BIS 499B: Portfolio Capstone

Minimum requirement

Please note that IAS requires you to receive a 2.5 (80%) in this course in order to graduate.

Grading

To help alleviate stress, I grade all my assignments as pass/fail. My instructions for each assignment will be clear, so you can grade your own work before turning it into to guarantee that you'll pass it. But just in case you have questions beforehand, we’ll go over assignments in class before they are due. If you pass the assignments, you are guaranteed a grade of 3.5.

If you would like to earn a 4.0 in this course, then you are required to pass two additional assignments: an additional reflection on an IAS learning objective and a reflection on the learning objectives of your major. As we’ll discuss in much greater detail, the reflection assignments demonstrate your progress toward a particular skill.

Assignments	% of Grade
Participation (e.g., in-class workshops, career discussions, meetings with professor, discussions)	15
Short assignments (brainstorming, reading questions, peer-review, reflections, cover letter, etc.)	40
Final Portfolio	25
Exhibit	10
Additional reflection on another IAS learning goal	5
Reflection on learning goals for major	5
Total	100

Assignments

Participation

This will be a collaborative, student-centered course with almost no instructor lecturing; therefore, you will determine the value of each meeting by the ideas, questions, energy and insights you share with the group. Regular, constructive contribution to discussions and in-class activities will be vital to earning a high score on your participation grade, which I score daily this way:

pass	You courteously and productively contribute to all of the class discussions and critique sessions, and you listen attentively. Your comments are insightful and draw from the material we’ve been studying. If you are attending asynchronously, you record your contributions in your journal and through homework assignments.
fail	Your participation is weak. You are contribution to less than half of the class discussions and critique sessions, with little to no indication of paying attention. Your comments are sometimes insightful but oftentimes not relevant to class material.

I understand that personal challenges may arise during the quarter. To accommodate these challenges, I will drop two participation grades.

Weekly assignments

BIS 499 builds toward a capstone portfolio and exhibit session through weekly assignments. The weekly assignments help you build these larger products.

Final portfolio

You will create a portfolio that demonstrates how your education in IAS helps you shine. Your final portfolio will include a long essay that answers the questions “What knowledge and abilities have you developed that you can carry forward? How does your portfolio provide evidence that you have the knowledge and abilities you claim?” But it also includes shorter essays that you will write and revise throughout the quarter.

Exhibit

You will create an exhibit that depicts what it means to you to be the major that you are. This exhibit is a personal expression of what you value most about your degree. We’ll share exhibits on the last day of class.

Late Policy

I grade your homework in order to prepare for our next class, and I begin grading Monday morning. So, it's quite helpful when you turn in assignments on time. However, you may automatically have a 48 hours extension with no penalty. After that, I will not accept assignments. Keep in mind that late assignments can't be used in peer review if they're not available yet; if your assignment is not available, then you will receive a 0 for the peer review.