Sophomore Writing Portfolio - FAQ w/FORMS
In May 2001, the Carleton faculty voted to launch a pilot project on portfolio assessment of student writing. The goal of the portfolio project is to develop a fair and efficient method of evaluating your work, not to mention improve our teaching of writing.
You can find a list of the portfolio requirements here.
Note: Writing Portfolios are due Friday, May 14, 2010 but please turn them in sooner if you can.
Other questions you may have about the portfolio are answered below; you may also contact Carol Rutz, Director of the College Writing Program, if you have any questions that aren't answered here.
Q. Exactly what do I need to turn in to complete my portfolio?
Here is a checklist of everything that needs to be included in your completed portfolio.
The Portfolio Requirement Sheet or the Insider's Guide contain more detailed information.
Q. If I didn't have to take a WR course because I had an AP score of 5, do I still have to come up with a WR paper? No.
Q. If I took more than one WR course, may I choose a paper from any of them? Yes.
Q. Where can I find the forms I need for my portfolio?
Copies of all forms are available in Leighton 230. They can also be found at the bottom of this page.
Q. Are there information sessions for students working on portfolios?
Yes. Have your RA invite Carol Rutz to meet with the first-year and sophomore students on your floor. Sophomores will also be invited to an evening help session about 10 days before portfolios are due.
Q. Is it OK to revise my papers before submitting them?
Yes. Readers like to see that you care enough about your work to revise it.
Q. May I use first person in my cover essay? YES! Please do.
Q. What else is required in that “reflective” essay?
Faculty readers count on this essay to prepare them to read your portfolio, so consider this a persuasive document. Establish your voice, lead your reader through the portfolio, and make an argument. Use the portfolio contents as evidence to demonstrate convincingly whatever you want to say about yourself as a college writer. Most people write 2-3 pages.
Q. Do my title pages and bibliographies count in the 30 pp. I'm allowed?
No—be sure to include bibliographies. Readers do look at them.
Q. Does the reflective essay count in the 30 pp.? No.
Q. May I submit a paper written as part of a group?
Probably. If you can show in your cover essay or in a memo attached to the group paper which part (or parts) are your work, you’re in business.
Q. I lost most of my papers in a computer disaster. What do I do?
Talk with Carol Rutz (x 4082) right away. There may be a way to manage, and a conversation is the essential first step.
Q. What happens if I don’t submit a portfolio by the end of my sixth term?
The Academic Standing Committee will decide how to deal with those who do not submit portfolios on time. One thing is clear: You will not be excused from preparing a portfolio and a hold will be put on your registration until we receive your portfolio. It's probably best to do it and save us all a lot of trouble.
Q. If my portfolio is ready before the deadline, may I hand it in?
Yes! Bring it to Liz Musicant in Leighton 230.
Q. The permission form you ask me to sign refers to “ongoing research” about student writing. What’s up with that?
The College is interested, for faculty and curriculum development purposes, in knowing what kinds of writing students are assigned and in which courses, and many related questions that can only be answered by examining actual student writing. As the permission form states, you will never be personally identified in any such research.
Q. Where do I turn in my portfolio?
To Carol Rutz, Leighton 310 or to Liz Musicant in Leighton 230. If neither of them is available, you may put your portfolio in Liz Musicant's mailbox in the Sociology/Anthropology lounge (on the second floor of Leighton). Be sure you include the summary sheet with your portfolio. Do not drop portfolios off at the Write Place.
Q. How should I prepare my portfolio to hand in? Do you want it in a fancy binder or something?
No! The best thing to use is the original writing portfolio folder. If yours has disappeared since freshman year, any other folder or manila envelope will work.
Q. I received a CD in my portfolio folder. What's the CD for?
We ask that you save your submitted papers, as well as the reflective essay on the CD. This helps save money, trees and staff time in copying. If you lose the CD we provided with your original portfolio, then you will need to purchase your own.
Q. When will I find out how I did?
Portfolios are scored by faculty in June, and results are typically e-mailed to students in late June or early July.
Q. I’m worried that my portfolio will not pass. What happens if I fail?
Every year, some portfolios are rated “needs work,” which means that the writers will meet with the Writing Program Director or another writing professional on campus to describe the problems and agree on remedies. Each situation is highly individual. For example, you may be asked to revise material in your portfolio, work with a tutor on your writing, or work with the Writing Program Director on papers for the next term. Once you have completed the extra work, your degree audit will show a “pass.”
Q. How did the Writing Portfolio begin anyway?
Great question. It all began when the Carleton faculty voted to include the entire class of 2005 in a pilot project on portfolio assessment of student writing. Click here to find out more.
For more information, see the Insider’s Guide to the Sophomore Writing Portfolio.
__________________________________________________________________________________
These forms may be of interest to you as you complete your portfolio. (link to requirements)
NOTE: The Class of 2012 and later do not need to provide "authentication forms" for their essays.
