An Overview. English 1E is a Credit/No Credit course based on a portfolio the student submits at...
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An Overview. English 1E is a Credit/No Credit course based on a portfolio the student submits at the end of the semester. Only those students who satisfactorily
English 1E is a Credit/No Credit course based on a portfolio
the student submits at the end of the semester. Only those students
who satisfactorily complete coursework and meet their instructors
minimum course requirements may submit portfolios for final review.
That review is conducted by English 1E instructors reading in small
groups. Each portfolio is read by at least two instructors, one of
whom is the teacher of record. To pass English 1E and become
eligible to take a 100-level composition course, the student must
receive two passing scores on the portfolio.
Slide 3
Write with confidence and increased fluency Invent ideas,
arrange material, draft, revise, proofread, and edit their own
writing in order to produce coherent academic essays Write with
awareness of audience and purpose by establishing and maintaining a
focus, adequately supporting claims, providing analysis, and
organizing material effectively.
Slide 4
Learn to analyze potential sources and integrate source
material into their own work Give and receive constructive
responses to written work. These objectives require attention to
full process, thesis-driven essays from the beginning of the
semester.
Slide 5
Minimum course requirements are the assigned tasks and
activities intended to help students achieve course outcomes and
pass the final portfolio reading. Students must meet the
instructors course requirements to qualify for portfolio review.
Typically, instructors choose between two basic systems for
determining that students have crossed the minimum threshold: 1) a
point system that stipulates a minimum number of points to be
earned, or 2) a contract system that outlines a minimum amount of
work to be satisfactorily completed. Types of assignments and
methods of assessing them vary. However, because the common
portfolio assessment assumes consistency in what instructors expect
of their students, minimum course requirements are constrained in
the following ways:
Slide 6
Instructors should not design minimum course requirements so
lenient that advancement to portfolio review is automatic. At the
same time, instructors should not design requirements so rigid that
they violate the letter and spirit of university policies on
attendance and grading. Instructors must assign and require
satisfactory completion of no fewer than 3 formal essays. They must
also assign a minimum of 2 timed essays.
Slide 7
Although narrative/descriptive writing and summary can be used
to support claims, instructors should avoid giving assignments that
lead students to produce essays that are primarily summary or
narration/description. Instructors must clearly spell out what
satisfactory completion of an essay assignment means. In the
process, they must give regular, clear feedback not only to help
students to improve their writing, but also to update them on their
progress toward achieving portfolio-ready work. This means that
evaluation of work completed and recommendations for revision
should be tied to the expectations delineated in the portfolio
scoring guide.
Slide 8
Not all students who meet the course requirements will pass the
portfolio; despite their efforts, some will not make the
developmental progress necessary to accomplish this in 15 weeks. So
it is important that students and instructors communicate about
writing progress throughout the semester. Instructors expectations
and methods of evaluation should be clearly spelled out in syllabi
or other course-specific documents. Students who do not understand
their instructors grading system should ask for clarification.
Under no circumstances should a student think s/he is doing high
level work all semester only to fail the final portfolio
review.
Slide 9
Each paper should ask students to respond to some reading and
make a contribution to its conversation beyond simple agreement or
disagreement. Instructors should design activities to facilitate
reading comprehension and analysis: pre- reading, reading, and
post-reading should all be addressed This allows students to
practice critical analysis and response
Slide 10
Students who advance to the portfolio review must submit their
work in a letter-size manila folder with the rubric/scoring sheet
stapled to the inside cover of the folder. Each portfolio must
include the following documents:
Slide 11
Two out-of-class essays, free of grades or comments. At least
one essay must include previous drafts, indicating revising and
editing skills. The essays must demonstrate the ability to support
a thesis and to write analytically. At least one essay must respond
to another text beyond summary, paraphrase, or direct quotation. In
other words, the essay must engage with the text critically: for
example, by applying its ideas in another context or assessing the
validity of its argument. A reasonable guideline for essay length
is 1000 to 1500 words. Shorter essays may suggest a lack of
development. However, no portfolio should be assessed solely on the
basis of essay length.
Slide 12
One in-class essay, written in a block of time appropriate to
the courses length and given in the last week or two of
instruction. (Instructors in the same portfolio group should
discuss any variations in the time they allot for students to
write.) A short reading may be given to students a week before the
day of the in-class writing, and the class may discuss the reading.
The writing prompt, however, must not be given to students ahead of
time. Given these constraints, the prompt should not attempt to
elicit in-depth analysis; instead, it should elicit writing that
demonstrates comprehension of the reading as well as some analysis
and support for a point of view. (Portfolio groups may use a common
reading and prompt, if all members wish to.) The in-class essay
should be placed in the portfolio without grades or instructor
comments.
Slide 13
A letter of 350 500 words introducing the student and the
portfolio contents. Students should explain convincingly how the
essays in their portfolio demonstrate that they are ready for
Composition 100. Within these general guidelines, specific
directions for the letter may be determined by each instructor.
Many instructors ask students to explain their take on good writing
after taking English 1E.
Slide 14
Portfolio reading groups allow faculty to collaborate with each
other, establish a support system, develop collegiality and
professionalism, and assist in assessing our students. Faculty are
placed in groups of three or four at the beginning of the semester.
One faculty member is assigned the role of table leader. Table
leaders serve as the point person for the group and organize any
meetings during the semester as well as the portfolio reading
during the week before finals week.
Slide 15
While table leaders are encouraged to mentor newer faculty,
they are not responsible for monitoring their colleagues
pedagogical processes. Faculty should consult Sarah Arroyo if they
experience problems collaborating with their colleagues. Groups may
collaborate on a number of levels: meeting on line or in person
several times and designing common assignments, prompts, etc.;
meeting one or two times throughout the semester and sharing
assignments and ideas while possibly designing a common prompt or
assignment; meeting online throughout the semester and not having
any common materials; etc. Groups should communicate their desired
level of collaboration early in the semester.
Slide 16
Groups must meet in person to assess portfolios the week before
finals week. Each faculty member must fill out a portfolio rating
sheet and return in to Arroyo after the reading is complete. Arroyo
will send an e-copy of the rating sheet before the readings occur.
Groups should make every effort to demonstrate collegiality during
the readings. Please try to avoid overt criticism of a colleagues
assignments by meeting early in the semester to see if each
assignment meets the course goals and objectives.
Slide 17
Updated (Fall 2011) Google Doc link to Writing Skills 1 rubric:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1L_rIo
E5U6ihaADUjHlcIQyYiC1tb8iPw3CYRn_aGfiI /edit?hl=en_US
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1L_rIo
E5U6ihaADUjHlcIQyYiC1tb8iPw3CYRn_aGfiI /edit?hl=en_US