The end of the semester is upon us, which can only mean one thing: crunch time. I know how busy you are with all of your other classes, so I have cleared the schedule in this class to allow you to focus solely on your final paper. Here’s how we’ll spend our time between now and finals week:

• On Tuesday (5/1), we will devote the entire class session to a writing workshop. Please bring your laptop to class and be ready to put the finishing touches on your paper. If you have specific questions about small issues in your paper, I can help you answer them during class, but please don’t expect to cram five hours worth of work into a one-hour class session. In other words, when you come to class your paper should be almost ready to share with your peers. And, in fact, that’s exactly what we’ll do at the end of class. Each person will send an electronic copy of their paper to two classmates, who will review the paper before class on Thursday. If you would like to be grouped with specific classmates for this review activity, please let me know before class on Tuesday.
• On Thursday (5/3), you will work in small groups to share your feedback on each others’ papers. Please take this review assignment seriously by making substantive comments and edits on your peers’ papers before you come to class on Thursday. You will also have a chance to complete course evaluations on Thursday, and if time allows, I can meet with you individually to offer suggestions about how best to implement your peers’ suggestions as you work on the final draft of your paper.
• Your final paper is due no later than Tuesday, May 8, at 1:15 p.m. You can bring your paper to my office during our officially scheduled final (11:15 a.m. to 1:15 p.m.), or if you would like to turn it in early, you can slide it under my office door (211 Premont Hall). In addition, please submit an electronic copy of your paper either by emailing it to me or by sharing it with me on Google Docs (share the file with email hidden; JavaScript is required and be sure to give me editing privileges). Once you have submitted your final paper, you can bid fond farewell to Current Theories of Rhetoric and Composition. *sniff*

I have loved teaching this class (especially our class discussions!), and I hope you’ve gotten something out of it, too. I always get a kick out of hearing about my former students’ successes, so please feel free to drop me a line every so often to let me know how you’re doing. I wish you all the best, and I have nothing but confidence in your abilities to do amazing things, so go change the world with rhetoric!