English Composition 101
What is a workshop?
Workshops are group discussions of students’ writing. Each student will have a paper workshopped once during the semester. One of the expenses of the class is paying for enough copies of the paper you’re having workshopped so that each student (as well as your teacher) has one. It’s your responsibility to have the paper copied.
Several people will have their papers discussed in each workshop. You’ll be signing up for a specific workshop date; the paper to bring is the one that is due next. If you aren’t in class with copies of your paper on the day of your workshop, your grade for that paper will be lowered two grades. Everyone writes all the assigned papers for the class, and everyone is expected to participate in every workshop. However, you need to bring copies of your paper for the class only on the day of the workshop you’ve signed up for.
How finished should
workshop papers be?
Ideally, your paper should be in final form. That way you’ll get the most out of the workshop session. However, papers with gaps or problems may also be workshopped. Most people bring computer printed papers. The paper you turn in on the day it’s due will have to be double spaced, but your workshop version may be single spaced to save copying costs.
What happens at a
workshop?
The quantity and quality of your involvement in workshops affect your oral participation grade, but, more importantly, participating in the workshops is a good way to learn how to improve your own writing.
On the day of your workshop, someone else will volunteer to read your paper out loud.
We’ll take a minute to put check marks (/) next to wording and ideas we
like. Then the group will look at the
paper’s overall organization and comment on its strengths. Next, your classmates will make suggestions
and ask questions about aspects of your paper that can be improved. Please don’t talk until everyone else is
finished. It’s especially important not to say anything negative about your paper
when you’re passing it out or having it discussed.
All your classmates and your teacher will sign their copies of your paper, add comments and suggestions, and return them to you after your paper has been discussed. Be sure to look closely at your instructor’s comments before you leave class on the day of the workshop.
What happens after a workshop?
You’re expected to follow some of the advice you get at the workshop to improve your paper as much as you can. This means reprinting your paper. Handwritten corrections aren’t acceptable.