Thanks for your hard work this semester. Good luck with your future studies and careers.
Unsubscribing from the Course Website and Twitter Updates
If you subscribed to the course website at the beginning of the term, you probably want to unsubscribe now. Look for an unsubscribe link at the bottom of the email message that you get from the course website.
If you were following the course Twitter account (@HokieTengrrl), just go the the page in Twitter and click the Unfollow button.
I have archived the Facebook group, so you should receive no more updates from it. If you prefer, you can also Leave the Group.
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If you are lucky, when you begin a new job, you will find a continuity folder on the desk or on the computer to help you complete your work. The exact name of this folder will depend on your workplace. It can be called a continuity folder, binder, portfolio, or book; standard (or standing) operating procedures; or a transition book.
Inside this folder, you will find documents and information that will help you complete your work. The contents can include:
- mission statements and goals
- position responsibilities
- system and social media login information
- advice and tips
- schedules, timelines, and calendars
- instructions, protocols, and procedures
- templates and examples
- checklists
- budget and funding information
- inspection reports
- organization charts and info on personnel
You will use this folder to guide your daily work, and one of your on-going tasks will be to keep the contents of the folder up to date. In the event that you are not available, the person filling in for you will use the folder to determine what to do and how to do it. When you move to another position, the next person in the position will use the information that you leave in the folder.
The Writing Activity
If you were contributing to a Continuity Folder for students taking this course in the future, what would you include and why? You can share the advice you would include in the folder, or you can describe whatever you would add to the folder. You are not limited to a single thing. If you want to mention more than one item or piece of advice, that’s fine.
Image credit: folder by Christian Guthier on Flickr, used under a CC-BY 2.0 license
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Lynda.com Login Help
Lynda.com videos are free to Virginia Tech students with your VT.EDU login. Start at the VT.EDU login page to access these resources.
You will find times in the workplace (and certainly here at college) when you have to do a lot of writing in very little time. Today’s #TuesdayTutorial provides advice on how to structure your time and get a piece of writing done under a deadline.
The Lynda.com video Writing Under a Deadline (33m 38s) includes tips that will help you begin, write, and finish a project on time. You will hear advice on establishing a timeline, organizing your ideas, staying focused, and polishing your work before you submit it. Even if your time is tight now at the end of the semester, it’s worth investing some time in this video:
Note: This video has closed captioning, so it does not need a transcript.
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We are down to the last three days of the semester. To those of you graduating, best of luck to you in your careers. To everyone else, good luck as you continue to pursue your studies.
Readings for the Week
Review the readings from last week as necessary as you work on your final exam.
- Final Exam: Performance Review
- Advice Articles on Writing Self-Evaluations
- Changes to the Course Grading System
(explains how to use the Course Completion Checklists) - #SundayShare: Final Exam Resources
- #TuesdayTutorial: Determining Your Course Grade
- #WeekendWatch: Tips for Your Final Exam
Reminders
- If you have questions about readings, research, or writing, let me know. You can send me a private message in Canvas or send me an email message.
- All transcript opportunities have been claimed for the term. No more transcript requests are coming.
Tasks for the Rest of the Term
- By 11:59PM on Monday, April 30, submit your 04/27 Labor Log in Canvas, if you are using the grace period.
- By 11:59PM on Wednesday, May 2, submit revisions, transcripts, and other work for all projects due. There is no additional grace period on these projects.
- By 11:59PM on Thursday, May 3, complete your SPOT survey. Use the advice on the #WednesdayWrite: SPOT Evaluations (coming 4/25).
- By 11:59PM on Monday, May 7, submit your final exam in the Final Exam: Performance Review assignment in Canvas. There is no grace period on the Final Exam. If you do not submit your exam on time (or do not submit it at all), your grade in the course will be lowered.
Calendar for the Rest of the Term
This is the same info as above, presented in a table. All submissions due by 11:59 PM.
| Day | Date | What’s Going On? |
|---|---|---|
| Mon | 04/30 | Grace period for 04/27 Labor Log ends |
| Wed | 05/02 | All revisions, transcripts, and other work for all projects due |
| Thu | 05/03 | SPOT Responses due |
| Mon | 05/07 | Final Exam due (no grace period) |
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Abbajay advises that you can’t rely on your boss to remember all the great things that you have done. The same applies to me. There are nearly 100 students in the course, so it’s difficult for me to remember everything that you have done. I have the gradebook, but we all know that you are more than a few checkmarks in a gradebook. Be sure that you show me your accomplishments in your final.
Watch the video for further advice:
Note: This video has closed captioning, so it does not need a transcript.
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If you want to make a good impression, you need to make sure that your documents are polished and professional, with every element right where readers expect it. Think about how you prepare for a job interview. You wear specific kinds of clothes. You carry specific accessories, depending upon your field. You make sure that you look polished, not wrinkly. Everything is exactly right and just as the interviewer expects it. Nothing is missing.
If you need help polishing your work, check out how to Make Your Boring Documents Look Professional in 5 Easy Steps, from The Visual Communication Guy. His post demonstrates easy changes you can make to jazz up your documents.
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The article ends with the flowchart shown below, which suggests that most of the time, you should not use exclamation points. It’s a fun flowchart—though perhaps not based on an academic study. Even so, it’s a good reminder and a nice distraction for these last days of class.
Click on the image for a larger version and a transcript.
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Our #WednesdayWrite is a little different this week. It’s that time of the semester when all your teachers beg you to complete the SPOT survey, and I want to tell you a little bit about how we use your feedback in my department.
What We Do With Your Comments
I use your feedback to figure out if the course is giving you what you need. I take your suggestions into account as I set up my classes in the future.
My department uses your feedback as part of the system that is used to evaluate how well I am doing as your teacher. Both the survey answers and the comments that you make are read by others in the department to provide annual review feedback to me each year. Most (but not all) departments on campus use a similar system.
What I Would Love to Hear
Here are some things you can write about as you respond to your SPOT survey for this class:
- Give concrete details. Use a specific example or two to help me understand your comments. Instead of saying, “This class taught me a lot,” say what the class taught you a lot about; or instead of saying, “I wish this class covered more,” say what kinds of things you wish the class had covered.
- Think of your feedback as continuing the conversation. You have been sharing resources on Facebook and adding comments on the course blog. Adding comments on the SPOT evaluation is just another way to continue telling me about what you are learning and thinking about the course. I am really interested in hearing what you have to say. Just be honest, and tell me what you think.
- Let me know how you feel about the course policies. I care a lot about making the course fair for everyone. I know you all have other classes and obligations, so I have tried to set up the course in a way that makes it fair and easy for everyone to do well. That is why I have the grace period and the infinite revision system, for instance. Did these policies seem fair to your? Do you have suggestions? Let me know.
And Now Your #WednesdayWrite…
- Remember that your feedback is anonymous and that I will not see it until AFTER course grades have been submitted, so there is no way that your feedback can influence your grade.
- You can include completion of the SPOT survey as evidence of your work to earn a grade higher than B. State that you completed the survey in your final. Include a screenshot if you have one as evidence. If you don’t, no worries. All work in this course is covered by the Honor Code, so lying about the survey would be a violation.
- Once you have completed your SPOT survey, add a comment here that says, “Done.” That’s all you have to say today. Feel free to say more if you want.
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You’ll determine the course grade you deserve by returning to the syllabus and requirements page on this site. First, remember that your grades in this course are based 100% on the labor you actively contributed to building and supporting the writing community and the labor you put into completing all the activities and projects in the course. In your final exam, you will present the details on what you have done and avoid making excuses or telling “sob stories.”
Remember that the Grades in Canvas are only a summary of the work that you completed (or did not complete). Your grade is based on your work as outlined on the requirements page.
To Earn a B
You must have completed the following activities in order to earn a B or higher in this course:
- Create five assigned major projects. You must have a complete on each of the following:
- Professional Bio
- Analysis of Writing in Your Field
- Short Proposal
- Progress Report
- Genre Analysis Report
- Track your work in the course in a Labor Log. You must have a complete on Labor Logs for each of the following dates:
- 01/019
- 01/26
- 02/02
- 02/09
- 02/16
- 02/23
- 03/02
- 03/16
- 03/23
- 03/30
- 04/06
- 04/13
- 04/20
- 04/27
- Share at least one new or revised draft (with framing notes) a week with your writing group.
- Provide formative feedback weekly on the drafts that are submitted by the members of your writing group. You must have a complete on each of the following discussions:
- Evaluate your labor in the course in a performance review, which serves as your final exam (uploaded as an Assignment in Canvas).
To Earn a Grade Lower than a B
If you did not complete all of the activities in the section above, your grade will be lower than a B. Discuss the required work that you did complete, explaining how much of it you completed. You can also refer to any work that you did beyond the basic requirements.
In your final exam, tell me what grade you deserve in the course (B-, C+, D, etc.), using the information from your performance evaluation to support your argument.
To Earn a Grade Higher than a B
You must have taken an ongoing leadership role by helping to share new ideas with the class and significantly adding support to the writing community.
Your contributions may have been supportive actions that you designed yourself (with feedback from me) or actions that came from a list of possible suggestions.
Be sure to talk about consistency. Your argument is stronger if you demonstrate that you consistently worked toward your goal during the entire term, rather than waiting until the last minute.
Grades higher than a B are based on the value of those contributions to demonstrating your leadership and adding support to the writing community. They are not based on the number of contributions you make..
FAQ for Grades in the Course
| If you are looking for… | Look here… |
|---|---|
| The basic requirements for grades in the course | Requirements Page |
| Options for earning a grade higher than a B | Section on higher grades on the Requirements Page |
| Information on the check and X marks in Canvas Grades | Completes vs. Incompletes section on How Canvas Grades Work Page |
| How to tell how you’re doing in the course | How to Tell How You’re Doing section on the How Canvas Grades Work Page |
| The reason Canvas isn’t tracking your course grade | What Is Tracked in Canvas Grades on the How Canvas Grades Work Page |
| How to use the Course Completion Checklists | About Your Grade in the Course section on the Changes to the Course Grading System Page |
| How to tell the number of blog comments you have made | Comments on Daily Discussion Posts section on the Responses to Midterm Evaluation Comments page |
| Details on how to make your case for a grade in the course | Final Exam Page |
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Readings for the Week
- Final Exam: Performance Review
- Advice Articles on Writing Self-Evaluations
- Changes to the Course Grading System
(explains how to use the Course Completion Checklists) - #SundayShare: Final Exam Resources
- #TuesdayTutorial: Determining Your Course Grade (coming 04/24)
Tasks for the Remainder of the Term
- If you have questions about readings, research, or writing, let me know. You can send me a private message in Canvas or send me an email message.
- All transcript opportunities have been claimed for the term. No more transcript requests are coming.
- By 11:59PM on Monday, April 23, submit your 04/20 Labor Log in Canvas, if you are using the grace period.
- By 11:59PM on Wednesday, May 2, submit revisions, transcripts, and other work for all projects due. There is no additional grace period on these projects.
- By 11:59PM on Thursday, May 3, complete your SPOT survey. Use the advice on the #WednesdayWrite: SPOT Evaluations (coming 4/25).
- By 11:59PM on Monday, May 7, submit your final exam in the Final Exam: Performance Review assignment in Canvas. There is no grace period on the Final Exam. If you do not submit your exam on time (or do not submit it at all), your grade in the course will be lowered.
Calendar for the Rest of the Term
This is the same info as above, presented in a table. All submissions due by 11:59 PM.
| Day | Date | What’s Going On? |
|---|---|---|
| Mon | 04/23 | Genre Analysis Report due |
| Mon | 04/23 | Grace period for 04/20 Labor Log ends |
| Thu | 04/26 | Grace period for Genre Analysis Report ends |
| Fri | 04/27 | 04/27 Labor Log due |
| Mon | 04/30 | Grace period for 04/27 Labor Log ends |
| Wed | 05/02 | All revisions, transcripts, and other work for all projects due |
| Thu | 05/03 | SPOT Responses due |
| Mon | 05/07 | Final Exam due (no grace period) |
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