University of Memphis
ENGL 1010
Reflective Portfolio Letter
Purpose
The purpose of your final writing assignment for the course is to compose a letter in which you
reflect upon and evaluate how your work this semester demonstrates the learning outcomes for
the course. Refer to the major writing assignments you have included in your portfolio as
evidence to support your self-evaluation.
Because some portfolios will be randomly selected for outside evaluation, do not address your
letter to your instructor. Instead, address your letter to a wider audience, members of the FirstYear Writing Assessment Committee.
Process
Compile and submit a folder (portfolio) that contains the major writing assignments you have
completed for English 1010 this semester. Include only the final versions of your writing
assignments in your portfolio. It does not matter if the copies you include have your instructor’s
comments and/or grades; the assignments will be reviewed but not re-graded.
You have been asked to complete those major writing assignments as a means of helping you
develop the reading and writing abilities that have been identified as important for first-year
students at the University of Memphis. Those abilities, which are also listed on your course
syllabus, are printed below.
English 1010 Student Learning Outcomes
Learning Outcomes
The work assigned in ENGL 1010 is designed to develop in first-year college writers a
deeper understanding of the complexities of writing through instruction and guided
practice in the skills, processes, and strategies necessary for effective, successful writing.
Students should develop and demonstrate the abilities to do the following:
A) Identify how an author’s purpose, audience, genre, and context determine effective
writing
B) Discover, develop, and explain ideas through writing processes that include
generating, planning, revising, editing, and proofreading multiple drafts of a text
C) Compose an effectively organized essay that focuses on a clear purpose and that
develops major points that support its main idea(s) in reasonable and effective ways
D) Adopt appropriate voice, tone, and level of formality
E) Critique their own and others’ writing
F) Control features such as sentence structure, grammar punctuation, spelling, and
appropriate documentation (MLA)
Refer to the reflections you wrote when submitting each assignment during the course of
the semester to help you with this writing task.
Your portfolio letter will be evaluated with the following questions in mind:
• Does the writer understand the course Learning Outcomes?
You can demonstrate your understanding of the Learning Outcomes by making
specific references to them and by describing how your work demonstrates those
abilities.
• Does the writer use his/her own work as evidence?
You can demonstrate the abilities described in the Learning Outcomes by citing
specific examples in your own work as evidence of those abilities. The fuller and
more detailed your explanations and analysis, the more convincing they will be
to your readers.
• Does the writer understand the purpose of the portfolio letter?
Your purpose is not to criticize or praise your instructor. Your purpose is to
evaluate your own work thoughtfully and thoroughly, and your letter and
portfolio will be graded accordingly.
• Has the writer composed a well-written, effectively proofread letter?
Because the purpose of the portfolio letter is your self-evaluation of how well
you've reached the goals for the course, your letter should demonstrate your
abilities as a writer. Your letter should be thoughtful, analytical, and engaging.
Keep in mind that your letter will be read by college writing instructors
interested in interesting writing.
Format
Arrange your portfolio in a manila folder––do not use a three-ring binder.
You need not, though you may, include a cover page and table of contents.
The first artifact in your portfolio should be your letter.
Beginning with the first page of your letter, number each page of your portfolio contents
consecutively. If you include copies of your assignments that have your instructor’s comments,
rather than reprint them, neatly handwrite the new page number in the upper right corner of each
page.
Final Considerations
Your portfolio letter will be collected with your portfolio. Effective letters are typically
at least 1250 words. You must have all materials in order and ready to submit on the due date.
Failure to submit a writing folder with a portfolio letter will result in a failing grade for the
assignment.
DUE DATES
Draft for class writers’ workshop:
Final Draft:
Reflective Portfolio Letter Scoring Guide
Your letter will be read within the context of the entire portfolio. Readers will refer to the other
assignments in the portfolio to determine the accuracy and adequacy of the letter’s reflective evaluation.
A 6 is awarded to letters that demonstrate thoughtful, detailed awareness of, and engagement with, the
Student Learning Outcomes by fully describing how the writer 's work demonstrates the skills and abilities
articulated in the outcomes. Specific, effective examples from the writer 's own coursework are cited,
connected to the appropriate outcome(s), and explained through perceptive and subtle commentary and
analysis of the individual assignments. The emphasis throughout is the writer 's own work and the ways in
which it does (or doesn't) exemplify the skills and abilities identified in the outcomes. The letter is written
in ways that demonstrate keen awareness of––and the ability to engage––its audience, as well as an
impressive command of organization, style, and convention. There are few, or no, proofreading errors.
A 5 is awarded to letters that demonstrate perceptive awareness of, and engagement with, the Student
Learning Outcomes by describing how the writer 's work demonstrates the abilities articulated in the
outcomes. Specific examples in the writer 's work are cited and explained through thoughtful commentary
and analysis of the individual assignments. The primary emphasis throughout the letter is the writer 's own
work and the ways in which it does (or doesn't) exemplify the skills and abilities identified in the outcomes.
The letter is written in ways appropriate to its audience and demonstrates a command of organization, style,
and convention. There are few, or no, proofreading errors.
A 4 is awarded to letters that demonstrate awareness of the Student Learning Outcomes by addressing
specific skills and abilities identified in the outcomes. Appropriate examples in the writer 's work are cited
to demonstrate ways in which they do (or don't) exemplify the goals for English 1010, though the writer 's
explanations and analyses may be uneven. The primary focus of the letter is the writer 's own work. The
letter is written to its audience, and it is organized in a reasonable, effective way. The letter is generally
well written and effectively proofread.
A 3 is awarded to letters that address the Student Learning Outcomes, though the writer 's understanding of
those outcomes is rendered in partial or imprecise ways. Examples from the writer 's work are referred to or
cited, but the analysis tends to lapse into assertions about the writer 's general abilities rather than a more
focused consideration of specific abilities. The letter demonstrates audience awareness, and is generally
well written, though its organization may be plodding, with little cohesion among paragraphs. There are
few distracting proofreading errors.
A 2 is awarded to those letters that haphazardly acknowledge the Student Learning Outcomes. While there
may be efforts to connect examples from the writer 's own writing to the outcomes, there is little––or
ineffective––accompanying analysis and explanation. The writer may claim success or skill-acquisition
without much, or any, substantiation. The letter may have no consistent focus and/or suggest little or no
awareness of audience. The letter may have some distracting proofreading errors, but its primary
shortcoming is the underdevelopment of the writer 's self-evaluation.
A 1 is awarded to those letters that suggest the writer misunderstood the purpose of the letter or substituted
a different task than the one demanded. For example, the writer may say little about the Student Learning
Outcomes, writing instead about the general nature of the course, offering descriptions or summaries of the
course readings, and/or descriptions or summaries of the assignments in the folder. The letter is
inadequately developed, and may be––though must not necessarily be––filled with distracting proofreading
errors. Some letters earning this score may simply be too brief to adequately engage the task; others may be
several pages in length but concerned with matters that do not address the intentions of the reflective
evaluation letter.
A 0 is given to those folders that contain no reflective letter or a letter completely off-topic.