You are here: Home / Archives for 2015

Archives for 2015

by on May 14, 2015

Course Grades Posted

checking-my-grades-f2307bI have finished grading all the work for the course and submitted course grades in HokieSpa. As a reminder, I use a Scholar’s default grade scale (no rounding). Thank you so much for your work this term. Have a great summer.

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 (@VTtengrrl), just go the the page in Twitter and click the Unfollow button.

Filed Under: Class Notes
by on May 6, 2015

Remix Presentations, Day Four

This is the post for the Wednesday, May 6, 2015 class meeting.

happyfinalsI have begun grading the remix projects. I will update the blog posts or attendance totals by midafternoon today. I will send out an announcement through Scholar once I have all the remixes graded. Once the course grades are finalized next week, I’ll send out another Announcement.

Presentations

10:10 class presentations will be from these folks:

11:15 class presentations will be from these folks:

Complete a Short Survey

Please complete this 4-question survey to help me make decisions about how to teach the class in the future. You will need to login with your vt.ed email address and password. Your answers will not effect your grade in the course.

Remaining To-Do’s

  1. Please complete the SPOT survey if you haven’t yet.

  2. Submit your remix by 11:55 PM tonight (Wednesday, May 6, 2015), following the instructions posted last week.

  3. Take the final exam. If your work is not submitted by 11:55 PM on Monday, May 11, you will receive a zero.

  4. If any of these deadlines is a burden because of other exams or the like, talk to me by the end of class today.

Filed Under: Class Notes Tagged With: , ,
by on May 4, 2015

Remix Presentations, Day Three

This is the post for the Monday, May 4, 2015 class meeting.

goat3-600x450I will begin grading the remix projects that have been turned in this evening.

As I posted last week, the gradebook reflects Projects 1, 2, & 3, plus your attendance and blog posts as of 4/22. I will not update the blog posts or attendance totals until after class on May 6.

Presentations

10:10 class presentations will be from these folks:

11:15 class presentations will be from these folks:

Remaining To-Do’s

  1. If you are presenting Wednesday, email me the link to your presentation by midnight on Tuesday (no grace period) so that I can set up the post for class

  2. Please complete the SPOT survey if you haven’t yet.

  3. Submit your remix by 11:55 PM on Wednesday, May 6, 2015, following the instructions posted Monday.

  4. Take the final exam. If your work is not submitted by 11:55 PM on Monday, May 11, you will receive a zero.

Filed Under: Class Notes Tagged With: , ,
by on May 1, 2015

Remix Presentations, Day Two

This is the post for the Friday, May 1, 2015 class meeting.

doge-presentationProject 3 is graded, so the gradebook reflects Projects 1, 2, and 3, plus your attendance and blog posts as of 4/22. Remember that I will not update the blog posts or attendance totals until after class on May 6.

Presentations

10:10 class presentations will be from these folks:

11:15 class presentations will be from these folks:

Remaining To-Do’s

  1. If you are presenting Monday, email me the link to your presentation by midnight on Sunday (no grace period) so that I can set up the post for class

  2. Please complete the SPOT survey if you haven’t yet.

  3. Submit your remix by 11:55 PM on Wednesday, May 6, 2015, following the instructions posted April 27.

  4. Take the final exam. If your work is not submitted by 11:55 PM on Monday, May 11, you will receive a zero.

Filed Under: Class Notes Tagged With: , ,
by on April 29, 2015

Remix Presentations, Day One

This is the post for the Wednesday, April 29, 2015 class meeting.

cat-presentationI’m still grading Project 3. Remember that I will not update the blog posts or attendance totals until after class on May 6.

Presentations

10:10 class presentations will be from these folks:

11:15 class presentations will be from these folks:

Remaining To-Do’s

  1. If you have a zero in Scholar, submit your work for Projects 1, 2, or 3 by 11:55 PM on Wednesday, 4/29. Otherwise the zero will stand.

  2. If you are presenting Friday, email me the link to your presentation by midnight on Thursday (no grace period) so that I can set up the post for class

  3. Complete the SPOT survey if you haven’t yet.

  4. Submit your remix by 11:55 PM on Wednesday, May 6, 2015, following the instructions posted Monday.

  5. Take the final exam. If your work is not submitted by 11:55 PM on Monday, May 11, you will receive a zero.

Filed Under: Class Notes Tagged With: , ,
by on April 26, 2015

Finalizing All The Things

This is the post for the Monday, April 27, 2015 class meeting.

evil-plotting-raccoon-meme-generator-course-evaluation-day-finally-i-have-my-revenge-58b26eToday is our last day of class before the presentations, so there are several things to cover:

  • Evaluating the course
  • Preparing for your presentation
  • Turning in your remix
  • Finishing your blog posts
  • Completing your final exam

Evaluating the Course

Please take a few minutes to fill out the Student Perceptions of Teaching (SPOT) survey for this course. The feedback helps the department make important decisions about teaching methods, course content, and faculty promotion. Written comments help me decide what to keep or change the next time I teach the course. In many ways, I find the written comments the most helpful part of the evaluation. I do not see the feedback until after grades are submitted, and your comments are anonymous.

Preparing for Your Presentation

We talked about the information that should go into your oral presentation earlier this month. Email me the link to your presentation by midnight on the day before your presentation (no grace period) so that I can set up the post for class.

Turning in Your Remix

You need to provide three texts when you submit your Remix for a grade: (1) a link to your Remix project itself, (2) a link to any presentation materials you want me to review (e.g., your slides), (3) your reflection memo, which you will post in Scholar.

Your reflection memo is slightly different this time since your grade on this project is based on your participation. Review the information on Project Expectations, and write a memo that does the following:

  • Provides the link to your Remix project (and optionally, a link to the presentation).

  • Gives me a summary of the project’s rhetorical situation, using the questions on pp. 111–112 of Writer/Designer. Provide a SHORT explanation of your audience, purpose, and design choices. Aim for just a sentence or two to remind me of the context you are working in.

  • Explains how you have participated and shown effort as you worked on this project. Include concrete details that help demonstrate your point.

  • Shows me how you have taken risks, stretched yourself, and otherwise applied your best effort to learn and create as you worked on this project.

  • And if you are aiming for an exemplary grade, tells me whatever I need to know about how you have gone beyond satisfactory work and participation. Note that if you were not in class working diligently every class day, an exemplary grade is out of reach for you.

You must submit your remix by 11:55 PM on Wednesday, May 6, 2015. There is no grace period since I need to grade projects immediately. You may, of course, turn in your work earlier if you want.

Finishing Your Blog Posts

Be sure to write and publish a blog post for today with the usual headings: (1) What I Did, and (2) Why I Did It. Today, however, is the last day that you must post an entry. You should have 28 posts after today.

If you are still working on your project after today, you may continue to track what you did and why you did it in blog posts. This information will help you write the reflection that you submit with your project.

Taking the Final Exam

The final exam assignment is available under the Assignments tab here on the course website, and the exam is open in Scholar.

Your final is due, according to the university timetable, at the following time:

  1. CRN #13324 (10:10 MWF course): Due by 3:05 PM on Friday, May 8.
  2. CRN #20269 (11:15 MWF course): Due by 9:45 AM on Friday, May 8.

The Grace Period for both classes ends at 11:55 PM on Monday, May 11. Please be sure that your work is submitted by the end of the grace period so that I can calculate final grades.

If your work is not submitted by 11:55 PM on 5/11 and you have not made other arrangements, you will receive a zero.

Writing Schedule and Homework

  • Monday, 4/27:
    • Write a blog post with the usual headings: (1) What I Did, and (2) Why I Did It.
    • Check your grades in the gradebook. If you have a zero for any of the Projects, please fix it immediately by submitting your work. No late submissions for Projects 1, 2, or 3 will be accepted after 11:55 PM on Wednesday, April 29. After that date, the zero will stand.

  • Wednesday, 4/29 to Wednesday, 5/6: In-class presentations. Link to your presentation due by 11:55 PM the day before you present.

  • Wednesday, 5/6: Reflection Memo and Project 4 links due by 11:55.

Filed Under: Class Notes Tagged With: , , ,
by on April 24, 2015

Project 4 Work Day

This is the post for the Friday, April 24, 2015 class meetings.

gradedhomeworkToday is an in-class work day, but I want to share some information about the course grades and the Scholar gradebook as well. After I review the gradebook information, you can work on your projects in class.

Gradebook Updates

I have converted the Exemplary / Satisfactory / Unsatisfactory grades to numbers so that you can see course averages in the Scholar gradebook. As I sent out in the Scholar announcement on Wednesday, I used these numbers:

Number Letter Description
95 A Exemplary/beyond satisfactory work/very strong project
92 A- Very satisfactory
85 B Satisfactory
79 C+ Borderline/Barely Satisfactory
70 C- Unsatisfactory (pieces missing, but the work was submitted)
0 F Project not submitted

In addition to grades (or places) for each of the four projects and the final, you will also see these grades:

Item Worth Description
Participation 38 Total number of sessions attended. This is a flat number that does not take into account documentation you may have shown me from Health Services or the Dean of Students. The number of classes to date is 31. Everyone will earn an additional +1.
Class Work 28 Total number of blog posts. This is a flat number of posts to date. The ultimate grade will take into account persistent progress during the course (e.g., that you posted when you were supposed to and didn’t post them all at the end of the term). The number of posts to date is 26. You will write one more today and one on Monday to reach 28.

I will not update the numbers for attendance or blog posts again in the grade book until the last day of class.

In your final exam, you will highlight your best work and argue your case for these two grades. I will share the finished assignment on Monday, 4/27, but you can look at the rough draft now.

Note that to protect your privacy, I cannot discuss your individual grades in class.

Writing Schedule and Homework

  • Friday, 4/24:
    • Write a blog post with the usual headings: (1) What I Did, and (2) Why I Did It.
    • Check your grades in the gradebook. If you have a zero for any of the Projects, please fix it immediately by submitting your work. No late submissions for Projects 1, 2, or 3 will be accepted after 11:55 PM on Wednesday, April 29. After that date, the zero will stand.
       

  • Monday, 4/27: Discussion of the reflection memo for Project 4 and the final exam. Last day of independent, in-class work.

  • Wednesday, 4/29 to Wednesday, 5/6: In-class presentations. Link to your presentation due by 11:55 PM the day before you present.

  • Wednesday, 5/6: Reflection Memo and Project 4 links due by 11:55.

Filed Under: Class Notes Tagged With: , ,
by on April 21, 2015

Project 4 Feedback Day

This is the post for the Wednesday, April 22, 2015 class meetings.

awesomeprojectToday is peer feedback day. The goal is to provide constructive feedback that will help one another develop the projects further. We will follow this plan for the feedback:

  • We will rearrange seating in the classroom so at least one person giving feedback is someone who hasn’t been sitting near you as you worked on the project.
  • Feedback groups will take turns following this process:
    • The project author will introduce the project, giving a summary of the project’s rhetorical situation, using the questions on pp. 111–112 of Writer/Designer. You need to be ready to explain about your audience, purpose, and design choices. Aim to take no more than 3 minutes for this part.
    • The people giving feedback will read and explore the project, using the guidelines in the section of the book on “Providing Feedback as a Stakeholder” (pp. 112–115 of Writer/Designer) to structure their comments. Take about 6 to 7 minutes on the the feedback.
    • After about 10 minutes, you will switch and another project author will introduce her work.
  • Once everyone has received feedback, you will each write a revision plan for the project as your blog post for the day. See pp. 116-118 of Writer/Designer for details on writing a revision plan. If your project is online in a place where I can see the rough cut, please be sure to include the link in your revision plan.

Writing Schedule and Homework

  • Friday, 4/24: In-class work day.

  • Monday, 4/27: Discussion of the reflection memo for Project 4 and the final exam. Last day of independent, in-class work.

  • Wednesday, 4/29 to Wednesday, 5/6: In-class presentations. Link to your presentation due by 11:55 PM the day before you present.

  • Wednesday, 5/6: Reflection Memo and Project 4 links due by 11:55.

Filed Under: Class Notes Tagged With: ,
by on April 20, 2015

Rough Cuts and Revision Plans

This is the post for the Monday, April 20, 2015 class meeting.

roughwolfChapter 7 of Writer/Designer suggests that the different phases of work on your project are separate and definite, but in truth they rarely are. You may have found yourself tweaking your storyboard or mock-up while you were placing assets in your rough cut and at the same time searching for more assets. Creativity can be messy. Don’t be surprised if your process has been a little different from the general version in the textbook.

Presentation Sign-Up

Sign-up for a presentation slot for sharing your tool with the class, using the Sign-Up Tool in Scholar. The slots open at 10:15 AM for the 10:10 class; they open at 11:20 AM for the 11:15 class. Go ahead and log into Scholar and be ready to click sign-up when the form opens.

Rough Cuts, Rough Drafts, and Revision Plans

  • A rough cut is rougher, or less finished, than a rough draft.

  • The “Planning Your Rough Cut” section of Chapter 7 (pp. 107–109) includes lists of the basic decisions you should make by the time you have a rough cut. Be sure that you have most of these decisions in place today.

  • You will use the information on explaining your rhetorical situation (pp. 111–112), providing feedback (pp. 112–115), and revision plans (pp. 116–118) on Wednesday when we have peer review.

Writing Schedule and Homework

  • Today, 4/20: Write a blog post with with the usual headings: (1) What I Did, and (2) Why I Did It. Include whatever work you have done since your last post.

  • Wednesday, 4/22: Bring your book to class. Have a rough cut or rough draft of your project that you can share with two other people in class for feedback. Be prepared to provide a summary of the project’s rhetorical situation, using the questions on pp. 111–112. When you provide feedback on someone else’s project, use the guidelines in the section of the book on “Providing Feedback as a Stakeholder” (pp. 112–115). Your blog post for the 4/22 class should be a first draft of your revision plan for the project.

  • Friday, 4/24: In-class work day.

  • Monday, 4/27: Discussion of the reflection memo for Project 4. Last day of independent, in-class work.

  • Wednesday, 4/29 to Wednesday, 5/6: In-class presentations. Link to your presentation due by 11:55 PM the day before you present.

  • Wednesday, 5/6: Reflection Memo and Project 4 links due by 11:55.

Filed Under: Class Notes Tagged With: , ,
by on April 16, 2015

Documenting & Presenting Your Remix

This is the post for the Friday, April 17, 2015 online class meeting.

cattalknowRemember that today’s class is working online, as I will be in Savannah at a conference. I will not be able to answer questions during the day, but I will check email in the evening and reply to any urgent questions.

Documenting Your Assets and Sources

Somewhere in your project, you will need to cite your sources. The technique that you use will depend upon the kind of project you are working on. Return to the section of Writer/Designer on “Designing Your Citations” (pp. 70–76) for tips on how to choose an appropriate way to indicate where your assets came from.

Today, you need to decide the best method for your project and explain why you have chosen it. Remember that the type of documentation can vary greatly. If you are doing a video, you might include opening and closing credits, just like in a movie or documentary. Think about whatever is appropriate for the format of your project, and then choose the best option.

Presenting Your Project

Presentation sign-up is Monday, April 20. Be sure you are in class and ready to sign-up for a time slot. To get ready, you can review the information in the textbook about presentations.

Following the resources in Writer/Designer, Chapter 8, you will document and present your remixed story. You will have approximately 5 to 6 minutes for your class presentation.

In your presentation, you will focus on sharing details about how you worked and the decisions that you made. Use the information on pp. 132–135 of Writer/Designer to determine what information to include. As the book explains, your job will be to show-off your hard work, but also you will help your audience understand your major design and rhetorical choices. Look particularly at the guiding questions on pp. 132–133 for an idea of the kind of details I will be listening for.

You can show portions of your project itself, but please be realistic. You may not have time to show your entire project. For example, if you made a 4-minute video, there won’t be time to show the entire video AND to talk about how you worked and the decisions you made.

You will create some kind of digital presentation (using Google slides, Prezi, Powerpoint, etc.). If you go with slides, the maximum length is 15 slides to ensure your presentation fits in the 5 to 6-minute time slot.

Turning In Your Project

Aim to have your project finished by April 27. You might still tweak things or make minor proofreading changes, but you should ideally be done with all the hard work. After that class session, our class time will be devoted to oral presentations.

By 11:55 PM on May 6, you should have gone to the Assignments tab in Scholar, completed a reflection memo, and given me the link to your project and your presentation slides. There is no grace period on this project. We will talk a bit more about the reflection memo in class on April 27.

Writing Schedule and Homework

  • Monday, 4/20: Presentation sign-up and discussion of drafts for peer feedback.

  • Wednesday, 4/22: Bring your book to class. Have a rough cut or rough draft of your project that you can share with two other people in class for feedback. Be prepared to provide a summary of the project’s rhetorical situation, using the questions on pp. 111–112. When you provide feedback on someone else’s project, use the guidelines in the section of the book on “Providing Feedback as a Stakeholder” (pp. 112–115). Your blog post for the 4/22 class should be a first draft of your revision plan for the project.

  • Friday, 4/24: In-class work day.

  • Monday, 4/27: Discussion of the reflection memo for Project 4. Last day of independent, in-class work.

  • Wednesday, 4/29 to Wednesday, 5/6: In-class presentations. Link to your presentation due by 11:55 PM the day before you present.

  • Wednesday, 5/6: Reflection Memo and Project 4 links due by 11:55

Filed Under: Class Notes