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 8 Introduction & Tasks
Introduction
At this point in you educational process nearly every writing assignment will require second-hand information. That means it won't be research you have conducted yourself. It will be research done by someone else, and you need to develop skills in assessing the quality of the information you choose to use. The relative quality of information is based on a variety of assessment criteria such as credibility, validity, relevance, accuracy, and development. This week credibility and validity will be discussed.
Prompt: What have you learned about credibility and validity that you didn't already know? Will that information be useful as you continue work on your project? How? Why? Which of the techniques is most important? Why?
It doesn't matter whether you are reading a book, using an article from a subscription database or the open web, watching a documentary, or doing a personal interview, when it comes to research QUALITY is essential. Many sites on the web explain how to evaluate sources, but they often focus primarily on digital sources; however, many of the same techniques can be applied to other types of source material.
Guest lecture prepared by Dr. Bob Baker:
Guest lecture prepared by a student:
You will need to make at least 3 posts in the 8a discussion.
Then determine which of the three you think would be most useful in an academic essay and explain why.
NOTE: We are discussing these articles because they relate to the issue I use for examples in the class. You should NOT engage with the ideas in the articles, nor should you take sides on the issue. The charge is to analyze the credibility and validity of these articles for the purpose of determining which would be the stronger choice for use in a scholarly essay.
You will need to make at least 3 posts in the 8b discussion.
Week 8 Assessment Rubric
This is the assessment rubric I will use to evaluate the discussions this week.
GD (Graded Discussion)
Assessment Rubric
Possible
Earned
8a
8b
Timing
First post no later than Thursday
1
1
2
Frequency
At least 3 well-developed posts in each discussion.
3
3
6
Quality
* 5-7 pts per high-quality post
* 3-4 pts per medium-quality post
* 0-2 pts per low-quality post
21
21
42
Total Earned
50
Comments:
For grading quality I choose the 3 best posts made in a discussion. The more posts you make, the more chances you have of crafting 3 that are excellent.
Each post should be at least one well-crafted paragraph and add value to the discussion. This can be done in a variety of ways:
* provide evidence of understanding assigned materials;
* engage with the ideas of others in the class;
* integrate ideas from experts (yes, research);
* include well supported interpretations;
* demonstrate a clear understanding of the facts; etc.
* All posts should be clearly written and carefully edited to eliminate grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors. Quality criteria
*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. Note: posts that simply agree or disagree will earn little, if any, credit.
