We have reached the midpoint of the semester, so it’s probably a good time to step back and see how much you’ve accomplished this semester. To help you do that, I have updated your grades in Blackboard, so each of you can get a sense of where you stand right now. Your wiki and class participation grades are tentative grades, designed to help you see where you would be if the semester were ending right now. I will catch up on grading your reading responses over spring break, but you should be able to get a fairly good sense of where you’re headed in that category by checking your scores in Google Docs. As always, if you feel like you’re not where you want to be in terms of your grade, please come see me during office hours; I would be happy to help you develop a plan to get back on track before the semester ends.

Next week we will all be enjoying a well-deserved spring break, but when we return, we’ll be diving into the research paper project. If you haven’t thoroughly read the assignment description for that project, please do so ASAP. When we see each other again, here’s how we’ll proceed:

• On Tuesday (3/20), we will read “Coding Texts and Digital Multimedia,” by Stuart Blythe [DWR 203-27]. Katie will lead our discussion, and Ryan and Chloe will take notes. We will also spend some time talking about how to draft a research plan, so please come to class with at least two (preferably more) ideas for your final research paper.
• On Thursday (3/22), we will not meet as a class; instead, I will hold an individual conference with each of you to discuss your proposal for the final paper. I will distribute a sign-up sheet for conference times on Tuesday. When you come to your conference, you should bring a written proposal that follows the format discussed in class on Tuesday. (If you’re worried about this, don’t be — we will cover everything you need to know after spring break. During the break, you just need to start brainstorming ideas for your project.)

Last but not least, this is a gentle reminder that you should be making steady progress on the wiki assignment. The final deadline for contributions to the wiki is April 17, but please don’t postpone your work on that assignment until Week 13!