BIS 461
Studies in U.S. Intellectual and Cultural
History:
The 1960s
Summer 2004
David
S. Goldstein, Ph.D.
Learning Portfolio
Assignment
The purpose of this assignment is to
provide you with a chance to reflect upon what you have learned, to
critically analyze your work, and to practice the selection of and
presentation of your work to an audience.
You will submit your portfolio
electronically, using the Catalyst Portfolio tool. I use
electronic portfolios for several reasons:
- They eliminate
the use of paper, because I can read and comment on your portfolio's
comments online;
- You do not have
to worry about printer problems, which are much more common than other
computer problems;
- You and I can
work on portfolios from anywhere in the word where we have Internet
access, without having to haul papers around;
- Your portfolio
will remain archived, so you will have access to it when you need to
complete your graduation portfolio in your senior capstone course;
- You can submit
your portfolio even if you miss class on the due date;
- Neither
you nor I can lose your documents.
Midquarter
Portfolio
First, gather all of your work that is to
be included in your midquarter learning portfolio. The guidelines for
what to include are listed below. I strongly recommend downloading
the learning portfolio items from the Catalyst Portfolio tool (see
"Downloading and submitting the portfolio," below) so you can see
what you will need to respond to, so you have time to think about and
draft responses.
Downloading and submitting the
portfolio: When you are ready to submit your portfolio, log onto
the Portfolio tool at <http://portfolio.washington.edu/optin.cgi?owner=davidgs&id=2542>.
You will need your UW Net ID to log on.
Under "Choose a portfolio location," please
choose the default location and then click the "Continue" button.
After receiving a confirmation that your portfolio was installed, you
will see the main portfolio page. You do not need to click on the
instructions, because that link will just take you to this
page.
First, under
"Options" or "Preferences,"
please enter your full name (using capital and small letters, like Mary Husky),
and select e-mail notification for when your portfolio is returned to
you, so you will know when you can log in again to read my
comments.
Then, one by one, you will add content to
your
electronic portfolio. Refer to the specific instructions below for
each item.
- Pre-course and
course-end questionnaires. Leave this
item blank for your midquarter portfolio. It will be used only
for your final portfolio.
- Abstract #1. Attach your first article
abstract here. Your Word file should
be named exactly in this format: LastnameA1
(note the use of capital and small letters). For example, if you name
were Mary Husky, your filename would be "HuskyA1"
(but without quotation marks). Note that there is no space between the
last name and the "A1" (which stands for Abstract #1). Your file name
cannot
have a space in it. To submit this artifact, click on the blue
"Abstract #1"
phrase from the main portfolio menu. Click on the blue "Attach
artifact" button. In the pull-down menu following "Artifact type,"
choose "A file from your hard drive." Then use the "Browse" button and
locate the file on your computer. In the next box, name your artifact "Lastname Abstract 1,"
using your last name in place of Lastname and omitting the quotation
marks. Don't change the artifact location (leave it "My Artifacts").
Then click the "Create Artifact" button. When you get to the next
screen, click on the "Finished" button. With
this item and all of the others, you can click the "Save" button
periodically to make sure you don't lose your work, but when you
are all finished, you must click on the "Finished" button. That should take you back to the main portfolio menu.
- Abstract #2. Leave this item blank
for your midquarter portfolio. It will be used only for your
final portfolio.
- Sample E-Response #1. Select one of your Blackboard e-responses that you
think exemplifies your best thinking. Open the message in
Blackboard and cut-and-paste the text into the dialogue box.
Below that, type a sentence or two to explain what you liked about this
e-response. Then, click on the "Finished" button. that should
take you back to the main portfolio menu.
- Sample E-Response #2. Leave this item blank for your midquarter
portfolio. It will be used only for your final portfolio.
<>- Participation
Self-Assessment. To begin your
participation self-assessment, click on that blue phrase. In the
provided dialogue box, write two substantial paragraphs that explain (a) which of the participant profiles described in
the course's participation document at <http://faculty.washington.edu/davidgs/Partic.html>
best fits you so far, and why you think so; b) which of the small group roles, described in that
same document, you have already tried; and (c) based on those two
things, what you would give yourself so far as a participation letter
grade. Please note that I expect this short response to be
carefully written and proofread. I recommend composing your short
response in Word so you can edit, proofread, and spellcheck, and then
paste your finished response into the space in the Portfolio.
- Reflective paper. Leave this item blank for your midquarter
portfolio. It will be used only for your final portfolio.
<>
When you have submitted all of the elements
of your portfolio, you need to click on the green "Submit" button
to submit the entire portfolio to me for review. When you click
on that button, you will see a list of the artifacts that you have
submitted. Click on the "Check ALL pages" button just below the list.
PRINT THIS PAGE! The printed list will be the only proof you have
that all of the documents were submitted in the portfolio! Then
click on the "Submit" button. You should get a pop-up confirmation
that your portfolio has been submitted. After
clicking second (gray) "submit" button, you will get a confirmation
message that your portfolio has been submitted to the instructor.
You then will go to a page listing all of the items again. There
should be an S next to each one (except the ones you are supposed to
skip for the midquarter portfolio) to indicate that each one has been
submitted. PRINT
THIS PAGE!
<>Then log out and close your
browser window to protect your UW Net ID. Important: Once
you click the "Submit" button, you cannot go back to add anything, so
make sure everything is in its final form and that all of the
documents are included before clicking on "Submit."
Your midquarter learning portfolio is due
online no later than 5:50 p.m. sharp on Monday, July 26.
Within ten days, I will
return your portfolio (follow the same link as the one you used to get
to the Portfolio before), with my comments. I will not comment on
midquarter portfolios submitted after the deadline, so please do not
bother to submit a late midquarter portfolio. I will deduct
twenty-five percentage points from the score of final portfolios that
did not have
a corresponding midquarter portfolio submitted by the deadline.
Final Portfolio
First, gather all of your work that is to
be included in your course-end learning portfolio. The guidelines for
what to include are listed below. I strongly recommend downloading
the learning portfolio items from the Catalyst Portfolio tool (see
"Downloading and submitting the portfolio," below) so you can see
what you will need to respond to, so you have time to think about and
draft responses.
Then, write a formal, reflective
paper of about 800 words (no fewer than 600 and no more than
1000) that discusses, in an order that makes sense as the best way to
present your thinking:
- your reflections upon what you feel you
have learned in this course, with a focus on your performance
rather than on the course itself
- how you think you learned what you
learned
- how you feel about the various aspects of
your work, including, but not limited to, the degree to which you have
made progress in the following areas:
- critical reading
- formal writing
- small-group and full-class discussions
(if you have more to say than you were able to in your course-end
questionnaire)
- understanding of the ideas and events
of the 1960s
and your relationship to them
- what you feel you will carry into your
future courses and into your lifelong learning
- what your priorities are for continuing
improvement and learning
As a formal piece of university writing,
your reflective essay should be typed and double-spaced throughout,
using a standard font (like Times) in 12-point size, and with margins
of one inch all the way around each page. By "formal," I mean that I
expect carefully considered and carefully written work, which should
be formally formatted, including double spacing. This probably
requires some writing and revision before you can produce a
high-quality, final product to include in the portfolio. First-person
("I") statements are fine. Please re-read "Tips for Better Prose" at
<http://faculty.washington.edu/davidgs/Prose.html>
after getting your main ideas down on paper but before
submitting your final version of your reflective essay. Provide a
meaningful but brief title for your paper (not "Reflective Essay" but
rather a short hint of your paper's main point or thrust).
Just before you submit your reflective
paper online, do a final word count (in the Tools pull-down menu of
Microsoft Word) to make sure you meet the 600- to 1000-word
parameters. You do not need to type the number of words; I will be
able to do my own word count of your paper.
Needless to say, your work must be entirely
original. Using another person's ideas or words without proper
attribution, whether intentional or accidental, constitutes
plagiarism, and will result in a zero on this assignment. Please
re-read "Maintaining Academic Integrity" at <http://faculty.washington.edu/davidgs/Integrity.html>.
Downloading and submitting the
portfolio: When you are ready to submit your portfolio, log onto
the Portfolio tool at <http://portfolio.washington.edu/optin.cgi?owner=davidgs&id=2542>.
You will need your UW Net ID to log on.
Under "Choose a portfolio location," please
choose the default location and then click the "Continue" button.
After receiving a confirmation that your portfolio was installed, you
will see the main portfolio page. You do not need to click on the
instructions, because that link will just take you to this
page.
First, under
"Options" or "Preferences,"
check to make sure that your full name is still entered from when you
completed the midquarter portfolio and that e-mail notification is
turned on.
Then, one by one, you will add content to
your
electronic portfolio. Refer to the specific instructions below for
each item.
- Pre-course and
course-end questionnaires. Start your
portfolio with "Pre-Course and Course-End Questionnaires" by clicking
on that blue phrase. With those two questionnaires in front of you,
think about and then type your reflection upon those questionnaires.
With this item and all of the others, you can click the "Save" button
periodically to make sure you don't lose your work, but when you
are all finished, you must click on the "Finished" button. Please
note that I expect this short response to be carefully written and
proofread. I recommend composing your short response in Word so you can
edit, proofread, and spellcheck, and then paste your finished response
into the space in the Portfolio.
- Abstract #1. For this item, just
leave the abstract
that you included in your midquarter portfolio. Skip this item
without
changing anything.
- Abstract #2. Attach your second article
abstract here. Your Word file should
be named exactly in this format: LastnameA2
(note the use of capital and small letters). For example, if you name
were Mary Husky, your filename would be "HuskyA12"
(but without quotation marks). Note that there is no space between the
last name and the "A2" (which stands for Abstract #2). Your file name
cannot
have a space in it. To submit this artifact, click on the blue
"Abstract #2"
phrase from the main portfolio menu. Click on the blue "Attach
artifact" button. In the pull-down menu following "Artifact type,"
choose "A file from your hard drive." Then use the "Browse" button and
locate the file on your computer. In the next box, name your artifact "Lastname Abstract 2,"
using your last name in place of Lastname and omitting the quotation
marks. Don't change the artifact location (leave it "My Artifacts").
Then click the "Create Artifact" button. When you get to the next
screen, click on the "Finished" button. With
this item and all of the others, you can click the "Save" button
periodically to make sure you don't lose your work, but when you
are all finished, you must click on the "Finished" button. That should take you back to the main portfolio menu.
- Sample E-Response #1. For this item, just leave the e-response sample that
you included in your midquarter portfolio. Skip this item without
changing anything.
- Sample E-Response #2. Select one of your Blackboard e-responses, other
than the one you used for your first sample, that you
think exemplifies your best thinking. Open the message in
Blackboard and cut-and-paste the text into the dialogue box.
Below that, type a sentence or two to explain what you liked about this
e-response. Then, click on the "Finished" button. that should
take you back to the main portfolio menu.
- Participation
Self-Assessment. To begin your
participation self-assessment, click on that blue phrase. In the
provided dialogue box, write two substantial paragraphs that explain (a) which of the participant profiles described in
the course's participation document at <http://faculty.washington.edu/davidgs/Partic.html>
best fits you now that we have reached the end of the course, and why
you think so; b) which of the small
group roles, described in that
same document, you have tried this quarter; and (c) based on those two
things, what you would give yourself as a participation letter
grade. Please note that I expect this short response to be
carefully written and proofread. I recommend composing your short
response in Word so you can edit, proofread, and spellcheck, and then
paste your finished response into the space in the Portfolio.
- Reflective paper.
Your reflective paper is the next component
of your learning portfolio. Your Word file should be named exactly in
this format: LastnameReflect.
For example, if you name were Mary Husky, your filename would be "HuskyReflect"
(but without quotation marks). Note that there is no space between the
last name and the "Reflect." Your file name cannot have a space in it.
To submit this artifact, click on the blue "Reflective Paper" phrase
from the main portfolio menu. Click on the blue "Attach artifact"
button. In the pull-down menu following "Artifact type," choose "A file
from your hard drive." Then use the "Browse" button and locate the file
on your computer. In the next box, name your artifact "Lastname Reflective,"
using your last name in place of Lastname and omitting the quotation
marks. Don't change the artifact location (leave it "My Artifacts").
Then click the "Create Artifact" button. When you get to the next
screen, click on the "Finished" button. That should take you back to
the main portfolio menu.
When you have submitted all of the elements
of your portfolio, you need to click on the green "Submit" button
to submit the entire portfolio to me for review. When you click
on that button, you will see a list of the artifacts that you have
submitted. Click on the "Check ALL pages" button just below the list.
PRINT THIS PAGE! The printed list will be the only proof you have
that all of the documents were submitted in the portfolio! Then
click on the "Submit" button. You should get a pop-up confirmation
that your portfolio has been submitted. After
clicking second (gray) "submit" button, you will get a confirmation
message that your portfolio has been submitted to the instructor.
You then will go to a page listing all of the items again. There
should be an S next to each one to indicate that each one has been
submitted. PRINT
THIS PAGE!
Then log out and close your
browser window to protect your UW Net ID. Important: Once
you click the "Submit" button, you cannot go back to add anything, so
make sure everything is in its final form and that all of the
documents are included before clicking on "Submit."
Your final learning portfolio is due
online at 5:50 p.m. sharp on Wednesday, Aug. 11. Because I
have
provided the maximum amount of time to complete this assignment,
because I need to return graded portfolios before grades are due, and
because I need to ensure an equal amount of time to be fair to
everyone in class, I will accept late portfolios sumbitted after 5:50
p.m. on Aug. 11 but no later than 5:50 p.m. on Aug. 12, but will give
only half credit for the portfolio. I will accept no portfolios
after 5:50 p.m.
sharp on Aug. 12 for any reason, which probably will result in a 0.0
for
the course, so I strongly recommend
finishing early to avoid any unforeseen problems. For on-time and
late portfolios, any missing items will earn a 0, but other items will
be graded for credit. You are responsible for making sure--using
the above instructions--that all required items are included.
Basis for grading your learning
portfolio:
|
Completeness (responds appropriately to
the assignment in form and content)
|
20 percent
|
|
Depth of response (quality of detail
and support; sophistication of ideas and argument)
|
70 percent
|
|
Quality of writing (organization;
spelling, grammar, diction, punctuation)
|
10 percent
|
|
TOTAL
|
10 percent of final course grade
|
I expect to return both midquarter and final
portfolios within ten days of submission. If you turned on e-mail
notification as instructed (above), you will get an e-mail message
telling you that you can pick up your portfolio.
Let me emphasize that I expect your best
effort in this and every exercise. My expectations are high because
your ability to produce outstanding work is high.
Some additional advice:
- Save your work often (maybe every ten
minutes) so you do not lose everything when your computer freezes.
- Visit the Writing Center (see <http://www.bothell.washington.edu/writingcenter/>).
- I do not have time to read rough drafts,
but I am very glad to discuss your portfolio or its components as you
work on them. You would be wise to visit me during office hours (see
syllabus) to make sure you are on the right track, and to get advice
about any particular difficulties you might be encountering.
- Re-read this assignment sheet just before
assembling the final portfolio to make sure it meets all of the
requirements.
This page last updated July 13,
2004.
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