Portfolio Narrative Questions and Sample Portfolio

Each portfolio has a table of contents. The table of contents is a list of all your work, the narrative essays are your introduction to the portfolio, please include your name, address, email address and phone number, course and course code.

I will post a portfolio check list to help you with the table of contents. I have included a sample portfolio in the comment section of this post. It is a word document. If you want to include scanned documents, you can submit a CD with your portfolio.

The portfolio narratives (These are essays each minimally 250-500 words or 1 typed page plus a works cited or bibliography. Use your written work as evidence in Essay 2.)

1. The narrative will look at the entire semester, the theme(s) we looked at this semester: hip hop culture and its impact on American society and the global community. Talk about what you've learned and discovered this semester about writing and yourself, college and life, which have transformed or changed you.

What have you learned about the discipline you are studying here: reading and writing that you plan to carry forth into your lifelong pursuit of learning?

Please also comment on the texts and whether or not they were helpful in this process. You can also talk about the instruction, culture of the class and the teacher.

2. The second narrative essay looks at the writing process and what you have been learning about yourself as a writer. Take two essays and talk about the planning, research and revision strategies you used. It helps to choose an early paper and compare to a later paper. Often you can more easily see the differences in your writing and a better example of mastery of certain concepts. Also discuss skills you need to improve and how you plan to address that. As I stated already, use a scholarly source to discuss the writing and revision process.

Other considerations for essay two: besides students looking at the writing process and discussing their own writing process: the topics chosen, the information used, revision strategies, writing as a process, the essay needs to include a definition of the difference between editing and revising and a value statement on the place for both in composition.
I am really interested in discourse or discussion about audience and how one’s audience shapes or determines how the writer approaches her topic.

I am also interested in discussion of the revision process, and whether or not seeing writing as a work in progress or a draft, liberates or stagnates the creative process. (Students are to use examples from their writing to illustrate these points.)

I'd like students to think about and give at three specific ways how they have grown as writers and thinkers this semester. Each essay should be minimally 1-2 pages (250-500 words).



Separate:

What grade do you think you earned in the course______________________________________________

Your essay and the attached copy of a completed grading sheet are the evidence.

Do you have any questions about writing or anything else?

Teacher Research

Can I use you writing in teacher research projects? I will give you full credit and inform you of its use. Indicate Yes or No. Please circle one.


Evaluation
In a third short response evaluate the semester: teacher, textbooks, assignments, methodology, etc. Please be frank and feel free to offer suggestions.