Your Thoughts on Portfolios

I think that having a portfolio grade at the end of the semester is a
good way to have your assignments graded. I like being able to fix my
papers and hopefully to receive a higher grade. This idea works well
for an English class, however I don't know if it would work well for
other classes.
-- Scott

I like the way the portfolio is done. Personally, I’d rather do a portfolio than take a final exam. I think it is fairer to be able to change your papers for the last time to get the grade that you want. It’s a lot like taking a take home test and being able to get the answers that you want rather than being rushed for the two hours you have to take the test and end up forgetting everything you studied. -- Horsley


I 100% am down with the portfolio. I think it is the best way possible to survive an english class. This is sooo much better for an exam, less crammin' and it cuts you a little slack on one of your exams. In addition, the peer reviews and conferences are always a plus. They help to correct anything and everything in your portfolio to only make it better. I love it, great idea!

-O'Roke

Overall I really liked the portfolio experience. I think that this way of grading is a lot more fair than just tests. The portfolio allows Mrs. Greene to see where we started as a writer and how far we've come over the course.She's able to see what changed and why it changed. If students are just given tests they can know most key concepts for the material, but depending on what questions your teachers asks you may not do well. I really like the portfolios. This is because we didn't get graded on each paper at first. This gives the writer the chance to take risks and not be afraid how they will turn out. We were able to take the chance and write the paper. Then we were able to see what our peers did and get their opinions. Conferences with Mrs. Greene were especially helpful because we got one on one time to see how we can correct our papers. Her feedback is really helpful for our final revisions. With the portfolio system we are given many opinions and many chances to revise. -- Lilley

From one year experience at WVU, and having finals and exams all the time in other classes, I LOVE the idea about portfolios. I much rather write a paper and keep revising it any day!! The papers were not that bad but at the same time challenged me. I learned a lot but still didn't have to stress out like a lot of other classes.
-Stephanie Learn

I really like the idea behind the porfolios. It give a student a chance to impliment all their writting skills and strategies that they have learned into all their fianl papers. The final portfolio gives a student a chance to truly prove themself as a writer. They are given one last chance to show how they have progressed through out the year into a more literate person. -Yearsley

I think the portfolio is the best way to earn a grade for English. I love the idea that our papers are not graded the first time around. By putting a portfolio together you get the chance to go back and revise your work to recieve a better grade. On top of all that you get a lot of time and help putting your papers together with peer review and conferences. What more could you ask for? By getting a second chance to correct your papers, it allows Mrs. Greene to see the progress we have made from the beginning of the semester. -- Gilmore

I like the portfolios. I would rather turn in a portfolio than take a final. I like how we can change our papers and improve them to get a better grade. Too many classes stress just one test. The portfolio allows you to show your work throughout the entire semester. I think the portfolio is a way to receive the grade you really deserve. -- Devan

Advice to the Next Generation of 101ers

Advice for English 101:Get your thoughts down on paper! Don't worry about producing the final copy at the onset of the assignment; just get your ideas down on paper. Then take full advantage of the peer editing and teacher editing sessions. But at the beginning, don't worry about using the best word possible or even about minor grammatical errors. Just get the big ideas down on paper so that you have something to work with. This is the beauty of the portfolio experience; it is a process. Don't expect to produce a finished product the first time you sit down to do your paper. Just put your thoughts down, and then let the writing process take its course. -- McFadden

English 101 is an interesting class that I learned a lot in, but if I had to give any advice I would say don't take it. I don't know about other people, but I can;t write three papers in a week. If you do take it stay ahead and try to finish your short writes and journals early. They take for ever to write so do them early. Have fun with the class and take extra time to find a topic you like for each of your papers. This will help the papers go quicker, smoother, and make the class go faster.P.S. Take it later in the day. So when you remember that forgot something you have time to go get it or do it. -- Michel

My experience in English 101 at West Virginia University was a very postive one and for the next generation I would like to give some advice. It is a lot of work to write a paper in one night, so when the short writes, journals, or peer reviews are due it helps to get started before those due dates. Also the journals and short writes help to understand the big papers, so do them and do them rite. Also take advantage of the peer review and teacher conferences because the teacher is the one grading your papers so get her advice before handing it in. And obviously go to class, I had english at 9:30 in the morning MWF...I think everyone else can handle it too!!
-Stephanie Learn

My advice is to take part in evrything that the class offers. Peer review, conferences, and the final for now phase are all very important. Participating in these things through out the year will help you develop as a wrtier. As a student who revises a paper over and over again is more liekly to suceed in the class. Participation is important as well, you need to let your voice and opinion be heard.-Yearsley

My advice for the people who take English 101 next is to stay on top of things. You have to write a lot of papers so make sure to get them done on time. If you get behind it is not easy to catch up. The class is much easier if you get things done on time. My other advice would be to go to class. You will learn a lot and you need the attendance points. You only get to miss three days. -- Devan

Words From The Wise

So....now that you've actually been on a Spring Break, what words of wisdom do you have to offer to other Spring Breakers coming up behind you?

Even though Spring Break is suppose to be a “break” from school, you still need to stay on task. By saying this I mean you still need to study, read, do homework, ECT… It is important that you stay on top of your academic performance. Going an entire week without studying and so forth will most likely result in one forgetting important information. A professor usually does not take it easy on students to give them time to get back into the swing of things. Most professors start right back into full swing. So you better be prepared and ready to get right back to work. A student does not want to come back from Spring Break lost and behind on work. Especially since there is only a few weeks left in the semester when students return from Spring Break. It would be almost impossible to play “catch up” this late in the semester. Your grade in the class would mostly like suffer the consequences. My advice is while on Spring Break is enjoy yourself and have fun, but take just a little time each day to study and review material for each one of your classes. It truly will be worth the extra time and effort. -Yearsley

Coming out of my first spring break as a college student, I think I had a little differnt experience than most other students. My parents booked my families vacation in accordance to my sisters spring break, not my own. So while i did get a nice break away from school, I also came back to school almost clueless about what had happened in the week i missed. And on top of that I only had 5 days to catch up before WVU went on break. Needless to say, I am still playing catchup and now that its all over im not to sure i want to go through this again. My advice is to stick to your own schools spring break rather than someone elses if at all possible. It saves a world of grief.-Michel

Spring break is the time to just chill. There is so much talk about how when you're in college, you have to go somewhere like Cancun or something. But honestly, most people just go home to see family or go somewhere relaxing with friends. It's the time to catch up on work or even get ahead. You just take time at your own pace. There are stories out there though about the kids who do get wild on Spring Break. Those are the stories that make you think twice about your crazy plans. If you're lucky enough to hear those stories before your first experience then good for you. The most important thing is to stay safe, have fun, and just relax. You're in the home stretch. -- Szykowny