Eureka!!

Don't you just love it when you experience random perfect timing?? I read "Beyond Rhetoric: A Reflective, Persuasive Final Exam for the Workshop Classroom" by Sarah Lorenz in Breakthroughs during the second week in May while preparing final exams. An important aspect of our English III curriculum, persuasive essay writing culminates in the dreaded MAP in April. During the semester the juniors spent quality time with the writing process to produce mediocre essays. My dilemma - how to make the persuasive essay important to 17 year olds?? When I read the article, I declared, "Eureka!!"
I borrowed the idea of a persuasive essay for the final exam. I asked each student to write a persuasive essay convincing me of the semester grade he/she deserved in English III based on how our units of study either changed thinking, affected daily life, or was important to him/her. I listed our units of study and added an event in class that stood out. I cautioned the students that "sucking up" would get them nowhere!
The students received the take-home final more than a week before the final date. Some of my students began the writing process immediately and refined their essays over the week. Others, of course, waited until the exam period to begin. Regardless, the outcome was amazing. My students wrote the best essays of the year - and we all know that attaining a "PR" (personal record) is a triumph.
It was the highlight of my 20+ years of finals. I thoroughly enjoyed reading all of the essays. Some made me laugh out loud, some brought tears, and some totally surprised me. A few actually angered me - those written by students who only exhibited their writing ability at the last moment.
I am thankful to Sarah Lorenz for the experience of a final that motivated excellent essays and helped students examine the impact that even English III can have on their lives.