Portfolio

 

  1. Each student is required to submit a portfolio of written work prior to 11:00 a.m. April 16, 2007. This portfolio must conform to the following specifications:

 

  1. A complete portfolio should contain 20 entries.

 

  1. Entries may be of three sorts:

 

a.      Essay questions,

                                                         i.            Prior to each exam, study questions for the long-essay portion will be distributed so that you may prepare the best possible formal essay.

                                                       ii.            Your portfolio must include answers to at least eight essays other than those you wrote on the actual exam.

 

b.      Journal responses

                                                         i.            You are encouraged to critically respond to any assigned article.

                                                       ii.            Your response should both (1) critically respond to the reading and (2) demonstrate that you have understood the author’s position.

                                                      iii.            Your portfolio must include at least five journal entries.

 

c.      Original analyses

                                                         i.            Philosophical thinking has a way of infecting our “ordinary” lives. You are encouraged to apply your growing philosophical understanding and analytic abilities to matters beyond our classroom.

                                                       ii.            Areas in which you may apply ideas covered in this class range from the latest blockbuster film to presidential politics, from the latest technological gizmo to the novel you’re reading for a literature class. The range of subjects is relatively limitless, so be creative. The goal is that you apply an idea discussed in our readings to the world beyond our classroom.

                                                      iii.            Your portfolio must include at least two such analyses.

 

    1. Yes, that adds up to only 15 samples of written work; the remaining five may be of any of the above options.

 

  1. All entries must be

a.      Typed,

b.      One page, double-spaced – roughly 250 words – long,

c.      Titled for easy identification, and

d.      Submitted in a three-ring binder (or similar format).

e.      Please sequentially order the entries within three labeled sections of the binder.

 

  1. Grading: When you submit your portfolio, I will ask you to nominate your best entry for me to read. I will closely read that entry and at least one other randomly selected from the portfolio. At that time, I will also check and evaluate the thoroughness and quality of the remaining entries.

 

  1. Needless to say, all portfolio work must be original to the student.