Portfolio Assessment Program
for English Majors

WHO MUST PARTICIPATE? Any student who declares a major in English after June 1991 must participate in the portfolio assessment program as a requirement for graduation. WHY IS THIS REQUIRED? This assessment program has been adopted in response to: 1) a state mandate that the department regularly evaluate the academic progress of its English majors, 2) a national awareness regarding accountability in higher education, and 3) the need to assess the effectiveness of our teaching. Specifically we seek to evaluate students' ability to use the language, to organize ideas and use reference materials, and to apply sophisticated literary concepts. WHAT IS THE PORTFOLIO? The portfolio consists of four papers. Three must be either literary analyses or argumentative essays from any 300- or 400-level English course. These essays should be examples of the student's best thought and writing. At least one of the three papers must demonstrate competence with MLA citation form, and at least one must reflect computer literacy and use of the internet. The fourth paper must be a personal statement giving the rationale for the selection of the three other papers and an assessment of the skills learned. In the portfolio, the assessment essay precedes the three other essays. Portfolio Format Requirements: The papers must be submitted in a binder which has the student's name and semester of graduation printed on the outside cover. All papers must be typed double spaced on white 8 1/2 by 11 inch paper. Pages must be numbered, and the student's name must be typed in the upper right-hand corner of each page.

Fresh, clean copies are required. No grades or instructor comments should be visible. Each paper must have a cover sheet which indicates the course it was submitted for and the semester and year it was submitted. The papers should be arranged chronologically. Portfolios not conforming to the content/format requirements will not be accepted. They will be returned to the student for correction and resubmission before the degree will be awarded. Academic advisors can help students in the selection of papers and can answer format questions. Students may also ask the chair and the assistant chair of the department questions about the portfolio. Options and Guidelines for Selecting Papers: Papers written in the junior or senior year are preferable to papers written earlier. One paper may be submitted from a discipline other than English. WHEN MUST THE PORTFOLIO BE SUBMITTED? The completed portfolio must be submitted to the department chair at the time the Certification of Major form is presented for approval. Approval will not be given unless the portfolio has been submitted. HOW WILL THE PORTFOLIO BE EVALUATED? Each portfolio will be evaluated by a committee of English faculty and one reader from another department and/or university. The student will receive no evaluation of the portfolio, and it will not be returned.

"There is no room for the impurities of literature in an essay." --Virginia Woolf