Class Participation Self-Evaluation Essay: Help Yourself (to a Grade)!

There are always students who seem to think they’re entitled to a good grade because they really want a good grade, or because they need a good grade (to stay in school, to keep their financial aid, to get a good job, etc.). But earning a good grade is different from wanting or needing it. Even demonstrating want is more than a matter of simply telling me, so please don’t do that (it gets old): instead, come to class fully prepared, meaning that you’ve done the required reading and assignments and are ready to discuss them. Show, don’t tell.

In this assignment, you will carefully read the description of the class participation grade and the accompanying grade rubric along with the Ground Rules for Classroom Conduct. You will then write a brief essay (maximum word count: 1,000) in which you tell me what grade you think you deserve for your class participation, making careful reference to the description. Explain how your actions correspond to the expectations outlined in both the description and the rubric. Whenever possible, give specific examples (other kinds of evidence might include screenshots of online discussions, or scans of annotated readings, or lecture/reading notes — build your case!). Format it as a Google Doc and paste a link to the document (note: make sure that anyone with the link can edit the document!) in the appropriate place on Blackboard (we’ll go over this in class). Remember to cite any source you quote, paraphrase, or otherwise refer to, and include a reference list. All citations should use ASA style.

In summary, you must read and make explicit reference (the more copious and detailed, the better) to the following required reading:

• ‘Ground Rules for the Classroom’
• ‘Participation, Participation, Participation’

Size Matters!

Print your word count at the top of your essay. Your essay — that is, your introduction, body, and conclusion; your reference list, footnotes, endnotes, or any appendices don’t count here — should be no longer than 1,000 words. But it shouldn’t be much less than that, and I will consider the length of your essay as one indication of how much you actually want this grade; if you hand in a skimpy essay, that’s one good way to ensure that you get a lower class participation grade than the one you bargained for!

Further Reading

Murray, George. 2009. ‘Decoding Cryptic Grading Comments’. Staring into the Middle Distance Blog. Retrieved 22 November 2019 (https://hakka3.wordpress.com/2009/03/21/decoding_cryptic_grading_comments/). Some of my comments on your assignment will seem a bit cryptic; you can decode them here.

Weida, Stacey, and Karl Stolley. 2017. ‘Organizing Your Argument’. Purdue Online Writing Lab. Presents a valuable recipe for connecting claims to supporting evidence and reasoning. It’s worth checking out related material on the OWL website, e.g., ‘Introductions, Body Paragraphs, and Conclusions for an Argument Paper’.