ATWP final portfolio

REQUIREMENTS

The following are the basic elements that must be part of your final portfolio. Each element is described in detail in subsequent sections along with an explanation

REQUIRED CONTENT

These elements are listed in the order in which they should appear in your portfolio.

Title Page for portfolio (instructions on p.5)

Table of Contents (instructions on p. 6)

Introduction (instructions on p. 6)

Assignments (instructions onp. 9)

Final Reflection (instructions onp.6)

Reference List (instructions onp.9)

Note: Remember to cite your sources.

HOW TO ASSEMBLE THE PORTFOLIO

Over this period, start thinking about your portfolio and its design. Here are some questions you might want to consider as you get started:

• Are you going to use a template in Word for this project?
• Take a look at your discussion posts and responses, whether those for the peer review or elsewhere, if relevant. Are there any your peers responded to? Did I comment positively on aspects of your work?
• Have you downloaded your Personal Literacy Statement and any other early assignments in a folder specifically created for your portfolio?
• Take even more notes on your course contributions (assignments, posts and so on). What patterns are you seeing? What is your writing process? What comments from your peers and me were helpful? Are there comments that weren't as helpful? Do you notice any differences in your writing from the start of the term compared to later on?
• Do you have any questions for me about this assignment? The best time to clear up confusion is early on.

SUGGESTIONS FOR GATHERING EVIDENCE AND NOTE-TAKING

Gatherthe information that you will require to complete this portfolio (the assignments, relevant readings, your notes on lectures, secondary sources). You can do this in hard copy (e.g., printing out the assignments and gathering them into one pile) or in digital copy (e.g., copying the relevant assignments into a new folder labelled "Portfolio"). Your process is your process.

Once you assemble your assignments, read your work in the order that your documents will appear in the portfolio. Make marginal notes of your impressions, if you like, but resist the temptation to revise your assignments. As you read, highlight the key sentences or salient points that best represent the purpose of each assignment.

When making notes, you might find this list of questions helpful. You might even want to answer them as you read through your writing:

• What makes you most/least proud (or something in-between)?
• Where did you achieve your expectations or even exceed them?
• Where did you see yourself succeeding or working harder?
• What does your writing reveal to you about your values as a researcher and writer?

And as you move from one assignment to the next, think about the connectionsthat you could draw between the assignments. If your reflections provide the story of the writing and the work that you did throughout this course, then you should consider what kind of story you want to tell.

Take notes as you brainstorm. Note how you think the sections of this portfolio could fit together, or even some obstacles you think you might need to resolve. "Gathering evidence," in this sense, means to keep a record of your ideas. The point is to think continually about how these separate pieces of your writing could form one cohesive narrative, and to document those thoughts. These notes will be immensely helpful as you start drafting your Introduction and Final Reflection.

Choose your evidence Choose your evidence from the many notes and ideas you came up with about your work as well as your colleagues' work and the course materials (lectures, PowerPoints etc.). This task will be easier once you have decided on the type of narrative you want your reflections to be. For instance, if you want to tell the story of your struggles with integrating research into your own ideas, then you might choose those of your ideas/evidence that have to do with research, secondary sources, or maybe even paraphrasing.

TITLE PAGE

The title page offers you an opportunity to be creative and express yourself. Do you prefer clean lines and simplicity? Then you'll want your title page to reflect that fact. Do you have a favourite book or movie that you want to represent on the title page? Then do so! As long as the necessary information is clearly identified and your title page follows the University of Victoria's rules for ethical communication, you can do what you like!

Include the following information as part of the title page and only on the title page. Please do not include any identifying information in the rest of the portfolio.

• Instructor name:
• Your name:
• Your student number:
• Your section number:

INTRODUCTION AND FINAL REFLECTION

Introduction

Final Reflection

You will begin the portfolio with your Introduction. Please place it right after the Table of Contents. The final or closing reflection will conclude the portfolio.

These reflections are your opportunity to let us know what you learned in this course and, in turn, support your assertions. They tell the story of your term. For every experience you write about, you'll need to use your own work from the course to support your claims. You want to provide a detailed and vivid portrait of yourself as a writer (because you ARE a writer). You also want to share your values as an academic writer - Are you a writer who cares deeply about citational practice? Do you believe that academic writing needs to be accessible for all? Do you think that humour has its place in academic writing? These are all examples of values that speak clearly to who you are as a writer.

You need to support your assertions about your progress with evidence. Please cite your peers, me, our readings and even others who have influenced you as a writer, researcher, and thinker. You are expected to cite all your sources in correct format. Show us your skills!

Content (20-25 points): These reflective assignments do not need a thesis, but they do need an overarching claim to guide the content. An A-level submission has an easily identifiable and compelling claim that is supported by well-explained, organized, and logical background (context). You show a strong understanding of audience, context, and purpose. The reflections (and your credibility) are strengthened by copious support for the claims you make about your experience in the course. Your assertions, explanations, summarizing, and evidence are organized into very effectively well-developed paragraphs. These paragraphs, in turn, are ordered in such a way that they make your explanations, assertions, and evidence even more persuasive. Your word choice is precise and exemplifies your meaning. At no time do you lose control of the material (e.g., over or under explain; use words out of context; supply too much or too little evidence). The rhetorical balance (the appeals, understanding of audience, context, purpose and so on) is apparent and exemplary. The citational practice is equally evident and excellent. The format is clearly identifiable. All sources are cited and easily found.

Writing (20-25 points): If the writing shows signs of struggle with word order, word choice, and mechanics (spelling, punctuation, capitalization), then the content will also suffer. That is, your writing needs to facilitate reading. An A level submission will not impede (inhibit) reading but help the reader along. Work that receives 20 or more points is not necessarily perfect but there are few, if any, grammatical, syntactical, or mechanical issues that impede or hinder reading. We do not remove points for each error; rather we assess the reflective work as a whole and our ability to read with ease. In the case of high A level work, the reader will read your portfolio with delight and pleasure.

ASSIGNMENTS

These are crucial documents that support the assertions you make in your Introduction and Final Reflection. You will compile these documents in the portfolio to showcase your achievements:

• Personal Literacy Statement
• The Academic Summary
• Persuading Skeptics assignment
• 2 of your posts in the Discussion Forums (yes, you can use mini-assignment 1, mini-assignment 2, or the draft intro)
• 2 examples of feedback that you offered to your peers in the mini-assignment forums or the draft intro forum
• Research Paper

REFERENCE LIST

As part of this assignment, you are asked to provide evidence for your claims and reflections. Often, this evidence is in the form of your assignments, class lectures, slides, or other materials related to the course. You are encouraged to cite in your Introduction and Final Reflection, and if you include in-text citations, you should also include a reference list (APA). For a guide on how to cite your own assignments, see this guide from Southern New Hampshire University.

Note: You do not need to include the reference list from your assignments, such as your research paper, in this final reference list. The individual reference lists are part of each assignment, and should be included as part of the assignment. The reference list for the end of the portfolio is only for materials that you cite as part of your Introduction and Final Reflection.

DESIGN ELEMENTS

This section is worth 5 points overall.This incentivizes design decisions that follow basic design elements (Contrast, Repetition, Alignment, Proximity), and rewards readability, creativity, and self-expression.

How you are graded:

A-level work (4-5 points): This portfolio exceeds expectations with respect to design, insofar as it demonstrates time, thoughtfulness, and an understanding of how design may affect the reading experience. The basic design elements are followed, with cohesive decisions in font, sizing, alignment, and spacing attended to throughout. The portfolio goes beyond following a basic template and may include images, graphics, or other design choices that add to the overall reading pleasure.

This section is worth 5 points overall. For each missing component, 1 point will be deducted.

• Title page
• Table of Contents
• Reflective introduction
• Assignments
• Reflective conclusion
• Works Cited or Reference List