Clarify requirements for Portfolio project descriptions

[Copilot]

Overview

This PR addresses issue #[issue_number] by adding comprehensive guidelines for portfolio project descriptions across all 10 portfolio template files. The original instructions were incomplete, leaving students uncertain about specific requirements for describing their projects.

Problem

The existing portfolio templates contained only a brief instructional quote without sufficient detail on:

• What specific information should be included in each project description
• Formatting or length requirements
• Examples of acceptable project entries
• Preferred structure for presenting descriptions

Students needed clearer guidance to complete their portfolio sections accurately while maintaining the graduate-level academic standards of the course.

Solution

Added a "Project Description Guidelines" section to all portfolio files (p01.Rmd through p10.Rmd) that provides:

Clear Component Expectations

Each project description should address four key areas with specific guiding questions:

• Goal: What research question or problem were you investigating? What were you trying to accomplish or understand?
• Product: What type of output did you create (e.g., R Markdown report, R script, Shiny application, data visualization, statistical analysis, reproducible analysis)? Describe the technical approach.
• Data: What dataset(s) did you use? Include relevant details such as source, sample size, key variables, and any data preparation steps.
• Interpretation: What insights did you gain? What do the results mean in context? What limitations or future directions should be considered?

Formatting Flexibility

Students may structure their descriptions using headings, narrative paragraphs, or a combination that best communicates their work - appropriate for graduate-level academic writing without being overly prescriptive.

Length Guidance

Clear guidance to "aim for clarity and sufficient detail for a knowledgeable reader to understand your approach and findings without being overly verbose."

Changes Made

• Updated 10 files: p01.Rmd, p02.Rmd, p03.Rmd, p04.Rmd, p05.Rmd, p06.Rmd, p07.Rmd, p08.Rmd, p09.Rmd, p10.Rmd
• Added 111 lines of helpful guidance
• Maintained consistency across all portfolio templates
• Included R-specific examples relevant to the Data Science for Psychologists course

Screenshot

The new guidelines section appears directly below the existing instructional quote:

Graduate-Level Approach

The guidance balances structure with flexibility:

• Provides clear expectations through guiding questions
• Offers multiple formatting options
• Emphasizes comprehensive, scholarly communication
• Avoids rigid templates or word counts
• Includes context-appropriate examples for R/data science work

This approach ensures students understand what's expected while maintaining the academic autonomy appropriate for graduate-level coursework.

Original prompt

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This section details on the original issue you should resolve

<issue_title>Clarify requirements for Portfolio 1 project descriptions</issue_title>
<issue_description>The instructions in p02.Rmd indicate that each project should include a description of the goal and the product, but the details are incomplete. To ensure this section meets expectations, please clarify:

• What specific information should be included in each project description?
• Are there formatting or length requirements?
• Should examples of acceptable project entries be provided?
• Is there a preferred structure for presenting the descriptions (e.g., table, bullet points, narrative)?

Current excerpt from p02.Rmd:

The projects should be numbered consecutively (i.e., in the order in which you began them), and should include for each project a description of the goal, the product (computer program, hand graph, [...]

Please provide additional guidance so this section can be completed accurately.</issue_description>

<agent_instructions>this is a graduate level class so some guidance is helpful, but not too much</agent_instructions>

Comments on the Issue (you are @copilot in this section)

Fixes #5

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