UNIT ONE TEACHING MATERIALS

Table of Contents

Prompts, Previewing, Charting, Argument Map & Discussion Questions

Sample Prompt Paper 1: The “List” (Can Use as Rubric & in Peer Review)

Sample Prompt Paper 1: The “Conversational” Prompt (Jenny Sheppard)

Sample Prompt Paper 1: The “Paint by Numbers” Prompt

Sample Prompt Paper 1: The “streamlined” prompt

Assignment # 1 Decoded

VIDEOS & links: pre-reading resources

Previewing, Skimming, Surveying

Charting a Text

Group Charting Exercise

Some Questions to Ask Any Text

Summary & Notes on Thompson

Argument Map

Thompson: Argument Map Exercise

Matt’s Summary & Notes on Thompson

Reading Response Homework Example 1

Reading Response Homework Example 2

Identifying Claims Exercise

Searching for Strategies

If you have time…

Some Evaluation Ideas

Worksheet: Going “In-Depth,” Making Connections & Evaluating the Argument (Piera)

DRAFTING

Outline for Introduction

Using They Say/I Say with Assignment 1

A Basic Template For Discussing Claims

More Templates

Quick Guide to Quotations

Outline for Introduction

Body Template

Drafting Paper 1

Some Key Ingredients in Strong Analysis Papers

Rhetorical Précis – description and examples

Turning your précis into an introduction

Example: One Way of Structuring the Introduction

An example of what not to do

SAMPLE BODY PARAGRAPH WITH DISCUSSION OF EVIDENCE

Body Template

Rubric #1: Constructing An Account

Sample Introduction Paragraphs

Sample Student Draft

Sample Draft Intro, Body and Conclusion paragraphs

Sample Homework

Homework for Wednesday September 03 - Reading Response for Thompson

Homework for Friday September 05 - Exploring Thompson

Homework for Monday September 08

Homework for Wednesday September 10

Tips for Project 1: Constructing an Account of an Argument

QUICK GUIDE TO QUOTATIONS (See Graff et al., “The Art of Quoting”)

Quotation Quiz

They Say/I Say & Quote Sandwiches – Class Activities

Three Step Quotation Integration Visual

PEER REVIEW

RWS 100 Peer Review Guide Paper #1

More Peer Review Workshop Ideas

Mechanics: Some Rules Of Thumb

MLA Relay

Prompts, Previewing, Charting, Argument Map & Discussion Questions

Sample Prompt Paper 1: The “List” (Can Use as Rubric & in Peer Review)

Part 1: Introduction (1-2 paragraphs, 15 points)
Introduce and contextualize Thompson’s text. Explain the rhetorical situation (the author, context, purpose, genre, audience), “hook” the reader (establish why we should care) and describe Thompson’s overall argument. Clearly signal to your reader what your paper will do (metadiscourse).

Part 2: The Body, In Which You Present Your Central Analysis (70 points)

Accurately describe and explain Thompson’s key claims. Explain each in detail, give examples, illustrate your interpretation with one or more quotations, explain quotations and indicate how they support your interpretation (operate like a lawyer making a case). Make sure all of these elements line up tightly.

In each body section of a major claim, include discussion of evidence. Discuss the types of evidence Thompson uses to support his claim. What kind(s) of evidence is used? If more than one kind of evidence is used to support the claim, what combination of evidence does he select? Why? How does he present the evidence? What do you notice about his description of the evidence (word choice, elements selected or left out, framing, etc.?). How effective is this evidence (see reader p. 24). Note: listing evidence is not a critical discussion – the discussion must include how the evidence supports a specific claim.
Critically discuss the assumptions Thompson makes. What are some strengths and weaknesses of Thompson’s argument (you can focus on elements that most lend themselves to analysis).
Part 3: Your conclusion, which tells us “So What?” (2-3 paragraphs, 15 points)

Conclude your paper by presenting a thoughtful discussion of one of the following: a) how some element of the text relates to your own experience, b) how the author has impacted your thinking/views on this topic, c) the significance of the argument.

Sample Prompt Paper 1: The “Conversational” Prompt (Jenny Sheppard)

Your paper should do the following

  1. Help your readers understand what the text is about (don’t assume they have read it) and why the issues are significant or worth discussion.
  2. Try to contextualize the author’s text by relating it to larger cultural conversations so that you are not simply giving a report on your chosen text. Accurately describe the author’s project, argument and claims, and the rhetorical situation.
  3. State the purpose of your paper clearly and provide a basic “road map” so readers can envision how your paper/argument is structured. This “metadiscourse” is used to help guide your readers by talking about the structure/form of your paper, not its contents.
  4. Identify the most important or interesting claims made by the author and how they relate to the overall argument.
  5. Focus on analysis (discussion of how and why something works) of examples not description (summary of what something is).
  6. Critically discuss the assumptions Thompson makes.
  7. What are some strengths and weaknesses of Thompson’s argument (you can focus on elements that most lend themselves to analysis).
  8. Use an effective organizational structure that carefully guides the reader from one idea to the next.
  9. Edit your final draft carefully to catch typos and sentence-level errors.
  10. Integrate quotes effectively by contextualizing them and using “quotation sandwiches.
  11. Utilize proper MLA formatting both in-text and in your Works Cited.

Sample Prompt Paper 1: The “Paint by Numbers” Prompt

How to structure assignment 1 + break down of points
Part 1. Introduction (1-2 paragraphs)

1. Introduce and contextualize Thompson’s text. Explain the rhetorical situation (the author, context, purpose, genre, audience). What is Thompson’s project? (What sort of work does he set out to do, how, and why?)

2. Describe the author’s main argument - what is he trying to get us to believe?

3. State the direction of your analysis and the steps you will take to get us there (“metadiscourse.”) [15 points]

Part 2. The Body

In this section, you will analyze 3 or 4 major claims that support the author’s argument. For each claim, you will:

Identify the claim in your own words.

Use a quotation to illustrate this claim. Introduce, integrate and explain the quotation (see Graff et al,. 39 – 49).

Identify the evidence the author presents to support this claim (if present/relevant)

Critically discuss the assumptions Thompson makes, and discuss relative effectiveness (strengths and weaknesses)
[70 Points]

Part 3: The Conclusion (2-3 paragraphs)

In this section, you will discuss issues of significance or effectiveness. There are several things you can choose to emphasize in this section.

What is the significance of the argument – why does it matter (at this moment/to you/in general)?

Has the author impacted your thinking/views on this topic? If so, in what way?

Consider the effectiveness of the argument – focus on a key strength or weaknesses [15 points]

Remember to focus on the text’s argument and how it is constructed, not merely what it is about.

Write the paper as if you are addressing an audience that has not read the text, and thus requires that you “spell things out.” Use MLA format, proofread your work carefully, and revise, revise, revise.

Sample Prompt Paper 1: The “streamlined” prompt

Rough draft due September 23Final draft due October 03

Length:6 pages

In this paper, you will:

1)Introduce the author and the article.

2)Discuss the overall argument of the text.

3)Explain your project for the paper, including a “road map” for your reader.

4)Identify main claims and what you see as important sub-claims.

5)Thoroughly discuss the author’s use of evidence.

6)Explore the rhetorical strategies present (e.g. ethos, pathos, logos).

7)Evaluate to what extent these methods (evidence, strategies, etc.) are likely to convince his audience.

8)Identify the intended audience and discuss the assumptions Thompson makes.

9)Examine the strengths and weaknesses of Thompson’s argument (you can focus on elements that most lend themselves to analysis).

10)Conclude your thoughts cohesively, tying up all loose ends.

11) So what? Why do we care? Explore future significance and the bigger picture.

Requirements:

  • Papers will be ~6 pages in length.
  • 12pt font, 1 inch margins, and in MLA format.
  • Use specific quotes and lines of evidence, and when doing so, be sure to give credit where credit is due. (Ex. Thompson asserts, “….” (p. 5)).
  • Refer to your Keys for Writers.

VIDEOS & links: pre-reading resources

  • Clive Thompson'sbio(from the site for his book,Smarter Than You Think.)
  • Thompson'swikipedia page,twitter feedandblog
  • Video of Thompsondiscussing some of the claims in his book with Andrew Keen of TechCrunch TV (10 minutes). Video interview about the bookon Huffington Post (12 minutes).
  • Video ofThompson from CBS This Morning show. Short (3.45)
  • Review of the bookby Walter Isaacson of the New York Times. Acollection of reviewsfrom other sources (selected by the publisher of Thompson's book).

Questions to Ask About the Text BEFORE You Read[1]

Previewing, Skimming, Surveying

Your time is valuable. If you’re like most students, you want to finish your reading as quickly as possible. You have other readings for other classes and a fair amount of homework. However, you can learn a lot about a text before you even begin reading and it’s worth it to take a few extra minutes to ask these questions before you begin the reading assignment.

  1. What can I learn from the title? While titles can sometimes be general or provide few clues to the content of the work, a critical reader can often learn a lot about a text based on its title. A title may indicate the author’s point of view on the subject (e.g. “Keep the Borders Open”) or reveal the author’s argument (e.g. “A Change of Heart About Animals”).
  1. What do I know about the author? In many academic texts, such as course readers and textbooks, publishers often include a short biographical sketch of the author. From this information a reader can gain insight into the author’s background, credentials, project, argument, purpose, and more. Even when the editor of the course reader or text book doesn’t give you an introduction, you can do a simple Google search to help determine the author’s authority, credentials, background, etc. Many writers (and most academics) have web sites that will tell you a lot about them and the work they do.

You can also use the San Diego State’s online biography resources:


  1. Who is the publisher? While a publisher’s reputation is not an automatic indicator of the source’s reliability, you can learn a lot by discovering who published a particular work. For example, university presses and academic journals tend to expect a high degree of scholarship and many of these works are peer reviewed to ensure a text’s quality. When reading popular periodicals, you may discover that certain magazines and newspapers consistently reflect certain political positions, which can help you anticipate the political position of the text you are about to read. You may also be able to identify the target audience for this particular text, based on the publication source.
  1. When was the text written? Locating the date of publication can provide useful information about the rhetorical context in which the writer developed their work.
  1. What can I learn from skimming the text? Proficient readers often skim through a text before reading to gather important information.
  • You can survey the organization of the text, looking for text divisions, section headings, and subtitles, which may give clues about the text.
  • You can also note important signal words, such as therefore, so, thus, but, however, for example, first, second, etc. to learn more about the structure of the argument and the rhetorical work of the writer.
  • Skim the visuals and note the relationship between the visual and written text.
  • Look for head-notes, footnotes, and biographical information.

Charting a Text

Charting[2] involves annotating a text in order to show the “work” each paragraph, group of paragraphs, or section is doing. Charting helps identify what each part of the text is doing as well as what it is saying—helping us move away from summary to analysis. There are two strategies for charting that we’ll look at: macro-charting and micro-charting.

MACRO-CHARTING

How do we do macro-charting?
•Break text down into sections--identify “chunks” or parts of the text that seem to work together to DO something for the overall argument.
•Draw lines between sections and label each one, annotating them with “doing” verbs: providing context, making a claim, supporting a claim, rebutting counter argument, illustrating with personal anecdote, describing the issue, etc.
Why do we do macro-charting?
•Macro-charting helps with understanding structure of argument, as well as locating claims, supporting evidence, and main argument.
•Macro-charting guides students toward identifying relationships between ideas.
•Macro-charting brings awareness that behind every sentence there is an author with intent who makes rhetorical choices to achieve his/her aims.

MICRO-CHARTING

How do we do micro-charting?
•Break down sections of text by paragraph to analyze what each paragraph is doing for the overall argument.
•Detail the smaller “moves” and strategies made within paragraphs: note when, where, and how and author makes a claim, cites evidence, and/or supports his/argument using a rhetorical strategy.
Why do we do micro-charting?
•Micro-charting can serve as a way to thoroughly understand in a detailed way how a text is put together.
•Micro-charting encourages readers to look more carefully and closely at a text and helps us to focus our reading on tasks asked for in prompts.
•Micro-charting brings awareness of the specific rhetorical choices made throughout a text (addressing particular audiences by making deliberate moves).

Thompson Group Charting Exercise

  1. Chart the first few paragraphs together as a class
  2. Divide sections of Thompson and assign major sections to 4 groups.
  3. Group 1: pages 48 – 51
  4. Group 2: pages 51 – 56
  5. Group 3 pages 56 – 61
  6. Group 4 pages 66 - end

Chart for major “moves” (see “I Know What it Says…” handout in reader).

Look also for claims, evidence, examples, rebuttals, analogies, persuasive strategies, appeals to ethos and pathos, etc.

Some Questions to Ask Any Text

THE BIG PICTURE

  1. Who is the audience? Who is the author trying to reach? (age, gender, cultural background, class, etc.) Which elements of the text – both things included, and things left out – provide clues about the intended audience? How does the author represent the audience
  2. Who is the author, and where is she coming from? What can you find out about the author? What can you find out about the organization, publication, web site, or source she is writing for?
  3. Whatis the author’s purpose? What is the question at issue? Why has the author written this text? What is the problem, dispute, or question being addressed? What motivated her to write, what does she hope to accomplish, and how does she hope to influence the audience?
  4. What is the context - what is the situation that prompted the writing of this text, & how do you know? When was the text created, and what was going on at the time? Can you think of any social, political, or economic conditions that are particularly important?
  5. What “conversation” is the author trying to join? It’s unlikely the author is the first person to write on a particular topic. As Graff points out, writers invariably add their voices to a larger conversation. How does the author respond to other texts? How does she enter the conversation (“Many authors have argued X, but as Smith shows, this position is flawed, and I will extend Smith’s critique by presenting data that shows…”) How does the author position herself in relation to other authors?
  6. How does the author claim “centrality,” i.e. establish that the topic being discussed matters, and that readers should care?
  7. What is the author’s “stance”? What is his attitude toward the subject, and how does this come across in his language?
  8. What research went into writing the text, what material does the author examine?(project)

ARGUMENT & PERSUASION

  1. What is the most important sentence in this text, to you? Why?
  2. What is the author’s overall argument, or central claim?
  3. What are the most important (sub) claims?
  4. How does the author establish her authority/credibility? (ethos)
  5. How does the author connect with your emotions? (pathos)
  6. What evidence or reasons does the author provide, and do they convince you? (logos)
  7. What are you being asked to believe, think, or do? (persuasion)
  8. How is the text organized? Why do you think the author organized the text this way? What effect does it have?
  9. Does the author respond to other arguments, and if so, are they treated fairly?
  10. How do the author’s stylistic choices reinforce or advance the argument? Howdo word choice, imagery, metaphor, design, etc. help persuade?
  11. How does the author frame the issues? Does the author’srepresentation of the issue or problem invite the audience to see things from a particular perspective? How does this help persuade?
  12. How does the author define the central terms being discussed? How does this help persuade?
  13. What assumptions can you identify? What does the author take for granted, and what does this tell you about her argument?
  14. What implications follow from the author’s argument?
  15. Does the author use metadiscourse? Are there moments when the author talks about what he is doing, or addresses the audience directly? Is this persuasive? How?

Summary & Notes on Thompson

Thompson, Clive. Pages 46-61 of the book Smarter Than You Think, Penguin Press, 2013.