I really enjoyed writing the Literacy Narrative just as much as I enjoyed revising other peoples
narratives. This gave me the opportunity to get a feel for everyone elses views on literacy and how
theirs came about throughout their life. In some, I read about moments that took place in high school,
at their grandparents house, or going to a new elementary. Everyone has different experiences, and it
was very fun getting the opportunity to see that.
Draft 1: I loved how I got to explain three of my prominent literacies, but it didnt really tell a story. For
example, my thesis statement was Thanks to a lot of time and effort, I am literate in many
various ways; I am literate in music, basketball, and leadership. In this draft, I focused on how long it
took me to obtain this literacy and who my specific sponsors were.
Draft 2: I actually got a chance to tell a story about the time my literacies were proven. This thesis
statement was a bit different, stating, "My personal literacies are music and leadership, and
they were proven to me through a musical experience. This draft was the most fun because I got
the opportunity to look back at a single moment that proved my literacies. It was weird how I was
able to remember almost everything from this one day/moment.
Draft 3: Draft 3 was a combination of both draft 1 and draft 2, which, at first, made no sense to me.
Both my peer revision partners agreed that I should combine them so I gave it a shot. This led me to
have 2 different thesis statements, which might be illegal in the writing world, but this class is
about taking risks. My first thesis statement was Thanks to a lot of time and effort, II am
literate in various ways, including music, basketball, and leadership. After this, I was able to explain
these literacies briefly then lead myself to my next thesis statement. I stated Although I have
had many experiences throughout my 18 years of life, only one experience has proven 2 of my 3
literacies. I then introduced Andrew, an important character in my narrative, and continued on
with the story.
In conclusion, my favorite revisions were to look in on a particular moment and expand/tell a story
about that time. Also, my second favorite revision was to combine both my drafts to make one large
Literacy Narrative. It was a great decision suggested by my peer revision groups. This decision was
irregular and something that Ive never done before. Im very happy that I decided to do it.



D.
1. Who is the author of the text?
i. Andrea Moore
2. Who is the intended audience?
i. The intended audience was Ms. Ingram and her peers.
ii. The audience is now my peers and I.
3. What is the authors purpose in creating the text?
i. The authors purpose of this text is to show her representation and the progress
of her work in UWRIT 1101. This text will also allow us to see a diverse range of
writing in her e-Portfolio.
4. What are the messages, implicit or explicit, in the text?
i. Explicit: The authors blog is public for the world to see, and shes taken on
many different writing projects.
ii. Implicit: Shes very open about her work, since her site is published. I can also
imply that the author is well organized.
5. What values are represented in this text?
i. Her main value is her journey to success though writing.
b. What modes of communication are utilized?
i. Linguistic: This was used throughout the authors embedded papers, blogs, and
other documents throughout her e-Portfolio.
ii. Visual: Throughout her blog, she has fun photos that give the page some life.
Instead of it only being a bunch of words on a white page, she spiced it up a
little.
iii. Spatial: The author set up her e-Portfolio this way for a particular reason. It is
arranged to her liking, and it just so happens to be well organized.
6. From this example, what can you glean about the rules of this genre?
a. What is this genre? e-Portfolio
b. Where does this genre exist? On Weebly and other blog websites
c. What are the limitations of this genre? Students arent free to talk about whatever they
want to. They are limited to the subjects the teacher give them.
d. What are the advantages of this genre? The author is able to show their writing
progression, and they are free to choose which writing assignments to put on their e-
Portfolio.
e. Who makes the rules for this genre? The teacher makes the rules, since she assigns the
e-Portfolio to the students.
7. Is your example text successful in fulfilling the authors purpose?
i. Yes, the author is very successful in fulfilling their purpose. Through their
weebly site, you are able to see writing assignments from the beginning of the
semester to the end. We, as the audience, can see how the author has
matured. It is very fun to look at and review.
8. If the actual audience is different than the authors intended audience, does that change the
texts successful rate? Explain.
i. Not exactly! If the audience was changed, then the authors intended purpose
would still be served. People would come to the e-Portfolio and would be able
to see the authors progression throughout the class. Theyd be able to analyze
all the papers/documents embedded and review it just like any peer or teacher.
They can make comments and suggest different things; the only thing they
cannot do is give this person a grade for their work.

E.
After reviewing many other e-Portfolios, I believe that I am setting myself up for an exemplary
e-Portfolio. Although I have not posted my assignments yet, I am sure to have them in a well-
organized folder so the transfer will be very easy. I am also sure to keep my e-Portfolio clean,
meaning that I am attempting to put everything in its desired location. Im not posing blogs
outside of the blog tab, and Im not embedding where I do not need to. As for my work, I am
making sure that I am completing it to the best of my ability. I am thinking it through
thoroughly, and I am applying all of myself to give my honest opinion and transfer my ideas. Its
just the midterm, and I can already tell that I am growing as a writer. I am noticing that I have
varying ideas and beliefs now that I have been introduced to other peoples ideas. I am also
becoming more creative and logical in the process.
I do not have any further questions about the e-Portfolio.