The Writing Habits, Strategies, & Technologies (WHST) project serves two purposes: (1) to describe and examine the approaches to writing challenges that have defined your personal, professional, and academic experiences prior to enrolling in this course; and (2) to provide a space for preliminary reflection upon those experiences. The WHST is challenging because it emphasizes both detailed reporting and careful reflection.
This project requires submissions for two stages: draft and final. All files are submitted to a WHST folder in your shared course space on Dropbox.com.
At the Draft stage, submit the following documents:
The final submission includes the documents from the draft stage AND the following documents:
See the Submission Guidelines for details on how to name, format, and organize files.
Document type: memo, essay
Document length: 150 words (memo), 1000 words (essay)
Project value: 250 points (50 for draft; 200 for final)
Evaluation rubric: _ENG111_Eval_WHST.pdf
The WHST project results in an essay that describes and reflects upon moments on your journey with learning to write. This work builds on the details and reflections you have begun during workshops 1 and 2.
This essay gathers highlights and important details from the explorations of prior learning experiences that began during Workshop 1 - Writing Habits, Strategies, & Technologies and Workshop 2 - Journey Mapping Research Strategies. This essay is relatively brief, which means that you will need to decide as you construct your draft which moments from your journey most effectively fit the narrative you construct.
Your essay should incorporate all of the following discussion elements.
Think of these sections of your essay as movements in your discussion rather than as paragraphs. Each section might be comprised of multiple paragraphs.
If it makes sense to include any images to support your discussion, implement them in your essay. For example, if you have a favorite writing space that you refer to during your discussion, consider adding a photo of it. Did a specific author or series of books inspire you to write? Consider adding a photo of that.
A memo of transmittal introduces the document it accompanies, providing context for its audience(s). You will craft such a memo for the draft and final submissions of the WHST project. Both memos should be addressed from you to me.
Your draft memo should incorporate the following content and design elements.
Consult the sample documents (see SVSU Canvas Files: Project Support) for additional guidance.
Your final memo should incorporate the following content and design elements.
Consult the sample documents (see SVSU Canvas Files: Project Support) for additional guidance.
Recommended tool(s): Microsoft Word, scanning device/app, digital camera
This section offers guidance for how to interpret the project and how to proceed with your work on it. Consider the following strategies.
You shape the discussion of your writing journey through the moments of that journey that you would argue have been most important to you. Whatever moments you emphasize, work to connect them to the claims you make about your writer identity.
Readers see the world through your words and images. Ask yourself these questions as you write, and again when you think your draft is complete. Have I made clear who I am as a writer? Have I demonstrated the importance of the moments that have shaped me as a writer? Have I described well the habits, strategies, & technologies I use to write? Have I provided enough detail and explanation to help others understand what I think and see what I see?
This section is designed to help you anticipate and avoid problems as you work on this project. Therefore, as you work, consider the following hints and tips.
You establish your writer ethos with the way you present your discussion. Be as specific and concrete as you can throughout your discussion. The more details you incorporate into your essay, the more reader-aware you appear to be. That helps establish and maintain your credibility and authority. However, it is also important to focus on the details that truly matter for understanding you and your writing journey. Focus on the details that are important to understanding these things.
Remember that academic (and professional) contexts value highly the ability to write and speak with economy, directness, and professionalism. Another way of saying this is to make every word count. Stay focused on the details necessary to understand your journey and the conclusions you draw about your experiences. Write and rewrite until your explanations make sense, and represent careful, concise, professional communication.
Edit carefully, seeking to express your ideas clearly and concisely. Edit out loud with the intent of writing in such a manner that your sentences sound focused and confident. Strive for high levels of professionalism and consistency in your work. Refine your document continuously throughout the stages of development.
The revisions and refinements you make from the draft to the final submission may help you understand your design process, and therefore your professional development in more-sophisticated ways. Archive your drafts of projects throughout your coursework, so you are able to examine your growth and maturation.
Read and attend carefully to these submission guidelines. Failure to do so may result in delays in receiving feedback on the draft of your project, or in points lost on the final evaluation of your project.
Create a project folder inside your shared class folder on Dropbox.com. Remember, I can only view files that you place inside the shared folder. Until you place files in that space, you have not in practice submitted them.
Name the folder WHST or WritingHabits+.
Note. Do not share this folder with me. By placing it in your class folder, you have already shared it by default.
Convert all files to portable document format (PDF) prior to submitting them. Make sure the files listed below are available to me in the project folder by the draft deadline. Model your filenames on the listed examples:
Note. Do not share the individual files with me. By placing them in your project folder, you have already shared them by default.
Convert all files to portable document format (PDF) prior to submitting them. When you assemble your final submission for the WHST project, there will be 4 files in the folder. Again, model your filenames on the examples listed here.
Note. Do not share the individual files with me. By placing them in your project folder, you have already shared them by default.
Take the time to organize your work as directed here, and to name each file properly. This helps me keep track of your work, and makes clear which files are meant to represent the on-going and final stages of project development.
This section describes the standards by which your draft and final submissions will be evaluated.
There are 50 possible points for this project draft. You will earn points according to the following standard.
There are 200 possible points for the final project. You will earn points according to the following standard: 50% content development and organization, 25% style & conventions, and 25% impact of revision. The specific areas of emphasis for this project are drawn from the description and discussion of the project, and are detailed in the evaluation rubric (_ENG111_Eval_WHST.pdf).
Remember that I will only post the point values for projects on the Grades page in SVSU Canvas. I will post the details relevant to that evaluation in your class folder in a project-specific file.
If you are here because of random chance, or because this content came up in a search, then poke about, and read if you see something useful or interesting. If you are a teacher in any context and would like to use any of this content in your courses, feel free to do so. However, if you borrow this material, please do two things: