Final Assignment: Portfolio Assignment

English 1101: Intro to College Writing

Instructor: Mr. Bouselli
 
Due Date:  In this course, I am not required to give a final exam, therefore, your final
assignment is due no later than the end of the day on December 2nd.

What is a Portfolio?
A portfolio is a collection of a writer’s work from a given period of time.  This collection will
consist of three essay revisions taken from the papers/annotated bibliography that you have
submitted this semester-plus a one-page personal reflection entitled: “Me as a Writer.”  This
portfolio will reflect your very best work, and to achieve that aim, you will need to carefully
read the comments that I have left on your essays.  Finally, you will need to stylistically revise
and grammatically correct your essays.  This is your final chance to show me what have you
have learned and how strong your writing is.  You will submit your reflection and present your
work at your scheduled time. This is the last 25 points of your grade.

Step 1: Read my comments and revise your essays

Review and revise all of your essays, using the comments that your peers and I have written, and also
your own insights as you re-read your essays. These revised essays are the most important part of your
portfolio. With perhaps one or two exceptions, you ought to add substantially to each of your four
essays. Successful essays will include several new paragraphs as well as some significant cutting of old
materials. When I evaluate your work, I am looking to see that you have conquered the big challenges of
college writing: focus, development, analysis, organization, clarity of prose and editing.

Here is an occasion when I will not overlook errors; you have time to fix errors and make your prose
both clear and grammatically correct. Therefore, failure to clean up grammatical and proofreading
errors will deeply lower your grade. It is my responsibility to make sure that students who have taken
College Writing I [or II] are prepared for the expectations of the academic community. Those
expectations include grammatical and proofreading competence. Revise at least three of your papers
and take notes of your specific revisions for steps 2 and 3.

Step 2: Prepare Your Presentation-Turn in a Narrated Power-point or Screencastify

Bring a copy of each of the three essays for yourself and a copy of each of the three for me to refer to
during your presentation. Either create a power-point or prepare a written script that includes a
paragraph explaining the changes you’ve made to your essay. Point out specific parts of the essay to
refer to where you’ve improved it using the established criteria (thesis, evidence, organization, style,
grammar, etc.). Be detailed and thorough with each criteria and overall improvement of the essay, and
refer to specific examples.

Here is an example of one revision suggestion that may appear in a script of power-point slide

In essay two I wrote an entirely new introduction, removed the second piece of evidence that did not
apply to my claim. I did more research and created a new example that related to my claim. My new
example is………….and this is more effective because………………. I also worked on the introduction to the
quotes; I built in better transitions and provided context to each quote. Finally, I revised each run-on
sentences in this paper with coordinating conjunctions and correct punctuation. The more criteria you
are able to revise, the more effective the paper, and the better your grade.

Step 3: Write and Submit Your Reflection on Week 6-Reflection

Prior to your presentation, analyze your strengths and weaknesses as a writer. How has your writing
developed throughout the course?

This essay is a short reflection of one and a half to two-pages in length. Consider the following:

Who are you as a writer?

What are your strengths and weaknesses?

What characterizes your writing?

What do you like best about your writing?

How has your writing changed over the semester? How has it not changes?

Or, take a longer view: how has your writing changed or not changed, over your many years of
schooling?

In this essay you don’t have to like your writing or think your writing has improved. You do have to write
an analysis of yourself as a writer, for that is what you are, for who else but a writer would write five
essays in just four months?

For this essay, show me the skills you have used. Do not attempt to answer all those questions I’ve
asked, as then you will have an unfocused essay. Rather, choose your own way to focus your essay, and
develop it with examples and evidence, as you have learned to do this semester. And, if there was ever
an assignment designed to help you to think, to analyze, this is it!

*The scoring rubric I will use is available on blackboard.