Day 28: The Final Class

Today's class will be somewhat short.

We will review requirements for the final paper and address issues such as formatting and file naming.

Please refer to the PAPER 3 PAGE for information.

You will have some time in class to work and ask questions.

We will do ICES and that's it!
Good Luck on Finals!

Day 27: Preparing the Outline

You will be able to:

-Outline their research paper in a reflective manner (given that they have completed the literature review section) and be more prepared for the write-up of the final paper.

You may be sick of outlining, but the outline you will work on today is actually a start to writing your research paper since you will actually be writing sentences and putting them in order.

Headings and Subheadings
We will review headings and subheadings at the beginning of class, but I don't want you to include the headings and subheadings until you complete your outline.

Create headings for the major parts of your paper (introduction, methods, results, discussion or maybe introduction, research, conclusion).

Create sub headings for important parts of your paper that make up the major parts. You can see an example of this in the methods section of THE SAMPLE ON ASSESSING WATER QUALITY.

Outline Requirements
1. Introduction (CARS): You need three sentences--one for each CARS movement
a. Brief background of topic
b. Identify gap in research
c. Fill in gap with your thesis statement

2. Literature Review: You need one sentence purpose for the introduction, a topic sentence for each topic in the body, and a one sentence emphasis of a need for research for the conclusion
a. Introduction--Present purpose for the literature and outline the structure
b. Body--Several paragraphs organized by topic focused on niche/related background information
c. Conclusion--Emphasize a need to fill in the gap

3. Body (your research):You need to provide a topic sentence for every body paragraph

4. Conclusion: Provide one sentence that responds to one of the following research paper types
a. Research question format--you must answer the research question
b. Argumentative format--conclude with restating your claim
c. Problem-solution--you must again present your conclusion on which is the best solution for the problem

Applying Headings and Subheadings
Now that your outline is complete, you will have the opportunity to go back and add headings and subheadings. Keep in mind that each citation style and journal has their own way to format headings and subheadings. You should choose a format appropriate for your field.

Preparing Questions
Now take some time to review your outline and prepare any questions you might have about the research paper to ask me in the individual conference.

Day 26: Abstracts

You will be able to:

-Understand the purpose of abstract of a research paper.
-Understand the types of abstract.
-Become aware of the necessity (or lack thereof) of an abstract in your discipline.
-Notice and practice the use of specific linguistic features in abstracts.

Presentations
First we will finish up presentations from the previous class.

Abstract
After presentations, we will study Abstracts. Abstracts come before the introduction and are separated from the rest of the paper in some way. Sometimes they will appear on a separate page, and sometimes they will be separated from the introduction by a line.


In groups, find the abstract in each of the sample papers below. In your groups try to identify at least one difference in structure of the abstract. Also try to find ways in which the two abstracts are similar (hint: look at verb tense).

SAMPLE 1--ECONOMICS OF FARMING
SAMPLE 2--ASSESSING WATER QUALITY

About Abstracts
To answer some basic questions about abstracts, you can follow along with this ABSTRACT POWERPOINT.

You can find some supplementary information about abstracts HERE

Abstract Analysis
Now that you have a greater understanding about abstracts, put your skills to the test with this ABSTRACT ANALYSIS task.

Working with Abstracts in Your Field
You will now have the opportunity to evaluate the use of abstracts in your field. It would be helpful for you to work in groups of similar disciplines of study, but it is not necessary.

1. Use the LIBRARY WEBPAGE to find an article in your field of study.
2. Identify the abstract in the article.
3. Identify whether the abstract is results driven or a summary.
4. Identify how tense is used in each part of the abstract.

Day 25: Presentations and IMRD

Presentations
During today's class you will present your research paper outline to the class. This should take a little bit more than an hour.

IMRD Structure
Before that, I will briefly present IMRD STRUCTURE.

You can view two sample IMRD papers below.
SAMPLE 1--ECONOMICS OF FARMING
SAMPLE 2--ASSESSING WATER QUALITY

Conferences
You can view the time slots available for individual conferences HERE. You should bring a printed copy of your completed final research paper outline to the conference along with any questions you have.

Class will be cancelled on 4/26/12 and my office hours will be cancelled on 4/25/12 and 4/27/12 for conference scheduling.

Day 24: Literature Review Workshop

Today we will work on literature reviews...IN CLASS!

First we will briefly review aspects of a literature review.

Then you will have the opportunity to work on it in class and ask questions to me or your peers.

If you finish your literature review, work on your reflection paper. If you finish both of those, then prepare for your presentation on Tuesday.

Day 23: Source Synthesis

Objectives: Students will be able to:

-Recognize the definition and purpose of source synthesis in academic writing
-Categorize ideas from different sources through the use of a grid
-Synthesize sources based on ideas rather than the author
-Review the principle of unity in when synthesizing sources

First, you will finish up sharing your outlines with your classmates.

We will move on to cover source synthesis. This will be especially helpful in developing your literature reviews which are due Thursday.

Begin by opening the SOURCE SYNTHESIS POWERPOINT.

You will revisit what it means to synthesize your sources, and then you will have the opportunity to evaluate the structure some excerpts from literature reviews. Review these EXAMPLES OF SOURCE SYNTHESIS. In groups try to answer these questions:
-What are the organizing principles of text A and text B?
-Which text synthesized the sources better?
-What are some characteristics that make a good source synthesis?

We will finish up with the powerpoint. You will then need to read the information in the
SAMPLE SOURCES document, and organize the information found in those sources into a GRID ORGANIZER.

Remember strategies for making your writing more clear. For each main idea that recurs among the sources, create a topic sentence that both
1) Synthesizes the literature to be discussed
2) Describes the literature to be discussed
Example 1) Much of the literature points out that whole capital punishment does not stop crime, most Americans still believe that it does stop crime.
Example 2) Not only does the literature agree that capital punishment does not stop crime, Prejean, Fitzpatrick and Marshall also suggests that capital punishment may in fact cause more crime.

Day 22: Research Paper Structure

You will be able to:
-select an outline for your final research paper
-develop the outline for your final research paper
-share the outline with your classmates

Research Paper Outlines
Today you will have the opportunity to develop an outline for your final research paper. We will first review SUGGESTED OUTLINES.

Select an Outline
You will then have the opportunity to evaluate each outline individually and decide on one to follow for your final research paper.

Developing your Outline
Once everyone has decided on their outline, you will work on developing the outline and present it to members of your group. Groups will be made according to the type of research paper you will write.

Preparation for your Oral Presentation
With the remaining time. You can make any adjustments to your outline you feel are necessary and prepare for your oral presentation. Minimally, you will need to present the information in your outline and provide a visual aid.

Homework 4: Literature Review

You will need to write a 2-3 page literature review.

Be sure to include:
1. A brief introduction that states the purpose of the literature review and presents the organization style that the body of the literature review will follow (this is separate from the CARS introduction paragraph to your essay).
2. A body that includes information from the sources that you will cite in your paper as well as in-text citations for information taken from sources.
3. A conclusion that concludes the discussion on the literature and presents a need for further study of the niche

Be sure to follow the guidelines for literature reviews presented on DAY 21.

Value
15 Homework Points
Filename
literature_firstname_lastname_1.doc
Due
4/12/12

Reflection 2: Final Research Paper Reactions

Your Writing Process
As we saw in class today, everyone has different ways of writing essays. Write a short essay (300-500 words) about your feelings towards the final research paper. Be honest in your answers please =D Things you might want to discuss include:

Body paragraph 1:
-What your plan for your paper is
Body paragraph 2:
-What parts of the research paper you feel comfortable with or confident about
Body paragraph 3:
-What parts of the research paper you feel uncomfortable with or are unsure about

Don't worry so much about grammar. Your grammar will not be assessed in this essay. You should, however, make sure you follow the appropriate FORMATTING GUIDELINES and maintain a focus on the topic of the essay.

This is to give me the opportunity to address some of the concerns you (individually or as a class) may have concerning the final research paper.

Value
10 Reflection Points
Reflection
reflection_firstname_lastname_2.doc
Due
4/12/12

Paper 3: Final Research Paper

A 7-10 page paper (2-3 pages should be the literature review), which explores the topic more in depth. This paper should be either argumentative or problem/solution, or it can seek to answer a research question you propose. The paper should be primarily an exploration and defense of your thoughts on the thesis statement, supported by research.

Please review the scoring criteria HERE.

To ensure that seven pages is equal among all students, I ask that you format your paper according to THESE GUIDELINES.

If you include pictures/diagrams/charts/tables in your final paper, the size of one of these should be less than half of one page. If the size is greater than or equal to half of one page, put it in an appendix at the end of your paper. The total amount of pictures/diagrams/charts/tables included in the text of your paper should be less than one full page. If your paper requires more pictures/diagrams/charts/tables than can fit on one page, attach additional items as an appendix.

Make sure you have all of the following pieces:
-title page
-abstract
-introduction
-literature review
-body
-conclusion
-bibliography page

File Name
final_firstname_lastname_1.doc
Due Date
Tuesday, May 1st

Day 20 & 21: CARS Introductions and Literature Reviews

You will be able to:

-Understand the three moves in the CARS model (establishing a research territory, establishing a niche, and occupying that niche)
-Recognize these three moves in academic writing
-Apply these moves in your own academic writing (specifically, their research paper introductions and literature reviews)
-Understand what a literature review is
-Understand that literature reviews vary among different fields and types of papers
-Identify the major elements in a literature review

CARS Introductions

Concept Overview
Take a look at the image below.


If you are unfamiliar with the word niche, you can find its definition HERE.

After completing steps 1-3, try to come up with an explanation of how this diagram can be applied to an introduction of a research paper.

Explanation
We will explore this topic in more depth with THIS POWERPOINT. Slides 3 and 4 contain the most important information for developing an introduction that follows the CARS model.

Identifying CARS Parts
After learning the specifics of the CARS model, apply what you've learned to THIS ARTICLE. Read only the introduction. In your groups try to identify the three parts of the CARS model in this introduction. Afterward, explain how each part of the CARS model is (or is not) related to the introduction.

Practice CARS
You will now work individually. Develop your own outline for an introduction that follows the CARS model. Create one sentence that relates to each part of the CARS model. I recommend that you develop an outline for your actual research paper, but you will not be limited to that. Save the file in your Dropbox.

Some of you will be asked to share your outline with the class. You will then come to the front of the room and open your file on the projection screen and mix the order of your sentences. The audience will then have to successfully organize the parts of the outline.

Literature Reviews

Good News: If you follow the CARS model for research paper introductions, you will not be required to write an introduction to your literature review. Simply include the purpose for presenting your chosen type of literature review (see Elements of Literature Reviews section for more details on the purpose).
Bad News: You cannot simply copy and paste your annotated bibliography for your literature review.

Types of Literature Reviews
Look at these SAMPLE LITERATURE REVIEWS. They are on the same topic and focus on the same niche, but they are written in two different styles--descriptive and critical. Try to first identify which style each sample follows. Then try to identify the topic and the niche of the literature reviews.

Selecting a Literature Review Style

Take a few minutes to read through the following possibilities, decide which literature review you will write for your final research paper.

-If you have a research question to answer, you may choose to write a critical style literature review where you explain the unclear or uncertain areas surrounding your niche that you hope to resolve within the paper.

-If you are writing a problems-solutions research paper, you may choose to write a descriptive style literature review that outlines the problem and past attempts at solutions.

-If you are writing an argumentative research paper, you may choose to write a descriptive style literature review that provides a background to the debate surrounding your niche.

Three Essential Elements of a Literature Reviews for ESL 501
1) A literature review should be centered around the niche. You will want to ensure that you keep the focus on how the sources are related to the area you are researching. This is related to the explanation of relevance section in your annotated bibliography.

2) A literature review should NOT be a delimited summary of each of your sources. Although, you may include some summary information to illustrate how sources presented in the literature review are related to your niche. It should, however, show the interaction among the sources you have researched--how they support each other, how they disagree with each other, or how they are related to each other.

3) A literature review should support your reason and purpose for researching this niche throughout the body of the literature review and explicitly summarize and state the reasoning in the conclusion section of the literature review.

Developing a Literature Review
Next, we will walk through the development of a literature review together. You can follow along on THIS POWERPOINT.

Afterward:

-Identify the topic of the paper, the niche, and a possible thesis statement.

-Review the information provided by the sources. Identify whether the information provided by the sources agrees or disagrees with the information provided by the other sources.

-Identify which elements in the conclusion are present in the Essential elements of Literature Reviews section.

Sources on Literature Reviews
LITERATURE REVIEW SOURCE 1
LITERATURE REVIEW SOURCE 2
LITERATURE REVIEW SOURCE 3

Day 19: Using Ref-Works

On Tuesday, March 27th class will meet in the ACES library in room 509.

You will work on putting your sources into entry format for a bibliography using Ref-Works.

In the library you will have time to work with Ref-Works and add bibliography entries to your annotated bibliography.

Day 18: Working on the Annotated Bibliography

You will be able to:
-practice writing annotated bibliographies
-work on your annotated bibliographies

In class you will actually have the opportunity to work on your annotated bibliographies.

We will begin by briefly reviewing the four parts of annotated bibliographies.

As a class we will address any concerns you have about finding sources/library day/annotated bibliographies.

You will then have the remainder of class to work on finding sources for your final research paper and writing your annotated bibliography.

Homework 3: Annotated Bibliography

The annotated bibliography will be directly related to your final research paper.

[3/13/12] You will need to gather 4-6 sources (no fewer than 4 and no more than 6!) during the library instruction day.

[3/15/12] The following class period, you will actually have the opportunity to work on creating the annotated bibliography in class.

[3/27/12] You will meet in the library for a tutorial on Refworks. Here you will put your sources for your final research paper into an entry in a bibliography.

I highly recommend that you have the annotated bibliography completed before this library session so all you have to do for your homework is to copy and paste the entries into the annotated bibliography.

Remember: Your annotated bibliography should have citation first, 3-4 sentence summary of source, 3-4 sentence explanation of relevance to topic of research, 2-3 sentence reliability analysis.

Note: Since you need a minimum of four sources for your final research paper, I will only require that you write four annotated bibliographies--even if you have five or six sources.

You will also need to make sure that your annotated bibliography follows the same formatting guidelines as required by your citation style.

Due
Tuesday, March 27th 2012

File Name
annotated_Firstname_Lastname_1.doc

Day 17: Library Day 1

We will be in the library day. You will need to find 4-6 sources for your final research paper during this class period. Eventually you will need to write an annotated bibliography for these sources. You may not have fewer sources than 4 and you may not have more sources than 6.

Day 16: The Annotated Bibliography

I brought up the University of Illinois admissions scandal to the N1 section. I found the background information about the scandal HERE on Wikipedia.

**Remember that Tuesday we will be in ACES 509 during class. Here is a MAP. You must have a final research paper topic by that time. You can choose to write a problem-solution research paper or you can choose to write an argumentative research paper.**

You can follow along with today's lesson on annotated bibliographies with THIS POWERPOINT.

You will then have an opportunity to work in groups and evaluate the annotated bibliographies in THIS HANDOUT.

You will then have an opportunity to write an annotated bibliography in your groups. Open THIS ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY PRACTICE HANDOUT. Your group will be assigned one of the articles to read and prepare an annotated bibliography for that handout. You will then present your annotated bibliography to the class.

Day 14 and 15

We fell a bit behind following our schedule. Some lessons took longer than one day and so we had a catch up day to get back on track. On day 16 (3/8/2012), we will start studying annotated bibliographies.

Day 13: PIE Structure

You will be able to:

-Identify three elements of a paragraph (point, illustration, explanation)
-Evaluate a paragraph for its use of these elements
-Use these elements to construct an argument

Before we begin today's lesson, you will take a DIAGNOSTIC EXAM.

Afterward, we will review the answers to find out what you are struggling with.



We will begin learning PIE structure today. You can follow along with today's lesson in THIS POWERPOINT.

First, consider which are good points and which are bad points. Be able to explain why some are good and others are not.

Afterward, you will work on actually identifying the structure of THESE PARAGRAPHS.

Day 12: Citation Styles

We will finish up paraphrasing and quoting from the last class period.

You will be able to:

-Learn about the conventions of each of the citation styles listed above from the presentations prepared by their groupmates in class.
-Become familiar with sample citations of a variety of sources used in the academic writing.
-Practice group work and presentation skills while working on their mini presentations in class.

I will introduce citation styles with THIS POWERPOINT.

You will then get into groups according to the citation style you want to use on your final research paper.

Preparing Presentations
Each group will prepare a Powerpoint presentation illustrating what an in-text citation looks like AND what a references page entry looks like according to your groups style. You should also tell what basic information needs to be included in an in-text citation and what information should be included in a references page entry.

I will grade the reference list and in-text citations of your literature review and final research paper based on the information provided in these PPTs, so make sure that the information provided is correct.

Style Guides
IEEE
ACS
APA
MLA
Chicago

SAMPLE IN-TEXT CITATIONS AND REFERENCES PAGE ENTRIES

If there is time left, groups will begin presenting today. If not, presentations will begin on Thursday.

Day 11: Group Critique, Paraphrasing, and Quoting

We will finish up work from the previous class and begin with task 4.

Task 4: Critiquing the Article
Read the SUMMARY CRITIQUE ARTICLE. In small groups, decide whether you want to prepare a positive review, negative review, or a mixed review then develop critique of the article. You will then present your critique to the class. Each member should present a critique of one part of the article. Each critique should consist of two parts: opinion and support for that opinion.

We will then move onto today's lesson in which you will learn to:
— Quote a passage when necessary, according to appropriate punctuation rules
— Paraphrase/summarize a passage when necessary, using various strategies

We will work through this HANDOUT ON PARAPHRASING AND QUOTING.

For the activity on signal phrases and reporting verbs, we will refer to the APA HANDBOOK.

Day 10: Summary Critique Writing

You will be able to:
-Understand the components and format of a summary-critique essay
-State your own positions in response to an academic source following the format of a summary-critique essay

We will begin by finishing up the summarizing activity from the previous class. The powerpoint on summarizing can be found HERE.

Today's lesson will be about writing the summary critique. You can follow along on THIS POWERPOINT.

Task 1: Forming Opinions
You will have 30 Seconds to look at each of the following pictures. During that 30 seconds, briefly write down your opinion about the picture.

Task 2: Supporting Opinions
In small groups/partners, pick one of the images to critique. Write down:
-What you think the author’s purpose was?
-Did the author succeed in this purpose? Why or why not?
-Your reaction to this piece
-A justification for your reaction

Task 3: Concessive Contrast
You will work in groups to complete the CONCESSIVE CONTRAST WORKSHEET.

Task 4: Critiquing the Article
Read the SUMMARY CRITIQUE ARTICLE. In small groups, decide whether you want to prepare a positive review, negative review, or a mixed review then develop critique of the article. You will then present your critique to the class. Each member should present a critique of one part of the article. Each critique should consist of two parts: opinion and support for that opinion.

Paper 2: Summary Critique

Read THIS ARTICLE.

Your summary critique of this article should be 2-3 pages long. Minimally, it must include the following:
1. Introduction
2. Summary of the article
3. Critique of the article
4. Conclusion

While you are critiquing the article, be sure you focus on the content of the article itself, not the author's style of writing (unless there was something about the style that affected your ability to understand the content).

Final Version
Due
4/3/12
Filename
Critique_Firstname_Lastname_2.doc
Value
50 Summary Critique Points

Draft 1
Due
2/28/12
Filename
Critique_Firstname_Lastname_1.doc
Value
5 Summary Critique Points

Day 9: Avoiding Plagiarism Part 1

We will start off by reviewing the Powerpoint on coherence from last class.

Warm-Up Activity
Today, I will pass around a sheet of paper. You must fill in the blank on the paper with a noun that had not been written.

Defining Plagiarism
Plagiarism can be defined in many different ways. I want to know what your current understanding of plagiarism is. In your group come up with a definition (the definition should not be plagiarized) and write it on the white board.

Diana Hacker's definition of plagiarism is, “Three different acts are considered plagiarism: (1) failing to cite quotations and borrowed ideas, (2) failing to enclose borrowed language in quotation marks, and (3) failing to put summaries and paraphrases in your own words.”

Working with Plagiarism
In your groups, you will work together to complete this PLAGIARISM WORKSHEET. You can use any resources you have to complete this worksheet.

Acknowledge or Not
In your groups you will work together to complete this WORKSHEET ON ACKNOWLEDGING SOURCES. It can sometimes be difficult to decide if some information must be cited. Remember that it is always better to be safe than sorry, so if you are unsure, cite the source.

Summarizing
This POWERPOINT ON SUMMARIZING provides basic techniques for making good summaries.

Practice
You will have the opportunity to practice summarizing. In your groups select one person to be "the eyes." The others must turn their backs to the front of the room and close their eyes. "The eyes" will watch a video and share the main points with the rest of his/her group. The rest of the group must work together to construct a summary of the video based on the information that "the eyes" provided.

Day 8: Formal Writing Style

You will be able to:

-Understand the difference between formal and informal tone in academic writing
-Apply formal tone to your own papers
-Understand how unity makes their writing smoother
-Identify and practice using coherence devices

Verbs

Which is more formal?

1. According to some biologists, coming up with clear proof of the decreasing numbers of frogs has been difficult.

2. According to some biologists, offering clear proof of the decreasing number of frogs has been difficult.

Often in lectures and everyday spoken English, (verb + preposition) is used. (E.g. goes up, figure out, bring up). However, there is a tendency for academic writers to use a single verb whenever possible.

This same principle can be applied to other categories of words:

1. Crash test dummies are really important for automotive crash tests.
“really important for” →“an integral part of”

2. In Hong Kong there is one cell phone for just about every two people.
“just about” → “nearly”

3. We got encouraging results using structural bamboo rather than timber.
“got” → “obtained”

4. There has been a lot of interest in how background sounds, such as music, affects an individual’s ability to concentrate.
“a lot of “→ “considerable”

5. Consumer interest in electronic billing and payment is getting bigger and bigger.
“getting bigger and bigger ” → “increasing”

In groups, work through THESE PRACTICE EXERCISES.

Next review these guidelines for FORMAL GRAMMAR. Afterward, revise the sentences as a group for formal grammar.

Coherence

Below is a powerpoint on coherence devices that can be used in writing.

COHERENCE

Unity
Unity refers to the idea that each idea must be related to the main idea of the whole piece of writing. In other words, each sentence in a body paragraph must relate to the topic sentence of that paragraph in some way, each topic sentence must be related to the thesis statement, and the thesis statement must be related to the topic of your essay.

Homework 2: Peer Review of the Diagnostic

Reviewer's Job
Email the peer review document and essay with comments to your partner before midnight tonight (Thursday, February 9th).

Name the files
Peer Review Diagnostic Essay Document
PeerReviewer'sName_Diagnostic_Sheet_1.doc
Peer Review Diagnostic Essay
PeerReviewer'sName_Diagnostic_1.doc



Writer's Job
Once you receive the peer review document and the peer review essay of your diagnostic essay, YOU MUST UPLOAD THESE DOCUMENTS TO YOUR SHARED DROPBOX FOLDER. You will then assign a score of 0-5 to your partner based on the quality and the amount of feedback that he/she gave you. Write this at the bottom of the Peer Review Diagnostic Essay Document. Also, write five sentences to justify your score. This will determine your partner's peer review score. Keep the same file name the same of the Peer Review Diagnostic Essay Document that your partner sent.

Note: I will still change peer review scores if I believe it is necessary.

Value
5 Homework Points: Peer Review Document
5 Homework Points: Peer Review Commented Essay
5 Homework Points: Writer Assessment of Reviewer

Due
2/10/12

Day 7: Diagnostic Peer Review

You will be able to:

-Use skills taught in training day to effectively review peer paper(s)
-Discuss feedback given

Step 1
Look at the lists below. Find your partner (or group) and sit next to each other. At this time you should exchange email addresses.

Section N1
Sijie/Cesarina
Tingting/Si-On
Danlin/Hae Won
Ki Bum/Phuong
Maryam/Fatih/Chen-En

Section J
Weiwei/Sohye
Jonglo/Zehua
Duc/Nuri
Santiago/Xilu
Frank/Hao
Min Xiong/Yu
Min Zhu/Jingchen/Fardin

Step 2
Open up your REVISED DIAGNOSTIC ESSAY and the DIAGNOSTIC PEER REVIEW SHEET.

Step 3
Switch seats with someone in your group.

Step 4
Follow the directions on the PEER REVIEW SHEET and begin your peer review.

Day 6: Peer Review Training

You will be able to:

-Understand the goals of peer review
-Understand elements on which to comment in peer’s paper
-Understand what constitutes effective feedback
-Give effective feedback to a peer

Discussion
You will get into groups and consider the following questions:

1. Have you ever done peer review before?
2. What did you like about your previous peer review experiences?
3. What did you NOT like about your previous peer review experiences?
4. What do you think the goals of peer review are?

Giving Feedback
Read THIS ESSAY. When you are finished, you and your group should:

-Try to state the main idea and underline the thesis statement
-Identify the writer’s strength(s), weakness(es)
-Question anything you do not understand
-Leave comments for the writer about (3) and (4).

Evaluating Feedback Part 1
Each group will be assigned one sample paper to read.
SAMPLE 1
SAMPLE 2
SAMPLE 3
SAMPLE 4

Each group will need to present the sample they evaluated. Each member will need to explain one reason that they believe that the feedback given on the essay is either good or bad.

Brainstorm
As a class we will brainstorm qualities that you believe make feedback good based on the samples presented to the class.

Evaluating Feedback Part 2
As a group, take some time to work through this worksheet. We will go over the answers as a class afterward.

Be sure to look over this PEER REVIEW SHEET. You will be working with this on Thursday when you actually peer review.

Day 5: Argumentative Structure

We will begin by spending 10 minutes in groups to prepare for group presentations.

After that each group will present. As the groups are presenting. The audience should identify the purpose of the group that is presenting and explain what they did or said that supports your answer.

Argumentative Essays
Thesis Statements
The thesis statement for argumentative essays is called a claim. An argumentative essay must have a claim. A claim should:
-Support only one side of an issue
-Be specific
-Should be it arguable (i.e. not obvious like "the sky is blue")
-Focused on one main idea

Audience
Audience 1: Agrees with your thesis statement (Agreeing audience)
Audience 2: Neither agrees nor disagrees with your thesis statement (Neutral Audience)
Audience 3: Disagrees with your thesis statement (Disagreeing audience)

For an audience that agrees with your claim you can persuade them to take some kind of action. For an audience that is neutral towards your claim you can emphasis the importance of the issue being presented. For an audience that disagrees with your claim you can find some common opinions or perspectives with them and then try to persuade them based on logic instead of emotion.

Reasons and Evidence
Reasons
In this class the reasons you believe in that support your claim will sometimes be called main points. Do not confuse main points with the main point of the essay (the claim).

Read the following essay prompt. Some groups will develop two main points that support that teachers and students SHOULD be friends on Facebook and some groups will develop two main points that support that teachers and students SHOULD NOT be friends on Facebook.

Prompt: Do you believe that teachers and students should be friends on Facebook?

Evidence
Once your group has decided your reasons, develop three pieces of evidence for each reason that explain or support your reasons.

Example
Claim: Relaxing plagiarism rules may harm both the University's and students’ reputations.

Reason 1: If it is known that your University is lax on plagiarism, your research may not be trusted as others may think you are prone to plagiarizing.

Evidence 1: Universities with high standards have students who publish more articles (statistical data)

Evidence 2: Proper research training is essential for successful researchers (from a published source)

Evidence 3: My cousin went to such a university and he was not offered a job because of doubts about his "original" research (personal story / anecdote)

Argumentative Writing Terminology
Types of Evidence
Anecdotal(weak) – story of someone’s experience; weak; good for counterargument
Testimony(Somewhat Strong) – reference to an outside source; moderate
Statistical(Somewhat Strong) - empirical analysis or methodical scientific study; moderate
Analogical(Fairly Strong) – modeling by comparing to an already understood concept; strong

Note: an in-depth description of each type of evidence can be found HERE.

Types of Reasoning
Inductive Reasoning - Conclusion is based on several pieces of evidence
Deductive Reasoning - Conclusion is based on true statements

Inductive reasoning is like the Claim-Reason-Evidence task above. Deductive reasoning is similar to the following example.

-Popular brands of apple juice do not meet government standards for inorganic arsenic levels.
-Inorganic arsenic causes cancer
-Popular brands of apple juice can cause cancer.
Source: (Unhealthy Levels of Arsenic and Lead Found in Apple and Grape Juices–What Parents Can Do)

Responding Opposing Views
There are three ways to respond to the opposition:

Acknowledge - you admit the opposition exists and show you have considered it; admit there are some things that cannot be changed or explained or argued away

Example: Readers opposed to mandatory school uniforms may argue that a uniform requirement will not eliminate peer pressure because students will use other objects to gain status (backpacks, hairstyles, cell phones, etc.) You could acknowledge this by admitting there is no way to stop teenagers from finding ways to compete for status.

Accommodate - acknowledge your readers' concerns and accept some of them by using them in your argument

Example: In arguing for mandatory school uniforms, you might accomodate readers' view that uniforms will not eliminate peer pressure by arguing that the uniforms will eliminate one major and expensive means of competing for status.

Refute - demonstrate the weaknesses of the opposition's argument

Responding to Arguments Practice
Groups that supported that students and teachers should be friends on Facebook and groups that supported that students and teachers should not be friends on Facebook should switch computers and create counter arguments.

If you need more information on how to structure a counterargument, you can review a POWERPOINT ON COUNTERARGUMENTS.

Paper 1: The Diagnostic

You will write an essay based on THIS ARTICLE.

Revise your diagnostic test essay according to the following guidelines:

Essay Question: In Pamela Brown’s article “Should Teachers and Students Be Facebook Friends?”, the author argues that social networking sites such as Facebook have the potential for students and teachers to create relationships that will be beneficial for students both inside and outside of the classroom. However, the reality of social networking relationships between students and teachers can have both negative and positive effects. With the aid of this article and your own experience, answer the question: Do you believe that teachers and students should be friends on Facebook? Be sure to choose one side and argue that stance to the best of your abilities.

Be sure to construct a logically and structurally sound argument by writing an effective thesis and supporting it with sufficient reasons and appropriate evidence from both the article and your own insight and experience. Cite your source as best you can. Do not use sources other than the article and your own personal experience.

Your essay should be 2-3 pages long and follow THESE FORMATTING GUIDELINES.

Final Draft
Value
50 Diagnostic Essay points
Name
diagnostic_firstname_lastname_4.doc
Due
3/6/12

Draft 3
Value
5 Diagnostic Essay points
Name
diagnostic_firstname_lastname_3.doc
Due
2/17/12

Draft 2
Value
5 Diagnostic Essay Points
Name
diagnostic_firstname_lastname_2.doc
Due
2/9/2012

Day 4: Audience and Purpose

You will get into groups by your major.

Quiz
We will begin this class with a quiz on THIS ARTICLE.

You will have 10 minutes to complete THIS QUIZ based on the reading.

Evaluating Your Audience
For each video, answer the following questions in your group.

-Who is the intended audience of the video clip?
-How might other audiences perceive this video?

Once we have watched all of the videos, answer the following question in your group.

-What are some differences you observed from the three versions of The Three Little Pigs?









Catering to the Audience
When we talk to someone face-to-face, we know just who we are talking to. We automatically adjust our speech to be sure we are communicating our message. Many writers don't make those same adjustments when they write to different audiences--usually because they don't take the time to think about who will be reading what they write. To be sure that we communicate clearly in writing, we need to adjust our message--how we say it and what information we include--by recognizing that different readers can best understand different messages.

Three Groups of Audiences
Three categories of audience: the "lay" audience, the "managerial" audience, and the "experts."

The "lay" audience has no special or expert knowledge. They connect with the human interest aspect of articles. They usually need background information; they expect more definition and description; and they may want attractive graphics or visuals.

The "managerial" audience may or may have more knowledge than the lay audience about the subject, but they need knowledge so they can make a decision about the issue. Any background information, facts, statistics needed to make a decision should be highlighted.

The "experts" may be the most demanding audience in terms of knowledge, presentation, and graphics or visuals. Experts are often "theorists" or "practitioners." For the "expert" audience, document formats are often elaborate and technical, style and vocabulary may be specialized or technical, source citations are reliable and up-to-date, and documentation is accurate.

If you know what your audience wants & needs and identify what they already know, it will help you determine:
-how to write
-how much information to include
-how long to make your text
-how subjective or objective you should be
-how formal or informal your text should be

Purpose
Consider the following list of purposes for writing.
Persuade, Evoke emotion, Entertain, Explain/Define, Inform, Critique

Select a purpose from the list that is associated with each question I ask.
-Am I trying to educate my audience about a subject they do not know much about?
-Am I trying to explain to my the good and bad parts of a something?
-Am I trying to convince my audience to agree with my point of view on the subject?
-Am I trying to demonstrate to my audience that I know about this subject?
-Am I trying to amuse by writing something funny, beautiful, or dramatic?

Once you have a greater understanding of the purpose of your writing, try to complete this PURPOSE ACTIVITY in your group.


Lastly, you will select a term or concept that is specific to your major. In your group, you will need to explain that concept to the class in 3-5 sentences. Your group should present the concept to the class. You should assume that the class is a "lay" audience.

Day 3: Thesis Statments, Introductions, and Conclusions

Objectives: You will be able to:

-Identify the criteria of a strong thesis statement
-Practice revising weak thesis statements
-Identify types of introduction hooks
-Understand the parts of an introduction
-Understand the parts of a conclusion
-Practice identifying parts of a conclusion

We will start class by getting into groups.

Introductions

Introduce Yourself
In your groups take a few minutes and introduce yourself to your group members.

I will then ask some groups to share the information that was discussed in these introductions.

You might see that there are some parallels between personal introductions and introductions to academic essays.

Hooks
You want to capture the attention of the person you are introducing yourself to just like you want to capture the attention of your readers at the beginning of your introduction.

In writing, common ways to begin introductions are:

-Quotes
-Facts/Statistics
-Definitions
-Personal story/anecdote
-Striking example
-Intriguing statement

As a class, we will work through the INTRODUCTION HOOK EXERCISE.

The Rest of the Introduction

Now that you have the reader's attention there are three more parts of an introduction that will follow:

1. Hook--Grab the attention of your audience
2. Justification--Explain why this topic is important/relevant/interesting/problematic
3. Background--Provide general information on the topic to familiarize your reader with your topic. Along with the general information you can explain definitions and current events.
4. Thesis statement--
More activities with introductions can be found HERE

Thesis Statements

In your groups you will come up with a definition of a thesis statement and then create a thesis statement based on your definition. Each group will share their definition and example.

Afterward, we will consider four basic guidelines to create good thesis statements. Taking into account these guidelines, each group will be asked to revise its example thesis statement.

As a class, you will work through THIS WORKSHEET on thesis statements.

Lastly consider these four phrases:

-In my opinion…
-As far as I am concerned, I think…
-It is my personal belief that…
-I agree / disagree…
-My thesis statement is…

These four phrases are bad ways to introduce your thesis statement. Revise your group's thesis statement once more in light of all the information we discussed.

Conclusions

Conclusions contain three main parts:

1. Thesis Statement--Restate your thesis statement in a new way. If you just copy and paste from the introduction, you reader will think you are lazy.
2. Summary--Briefly present the main arguments/main points of your essay again.
3. Closer--A closer can be one of three things. For a unified essay, try to relate your closing statements to the Hook presented in the introduction.
3A. Call to Action: Explain what the reader should do after reading your essay
3B. Question: Ask what happens if nothing changes
3C. Prediction: Suggest what might happen if a situation does not change
3D. Suggestions for Future Research: Explain what future research could be conducted and how it might help solve the main issue you discuss

As a class, let's test our conclusion knowledge with THIS EXERCISE

Announcement 1: Formatting Guidelines

Every assignment you submit should be formatted this way unless otherwise instructed.

Font size: 12pt
Font style: Times New Roman
Line spacing: Double-Spaced (ctrl+A and then press ctrl+2)Do not insert extra spaces between paragraphs by hitting the enter/return key twice.
Margins: 1-Inch margins on top and bottom; 1-Inch margins on left and right sides
Indentation: The first line of every paragraph should be indented (tab key). This is equal to half an inch.
Text alignment: The text should be aligned to the left side of the page and jagged on the right(ctrl+A and then press ctrl+L).
Special formatting: Do not make your entire document bold or italicized.
References: should follow APA format

Reflection 1: Your Writing Process

Your Writing Process
As we saw in class today, everyone has different ways of writing essays. Write a short essay (300-500 words) about your own writing process when you have to write an academic essay. Be honest in your answers! Things you might want to discuss include:

-What kind of papers have you written?
-What steps do you go through?
-Do these steps change with each assignment? Why?
-Which step is hardest for you?
-Looking at your process, how well do you think it works? Would you change anything, if you could?

Don’t spend more than an hour or so writing this essay, and don't worry so much about grammar. Your grammar will not be assessed in this essay. You should, however, make sure you follow the appropriate FORMATTING GUIDELINES and maintain a focus on the topic of the essay.

Value
10 Reflection Points
Reflection
reflection_firstname_lastname_1.doc
Due
1/31/12

Homework 1: Needs Analysis

Make sure you have the NEEDS ANALYSIS survey completed
as well as a picture of yourself uploaded to your shared Dropbox.

Value
5 Homework Points
Picture
picture1_firstname_lastname.jpg
Needs Analysis
needs_analysis_firstname_lastname.rtf
Due
1/25/12

Day 2: The Writing Process and Basic Essay Structure

Objectives: You will be able to:
-Practice using language creatively via descriptions
-Understand what effective rhetoric is
-Discuss personal brainstorming strategies
-Identify the important parts of an essay

Mystery Object

I will begin class by putting you into groups of three. One person must be the speaker, one person must be the typist, and one person must be the artist.

I will call the speaker from each group to the front. Each speaker will see an object that I have hidden. The speakers must return to their groups and describe the object to the typist and the artist without saying what the object is and what it does. You may only describe what it looks like, feels, tastes like, smells like, and what it sounds like.

The typist will then have to write down a description of what the object looks like.

Lastly, the artist will open up the paint program on the computer and paint a picture that represents the typists description.

After each group finishes their painting, we will compare to see who was closest to the original object.

Rhetoric

"Rhetoric is the art of putting one's case in the strongest and best possible way. It combines the audience's expectation and the writer's desire to please - to communicate with their audiences. Rhetoric is all about effectiveness" (McCuen-Metherell & Winkler, 2007).

In your groups you need to read two paragraphs. You will need to ultimately decide which one is rhetorically better. Answer the questions after each paragraph to help you make your decision.

Scenario

you are a freshman in college who is undecided about what to major in. You are be interested in English literature, but you're not convinced it's the best fit for you. Fortunately, you have two friends who are in that major. You e-mail them to ask them why they chose their major and what they like about it.

RESPONSE FROM FRIENDS 1 AND 2

Brainstorming


Writing with creativity and details, knowing when to add more and how much is too much, are things writers learn over time. But each writer has to start somewhere. So, how do you start to develop an idea you have for a paper? Or, more basically, how do you come up with ideas?

Get back into your groups and each of you should share examples of occasions at work or at school that require you to generate ideas. Also, explain how you come up with those ideas.

After your discussion, each group member should come up and briefly share a method that he/she uses to brainstorm.

Outlining

Brainstorming helps you generate ideas, and the next step, outlining, helps you organize those ideas. A well organized paper will make the focus of your writing clearer and easier to understand--two desirable qualities in academic writing.

As a class we come up with what you believe are the four important elements of a paper.

In your groups, work together to come up with a brief explanation of what each is and what it does.

Day 1: Course Policies

Today we will get to know each other as well as review the course policies presented on THE FIRST DAY HANDOUT.

You will also be required to set up a Dropbox account if you haven't already. You will need to create a shared folder on Dropbox and share it with me. This is how you will submit assignments. The directions for this can be found HERE.

You will then be quizzed on your knowledge of THE FIRST DAY HANDOUT. You will be put into groups of 3. Each group should answer three questions in order to receive participation points for the day.

During the last 50 minutes of class you will take an in-class exam. You will be given a paper. You must read the paper and respond to the essay question given.