identify the thesis, summarize the text, recognize rhetorical devices such as parallelism, and comprehend metaphorical language.
describe, evaluate, and question the purpose, audience, organization, and style of assigned readings, as well as determine a writer’s background, historical period, and cultural niche for discussion of bias, diversity or shifting perspectives.
carry out a research plan which entails identification of research questions, location and evaluation of sources, selection of quotes, and avoidance of plagiarism.
demonstrate control of college-level writing skills by crafting and revising cogent, lucid arguments. The student’s writing will exhibit logical, clear thinking, control of meaning, maturity of style, and appropriate tone.
employ thesis statements, topic sentences, supporting data, introductions, and conclusions. They will effectively incorporate source material located during research.
demonstrate appropriate skill in common writing conventions, including standard written American English, and correct MLA documentation and formatting.
Week 5 Introduction & Tasks
Introduction
This week you'll be working on research for your project. Even though the assignment requires only a few sources, you should gather as many as you can while you're doing this research task. That way you will need to do less research later.
Consider this brief tutorial about thesis writing:
Your essay will be an argument that directly supports or refutes the proposed initiative that you've chosen from the approved list on the Project assignment page. Because these are initiatives which voters must approve or reject, your essay will, of necessity, either support or refute the position of the subject you've taken.
If what you learn through research supports the argument made in the proposition, then you would take a position in favor of it. If your research refutes the argument made in the proposition, then you would take a position against it and offer an alternative that you think would work better. You should not be researching for the purpose of supporting a preconceived idea about the subject.
It's not possible to take a valid position until research has been done. Up to this point you've been using a thesis that was based more on personal opinion than supported by fact. As you read the articles you gather for the annotated bibliography, consider how what you learn from them might affect your thesis. Then, refine the thesis based on the new knowledge and include it in your annotated bibliography.
In the 5a discussion you will examine the various types of thesis statements and how each of them might be used. You will need to post at least 3 times in the 5a discussion.
In Week 1 you were asked to select a subject from those listed on the project page.
In Week 2 you learned how to set up a document in standard MLA format.
In Week 3 you learned how to develop research questions.
In Week 4 you learned about writing summaries and citing sources.
This week you will be gathering sources to answer your research questions, summarizing their messages, and evaluating whether they will be useful to your final project in this class. This is also an excellent forum in which to ask questions about the 5b Annotated Bibliography due this week.
There are a number of requirements and restrictions for this assignment:
The document will be prepared in MLA format.
The document will contain your subject choice (from list on Project page).
The document will contain a research question (about the subject).
The bibliography will contain at least 5 sources.
All but 1 source will be located using campus-provided subscription databases.
1 source will be a published visual, such as a cartoon, a graphic, a chart, a diagram, or a photo.
None of the sources will be a Wikipedia or any other encyclopedia article.
None of the sources will be from a sacred text.
All sources will be properly identified in MLA citation format.
All 5 of the sources will have annotations.
Annotations will provide a brief summary and a brief explanation of the usefulness of the source.
Each annotation should be one well-developed paragraph or more.
There will be no grammar, punctuation, word choice or spelling errors in the document.
Submission
Submit one copy of the annotated bibliography as an attachment in the Wk 5 5b discussion thread.
Submit one copy of the annotated bibliography as an attachment in the Wk 5 5b assignment drop.
You only need to submit the files as indicated. You don't need to make additional posts in the 5b thread; however, once again, it would be a good idea to read the posts of those who are working on a similar subject. Ask questions of one another if you like. Observe the differences in preparation styles. All of this can help you to improve your own academic writing.
Examples
These examples give you a clear picture of what I'm asking you to do. They are all set up in proper MLA format, including the citations. Notice that the format on the web example below is somewhat different than the word processing files. This is because it's much more difficult to do things like double spacing and hanging indents on a web page (just as it is in our discussion forums).
Just below you will find a 5b example as part of this web page.
Rich text format file of a longer example. This one has a more extensive list of sources, some of which are not annotated. Again, right click and save the file to your computer to open with your word processing application.
5b Example:
Student Name
Course + Task ID (example: ENGL2 5b)
Date (example: 15 March 2011)
Subject: Federal marijuana policies
Debate question: Should marijuana be legalized and regulated for recreational use?
Annotated Bibliography
Berger, Noah. “Cannabis Conventions.” Time Photos. 11 Nov. 2010. Web. 31 Aug. 2011. <http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1984302_2129693,00.html>
The image above accompanies an article about marijuana use in America. The selection of this photo perpetuates the stereotype of marijuana users as being somewhat less than responsible, young, and on the fringe of society.
Cooper, Mary H. "War on Drugs." CQ Researcher 3.11 (1993): 241-264. CQ Researcher. Web. 20 Oct. 2010. <http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/cqresrre1993031900>.
This report gives an overview of thinking about the War on Drugs and how Reagan “launched an all-out effort to rid the country of illegal substances, chiefly cocaine, heroin and marijuana.” Of course, Nixon began the “War on Drugs,” but it was Reagan’s emphasis and funding that led to the draconian measures that swept the nation and resulted in such devastating social and economic effects... and did nothing to diminish the use of drugs by Americans. This is important information background information, but I would need more current data about the costs associated with the “War on Drugs”.
The image above contradicts the hop head youth image in the Berger article. There's a double meaning in the use of "joints". One might ask whether seniors are taking up the drug because it is more socially accepted now, or whether it's because they used it when young and are returning to its use as their bodies are hurting more. Note to self: Look up statistics on the self-limiting of drug use. Seem to recall something about most youth cutting way down on or giving up drugs during their adult years.
Henry, Kimberly L., Terence P. Thornberry, and David H. Huizinga. "A discrete-time survival analysis of the relationship between truancy and the onset of marijuana use." Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs 70.1 (2009): 5+. Expanded Academic ASAP. Web. 20 Oct. 2010. Gale Document Number:A192590190
This study is relevant to the argument that marijuana is a gateway drug. The result of this study shows that “truancy was a significant predictor of the initiation of marijuana use...” That makes me wonder about cause/effect questions. For instance, maybe the ease of access to marijuana has more to do with it being a drug of choice early on rather than functioning as a gateway to harder drugs. Maybe the progression would happen regardless of which drug was chosen first, just because the youth had risk factors that are common to both truancy and drug use.
Norton, Aaron. "A hidden effect of marijuana use: findings on sleep give clinicians an opportunity to discuss marijuana's harms." Addiction Professional 6.4 (2008): 37+. Expanded Academic ASAP. Web. 20 Oct. 2010. Gale Document Number:A181820808
This article brings up another of the documented health hazards of marijuana use. It’s important to include several of these as one must weigh the obvious costs against the potential benefits. In this case, the cost is in sleep disruption. The bottom line of the article: “It’s a simple equation and it's not hard to get it out to clients: Marijuana decreases sleep quality, which in turn affects overall quality of life by contributing to memory impairment, unpleasant moods, immune system impairment, and a host of other significant deficits.” Maybe there should be a section just on the proven health costs because there is so much misinformation that claims marijuana is essentially harmless.
Rowe, James. "Dealing with Dope: drugs research officer James Rowe diagnoses a case of `moral panic' in press reactions to marijuana law reform. (Essay)." Meanjin 61.2 (2002): 91+. Expanded Academic ASAP. Web. 20 Oct. 2010. Gale Document Number:A87509116
This article brings up a new term for me: “moral panic.” Rowe states, “Stanley Cohen coined the term ‘moral panic’ thirty years ago. It describes how ‘a condition, episode, person or group of persons’ comes to be ‘defined as a threat to societal values and interests.’” A couple of the examples are downright funny, especially those that come from the supposed liberals: “Liberal Ken Smith warned that marijuana ‘will shrink your testicles’ and stated that ‘it has been proven that smoking cannabis can cause schizophrenia in people who have never suffered from it before.’” Even though the claims are not valid, there are citations for each example, so these could be used to lighten the essay a bit.
Starobin, Paul. "California Goes To Pot." National Journal (2010). Expanded Academic ASAP. Web. 20 Oct. 2010. Gale Document Number:A229907923
Starobin notes, “Not since antebellum times have so many states sought, in effect, to nullify the federal law of the land. In this instance, the seat of rebellion is not the South but the West, with its frontier, ‘don't tread on me’ mind-set and its own history of resentment toward Washington.” This will be a useful article to bring in the pragmatic stance that there are some laws which simply should no longer be laws, or at least they should not carry the same draconian punishments they have in the past. It also brings up the difference between federal and state laws.
Assessment Rubric
The tasks this week will be graded using the assessment rubric below. Use it as a checklist to assure you do not miss an important requirement.
5a Graded Discussion Assessment Rubric
Max
Earned
Timing: First post no later than Thursday
1
1
Frequency: At least 3 well-developed posts in the discussion.
3
3
Quality
* 5-7 pts per high-quality post
* 3-4 pts per medium-quality post
* 0-2 pts per low-quality post
21
21
Total Earned
25
Comments:
For grading quality I choose the 3 best posts made in a discussion; the more posts you make, the more likely you will be able to earn maximum credit.
Quality post characteristics
*High quality (5-7 pts.) = Purposeful development; clear evidence of understanding reading assignments; extends the boundaries of the discussion but remains focused on topic; may demonstrate synthesis of ideas from multiple sources; there are few or no grammar, word use, punctuation or other errors.
*Medium quality (3-4 pts.) = Moderate development; shows evidence of reading assignments; may lack depth or show some lack of comprehension; there may be grammar, word use, punctuation or other errors, but they do not interfere with the meaning in the post.
*Low quality (0-2 pts.) = Limited in scope, development, and correctness; may simply agree or disagree with another in the class; little if any evidence of having read the assignments; may be numerous grammar, word use, punctuation or other errors.
Special note: If less than 22 points is earned on the 5b task, it can be revised for an improved score. Revision should be done as soon as possible, and the revised version should be submitted as an attachment in the Week 18 Revisions Drop.
5b Annotated Bibliography Assessment Rubric
Max
Earned
Timing: Posted by due date in 5b discussion AND 5b assignment drop
1
1
Quality Expectations for this writing task:
Post is prepared in MLA format (4 pts)
Header at upper left includes
name,
class & task ID, and
date of submission
Preliminary claim is clearly stated
Bibliography in MLA format (10 pts)
At least 4 academic quality text sources
All text sources are from campus-provided subscription databases.
At least 1 published visual
Cartoon, photograph, chart, illustration, etc.
May be selected from an open web source
1 source will be a published visual.
None of the sources will be a Wikipedia or other encyclopedia article.
None of the sources will be from a sacred text.
Citations are prepared in MLA format including
list in alphabetical order
citation elements in correct order
correct punctuation
correct capitalization
correct use of italics
no spelling errors
Annotations (10 pts)
at least 5 sources are annotated
annotation follows citation, beginning on a new line
annotation summarizes source
annotation explains why source might be of value in essay
