Final Portfolio
Overview
For your final portfolio, you will be asked to revise your ethnography one final time and create a final reflection.
Revision is all about taking a fresh set of eyes to previously created materials. Although this may sound like glorified proofreading, revision is a whole heap more than that, and to be done effectively, revision requires the power triad of time, organization, and attention to detail. The danger with revision lies in the temptation to believe you already know all the ins and outs of your work, believing there is nothing left to “do” to it. Editing is the final step as part of the revision, but revision is not editing. Revision is revisiting, rereading, rethinking, reworking, re-seeing.
Your final portfolio will include the following:
Final Revised Ethnography
Final Reflection
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
The Final Portfolio...
is worth 30% of your total grade,
is due in Canvas by the START of class on the due date,
will not be accepted late, and
must be "checked in" to ensure that I can access/view all parts of your portfolio.
Class attendance on the due date is mandatory unless you check in your portfolio with me in advance. See "Submitting Your Final Portfolio" below for more information.
CHECK THE CLASS CALENDAR FOR THE DUE DATE.
Final Revised Ethnography
For this final revision, you will focus on high/middle-order concerns, such as my feedback on Project 1 and using the revision resources in our online textbook, and also later-order concerns (proofreading) to have a substantially revised essay.
Steps for Revision
Read through the comments that I left on your revised ethnograhpy from Project 1.
Create a plan for revision. What are the major areas that need to be revised? What are the minor things that need to be revised? Start with the major (high and middle order concerns) before moving to minor (later order concerns).
Use the revision resources in the textbook to help with your revision or get help with certain areas of your paper.
Revise your draft. This will likely not be a linear process—you will find yourself going back over areas, making changes, going back to your samples, then going back to the paper, etc. (e.g. expect to put in substantial work and that there will be a lot of back and forth).
Once you are done with your revision, proofread your paper. Consider installing the free version of Grammarly for Chrome so that it can check it directly on your paper.
This can be done even with lab computers, if you log into the Chrome browser first (the extension will stay with your account, not the computer).
You can also use GenAI (such as Claude or ChatGPT) to help with proofreading. If you go this route, I recommend being cautious with the output to ensure that it doesn't strip out your writing voice or change your ideas.
I also highly recommend visiting the Academic Success Center for revision suggestions. Remember, you are not just “proofreading” your paper, but are expected to do substantial revision work.
Final Reflection
Your reflective essay will be a thorough and insightful reflection on your writing in this course.
Genre
You may write or create this in any genre of your choosing, such as a letter to me, video, or something else. Many different genres can work as long as the prompts are covered and the topics are covered with insight and detail. Do not simply list the prompts to answer; you must choose a genre to write in and create a cohesive reflection.
You may work in groups or with a partner for this as long as each student addresses the required prompts.
Note: if you choose a PowerPoint presentation, you will need to record the presentation along with the slides (i.e. use screen recording software to record you talking while giving the presentation on your screen).
Some examples of genres used by previous students: a radio or video interview (get a friend or classmate to interview you), a podcast, a formal letter to me, a series of diary entries, or a blog article to future students to explain what to expect in ENGL 1190. This list is not exhaustive; feel free to come up with something different!
Prompts
Cover all of the following prompts: (These do not need to be covered in this order, just make sure they are all addressed).
What do you think of yourself as a writer? What are your strengths and weaknesses?
What did you think about writing at the beginning of the semester? What do you think about college writing now, after this semester?
How have you grown as a writer? As a student?
What are the strengths of your revised ethnography? The weaknesses? Self-assess your own writing here.
How (specifically) did you go about revising your ethnography for the Final Portfolio? (Be specific about what you revised.) Specifically, discuss at least one HOC/MOC revision (high/middle order concern) and at least one LOC revision (later order concern). Use examples from your own writing to illustrate your points.
Think back on the time you spent on various assignments for this class and the feedback you received. What would you do differently if you were to do it over? Why? What would you do the same? Why?
Finally, what advice would you offer to students taking this class next semester?
Submitting Your Final Portfolio
On the Final Portfolio due date, you will briefly meet with me in the classroom, and I will check that I can access all parts of your portfolio. This will ensure that documents were uploaded correctly, links or videos work (if applicable), etc. Since this is due at the end of the semester, everything must be submitted on time and correctly. By meeting and checking in your portfolio, we can ensure there aren't any submission mistakes that lead to a failing grade.
To Submit your Final Portfolio
Before the Final Portfolio class period:
Submit your final revised essay to the Final Portfolio: Final Ethnography assignment in Canvas
Submit your Final Reflection assignment to the Final Portfolio: Final Reflection assignment in Canvas
Double-check that both have submitted correctly!
Submit any extra credit you have completed by the due date, as well.
Plan to bring your laptop/tablet and charger to class.
If there are any submission problems, you will have a few minutes during the class period to resolve the issue.
Make sure to have all parts of your portfolio on the laptop you bring to class or backed on a cloud drive like Google Drive or OneNote.
If you do not have a laptop/tablet, make sure to have all parts of your portfolio backed up somewhere you can access on a borrowed computer.
On the Final Portfolio due date:
Attend class and show up on time.
During class, I will...
Check that I can access all parts of your Final Portfolio.
Check that I've received any extra credit you've submitted.
If there is a problem with your submission, you will have a few minutes in class to resolve the issue on your own laptop/tablet (if you need to borrow one, let me know).
To submit the Final Portfolio early, it still must be checked in with me. Plan to either check-in your portfolio during office hours or a previous class period. Portfolios cannot be checked in over email.
Important Note
If you fail to attend class on the due date (or check it in early) and any part of your portfolio is not viewable/accessible to me, you will not receive credit for that portion of the portfolio.
Your portfolio must be submitted on time; late portfolios will not be accepted. Additionally, the portfolio cannot be resubmitted in any part once I've finished grading it. Since it's the last week of class, I need to get these graded quickly so that I can submit your final grades.
In other words, it's essential that you submit all parts of your portfolio on time and correctly.
