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Posts from November 2017

Course Grade Reminders

Course Grade Reminders published on

Several of you have contacted me about your grades in the course, and I’m sure that many of you are wondering about grades even if you didn’t ask me. To help allay any stress you’re feeling, let me remind you where to find details on your grade and how the course assessment works.

If you are looking for… Look here…
The basic requirements for grades in the course Requirements Page
Options for earning a grade higher than a B Section on higher grades on the Requirements Page
Information on the check and X marks in Canvas Grades Completes vs. Incompletes section on How Canvas Grades Work Page
How to tell how you’re doing in the course How to Tell How You’re Doing section on the How Canvas Grades Work Page
The reason Canvas isn’t tracking your course grade What Is Tracked in Canvas Grades on the How Canvas Grades Work Page
Details on how to make your case for a grade in the course Final Exam Page

 


 
Last updated on Sunday, December 10, 2017

Continuing Work on Your Report

Continuing Work on Your Report published on

This is the post for the week of November 13, 2017.

Your Cheat Sheet for Writing HeadlinesAs I mentioned last week, I know you will soon be leaving for Break, so I have tried to keep the work light:

  • You will turn in your Progress Report and a Labor Log.
  • You will continue working on your Genre Analysis Report.
  • You will work on an outline of your report.
  • You can comment on daily posts if you like. This week’s posts will focus on effective email messages.

Readings for the Week

Review this week’s reading for help with the tasks for the week. These are not new readings, but they will help you with the organization activity listed below.

Tasks for the Week

  1. By 11:59PM on Monday, November 13, submit your 11/10 Labor Log in Canvas, if you are using the grace period.
  2. By 11:59PM on Monday, November 13, submit your Progress Report in Canvas. If you are using the grace period, submit your progress report by 11:59PM on Thursday, November 16.
  3. Review the readings above and sketch out a table of contents (TOC) that covers the required sections of your report. Be sure that your TOC informs your readers about the report’s contents. Incorporate your TOC in your Genre Analysis Report draft.
    Today’s infographic outlines some ways that you can write headlines, which can inform the way that you create information rich headings in your TOC.

    4. My Advice
    Submit your log before you leave for break. You will have a harder time trying to remember what you did this week if you wait.

  4. By 11:59PM on Friday, September 29, write your 11/17 Labor Log in Canvas. Specific questions for your log are included in Canvas. The grace period for your log entry ends after Thanksgiving at 11:59 PM on Monday, November 27.
  5. Be prepared to share a draft of your Genre Analysis Report with your writing group for peer review by 11:59PM on Friday, December 1.
  6. During break, I assume that everyone takes a break, including me. Naturally, you can work on your Genre Analysis Report if you want to. Here are some additional details:
    • I may publish some extra posts during break (for fun and amusement), but I will not post any work.
    • If you have a question during break, email me at tengrrl@vt.edu. I will reply within 48 hours, not counting Thanksgiving Day.
    • You can try Slack as well, if you like. If I’m at my computer, I will respond immediately.

 

Note: This infographic needs a text-based transcript. See the Optional Accessibility Transcript Activity for more details.


 
Last updated on Monday, November 13, 2017

#WeekendWatch: Video Progress Report

#WeekendWatch: Video Progress Report published on

There may be times in your work that you will use video to share a progress report. You might record a walk-through of a space you are building, for instance, to show your stakeholders the progress you have made. A game developer might demonstrate the latest features in a game as progress report on the next version. In any career field, you might make a video of a slideshow-based progress report with audio commentary so that stakeholders can watch the show on their own time.

Since today is Veterans Day, I have a video progress report Charlie, a service dog in training to work with a U.S. veteran who has a disability. The Today Show is working with America’s VetDogs to follow the work that goes into preparing a service dog and highlight how the animals help veterans.

This Today Show video is a very informal progress report. It would not work for every audience; but it does demonstrate Charlie’s progress very well.

From The Today Show: Checking In With Charlie

 

 

Note: This video has closed captioning, so it does not need a transcript.


 
Last updated on Sunday, November 5, 2017

#FridayFact: Deal with Trouble in Advance

#FridayFact: Deal with Trouble in Advance published on

Infographic: How to Beat Deadline StressAt some point, you are going to face a challenge that threatens your progress on a project in the workplace. No matter how hard you work, it’s bound to happen. Sometimes it’s your fault. Sometimes someone else is to blame. Regardless of who is responsible, the important question is how you will respond. You have to decide what you can do that will preserve your (or the company’s) reputation while still satisfying the needs and requirements of your client.

That is where today’s #FridayFact comes in: The best strategy is to let people know of problems immediately. I don’t mean call the stakeholders in a panic, of course. Meet with your team or your manager, and figure out how to handle the situation.

As soon as you have a plan, let your stakeholders know. Tell them what happened, why it happened (if pertinent), and what you are going to do. Don’t blame anyone. That doesn’t help. Focus on how you will do your best to get the project in as close to the deadline as possible.

Sometimes you need your stakeholders to help with the solution. Perhaps they will need to approve a new supply or a different design. In those cases, you meet with your team to figure out the alternatives and their strengths and weaknesses. Once you have the options figured out, contact the stakeholders with the information, giving them a recommendation for the best choice.

In addition to my suggestions, check out The Muse’s suggestions for What to Do When You Know You’re Going to Miss a Deadline.

 

 

P.S. Anyone other than me bugged by the gender representation in that infographic? Notice that it’s all men, except for the suggestion that deals with cleaning. Grr.

 

 

Note: This infographic needs a text-based transcript. See the Optional Accessibility Transcript Activity for more details.


 
Last updated on Sunday, November 5, 2017

#InfographicInspiration: Progress in an Infographic

#InfographicInspiration: Progress in an Infographic published on

Since you are writing your progress reports this week, today’s #InfographicInspiration is the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Association’s Progress by the Bucketful, which shows the impact of the Ice Bucket Challenge.

This visual presentation of the progress in the work to find a cure to ALS shows the same kinds of information typically included in a progress report: what has happened, what still needs to be done (and why), and how remaining work will happen (in their section, Why Stop Now?). How effective does this progress report seem to you? Does it accomplish its secondary goal of inspiring people to continue contributing to the fight against ALS?

You may also consider what you might include and how you would present information if your progress report were an infographic. Yesterday’s post on visual representation has related ideas that can help you think about how you would create an infographic.

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Association’s Progress by the Bucketful Infographic

 

Note: This infographic needs a text-based transcript. See the Optional Accessibility Transcript Activity for more details.


 
Last updated on Saturday, November 4, 2017

#WednesdayWrite: Visualize Your Progress

#WednesdayWrite: Visualize Your Progress published on

You can often show trends and comparisons with graphical elements than with text descriptions. Consider the difference between describing the performance of a stock or a portfolio during the last year and showing that performance with a line chart. Here’s an example from the Student-managed Endowment for Educational Development (SEED) 2016 Annual Report. Which seems easier to read and process to you?

Text Description

The portfolio performed relatively in line or slightly below the respective benchmark until the final quarter, as shown in Exhibit 1. We included the Consumer Price Index as a preservation of spending power benchmark to monitor changes in our real returns. From mid-November to year-end, the portfolio significantly outperformed and finished 2016 with an active return of 5.13%. In order to calculate our risk-adjusted return, we incorporated our portfolio’s beta of 1.2 and historical average for yields on the 1-Year Treasury note (1.84%) in order to compute a CAPM-based implied alpha. This calculation resulted in an implied 2016 alpha of 3.11%.

Line Chart

SEED 2016 Performance

For my money (yes, a pun), the line chart is much easier to understand quickly. In many circumstances, you will include both a text description and a graphical representation. The point of today’s post is that the graphical version is not just an illustration. It is critical to showing the reader information about the topic.

For your #WednesdayWrite, think about how you can add graphical representation of information in your progress report. The infographic below shows a collection of graphics you can use to communicate information. Visit the post How to Think Visually Using Visual Analogies from Anna Vital for a larger version of the image and short details on the various kinds of charts and graphs.

Once you explore the options, add a comment that discusses a graphical representation that you might use in your Progress Report. Talk about what you have chosen, how you will use it, and why it will be effective in communicating with me about your progress.

How to Think Visually Using Visual Analogies

Source: How to Think Visually Using Visual Analogies from Anna Vital

Note: This infographic needs a text-based transcript. See the Optional Accessibility Transcript Activity for more details.

 


 
Last updated on Saturday, November 4, 2017

#TuesdayTutorial: Progress Reports for Clients and Stakeholders

#TuesdayTutorial: Progress Reports for Clients and Stakeholders published on

Lynda.com Login Help

Lynda.com videos are free to Virginia Tech students with your VT.EDU login. Start at the VT.EDU login page to access these resources.

On Monday, you will submit an internal progress report. It’s similar to the kind of progress report that you might give to your manager or co-workers to let them know what’s happening with a project.

You also need to know about how to write external progress reports, which will go to clients or stakeholders outside your organization. While the general purpose is the same as that for an internal progress report, the audience is quite different.

The Lynda.com video Using in-progress reports to communicate with clients (4m 23s) will walk you through the key features and the important characteristics of this kind of progress report.

Screenshot from #TuesdayTutorial: Progress Reports for Clients and Stakeholders

 

 

Note: This video has closed captioning, so it does not need a transcript.


 
Last updated on Friday, November 3, 2017

Progress Report Overview

Progress Report Overview published on

This is the post for the week of November 6, 2017.

Progress Report by Forest Hill Society on Flickr, used under a CC-BY licenseThis week you will continue writing your Genre Analysis Report, and you will write a Progress Report that tells me about your project.

Readings for the Week

Tasks for the Week

  1. By 11:59PM on Monday, September 25, submit your 11/03 Labor Log in Canvas, if you are using the grace period.
  2. Spend the majority of your time working on your Genre Analysis Report. The more work you get done this week, the easier it will be to finish after Thanksgiving Break.
  3. Plan ahead for next week. I know you are probably planning when you will leave for Break, so I want to mention that the work next week will be light. You will turn in your Progress report and a Labor Log. Otherwise, you will continue working on your Genre Analysis Report. I will still post daily posts that you can comment on if you like.

    4. Why a Progress Report Now?

    Before you leave for Thanksgiving break, I want you to assess your progress and then tell me what you have done and what you still need to do.

    When you return after break, you can return to your progress report to see what you need to work on. This process will help you “hit the ground running” when you get back. You won’t lose any time trying to remember where you left off.

  4. Share a draft of your Progress Report in the Feedback on Progress Reports on Canvas by 11:59 PM on Wednesday, November 8.
    • In your message, ask your group to look at anything you are trying to improve. Let them know the kind of advice you need.
    • By 11:59PM on Friday, November 10, provide feedback to your group members, using the strategies in the Peer Review Commenting Strategies video.
    • Revise your Progress Report, using the feedback from your group members. Be sure to add any details on work you have completed since you wrote the first draft.
  5. Submit your Progress Report in Canvas by 11:59PM on Monday, November 13. The grace period ends at 11:59PM on Thursday, November 16.
  6. By 11:59PM on Friday, November 10, write your 11/10 Labor Log in Canvas. Specific questions for your log are included in Canvas. The grace period for your log entry ends at 11:59 PM on Monday, November 13.

Photo credit: Evernote ETC: My Field Notes by Brooks Duncan on Flickr, used under a CC-BY 2.0 license.


 
Last updated on Friday, November 3, 2017

#WeekendWatch: Citations & Bibliographies in MSWord

#WeekendWatch: Citations & Bibliographies in MSWord published on

Lynda.com Login Help

Lynda.com videos are free to Virginia Tech students with your VT.EDU login. Start at the VT.EDU login page to access these resources.

If you use Microsoft Word, you can take advantage of the program’s built-in tools for managing your citations and bibliography. Tools are available in both the Mac and Windows versions. There are some slight differences between the two platforms, but the basic capabilities are the same.

Our #WeekendWatch is a series of Lynda.com videos that demonstrates how the tools work in Word 2013. The series “Including Citations and Bibliographies” will take 16m28s overall to view. It includes

Watch any or all of the videos. You might watch the first three now, and then come back later in the month to focus on the last video.

Screenshot from the Lynda.com video Including Citations and Bibliographies

If you prefer reading your instructions to watching videos, the support page Add a citation and create a bibliography on the Office website tells you how to complete all the steps. These instructions apply to Word 2016, 2013, 2010. and 2007.

 

Note: This video has closed captioning, so it does not need a transcript.


 
Last updated on Wednesday, November 1, 2017

Due Date Changes

Due Date Changes published on

Due dates are closer than they appear by Wesley Fryer on Flickr, used under a CC-BY-SA license.I recently learned that according to the Faculty Handbook 9.6.1, “instructors should not schedule major assignments or tests for the last three calendar days of scheduled classes or reading day. Students should be allowed time to prepare for their final exams and benefit from feedback on material relevant to exams.”

To comply with this rule, I need to change the due date for your Genre Analysis Report, as shown below:

  • 12/1 (Fri): Post a draft of your report for peer review.
  • 12/5 (Tue): Provide feedback to everyone in your group.
  • 12/8 (Fri): Submit your Genre Analysis Report (the due date).
  • 12/13 (Wed): Submit your Genre Analysis Report, if you are using the grace period.

All the dates have to move back a bit to make the due date occur BEFORE the last three calendar days of scheduled classes. Note, however, that I am NOT moving the end of the grace period, which remains at 11:59PM on the last day of classes.

If this change throws your world into chaos, let me know and we’ll figure something out. My hope is that since you can still turn in your report on the original due date, everything will be okay.

 

Photo credit: Due dates are closer than they appear by Wesley Fryer on Flickr, used under a CC-BY-SA license.


 
Last updated on Friday, November 3, 2017

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