Description of assignment:
The self-evaluation is never graded, but you must hand it in to receive a grade for in this class. The self-evaluation will discuss the following:
Honesty counts in this document, as you are offered here the opportunity to provide the professor with your account of your involvement with the course.
Specific issues:
You may wonder--do I have to disclose personal issues in my life that have affected my performance in this class? That is up to you. If you were absent a lot because of circumstances outside of your control, it may be important to let me know that. However, it is important to remember that the best way to deal with difficult circumstances is to have an ongoing conversation throughout the semester about your absences and the reasons for them. I do not take kindly to last ditch efforts to explain away absences, lack of participation, or missing assignments. The self-evaluation is your oppportunity to communicate with me what you put into the class and what you got out of it. It is not a place to rescue your grade. If you have had serious issues impairing your ability to complete assignments and attend class, see the Dean of Students Office for help managing the problem and your studies.
There may be situations where, in a discussion class, I might easily misinterpret quietness for lack of participation and/or preparedness. Explaining to me what you feel you learned in the course and how you have used that learning in other situations around the university and in your life might help me see that you participated in the course in an expanded sense. Or perhaps you felt that certain conversations were difficult to engage in, either because you were uncomfortable with the classroom atmosphere, or you were not able to express what you felt/thought at the time of the conversation. Explaining to me how you have continued to think about course issues and topics is one way of demonstrating participation in the course and its goals. Of course, my hope is that the classroom is a place we can make our participation felt most strongly, but I know that this is not always possible for all students.
For lecture classes, discuss what you did to prepare for class; how you used your learning in the class in other situations, classes, or conversations; and specific factors that have affected your performance on quizzes and exams, the main measures of learning for lecture courses.
Format:
The self-evaluation is a narrative, personal essay. Please take care to proof-read it and correct any grammatical mistakes. You may write in a personal voice and use informal language, however, as it is not a formal paper. Follow other formatting requirements--put your name in the top right corner, double space the text, and use a dark ink.
The minimum page requirement for undergraduates in discussion classes is 2 pages; for undergraduates in lecture courses, 1 page. The minimum page requirement for graduate students is 4 pages. You may, of course, write more, but remember that this is not itself a graded assignment. Convey to me what you want me to know before calculating your grade, but don't write the story of your life.
Finally:
The self-evaluation is not an opportunity for you to evaluate the course, although you can discuss what you felt the course has contributed to your overall learning. Don't sugar-coat your discussion in order to make me feel warm and fuzzy about you. (You have a chance to evaluate my performance in the student evaluations, which I will read after assigning your grade.) The best self-evaluations are ones in which I understand what you learned, where you feel you may have faltered, and how you engaged with the course materials and methodologies throughout the semester.